Fathers Day 2017

June 18, 2017                            NOTES NOT EDITED

Father’s Day:  Mr. Potato Head’s Guide to Parenting

Selected

SIS—Our nation’s future success depends on how well Fathers pass on the knowledge and skills of godly living.

INTRO    A mom and her young son were sitting at the dining room table looking through an old picture album.  They came to one particular page and mom pointed out a handsome young man sitting with her on the family’s sofa.  The young man had a full head of thick, dark, curly hair.  With pride and fondness the mom said, “That’s a picture of your Daddy!”  Hoping to see a sense of pride bubble up in her son, she was kind of shocked by what he said.  With a note of surprise, almost shock in his voice the little boy blurted out:  “If that’s a picture of Daddy, then who is the bald guy in the living room watching T.V.?”

Well, time brings a lot of changes.  We men tend to get bigger bellies and balder heads.  Hopefully, as we get older, we also get wiser.  The Bible says,

^{Job 12:12} Wisdom is found with the elderly,

and understanding comes with long life

Ralph Waldo Emerson, the great transcendental poet, said:  The years teach much which the days never knew.   We often miss seeing the forest of the years because of the trees of the daily grind.  We need to have an “eternal” view of the importance of fatherhood.

                                                                       

I’m afraid that our nation is full of Dad’s who are getting older, but not necessarily getting wiser.  This Father’s Day, the message is not just a “How-To Lesson” on raising children.  It is a prophetic call for all the men of our nation, supported by godly wives, to take the lead to train up a new generation of children who love God and are equipped to change the world for Christ.

It doesn’t matter whether you are a single man with no children, an older man with grown children, a man who has never had children, a grandfather, uncle, or whatever . . . we all have a prophetic call to build-up a new generation of believers who can influence this nation for Christ.

Just like it takes a plan to build a bridge, a skyscraper or anything else, it takes a plan to build godly children.  Today, I want to share with you just such a plan.  I call it:  “A Spud’s Guide to Parenting.”  This plan is so simple and such a sure-fire way of building godly children that even a potato head can be successful.  The Bible tells us clearly that it is the “father’s responsibility” to assure a godly training for his children:  Deut 6:4-9

⁴ “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One.  ^{e 5} Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  ⁶ These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.  ⁷ Repeat them to your children.  Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol  on your forehead.  ^{k 9} Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

A few years ago in the New Republic news journal a writer declared,

“Fatherhood isn’t brain surgery . . . most men I know have an instinct

for fatherhood that is triggered the day their first child [is] born.”

  

I totally agree.  Being a great father is within the grasp of every Dad.  In fact, one of the greatest Dad’s ever gives us a simple strategy forbuilding successful children.  His name is “Mr. Potato Head.” I’ve always been fascinated with “Mr. Potato Head.”  He was born

in 1952 at . . .  He’s has been involved with literally millions of children who have grown up to be quite successful.  What is his strategy?  Well, a successful strategy has at least five important parts.

1.  EYES: We must Shape What Our Children See (Hab 1:13)

¹³ _⌊Your_⌋ eyes are too pure  to look on evil,

 and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing.

Now, let me say very clearly that I DO NOT advocate isolating children and youth from general participation in society.  We are not Amish. As believers we must be as Our Lord prayed we’d be:  “In the world, but not of the world.”  Insulated by grace, not isolated by fear.

This does not mean that we do not “screen” the activities that our students participate in.  For example, in our highly sexualized society it is impossible for a boy or young man to go out in public and not see women dressed provocatively.  In fact, if you go to the Mall today you will see women dressed in a way that would have gotten them interrogated for being prostitutes only 50 years ago.

We cannot shield our children’s eyes from all the provocative dress and general evil of the marketplace.  However, we must protect our children from being completely bombarded by unnecessary evil.

I’m almost to the point of throwing away our T.V.s.  It is almost impossible to even watch a news show that is not full of gratuitous violence, foul language, or provocatively dressed newscasters.  And, there’s the advertisements that bombard our T.V. airwaves using sex to sell everything from Fritos to Ferraris.

The same caution goes for movies as well.  If a movie has an “R” rating, it is not fit for adults, much less children.  In fact, some movies that now have and “R” rating, would have been considered pornography when I was a kid.

So, Mr. Potato Head would remind us that godly children need eyes that are “too pure to take in evil.”

2.  EARS: We must Shape What Our Children Hear (Ex 29:20)

All of what I just said about guarding the eyes of our children, applies to guarding the ears of our children as well. 

