This week’s devotions are based on “Gifts from Our Father!” (WATCH HERE)
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads who read these devotions! Your impact and influence and importance in the life of your children should never be underestimated. You are a gift from God to them as you seek to bring God’s gifts to them!
Fatherhood is one of God’s designed for the health of children and of society. Everything that by God’s grace we are able to do and encourage men in the role they have been given is so important in a society that often diminishes, discourages, and discounts the men who desire to faithfully carry out this role.
What helps me be a godly Dad is to be reassured and reminded of my relationship with my heavenly Father. In this week’s message we focused on the baptism of Jesus and interaction with his Son on that special occasion when Jesus was set aside in a public way for the ministry of teaching and miracle working and most importantly his path to the cross and the empty tomb to do the work of saving humanity from the guilt and consequence of sin. The miraculous interaction of the Trinity expresses itself as the Father affirms his Son as the Spirit of God descends on him. Certainly this connection is closer and more divine than any human relationship, however is it possible to look at the interaction of the Father with his Son and see if and what part of this relationship is also true of our heavenly Father’s relationship with us.
Here’s what happened at Jesus’ baptism, recorded in Matthew 3:16-17: “As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
One might say that the words the Father spoke were for those that were gathered around so that they would know that Jesus was the Son of God and the focus of the Father’s love and good pleasure. Yes it was for those around. But to be sure the human/divine Savior Jesus would have been filled to hear his Father speak these words about him. These words are affirming. They are enduring. They are motivating.
One only has to imagine the opposite of these words being spoken and the consequences would have been catastrophic. If the Father DID NOT claim his Son, DID NOT love his Son or was NOT well pleased with him, not only would his credibility with the crowd have been crushed but the human psyche that desires the love and affirmation of a Father would have been smashed.
So while the words the Father spoke were special and unique as they were spoken to his Son, Jesus, they are words that are indicative of the Father’s gift to us as well. And then one must ask, “As one who has received these gifts from our heavenly Father, are they also gifts we as earthly fathers want to do our best to pass on to our children? Absolutely.
I look forward to unpacking these gifts in the devotions this week, but for this morning I invite us simply to consider, “What would it mean to me if God would say of me…’This is my son/daughter, whom I love; with him/her I am well-pleased?’” Would it change your day? Your energy? Your confidence? Your faith?
I believe it truly does.
Apply: How many times have you heard your dad say, “You are my son/daughter. I love you. I am well-pleased with you”? When you did, how did it make you feel?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of fatherhood, but especially the gift it is to call you my Father. Today I simply ask that this relationship be real and present in my day. AMEN.