Sermon Tone Analysis

1. Celebrating Dads

Thank you dads!

You don’t hear many people saying that today.

But I want to start my message by saying to dads - Thanks for being the role model for your children.

Thanks for being the mentor of your children.

Thanks for recognizing that the raising of your children is a duty, privilege and blessing God has given to all dads.

Having said this, I want to make it clear - not all father’s are dads.

Every man who impregnates a woman becomes a biological father.

And there are biological fathers who remain in relationship with the mom of their children, but are not involved in the raising of their children.

These are fathers.

I’m talking about dads and in particular I am talking about Christian dads.

Dads who realize that they have been given the blessing of a child to raise into a disciple of Jesus Christ so that they might experience life the way it is meant to be lived.

What a high and glorious calling you have been given.

Being a father is a choice.

Being a dad, a Christian Dad is a wondrous opportunity to be God’s instrument of grace and love in a child’s life.

So to all of you dads and granddads.

To all the dads and yes granddads of the world who take seriously their calling - I raise a glass, tip my hat, I celebrate you today.

The rest of my message is for dads to use to help them in their calling.

For Granddads - it is for you to share with your sons or the husbands of your daughters who are raising your grandchildren.

Granddads this is to be done surrounded with, bathed in and filled with love.

Men don’t need criticism.

They need other men who they know are seeking their best and ready to help them be God’s kind of dad.

And granddads this is for you in case you need to step in and be the dad figure for your grandchildren.

And this message can be shared with anyone you know who is a dad.

2. Through You Your Children Experience what God’s Love is.

You are his vessel of love.

Dads, through You Your Children Experience what God’s Love is.

You are his vessel of love.

This may be a little unnerving, but your son’s or daughter’s first experience of what God is like, is you.

Listen to this.

What I am saying to most of you, you have either been doing or

It’s time that we recaptured the respect of you

Brianna Haynes – Through The Eyes Of My Father Lyrics

You can’t be real Dad, you need to know your Heavenly Dad.

To be a real friend, a real mother, a real sibling, you need to know your heavenly dad.

You tend to become what you have experienced.

video of boy following dad around

see video in Christian Videos - Fathers day - Through the Eyes of My Father.

Lyrics -

Brianna Haynes – Through The Eyes Of My Father Lyrics

You can bring the best out of your children or the worse.

I knew a guy who was part of all sorts of volunteer organizations, but he was in it for himself.

He was well liked.

He was celebrated for his work, but get on his wrong side and he would tear you down, stamp on you and cast you to one side.

His son saw both the good and the ugly in his father.

He saw what his father did was not for the sake of doing good, but to build himself up.

I watched the son grow over 10 years and become exactly like his father.

Unknowingly his father had mentored him, and been an example to him of what it was to be a man.

And he became that man.

He loves you at your worst

This is why I titled this sermon - to be a real dad, you need to love your heavenly dad.

Dads and granddads here is a truth for you today.

Your children and grandchildren are always watching you.

And they are gleaning from your actions, especially your actions towards you wives how to treat people.

Your Sons learn how to treat women, how to treat their wives when they get married and how to treat their own children.

Your daughters are learning how they should be expected to be treated by men and their husbands and how to treat their children.

Over my life I have observed that fathers and dads have a profound influence over the kind of Christian or non-Christian person their children become.

He'll do anything, a father

I have seen families where the father has not been involved in the church, but the mother has.

Time and time again there has reached the point in the life of the family when the children, and particularly sons say in one form or another, “Why do we have to go to church when dad doesn’t?”.

He shows you what love is

Saw your dreams before you did

Dads you are the mentor and example of how God wants your children to live.

And it never ends.

3. Great News - God has given you a mentor and an example - Himself!

He'll give everything, like your souls desires

I have Great News - God has given you a mentor and an example - Himself!

I see love in my father's eyes, I see love

I had a very angry father say to me once, “When my child was born there was no “father’s” manual and my father wasn’t a very good example.

How do you expect me to be a good dad?

I have great news!

God has given you a mentor and an example - Himself!

Not only is he your mentor and example, he has created you in his image.

He has build into you what you need to be the dad he wants you to be.

In a sense it is all there ready to be unpacked, set up and used.

He has given you a manual and himself to help you do the unpacking, setting up and living in his image.

We just need to be open to him and learn from him.

Do you remember the words of Jesus.

He spoke about this.

Even if you have not had a great example in your life, I have great news!

God has given you a mentor and an example - Himself!

Not only is he your mentor and example, he has created you in his image.

He has build into you what you need to be the dad he wants you to be.

In a sense it is all there ready to be unpacked, set up and used.

He has given you a manual and himself to help you do the unpacking, setting up and living in his image.

We just need to be open to him and learn from him.

Do you remember the words of Jesus.

He spoke about this.

matthew 11:

A father's like the Father in the way he loves you

What Jesus was saying was to fall in love with God, fall in love with his, your heavenly dad.

Walk with him, talk with him, learn from him.

A father's like the Father when he carries you through

This is the first step in being a real Dad.

Let God your heavenly Father be your heavenly Dad.

It is as you do this you develop the image of God within you.

It is then that you become the best kind of mentor, example to your child.

In the June 13, 1986 Issue of Christianity Today in a series of articles on The Mystery of Building Faith, How a child learns to love God, Kenneth Kantzer the Dean of the Christianity Today Institute was interviewing Wes Willis, the executive vice-president of Scripture Press in Wheaton, Illinois.

I am my father's daughter always and forever

Kantzer asked Willis: At what age can a child understand what it means to love God?