But, the Bible has something very unique to say about the “ears” that I want us to take note of.  As the Israelites were being delivered out of the bondage of slavery—which represents mankind being delivered from the bondage of sin—some special instructions for holy living were given.  One such instruction involved the anointing of priests.  Keep in mind, that since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, all believers are “priests” before God (1Peter 2:9)

In the ceremony of consecration that all priests went through, we read this about the anointing of their ears:

^{Ex 29:20} Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, on his sons’ right earlobes,

There is much symbolism in this act of anointing the ears.  It represents “ownership of and devotion to” Almighty God.  This anointing teaches that we are devoted to the One to whom we listen.  If our ears are given over to listening to the lies of the Devil, we will be a slave to the Devil.  If our ears are given to hearing and obeying the Lord Jesus Christ, we will be a slave to Jesus Christ.

Another interesting practice involving the “ears” involves “piercing of the ears.”  Deuteronomy 15:12-18 tells of a “love slave.”  That is a slave that was set free after six years but decided to stay in the household as a slave for life.  To signify this life-long relationship as a slave, the owner would drive an awl through the earlobe of the slave and into the door.  Such a person was a “slave forever.”

If we hope to build godly children who will be able to influence this world for Christ, we have to “guard their ears” and teach them how to hear God’s voice through reading His Word, and instill in them the strength of character to not only hear, but to obey.  Once again we hear from the ancient patriarch, Job these words of wisdom:

^{Job 12:11} Doesn’t the ear test words as the palate tastes food?

NOW, LET ME SAY THIS AS CLEARLY AND KINDLY AS I CAN:  NO CHRISTIAN PARENT SHOULD ALLOW THE UNGODLY GOVERNMENT SCHOOL SYSTEM TO HAVE OUR CHILDRENS EAR 185 DAYS A YEAR FOR TWELVE YEARS!

Our goal, if we are serious about changing the world, must include getting every child of Christian parents out of the government forced schooling program and into a God-honoring classroom where they learn to “hear God’s voice and do God’s will.”

3.  LIPS: We Must Shape How Our Children Talk (Eph 4:14-15)

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit. ¹⁵ But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head —Christ.

One of the most important aspects of being a mature, world-changing believer is to learn how to “speak effectively the truth of God’s Word” to a dying and deceived world.  So many Christians guard what they see and guard what they hear, but turn around and allow the Devil to have full control of the tongue.

We must shape our children’s lips so the not only “say the right things, but they say them effectively.”  We cannot over-emphasize the importance of the “tongue.”  The Apostle James (3:5-6) warns us:

⁵ So too, though the tongue is a small part _⌊of the body_⌋, it boasts great things.  Consider how large a forest a small fire ignites. ⁶ And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed among the parts of our _⌊bodies_⌋. It pollutes the whole body,  sets the course of life on fire, and is set on fire by hell.

I often think about what the Apostle John said when he was living in exile alone on a deserted island.  Though old and in exile, John was not defeated.  He tells us the source of the victory in his life.  He said,

“They overcame by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.” (Rev. 12:11)

To build a new generation of world-changers who can influence the world for Christ, we need to “shape their lips.”  We need to build children who talk like Christians should talk.

4.  HANDS: Teach Our Children How to Make A Living

Once again, let’s look at the verse concerning the consecration of the priests—the ministers of God.  Ex. 29:19-20 says:

²⁰ Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, on his sons’ right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands.

I’m sure you have heard the expression, “idle hands are the Devil’s playground.”  This old adage is meant to warn us of the dangers of laziness.  Paul gives us this exhortation in the Word: 1Thess 4:10-11

¹⁰ In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers in the entire region of Macedonia.  But we encourage you, brothers, to do so even more, ¹¹ to seek to lead a quiet life,  to mind your own business,  and to work  with your own hands,

The last statistic I read in regard to our nation’s tax system is that over 50% of the population did not pay any taxes at all.  That means that 6 out of every 10 Americans are in some way dependent upon the government to provide their basic needs.  We have become a “welfare nation” with a major portion of our citizens dependent upon the government. We need to teach our youth the value of hard work, and the value of being “independent.”

Solomon wisely instructs us in the Book of Proverbs (28:19)

⁹ The one who works his land will have plenty of food,

but whoever chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty.

A wise father, and by extension a wise church, builds youth who value hard-work and independence.

5.  FEET: What It Means To Be On Mission for God

The Book of Exodus again helps us recognize an important way in which we can build successful, satisfied youth.  Ex 29:19-20 says,

²⁰ Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, on his sons’ right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet.

Paul also mentions the importance of “holy feet” (Rom 10:15)

How beautiful are the feet of those 
who announce the gospel of good things!

We need young people who will surrender to carry the gospel into all the world, and we need older people who will give sacrificially to see that there are resources to support these young evangelists.  We need to train them not only what is “the right thing to say, but how to say it effectively.”  I must say, the false cult of the Mormon church is doing a much better job of sending out their youth to evangelize the world than the True Church.

