The man named Father.

A Father’s Day Special

Father.

One of the distinctive revelations of God in the New Testament is the unveiling of Him as Father. It was there in the Old testament, but it takes center point in the New.

For me as a young man, and for fathers out there, this is simultaneously humbling and honoring. It is an immense calling and responsibility. God demands a lot from fathers. He also gives them a lot. He understands them in a very distinct way, because He Himself is one.

The place of a father in the family, the church, and the society at large cannot be overemphasized. Statistics have shown that the presence and actions of a father are the singular most important primary determinants in the outcome of a child.

[14] For this reason [seeing the greatness of this plan by which you are built together in Christ], I bow my knees before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

[15] For Whom every family in heaven and on earth is named [that Father from Whom all fatherhood takes its title and derives its name].

Ephesians 3:14-15 (AMP)

These verses deal with the Fatherhood of God. We find different things there, but I will make reference to two of those issues – in reverse order.

• Firstly, it is this: all Fatherhood derives its name from God the Father. Think of it this way; there is an exclusive club that all fathers ought to belong to, and God, the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ is the president of that club. All true Fatherhood stems from God. A father is connected to God on account of being a father in no other way, any other thing that is connects him to God. Fathers ought to be named after God.

This is why all men must develop a solid father relationship with God. They will fail without it. This is also why the failure of a father is a disaster, because invariably, what it does is cast a shadow on the fatherhood of God.

A bad father is a poor representative of God. He gives God a bad name.

Why is this important? The Greek word that is translated as family is derived from the Greek word that is translated as Father.

• So in second place, we see that a family is named after the father. In a sense, another way of saying family is fatherhood. Therefore, a family can be said to be the sphere of a man’s fatherhood. This is seen evidently in the Scriptures and it has significant implications for men, for us as (either present or prospective) fathers.

A fatherhood derived from a father.

There are at least three implications of the fatherhood of a man:

One; The identity of a family ought to be derived from the father, that is, the identity of a family is an extension of the identity of a father. A man ought to confer identity on his family.

If a man’s name is John, whenever we meet the ‘Johns’, we should see a clear identity that is distinct, and everyone named a ‘John’ should be a carrier of that identity. It’s not farfetched to infer that a contributing factor to the identity crisis suffered by many young people points to either a lack of identity stemming from the family or an inconsistent sense of one.

Two; The definition of a family originates from the father. The father is saddled with the responsibility of defining his wife and his children. By definition we mean he gives shape, he cultivates and gives direction to his family. He defines boundaries, laws, and discipline. He understands and appreciates the uniqueness of everyone in his family and he is able to sit upon that till their distinct and unique colors shine brilliantly.

Third; The expression of a family is dependent on the room of the father. By room here, we mean the provision of the father. The provision he makes for the physical, emotional, psychological, mental, and spiritual aspects of the members of his family. He ought to see to it that he gives them room and structure to make sense of and maximize their possibilities and potential.

Every true Fatherhood derives its name from God. This is comforting for all fathers out there, even for those who haven’t been up and doing.

The comfort is this: In God, you have a Father. You are named after Him, so secure your connection to Him, and follow His example as a Father, maximizing all the resources He has made available to you and you will become a father built after our Father.

Happy Fathers Day. 🌸