Behold Our Caring Father

Recently, I was asked to speak about our caring Father at local ladies fellowship. I agreed, thinking, “easy peasy.” As it turns out that’s kind of true. There’s plenty to say, but there’s also plenty to say. If you look up “father” in a concordance, you’ll find it 1,200-1,300ish times in the Old Testament. It only occurs in the New Testament a measly 412-418 times… Where to begin? For me, it was all about the question, “How are earthly fathers different from our Heavenly Father?”

Earthly Fathers

In order to make sure we’re on the same page, I did a silly thing. I looked up the definition of “father.” It turns out, it’s not a long one. A father is “a male parent.” Thanks, Merriam-Webster!

But there’s more to it than that. What else makes a father? What are his responsibilities? Well, according to most secular sources, there are some roles for fathers upon which people generally agree.

1. Provision (food, home, clothing)
2. Protection (physical safety)
3. Discipline (I’m not convinced this happens much any longer.)
4. Guidance/Role-Modeling

I’ll add that I believe it’s typically understood that “love” underpins all those responsibilities. At least, that’s the expectation. A father should do these things from love, not because he’s having his arm twisted by his wife or societal expectations.

Biblical Fathers

As Christians, we should take time to consider what the Bible tells fathers they ought to be doing. The world has its opinions, but we know where to find truth. His Word.

1. Train up children in the knowledge of the Lord

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

Proverbs 22:6

“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise”

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

Deuteronomy 11:18-19

We often pass this role to our Sunday School teachers and pastors, but mom and dad have this responsibility.

2. Don’t provoke them to anger; don’t discourage

“Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

Ephesians 6:4

“Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.”

Colossians 3:21

These verses are a necessary warning to discipline children with love, consistency, and without abusing one’s authority. Always be redirecting to God.

3. Discipline

“Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.”

Proverbs 13:24

“Discipline your son, for there is hope; do not set your heart on putting him to death.”

Proverbs 19:18

“Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live?”

Hebrews 12:9

4. Show Compassion

“As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.”

Psalm 103:13

5. Provide

“But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

1 Timothy 5:8

And just like the list we discussed that comes from a secular worldview, these biblical instructions should be carried out in love. However, even if that’s so, earthly fathers, including those who are living for the Lord, have one big problem. They’re people! And all people are imperfect and apt to sin.

All Earthly Fathers Fall Short

It doesn’t matter who the father is, he’ll fall short. The best dads, even the God-honoring ones, succumb to their sin nature on occasion. A great dad will still lose his temper, get priorities out of whack, fail to discipline, etc. Those men, though, repent, reconcile, and continue to follow after God. I don’t want to ruin your day, but most fathers in the world aren’t believers, and of those who are, many aren’t walking right with the Lord.

“Bad” Dads

What about “bad” dads? I want to park here for a moment because this is actually incredibly important. I’ve found that a lot of believers, from Christian homes especially, don’t fully grasp the effect, spiritually, of having a relationship with a toxic, unhealthy, or just plain bad father. Believe it or not, these fathers can severely impact their children’s openness to a God known as the “Father.”

Imagine this scenario: A woman in her mid-twenties gets married, goes on a honeymoon, and then returns home to start her life as a married woman. A couple of weeks later, she arrives home from work and opens her laptop to find an email from her dad and stepmom. Essentially, it says that she’s a terrible person, a fake as a Christian, and they want nothing to do with her. She is no longer welcome in their lives. She quickly discovers that her father and entire stepfamily have unfriended her on social media. Just like that, her dad has turned his back on her indefinitely.

That’s a wild story, right? No father would do that to his daughter…Mine did. That happened in August 2009. To be fair, it wasn’t completely out of nowhere. We weren’t the picture of a perfect father/daughter relationship and then BAM! Nonetheless, it was gut-wrenching. My father completely rejected me, and he confirmed a suspicion I’d always had. He loved me conditionally.

By God’s grace, I had been saved for nearly 4 months. I was able to be thankful, but not for my dad breaking up with me, essentially. I was thankful because I understood enough by then to know that I had a Father far greater than an earthly one. No matter what my dad says to me, how he looks at me, or what he does to me, I have a Father who will always love and care for me.

