Father’s Day is quickly approaching. Did you know that it was not an official permanent federal holiday until Richard Nixon signed a proclamation in 1972? That’s only 47 years ago! Mother’s Day was made an official holiday much earlier in 1914. I guess the importance of the mother’s role was more evident back then than the father’s role!
Father’s Day is celebrated the third Sunday in June which fall’s on June 16th this year. I know not everyone celebrates that day. Not everyone had a loving father, some of you may have never even known your biological father, and other’s fathers have passed away. I was fortunate to not only have a good loving father but one who also is a Christian and made sure we were in church every time the doors were open.
There are all types of earthly fathers. In the bible God is often called “our Father,” but what does that mean? What kind of a Father is He? Let’s see what the bible says…
1. Our Heavenly Father… is our Creator
“But now, O Lord, You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand.” – Isaiah 64:8
I guess, technically, all human fathers are the creator of their children. But how many earthly fathers know the number of the hairs on their child’s head? I venture to say not even the very best human father knows their children that well, but God does!
“Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.” – Luke 12:6-7
God is not a casual creator of His children. His children are not just a “random” by-product for which He has no control over the final product. He lovingly created each and every one of us uniquely and intentionally.
“For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.” – Psalm 139:13
And not only does He know how many hairs are on our head, but He knows EVERY detail of our being.
“O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.” – Psalm 139:1-4
You were created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). Regardless of how your life began, you are not an “accident” or a “mistake.” You are a child of the King who wants to have a relationship with you.
2. Our Heavenly Father… is consistent
“Every good thing given, and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” – James 1:17
This is another area that even really good earthly fathers may waffle with; inconsistency in when and how they discipline, inconsistency in their temperament, perhaps even inconsistency in their beliefs. But not God, He is unchanging.
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” – Hebrews 13:8
This verse calls out “Jesus Christ” and not God, but since Jesus is the physical embodiment of God (we’ll have to save details of that topic for another article) the same applies to God (“He who has seen Me has seen the Father” – John 14:9, “I and the Father are one.” – John 10:30).
God states His consistency Himself as quoted in Malachi:
“For I, the Lord, do not change “– Malachi 3:6a
We see different emotions displayed by Jesus in the Bible. But remember He is the very embodiment of God the Father. His promises, His provisions and His protection are steadfast. You can rest on the fact that His faithfulness endures to all generations (Psalm 119:90).
3. Our Heavenly Father… loves us
“See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God;” – 1 John 3:1a
You may not have felt loved by your earthly father but there is no denying the love of your Heavenly Father. Remember, He CHOSE to create YOU!
God’s love for us is what motivated Him to send Jesus Christ into the world so that we could have everlasting life (John 3:16). Our sins separated us from God, but Christ was sacrificed to pay our debt and restore us. That sacrifice not only brings us peace with God, it also brings us into a personal, loving relationship with Him.
“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, … and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” – Romans 5:1, 5
There may be times when you don’t feel like God loves you, but how you feel doesn’t change the truth. I remember when David and I were first married we visited with some of his extended family in Mississippi. He had one relative that was convinced that America never sent a man to the moon and that we didn’t really launch men into space at all. David and I both worked on the Space Shuttle at that time and knew from our own personal first hand experience that he was wrong. Regardless of how strongly this relative felt on the subject, it didn’t change the truth. Remember, God is not who you think He is, He is who He says He is in the Bible.
Whenever you are in one of those “moods” and feeling unloved, I encourage you to open your Bible to the book of John and trust God at His word. John was the closest disciple to Jesus and writes from the experiences he enjoyed knowing Christ personally.
And because He loves us…
4. Our Heavenly Father… disciplines us
“It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” – Hebrews 12:7-11
As these verses indicate, discipline is never fun. And as a parent, I can tell you that it is not fun both for the one receiving it and for the one giving it. However, it is necessary to shape the ones we love and keep them out of trouble.
Likewise, because God loves us, he molds us and corrects us to keep us on the path of righteousness.
“My son, do not reject the discipline of the Lord
Or loathe His reproof,
For whom the Lord loves He reproves,
Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.” – Proverbs 3:11-12
Did you catch that last part of the verse? “Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.” It is the father that is concerned with what type of a man his son will grow into that provides discipline. It is the father that wants the best for his child that provides guidance and correction when needed. Which leads us to the last point…
5. Our Heavenly Father… wants what is best for us
“Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!” – Matthew 7:9-11
Your earthly father may not always have had your best interest at heart, but your heavenly Father does. And if you did have a loving, giving father, how much more God wants to bless you! In Jeremiah we read of God’s words to the exiles:
“’For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’” – Jeremiah 29:11
And from Matthew we learn:
“Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” – Matthew 6:8b
We can stand on the promises in God’s Word and rest assured that our circumstances are filtered through His loving fingers.
As Father’s Day approaches, I encourage you to take some time to not only honor your earthly father but to spend time reflecting on the love of your Heavenly Father as well. He loves you like no one else has or ever can!
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