Ephesians 3:15 AMP I bow my knees [in reverence] before the Father [of our Lord Jesus Christ], 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name [God—the first and ultimate Father].
True Fatherhood is a direct reflection of God and His nature.
63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes.
90% of all runaway children are from fatherless homes.
85% of all children with behavioral disorders are from fatherless homes.
71% of high school dropouts are from fatherless homes.
75% of all adolescent chemical abuse patients in drug treatment centers are from fatherless homes.
92% of the parents who are currently in prison in the United States are fathers.
85% of all youths in prison are from fatherless homes.
75% of rapists are motivated by displaced anger that is associated with feelings of abandonment that involves their father.
Psalms 68:5 says, God is a Father to the fatherless and a champion of widows.
Micah 6:8 NKJ He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God.
Proverbs 1:20 I wisdom shout from the busiest intersections and busy marketplaces. How long, you simpletons, will you insist on being simpleminded?
How long will you mockers relish your mocking? How long will you fools hate knowledge? 23 Come and listen to my counsel. I’ll share my heart with you and make you wise.
1. Do Justly - Do what is honorable
Joshua 24:15 MSG “If you decide that it’s a bad thing to worship God, then choose a god you’d rather serve—and do it today. Choose one of the gods your ancestors worshiped from the country beyond The River, or one of the gods of the Amorites, on whose land you’re now living. As for me and my family, we’ll worship God.”
Ephesians 6:4 AMP Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to the point of resentment with demands that are trivial or unreasonable or humiliating or abusive; nor by showing favoritism or indifference to any of them], but bring them up [tenderly, with lovingkindness] in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Love + Time = Good Influence
2. Love Mercy
When you’re in love with mercy, you understand that it’s not enough to tell somebody to stop what’s destroying them; you have to release them from condemnation.
Mercy tells you in no uncertain terms to stop doing what is destroying you.
Hebrews 4:16 MSG So let’s walk right up to him and get what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help.
3. Walk Humbly Before God
Humility is a holy fear, awe and reverence.
Revelation 1:17 I saw Jesus and I fell before him as a dead man.
Psalms 128:1-4 TPT How joyful are those who fear the Lord— all who follow his ways! 2 You will enjoy the fruit of your labor. How joyful and prosperous you will be! 3 Your wife will be like a fruitful grapevine, flourishing within your home.
Your children will be like vigorous young olive trees as they sit around your table.
4 That is the Lord’s blessing for those who fear him.
4. Honor is a human’s number one need
Ephesians 6:3 Honor your father and mother so that you can live long and things will GO WELL WITH YOU.
Mark 6:1-6 NLT Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. 2 The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” 3 Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. 4 Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” 5 And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief.
The son of God was limited because of dishonor.
Two things that cause dishonor are familiarity and offense.
5. The Principle Of Receiving
Matthew 10:40 He who receives me, receives the Father.
When you receive a person as God’s perfect gift to you, you release that person to be all that God intended them to be in your life.
John 1:12 To as many as received Him, to them He gave the right (the authority and power) to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.
Jesus has all the power, all the authority, all of the ability to totally change your life forever and ever- But only if you receive Him.