The Heaton File

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The Fruit Of The Spirit Is Faithfulness

In a world filled with the persuasion of immorality, having a moral conviction for truth and righteousness is a difficult commodity. Paul writing to the churches in Asia Minor faced no more an uphill climb to convince the brethren to remain unspotted from the world. The Roman world was infused in every corner the dogmas of idolatry, worldliness and the works of the flesh enumerated earlier in the apostle’s letter. Remaining faithful in an unfaithful world would take more than self-conviction. Faithfulness as a fruit of the Spirit should be a warning the will of man will no long endure without the guidance and assistance of the Holy Spirit. Faith is not something that comes naturally because one is a Christian or they are part of an organization that espouses truth. Fruits come from a source and faithfulness is a byproduct of the Holy Spirit. Many of the virtues of the fruits of the Spirit are subjective but faithfulness is an objective quality.

Being faithful is the inward conviction that God is real and His Son is the only way, truth and life. This can only come from a continual meditation on the word of God which is the express image of the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit comes from abiding in the fruit of the Spirit with a daily diet of the word of God. Without the manna of the Word in our hearts faithfulness will not grow. Bearing fruit is filling our minds and hearts with the knowledge of the Lord in a continual feeding of His will, commands, promises, precepts and grace. Faithfulness blossoms with our conviction of the one truth. Standing on the promises of God we defy the errors of the wicked one. Abiding in the fruit of faithfulness gives stability to our lives with the reassurance of final victory.

The fruit of the Spirit in faithfulness is the salt of our lives influencing others for good. Faithfulness is the character of a child of God by the example of their lives. It is evident in their daily life they are faithful to the Lord. They are faithful in their speech, attitudes, demeanor and spirit of life and others see Christ living in them. The manifestation of faithfulness is seen in their obedience to worship with other saints on the first day of the week. There is never a question about their faithfulness because they are engaged in the work of the local church on every level. This is one of the manifestation of faithfulness among many but so vital to show an expression of love for God. Those who seldom assemble with saints do not show a spirit of faithfulness. The fruit of the Spirit is seen in the way they dress. Immodesty is a work of the flesh. Showing a character of modesty is an expression of a faithful heart seeking to exalt the inner man for the glory of God. Faithfulness is heard in the speech of the Christian who shows the other fruits of the Spirit like love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness and goodness. It takes a meek heart to show faithfulness and without self-control, there can be no faithfulness. The fruit of the Spirit is a full tree.

Faithfulness is thinking about the end of all things. The Lord desires His people to be faithful unto death and He will give the eternal reward of redemption through His Son. A life lived for faithfulness will find the joy of hope in the words of the Lord saying, “Enter in. Well done good and faithful servant.” Through the power of the Holy Spirit faithfulness becomes an integral part of the life of God’s people and others will see the glory of God in their lives. Come to the fruit of the Spirit and partake of the power of His grace in producing faithfulness in your life.

An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, but she who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones. (Proverbs 12:4)

The Story Of Two Wives

In the neighborhood of Old Testament proverbs live two women who cannot be as different as night and day. On one side of the street is the home of an excellent wife whose husband is praised in the gates for her righteousness. Across the narrow lane is a husband who hangs his head in shame for the frivolity of his wife. Two men live across the street from one another and one is filled with thankfulness and gratitude while the pitied neighbor is filled with remorse and hopelessness. The wisdom literature is unflinching in the deep truths of righteousness reflected in the home. A husband wears a crown of honor because of his wife. Another husband is filled with rottenness or decay in his spirit as he watches his wife flitter her life away with slothful, wasteful and indolent living, ill-tongued and boisterous. Her character is not of submission but ruling the home with her hand of superiority.

Two women bring glory and shame to the home. The first woman is one whose heart dwells in the temple of God. Her character is for the good of the family, the honor of her husband and the glory of God. The mantle of her character is righteousness. She fills her heart with the word of God learning the traits of humility, charity, industry and kindness to others. Her dress is modest reflecting a spirit of purity and holiness. The tongue of a righteous woman praises her husband. There is joy in her heart as she submits to the leadership of her husband according to the will of the Lord. In her home are the pillars of truth, worship and godliness. The second woman is one whose heart dwells in the temples of men. She is wanton in her desire to be like the world. Her character is bold and asserting in the likeness of the world. The mantle of her character is the embolden woman of the world who cast off the cloak of submission commanded by God. They rule the home, degrade the husband and bring shame to the glory of the Lord. Her dress is the immodesty of the standards of society exalting the flesh above the spirit. She brings unhappiness to the marriage gnawing at the marrow of life and bringing shame to her husband.

