The Power of a Godly Father: Legacy, Love, and Leadership

1. Introduction

- Warm wishes for Father's Day.

- Brief overview of the sermon's purpose and themes.

2. Legacy: The Foundation of Faith

- Explanation of the importance of a spiritual legacy.

So many of the men in the Bible failed to pass on their faith to the children. They pursued power and pleasure and significance but many times failed to teach their children. You don't have to have a degree in theology to lay a faith foundation for your children.

In fact the best person that you can be to talk to your kids about Faith is exactly who you are. If you struggle to understand God then struggle and share that struggle with your kids. Start young make mistakes have the conversations early and often about God.

This reminds me of years ago when I was talking to a couple who had the adopted children I think it was Dan and Anne Nelson. They talked about how they wanted to have conversations with their girls about adoption early so they can make all the mistakes and figure out how to talk to them about adoption while the kids were young and forgot some of the mistakes.

In a much greater sense we need to talk about our faith with our children.

- Bible verse: Deuteronomy 6:5-7, focusing on the responsibility of a father to teach God's commands to his children.

Deuteronomy 6:5–7 ESV

5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 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.

- Object Lesson: The Relay Race - Just like in a relay race, where a baton is passed from one runner to another, a father passes the baton of faith to his children.

Our faith is both substance and information that we teach our children and a relationship with God. In the same way that you pass on something crucial in a relay race we pass on our relationship with God to her children. Our relationship with God is what gives us the capacity to weather the worst of storms. And our faith in God is something that we need to be proactive in talking to our kids about the value of faith in God.

Church will look different in each generation. Each generation will have a different way that they relate to God but the faith that we celebrate here is a legacy worth passing on. The faith that we celebrate here has endured for thousands of years. It's something that your children need to hear. No matter how young or old they are.

3. Love: The Heart of the Father

- Discussion on the role of love in godly fatherhood.

Perhaps one of the greatest ways we can reflect our heavenly father for our children is by showing them the love of God.

I've heard the role of a father described as that of an anchor. If you are faithful and consistent in being present for your children and faithful to your values you will be like an anchor. An anchor is a stable point that a ship can depend on to hold it in place despite the tossing and turning of the ocean. our children will make all sorts of crazy choices as they figure this life out just like we did but if we are an anchor always there loving them they can always depend on us.

- Bible verse: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, describing the qualities of love.

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 ESV

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love is so many things is it not? The more we learn to love our children in these ways the more we can be an anchor or a compass. I know I'm mixing the seafaring metaphors but bear with me. A compass is the invention that allowed sailors to navigate through storms and darkness and always know they were going in the right direction no matter which way the storm drove them. Our children will face crazy storms in their lives. But if they're anchored by the love of their father they will have guidance to navigate through many of life's storms.

- Object Lesson: The Compass - Just like a compass provides direction, a father's love guides his children through life's many journeys.

4. Leadership: Guiding the Next Generation

- Emphasis on the father's role as a spiritual leader.

Mother's Day is a day when families show up at church in droves around the world. Mothers get people to church.

But statistically across-the-board it is the lived out faith of fathers that determines the faith of the next generation. Your children will watch the faith you live and imitate that.

- Bible verse: Proverbs 20:7, demonstrating the blessings of a righteous father's leadership.

Proverbs 20:7 ESV

7 The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!

If you work to live out your faith with integrity you will be a blessing to your children after you. Your life is a foundation that your children build on.

- Object Lesson: The Lighthouse - A lighthouse stands tall amidst the waves, providing guidance to ships. Similarly, a father's leadership serves as a guiding light for his children.

5. Conclusion

- The impact and power of a godly father in shaping lives and generations.

- Closing prayer and blessings for all fathers, requesting strength and wisdom for them to continue their godly influence.