Standing in the Place of God

Look with me at Luke 11:1-13…

Same word for earthly father as Heavenly Father

Means something very important = we, as human, earthly fathers are intended, supposed, expected, to teach our children about our Heavenly Father. We, father's, stand in the place of God in our families.

I will never forget Elda King stopping me outside of church in Seagrove just before Isabelle was born. She looked me in the eye and said, "You have no idea what love is, but when you see that little girl, you will know what unconditional love is." On August 1, 2007, at 8:16 PM, I learned what unconditional love is.

Proposition: Fathers, we stand in the place of God to our children.

Interrogative: What does it mean to stand in God's place?

TS: To stand in God's place does not mean we are to be perfect, but we are expected to be…

Available vv. 2-4

God is available 24/7 when we pray

Jesus said "When ye pray", not "if ye pray"

Did you ever stop to consider how wonderful it is that God wants us to pray to Him?

Have you considered the fact that God never takes a break?

Our children need us to be available 24/7 when they need us

It's a well-documented fact that children spell love = T-I-M-E

One of the biggest problems in our society is that we are too busy for the people who matter the most in all the world

A husband that is too busy for his wife will lose her

A Father who is too busy for his children will lose them

God help us, but we men, are to stand in His place for our families, and that means we must be available. Not only are we men, husbands, and fathers to be available, but we are to be…

Consistent vv.5-10

This parable is about being consistent as well as persistent in prayer

Let me say to you fathers that our children need to hear us pray about the big things

There are times when, plain, and simple, a decision needs to be made, you cannot wait, you simply must trust your gut and go with it

There are more times, however, when you are much better off going slow, and bathing a decision in prayer.

Our families need to hear us pray about the little things

There is no such thing as a "small" thing when it comes to prayer

"If it's important to you, it's important to God"

This includes our children and their requests:

Boo-boos

School lunches

Pets

Baby dolls

Our families need to see us be persistent in prayer

Husbands, share your hearts with your wife

Enlist her help in prayer

Pray for her and let her hear you pray for her

Do not let your children see you give up on praying

Ask - Seek - Knock

Fast, and let your family know it

Get up early, stay up late, get alone with God, and pray

Let your family see the struggle of prayer

Have you ever wondered how many of your prayers God was on the verge of answering when you stopped praying? Don't give up on Him, and don't let your family see you quit. Not only are we as husbands and fathers to available and consistent, but we are also to be…

Loving vv. 11-13

This final passage is on our desire vs. our ability to meet the needs of our children and serves as an illustration of our Father's desire and ability to meet the needs of us, His children. As fathers, we are:

Willing to give our very best

There is not a one of us who would withhold from our children something they need

There is not a one of us who would give our children something which would harm them

The common bread in Jesus' day was a small roll about the size and shape of a stone - if your child asked bread, would you give him a stone?

A fish is scaly, and so is a serpent, but if our children were hungry and asked for a fish, we would not hand them a poisonous snake in its place

Nor would we give a scorpion in the place of an egg

If we are willing to give our very best, how much more is our Heavenly Father?

Conclusion:

Why should we be available to our families? Because God is always available to us. Why should we be consistent in our prayer life? Because God is consistent in how He answers our prayers. Why should we be loving and give our family our very best? Because God is loving and always gives us His very best.

As we bow our heads for prayer, I invite Todd and Gwen to come...

I wonder today, how many men, husbands, fathers present could raise their hand and say, “I am always available, consistent, and loving to my wife and children.” I’d imagine there’s not a one among us who could raise their hand honestly. I will say that any of us can do a better job. I want to challenge you fathers today, if the Spirit of God has spoken to you during this message, why don’t you tell Him about it.

The altar is open, if you want to come and pray today, I invite you now.

Maybe today the Holy Spirit is speaking to you about your salvation. Maybe you don’t even know for sure that you are saved and going to heaven. Listen, I invite you to come forward as we sing just one verse together. If the Holy Spirit has spoken to you won’t you come today?