A Dad’s Role
“Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.” ––Colossians 3:21
Ephesians 6:4 says, “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord” (NKJV). Notice this is directed to fathers. But, unfortunately, a lot of dads are missing in action these days.
It was unheard of in first-century culture for a father to abandon his responsibilities in his home. Nowadays, it seems to be almost the norm. We are losing fathers at an unprecedented rate in our culture. One expert said we are in danger of becoming a fatherless society.
Why are fathers so important? To a large degree, a child’s view of God is based on their view of their father. You will see a lot of times that people compare their relationship with their earthly father to the one with their heavenly Father. I know this puts a lot of pressure on men, but it’s the truth: dads are earthly representatives of God. And God is loving. God is caring. God is nurturing. At the same time, God is just, righteous, and holy.
So what are we to do? We are not to provoke them. In fact, the word provoke speaks of a repeated pattern of treatment that causes the child to have anger and resentment that boils over to outright hostility. Instead of provoking them, we are to bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. This could also be translated “to nourish and feed.” Another translation says, “Let them be kindly cherished.”
So help your children come to Jesus and develop their own relationship with God. And remember that dads are a representative of God to their kids—that is why their role is so vital in the home.
Copyright © 2016 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org
and
Listen to Greg Laurie's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.
Watch Greg Laurie's weekly television broadcast on LightSource.com.
SPECIAL OFFER
Good Good Father
How do we teach kids about who God is? What can we compare Him to? Warrior, teacher, doctor, farmer, musician—God is like all of these, but most importantly, He’s a good Father. Teach the children in your life about the character and kindness of their Father in heaven, with Chris Tomlin’s new picture book Good Good Father.
You can receive a copy as a thank-you gift for donating to Harvest Ministries today.
