Everlasting Father

Series Intro:

Isaiah 9:6 (NLT)

6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of all the descriptors of the messiah here - I wonder how many of us struggle with this one?

Many of us have a complicated relationship with the person we call Father.

Examples.

What we often do, is we apply our struggles with our earthly fathers to God, our Everlasting Father and it colours how we see him.

So what are we talking about when we call Jesus our Everlasting Father?

Trinity Doctrine - separate and yet indistinguishable. This passage isn’t about Jesus’ relationship to the Father, but his relationship to us.

Jesus shows fatherly love to us.

Jesus and the woman who bled for 12 years

Matthew 9:22 (NLT)

22 Jesus turned around, and when he saw her he said, “Daughter, be encouraged! Your faith has made you well.” And the woman was healed at that moment.

Jesus is the everlasting father - he is forever acting fatherly towards us.

But because many of us have contaminated view of fatherhood, let’s look at 3 ways Jesus acts fatherly to us. First…

As the Everlasting Father, Jesus is tender and compassionate to you

Psalm 103:13 (NLT)

13 The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

We often think that God is angry and disappointed in us - related to our view of our human fathers.

We forget that Jesus is our everlasting Father and he is tender and compassionate to us.

God’s compassion is a compassion that reveals itself in servanthood. - Donald McNeill

Story of Jesus healing the leper in Mark 1 (Jesus had compassion on him)

Yes, Jesus gets angry at sin, at injustice, and at the abuses of power too many wield. But he is compassionate towards us, who bear the consequences of that sin. And so he gave his own life for us. He looked upon us, harassed and helpless as sheep surrounded by the wolves of sin and death and in compassion he gave himself for us / for you.

Jesus is not sitting there constantly angry at you. As the everlasting father, he is tender and compassionate towards you.

As the Everlasting Father, Jesus never gives up on you.

Isaiah 64:8 (NLT)

8 And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.

Explain the passage

Two most encouraging words: AND YET

Restoration of Peter in John 20

Jesus always offers to us the chance to repent and be healed

1 John 1:9 (NLT)

9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

As our everlasting Father, Jesus is tender and compassionate towards us, and he never gives up on us.

As the Everlasting Father, Jesus constantly seeks your growth.

Hebrews 12:5 (NLT)

5 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.

How many of us look at the challenging circumstances, the hard things in our lives and we think that God must be punishing us?

What is the difference between discipline and punishment?

Punishment is punitive - it’s the cost of the crime

Discipline is about growth - it comes from love

In the verse “discipline” means “instruction or training” and “punishment” means “to whip”.

God doesn’t punish us for our sins - the cost was borne by Jesus - he took all our punishment. God DISCIPLINES us because he loves us and wants us to grow to become more like Jesus.

As our everlasting father, Jesus is tender and compassionate to you. He never gives up on you, and he always seeks your growth.

Conclusion

No human father can ever be a perfect reflection of Jesus, our everlasting father. As a father myself, I know we all make mistakes, we all sin, we all have our own struggles and we all have the problems that have carried over from how we were raised. Even the best of us make mistakes and fail.

But Jesus is not like us. Where we can be harsh and rules-oriented, He is always tender and compassionate toward his children. Where we get exasperated and frustrated, Jesus never gives up us. Where we sometimes make your life too much about us, Jesus always seeks your growth because he loves you infinitely more than the greatest love a human father can ever do.

My hope and prayer for you this Christmas season is that you are able to adore Jesus as your everlasting father and and receive from him grace, forgiveness, and love.

Jesus is your Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Everlasting Father.

Pray.