United in Christ with your Family

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families…” Psalm 68:5-6 “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose…Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus”

Philippians 2:1-5

The troubles of life and troubles within the family unit can divide, separate or taint the specialness of even the best relationships with our parents. Even Jesus ,who was quite literally the best son, had friction with his family in Mark 3:20-21. As he’s emerging as the Messiah the scripture reads, “Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” His family’s love for His welfare drove them to try and take charge of him .

Deep down, every child knows that he or she must be united with their father and mother. As the people of God, we have the solution: Unite everyone family member with their Father in Heaven! It’s what every true believer hopes for. But, sadly, many allow their hurts from the past, their feelings and sentimentality, and/or the standards of this world guide them, instead of the standards of the Bible and of their Father in Heaven. I believe it is easy for us to be numb to the gripping and sometimes traumatic emotions of the children growing up around us. The fact is that many of them are “fatherless,” either without a father or without any relationship with their father – Sometimes we’re numb because we ourselves are living this same nightmare. Our God is holding out His arms to these “little children” desiring to be a father to them. Consider several Old Testament terms for God that give us insight into what kind of father God wants to be in their lives and in ours.

Jehovah-shalom (God is my peace). Even when the children live with their fathers, alcoholism, physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and apathy can make these kids feel “fatherless.” Statistics reveal that the average teenager talks to his father less than seven minutes a week. The tragedy is not found only in these kids because for every one of us, there has been a time when our human fathers could not meet our needs or expectations. This is why we so desperately need Jehovah-shalom, for only in Him can we find peace. If there is no peace with our Heavenly Father there can be no peace with our Human fathers.

El-shaddai (The All-Sufficient One). God is our perfect Father. His aim is to help us become whole. A human father may destroy your life, but God can make it complete. His unconditional love and unmerited favor can change anyone. God does not wait for a good report card, completed chores, or a clean police record; but instead God’s love is available at any time to any child acknowledging his need for his Father. This love gives us the security that God is always there for us no matter how badly we blow it. A human father may destroy your life, but God can make it complete.

Jehovah-raah (The Good Shepherd). As we grow up, our fathers are the primary authority figures in our lives. Therefore, we tend to picture God with the same characteristics as our fathers. Although the Bible commands fathers to discipline their children in love, fathers often pass off the responsibility of disciplining the children to the mothers, to daycares, or the school system. Sometimes true godly discipline has been replaced by harshness, anger, or “buying” their kids obedience with gifts. Without the love of friendship and acceptance, teens who are “fatherless” in the area of discipline become rebellious against authority. have no fear of God, and may even become hopeless when facing the true discipline of God, because they have never been disciplined by someone who accepted and loved them in the course of disciplining them. We must learn to forgive and move past this because of how God forgave us.

Jehovah-rapha (The God Who Heals). God is “a father to the fatherless.”  It is His forgiveness which gives us security and erases the guilt of our sins and cleanses our consciences. Power from God changes our lives and gives us hope that we can continue to change. The God who heals has called His children out of homes where they had no father, no one to be their peace, no on to be their completer, and no one to shepherd them. He has rescued us from ruined home and become to us “Abba”- our daddy. The Lost fathers are lost because they are also “Fatherless.” Our Father in Heaven is also calling us to go get his other children – the lost fathers who need their Father in Heaven. The greatness of our God is not a theological point- it is a reality that touches the hearts of people who need a heavenly Father – people like us who all have family members to united with our Father in Heaven!

To the End, 

RON HARDING
Evangelist  •  Lead CyberEvangelist  •  ICCM Global Faculty