Father As A Bad Word

Let’s remember that there are people who would experience this scenario very differently because they aren’t believers. Think about the children of fathers who are adulterers, absentees, addicts, or violent/abusive. Do you want to take a guess at how they respond to the idea of a Heavenly Father? They’re repulsed by it. Their picture of a father is very different than ours.

Instead of a caring father, they would their father:

1. Lets me down
2. Is untrustworthy
3. Is unsafe
4. Hurts me
5. Can’t be counted on

For some of these individuals, “father” is a stumbling block to salvation.

We have to know our Father in Heaven well enough to contrast His perfect nature against our earthly fathers’ imperfect one. The word father simply isn’t innately positive for everyone, so it’s imperative that we understand our caring Father, not just for our own growth and relationship with God, but for those with whom we share the gospel.

God, Our Caring Father

Let’s consider our caring Father through 1 John 3:1

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.”

1 John 3:1

I’ll cut to the chase. The most amazing thing God the Father has done for us, showing the most love and care possible, was to give us the ability to become His children. Here’s the tricky bit, though. First John is a book written to believers. Note the second half of the verse above. The world doesn’t know us because it doesn’t know God. There is a divide between God’s children (i.e., Christians) and those who aren’t His children (i.e., the unsaved).

So, whose children are those who are not born-again Christians? In First John, the author writes to Christians, warning them that there ought to be evidence of their spiritual standing with God. If they don’t live according to God’s ways, then they demonstrate that they aren’t His children. They belong to the Enemy.

“By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”

1 John 3:10

Jesus says something similar in John 8 when he responds to his critics who claim to be Abraham’s sons. Jesus tells them they actually belong to another.

“You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

John 8:44

This is an uncomfortable truth, but thankfully, our Father cares for us so much that He hasn’t left us to be the children of the Father of Lies. Instead,

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

John 3:16

If you’re reading this, you’re probably saying to yourself, “I’m a Christian. I’m a child of God.” Amen! Just indulge me for a moment, though, as I remind us that, according to God’s Word, a lot of people say that who shouldn’t.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

Matthew 7:21-23

These people rely on their works. They list out all that they have done, but if we could save ourselves, there would be no need for Jesus’ work on the cross.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Ephesians 2:8-9

Make Sure He’s Your Caring Father

If you’re not a Christian or perhaps aren’t sure:

First, understand that we are never going to be good enough.

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Romans 3:23

Second, sin has consequences. There’s no such thing as a sin that’s “small.” If you break one of God’s laws, then it’s as if you’ve broken them all.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23  

“For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.”

James 2:10

Finally, there is good news for all of us. God sent his Son, Jesus, to take our punishment on the cross. He was buried, and three days later he rose back to life, defeating death. His sacrifice and victory over death means we can live, too! All we need to do is repent (turn away from our sin and toward Christ) and believe in Jesus.  

“but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:8

“because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

Romans 10:9-10

Our Caring Father Adopts Us

While knowing that we love our sin and reject Him, our caring Father sent Jesus to take our well-deserved punishment so that we can be reconciled to Him and spend eternity with Him. Frankly, I could stop right here, and that should be more than enough for us to see why God the Father cares for us in a way no earthly father could, but there’s so much more!

Do you remember what 1 John 3:1 said?

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.”

1 John 3:1

Yes, He gave us a path to salvation, but it’s not just an emergency exit. Salvation brings us into a personal relationship with the Lord.

According to the Bible, born-again Christians are His children through adoption. If that’s you, that means the Father has chosen to take you into His family, and you aren’t just a guest with Him. You are his daughter. Here’s a quick look at some of what that means for you.

“he predestined usfor adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,”

Ephesians 1:5

Our adoption is no accident. He wants us as His children.

“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

Romans 8:15

“Abba” is a word for father we have the privilege of using when we become God’s children because it is reserved for a more intimate relationship. It indicates a closeness that can only exist between a child and her father, not a child and some distant god.

