Father’s Day is a Time to Remind Fathers
- a time to remind fathers to bring up their children “in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4) by “encouraging, comforting and urging them to live lives worthy of God” (1 Thess. 2:11-12)
- a time to remind fathers to work at leaving a positive impression on their children, not to provoke or exasperate them (Eph. 6:4)
Father’s Day is a Time to Remind Children
- a time to remind children that to honor and obey their fathers isn’t just for the benefit of the parent but also for their own good “so that it may go well with” (Prov. 19:26; 20:20; 23:22; Eph. 6:1-3)
- a time to remind children of the joy they can bring to their father by living wisely, not merely by what they say on this one special day (Prov. 15:20; 23:24-25; 29:3)
Father’s Day is a Time to Remember the Greatest Father
- a time to remember God as “a father to the fatherless” (Ps. 27:10; 68:5) who comforts those who did not grow up with a father or who perhaps had an ungodly father who wasn’t there for them as he should have been
- a time to remember God as the Greatest Father who can serve as a role model for earthly fathers (Matt. 7:9-11; Heb. 12:7-10; 1 Jn. 3:1)
The next post will look at God as Our Father. Subscribe to this blog to receive e-mail notice of new posts.
You might also be interested in: Father’s Day Ministry Resources
This article tells us that fathers day is a day for reminding everyone about their responsibilities, especially fathers. The article on mothers day tells us to be sensitive to everyone’s feelings about their mothers or their motherhood. This fits the societal pattern that there are deadbeat dads but no deadbeat moms. This is not biblical. My mother was an alcoholic. My dad made breakfast on school days while my mom was sleeping off her last blackout. She picked up her mother’s day flower whenever it was offered. The father’s day beat-down, is a common sermon topic on the day we choose to acknowledge the male contribution to the family progeny. On father’s day, Dad needs to be reminded that the success or failure of his family is all on his shoulders. He should be prepared to fall on his sword or go down swinging; but we know, statistically, that he is on the couch, watching sports, while his wife does everything else…every dad…all the time. ( Except when he is sinning sexually… then, no sports … every man …all the time.) So gird your loins or man-up or “suit-up and show-up”. You are saved by grace through faith BUT you really aren’t good enough. Try harder. The whole creation waits in eager expectation for the dad who will simply do his God-ordained job. After that, I go home encouraged to love and good deeds; grateful indeed to be alive at such a time as this and to hear such a fervent reminder of my responsibilities. My mind is renewed and I am closer to being transformed into the graven image of “christian manliness” that the church leadership worships. I feel “challenged” in more than one way. I cordially dislike father’s day at church and have often wished I were sick that day. I have spoken out about the beatdown sermons and our pulpit has changed but I still go in dread of what the topic will be on father’s day.
Anon, your reaction to Father’s Day certainly is understandable. To be sure, both fathers and mothers have responsibilities before God and either can fail to fulfill their responsibilities. For that reason the article you referenced about being sensitive to mothers deals with both (Let’s Be Sensitive on Mother’s and Father’s Day). And then there’s another post, But My Mother (Father) Abused Me, which deals with the possibility of either parent.
God’s Word does provide guidelines that lead to healthy family relationships rather than dysfunctional or abusive ones. Laying a guilt trip on people for their failures will not be the answer but rather grace. — “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, speak truth in love.” (Titus 2:11-12) — So, in reality, we are, as you wrote, saved by grace but we also live by grace. As a Church, that doesn’t mean we avoid communicating God-given responsibilities but we must always speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). We must always care about the people we serve, not just “speak” at them. Sadly this does not always happen in every church but that is God’s intent.