Many men have contributed to procreation, but not all have been fathers. The biological and the spiritual differ. The term father is used very loosely these days, and that’s unfortunate for fathers. The example in all is God. He was and is the first Father, and made man in His image (Gen. 1:26).
A father is one who plans and establishes his title through commitment. He seeks a wife, one who will be his helper and a good mother. They enter into the covenant of marriage between each other and God. It is to this union of man and woman (Gen. 2:24) that in rejoicing God grants children (Gen. 4:1). That’s God’s plan.
A father plans time to direct his children, his family. He is charged with bringing up his children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4). This doesn’t eliminate mom from the process, but gives ultimate accountability and responsibility to the husband, father.
A father teaches his children. Moses pictured this training as a way of life, daily (Deut. 6:5-8). It’s the simplicity of the instruction that should be observed. A good father teaches his children along with mother the way of the Lord as a way of life. It doesn’t take a fancy school, just teaching very practically from life and living. A father will see to this.
A father understands the importance of discipline. The Lord said so (Heb.12:5-11). Discipline is administered out of love for the child (Prov. 13:24). Parents are to love their children enough to discipline them as needed, but again, the father is finally accountable for the welfare of his children.
A father is one who seeks to be fair in dealing with his family (Luke 15:11-32). He’s fair in knowing when to let go, and fair in repentance and return. The only time that God is pictured as running, is symbolically in this account and He is running to receive His lost son returning in repentance. That’s a father.
A father provides for his own (I Tim. 5:8). All that is needed he will work to provide. Food, clothing, and shelter are a given but as stated, education, discipline, and protection are most certainly included. The thought of an absentee father who abandons his responsibility is an example of one “worse than an infidel.”
A father loves his wife, mother of their children (Eph. 5:25). It has been said that the best thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother. This pattern shapes the home and the church and the world, for love is to be taught in the home.
The world, our world, desperately needs fathers! The Lord’s church today is in great need of men who will do as they should, step up to the responsibility to which they committed and be a father, a Christian man. Children deserve it, and our Father expects it. Happy Father’s Day!
-David Hill, President of Tennessee Bible College