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”

Romans 8:16-17

This should blow us away. God has given us full access to His kingdom, the promise of eternal life with Him, and to one day finally be glorified and rid of sin. Maybe you’re wondering, “What about now?” How is He a caring Father to me today?

A Caring Father Today

Before anything else, you must be, as 1 John 3:1 says, a child of God. You’re saved and adopted, but the Father doesn’t just disappear until you meet Him on the other side of eternity. As you walk with Him and draw closer, He’ll draw closer, too. Let’s look at a few examples.

Creation

“yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.”

1 Corinthians 8:6

Admittedly, no one has ever confused me for an outdoor girl, but even those of us who prefer a coffee and cozy blanket on the couch can appreciate the world around us. How beautiful is this world? Even when nature around us is technically dying (that is, autumn), God puts on a show. We could live in a bland world, but instead, God filled the world with mesmerizing landscapes, fascinating and sometimes terrifying creatures, and a world filled with sights, sounds, and smells that can move us down to the soul. And we can even know Him through it.  

“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”

Romans 1:20

Provision

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:19

This can be tough to keep a firm grasp on because sometimes we don’t know what our actual needs are as opposed to what we assume we need. Plus, our timeline for needs to be met almost never looks like His. That’s my experience, at least.

“But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

Matthew 6:30-32

These verses remind us that God knows our needs, but when we worry over whether He will meet them, we lack faith. How is it that we have enough faith to believe He can save us, but we still wring our hands over the objectively smaller day-to-day needs?

Correction

“My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.”

Proverbs 3:11-12

Just like earthly fathers, God the Father corrects His children. Have you met children who are left to their own devices and receive no discipline from their parents? I’m just gonna say it. They’re awful. And that lack of correction ultimately hurts them. They often grow into adults who struggle to get along with people, to succeed in a professional work environment, and to move on when things don’t go their way.

The loving and caring thing to do is to correct and discipline our children to help them be the best versions of themselves that they can be. Of course, if we know to do this on an earthly level, our Heavenly Father will certainly do this for His children.  

Comfort and Compassion

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Where can you find these comforts? God Himself! And where better to get to know Him better and discover what He promises us than His Word? For instance, here’s a very familiar verse and promise that consistently brings comfort to Christians.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Psalm 23:4

There is a reason so many people refer to Psalm 23 when they are struggling. It’s a reminder that we never walk through the darkness alone. Yes, we walk through it, but He is with us the whole time.

It’s also worth noting that in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, we are told that we are able to comfort others because of the comfort we receive from the Father. Through our struggles, His love and care for us equips us to love and care for others in His name.

Oh, but sometimes it feels like too much! Yeah…I know. I’ve been there, too. However, it’s not if we let the Lord have our troubles.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30

If you know Jesus as your Savior, God’s provision for us to be reconciled to Him and spared judgment, then these famous verses apply to you. When we’re overwhelmed by difficulty and worry, no one can ease that burden like Jesus. The Father has given us comfort through our Suffering Servant, but we have to remember that, even in our darkest moments.

Final Thought

Being a Christian involves receiving a great deal of privilege. No, we don’t have ideal lives, and we do, in fact, continue to experience hurts and struggles. Many of us won’t live lives characterized by financial wealth and perfect health. What we do have, though, makes everything else pale in comparison.

We have a Father who cares so much for us that He sent His Son to die in our place so that we could be with Him. God, knowing we would reject Him, break His Laws, and love nearly anything more than Him, chose us to be His children, anyway.

Unlike our earthly fathers, He won’t ever leave us. God’s love is perfect, and it began before we existed, continues today, and will last forever. He won’t stop providing, correcting us (when we need it), and comforting us. Our caring Father won’t let us down, but I urge you to remember that so many people can’t fathom such a Father. So, know your Father intimately because you are His child, after all, but also know Him in order to be able to tell those folks hauling their daddy issues around with them in oversized baggage that they can let that go because there is a caring Father waiting for them.

How else has God proven to be a caring Father in your life?

Image courtesy of Jochen van Wylick via Unsplash.