Today is Father’s Day. It is a day we set aside to honor men who are our fathers and those who have taught us and treated us like their children. A simple fact is that everyone has a father. You may not know them, they may be deceased, or they could be, in your opinion, the greatest Dad on earth. There are many respectable dads who have taught their children how to work, to be honest, loving, and how to be good dads or moms themselves. However, being a good dad does not cover the most important character trait a dad should have. The most important thing about a dad should be his relationship with God. This is an attribute that will affect his children for the rest of their lives and their eternity. If a man is a godly dad, he will seek to emulate God. A good dad will be a godly dad because he is loving and training his children for all eternity.
A good dad loves his children enough to train them in God’s ways. In Ephesians 6:4, fathers are instructed not to provoke their children to wrath. The commentator Albert Barnes explains provoking them to wrath is to make “unreasonable commands; by needless severity; by the manifestation of anger. So, govern them, and so punish them – if punishment is necessary – that they shall not lose their confidence in you, but shall love you.” Children are not to be expected to do something that is not physically or mentally beyond their ability. This only frustrates the child and often angers the parent. A good godly dad will teach a child how to do whatever the task by example and by doing it with them until they fully understand the process. So many think their children should understand something when they don’t. This will only frustrate the child and may cause them to eventually lash out in anger. The ending of this verse is the answer as to how to achieve a proper response.
Ephesians 6:4 “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
A godly man will understand he is an example to his children and to others watching. You may have the opportunity to influence those who are young Christians or the unsaved. Our age does not determine when we start to be a godly person. I Timothy 4:12 says that the young men need to be examples: in word, your speech needs to be above reproach. Nothing is more disheartening to me than to read on social media where someone professes to be a Christian, yet the language and things they do are opposite of what God’s word says. In conversation, this is the conduct they exhibit daily. Examples in charity. This is love in action. Examples in spirit. This is the governing of your passions. A godly man will be mild, meek, and forgiving. You may need to disciple your children harshly to get their attention. If you want to change behavior, the punishment must be greater than the pleasure they receive from the disobedience. Otherwise, they will repeat the disobedience. Also, if you don’t break their will to conform to your will, they will become angry instead of change. You are teaching them to disobey when you tell them something and don’t follow through to make sure it is done. You are teaching them to lie when you tell them they will receive punishment for actions, but you don’t follow through. After you punish a child, it is important that you take them in your arms and make sure they understand what just happened. A godly man is an example in faith. He is to maintain unshakeable faith in God. How, by studying God’s word and praying. Your faith in God will grow as you get to know Him more and your children will notice. Lastly, he is to be an example of purity. Simply put, there should be nothing in your actions with the opposite sex that would make someone question your testimony. The great evangelist Billy Graham always had a male assistant travel with him. He never met with a woman alone or rode an elevator with a woman by himself, because he didn’t want to give anyone a reason to question his testimony. You may feel these commands are extreme, but they are God’s way of protecting us and preserving our testimony.
I Timothy 4:12 “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”
Each father needs to have the attitude of Joshua in Joshua 24:15. God had been good to his people but they were waffling in their obedience to Him. In this verse, we find Joshua’s determination to put God first. He tells the people to choose who they will serve and tells them “but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua 24:15 “And if it seems evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
I am very blessed that I had a godly father. His desire for us and himself was to live a life above reproach. I am extremely blessed that I have a godly husband who sets the example for our sons, who are also godly men teaching their sons and a daughter to be godly people. God gave Dads the place in the home of being the leader. He will give an account one day when he stands before God for how he has trained his children and the example he has set. May each of you reading this understand the important role you are to fill as a Christian Father. To all the godly men let me express to you an incredibly Happy Father’s Day. You have a great task ahead of you, but your reward will be great here and in Heaven.