As we mentioned with the “lips,” we need young people who can defend the truth of the gospel in an effective manner, and not only walk the walk, but talk the talk.

Feet move the body.  Spiritual feet represent a devotion to the mission of God—a sense of being His ambassador to the world.  Having spiritual feet means moving beyond the status quo to develop new, innovative, creative, flexible ways to share the gospel.  We need to develop young people who will move “out of their comfort zones” and move into the “spiritual war zones.”  To build youth with “spiritual feet” we need to be adults with spiritual feet.  We need to teach our youth to be “pioneers for Christ, not campers for Christ.”

It is interesting that the same verse that talked about ministers of God being anointed on the ear lobes, also talk about being anointed on the feet.  It is not enough just to “hear” God’s voice, we need to “move according to what He says.”  We need to put our faith to work. Or, as someone has said, “We need to put feet to our prayers.”

With godly ears our young people hear the Word of God and with godly feet they carry that message into the world.  For the most part, the church has its feet stuck in the mud—or even cement.  We have not done a good job of instilling in our youth a sense of being on a mission for God.

Building godly children is not “rocket science.”  Even a “potato head” can do it.  The plan is simple, even though the results are profound.  We need to give our children godly eyes that do not look on evil, godly ears that listen intently for the voice of God, godly lips that speak the truth that they hear, godly hands that value hard work, and godly feet that move out boldly on mission with God to change the world, and finally,

But, there is one part that must be added if our children are going to become world-changing ambassadors for Christ.  They need

6.  A HEART with a Single-minded, All-Consuming Love For the Lord Jesus Christ.

In Matt 22:37-38 Jesus Christ sums up the entire truth of God’s Word with a simple instruction:  ³⁷ Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.  ^{i 38} This is the greatest and most important command..

      

Why do the majority of church folk have such a hard time even coming close to following the Ten Commandments, much less living a life that mirrors the sacrifice and devotion to God of Our Lord Jesus Christ?  It is because they really have not obeyed the “First Commandment.”  Forget the other 9:  we fall short after just #1.

“Have no other gods before me!”(Exodus 20:3)

Our nation, indeed the world, is sliding into a path of destructiondown the sewer pipe of immorality because so many church folkhave “divided hearts.”  Our world is a mess and the first place we

need to look to assign blame is at the doorstep of the church.

We have for the most part failed to build into our children and youth a “heart” that is passionate for God.

James tells us how to have a victorious, powerful relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  He says:   James 1:5-8

⁵ Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.  ⁶ But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ An indecisive man is unstable in all his ways.

We as God’s people are so “divided” in our affections.  It is not that we do not love God at all—we just don’t love Him as the All in All.  We divide our allegiances and our devotions and wonder why God I not moving powerfully in our lives, our children’s lives, the life of our church, or the life of our nation.

If God is just one priority of many—He’s not a priority at all and James says, “We should not expect to receive anything from Him.”

Every time we fathers act in a manner inconsistent with what wesay we believe, we create a divided heart in our children.  We blur the lines of God’s truth and our children cannot find their way in the

world.  When we take the family fishing on God’s day—we create a divided heart in our children.  When we make soccer a priority over church—we create a divided heart in our children. 

I’m sorry if this offends anyone (actually, I’m not sorry), but we cannot hope to build youth with a passionate heart for God and His work, if we as fathers (mothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents) have divided hearts.  A person cannot serve “both God and mammon.”

Sadly, the few churches that actually have any youth who stay as young adults, end up with the same kind of passionless, apathetic, stuck-in-the-rut church members as the adults that created them.

A heart for God must be taught.  It must be modeled.  It is not so much what we say with our lips, but what we do with our lives that builds faith in our children.

Where do we spend the majority of our leisure time.  If it is on thelake, then we are teaching our children to love the lake as the Lord.If we spend most of our leisure time golfing, we teach our childrento love the greens as the Lord.  If we spend most of our leisuretime camping, we teach our children to love the forest as the Lord.But . . . if we spend the majority of our time at church and serving the Lord with ALL our hearts, we teach our children to lovethe God of the Bible with all their hearts.

MR. POTATO HEAD SAYS, “You can build some great littlespuds if you put them together according to God’s design.”

He also warns: “Be careful how you build your little spuds – you only get one chance to get it right.”

I’m praying that every adult here this morning will commit themselves to putting together our youth according to God’s design. The next generation in our church will be exactly what we design them to be.  

If Mr. Potato Head can get all the parts in the right place, then following God’s design, we as fathers, grandfathers, uncles, along with mothers, grandmothers, aunts and other adults can put together a new generation of “spuds” who can change the world.

We cannot afford to lose another generation.  Fathers, God is counting on us—along with every other adult Christian.