Great Fathers

[dddoo7]

“Father” is defined as, “A man in relation to his child or children.” While this is a very basic definition of “father” it does not truly define the role or responsibilities of a father. There were many good fathers in the Bible to which we can look to as examples. Abraham was a good father. David was a good father. However each of these fathers made mistakes along the way and at times did things that do not characterize a good father. However, to see a truly perfect example of a father, we need to look no farther than God as our father. As Christians we are His children and He is our father. He is the one who provides the basic necessities of life to us throughout our lives (Matthew 6:26). God as our father provides the spiritual necessities that we need in our lives (Luke 11:13). God as our father provides us with instruction and direction (Psalm 23:3). God as our father give us protection from the evil that is in the world (Ephesians 6:11-18). God, as our father corrects us and admonishes us when we do wrong (Hebrews 12:6-10). God as our father sacrificed of Himself in order to save us and provide a way for us to see heaven.

While as earthly fathers we are not perfect and we do not provide these things to the same degree that our heavenly father does, we still have a responsibility on a lower level to provide these things to our children. As fathers, we are to provide basic necessities, yet we are also responsible to provide spiritual necessities and spiritual training to our children. We have the responsibility to teach them how to live, to teach them about God, to teach them about good and evil, truth and lies, love and hate. We have the responsibility to train them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). We, as their father will sacrifice of ourselves in order to help our children reach their potential and help them to be who they should be.

It is interesting that there are so many examples of good fathers in the Bible. Like we mentioned earlier, Abraham, David, Noah, and many others that I would consider great fathers. Yet all of these earthly fathers have one thing in common. They all made mistakes. They made mistakes in their lives that their kids saw, but they also made mistakes directly in their relationships with their children. As fathers, we are going to make mistakes. We strive for perfection, but we are not perfect and mistakes will happen. Yet each of these great fathers in the Bible admitted to their mistakes, repented of their mistakes, and changed. Again, we are to strive for perfection as fathers. Yet when we make mistakes we must quickly admit to those mistakes, repent of them, and change. Great fathers are not perfect fathers. Yet great fathers are fathers that know, teach, and live that which is right. Great fathers are those who strive for perfection, and admit when they are not perfect.

I am thankful for great fathers!