The language of the Proverbs does not settle well in the world of the liberated woman and the cowardly husband. Many men have abdicated their roles of leadership for the submission to the woman. In a world gone mad with the destruction of the home, wives have taken control of the home demanding husbands bow to their wishes and desires. An excellent wife is still a crown of her husband and the woman who brings shame to the home is rottenness to the bones. From the Garden of Eden, the role of man and woman was ordained by the Creator. Like all things in His creation, the family is designed with perfection. When God looked at the first home He declared that is was very good. Through the influence of Satan, the home has become a place of unhappiness, immorality and rebellion. Women who have liberated themselves from the pattern of God are in sin. Husbands who refuse to lead the family as prescribed by the Lord rebel against the word of God.

When men go against the created pattern of God’s design there will be consequences. In a world given over to same-sex marriages and the meaning of marriage being redefined by the immoral fleshly cravings of perversion, the wisdom of the proverbs remains true. The home is a strong as the will of God that dwells there. The head of man is Christ and the head of woman is man. Wives are to be in subjection to their husbands and the man is to be the leader of the home. That is not a social statement; that is the law of God. Women who refuse to submit – sin. Husbands who fail to take the role of leadership in the home – sin. There will either be excellency in the home or there will be rottenness.

Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, “What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road?” But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.” (Mark 9:33-37)

Who Is The Greatest In The Church?

The pride of man has always been a stumbling block leading to an arrogance of self-will and assumption of greatness. Among the apostles of Christ the plague of prideful desire was fueling a desire to find a place of prominence in a mistaken idea of a coming kingdom. Listening more to their carnal desires instead of the truth of the teachings of Jesus, the twelve disputed among themselves who would play a prominent role when the Lord established His kingdom. Jesus never suggested an earthly kingdom. This came from a heart of pride in His apostles. The Lord had told the twelve He was going to be betrayed into the hands of men and killed. After His death He said He would be raised. What they got out of the whole discussion was an argument about greatness. The truth was they did not understand what Jesus was saying when He spoke about His death and resurrection and were afraid to ask Him.

Jesus knew they argued about greatness among themselves. He brings the twelve together and explains to them the measure of greatness is not who is first in prideful superiority but who is willing to be last and to be a servant to others. That is counter-intuitive to the ideas of man to think that first place is last place. Everyone wants to be first. That is the place of glory. Finding oneself in last place is demeaning and lowly. Worse than being last is to consider oneself a servant to others as a slave is the lowest form of man. Servants do not have a lot to be prideful about. How could one be great when he is last and a servant to others?

To fortify the lesson, Jesus brings a little boy and sets him in the midst of twelve grown men who had been disputing about which one of them was the greatest and drives home the point. Jesus takes the young boy in His arms and shows the character of greatness. Children are not born with pride; they learn that from adults. Little children do not argue about greatness because their hearts are humble. Children of God possess a character of humility that does not seek first place but expresses a spirit of servitude. The kingdom of heaven is filled with the heart of children who let God be first place. It is important to know the church is the kingdom of God and pride has no place in the church. Men argue about who is the greatest when they squabble and fuss about who is in charge and whose word must be obeyed. Church divisions are brought about by prideful men who seek their own will rather than the word of God. What is lost in the disputes of men in business meetings and elderships is the church belongs to Jesus Christ – not men. He is the head of the church – not men. The Lord died on the cross – not men.

Who is greatest in the local church? Jesus Christ is the head of the church universal and local. Men and women should always remember the work of the church is about the work of the Lord. An exalted spirit of self-worth destroys the harmony of God’s pattern of the church when men seek to be great in the church because they believe they are the greatest. It would be a good thing to bring small children into the business meetings and elders meetings to remind everyone who is the greatest. The local church should look to the spirit of their children to learn how to love one another. Receiving one of those little children in the name of Christ receives the Lord Himself. When we receive the spirit of Jesus Christ like a little child, we receive the blessing of the heavenly Father.

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. (Matthew 6:19-24)

God And Mammon

Man has always been a servant. He serves either those things that are true and righteous or those things that are false and ungodly. There has never been a third choice. Created in the image of God, man was formed to glorify the Creator and to worship the One who gives him life. He was given the ability to choose and allowed to make a choice whether he wanted to obey the Lord or not. It was in the Garden of Eden that man made a choice to satisfy his fleshly desires and ignore the clear instructions of God. Mammon was a strong aroma that man fell prey to and as a consequence was separated from God and cast out of the garden. It was that morsel of mammon that brought the punishment of a righteous God upon the whole world and then saved through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son.

Mammon is not a word familiar to most people. It is only found four times in scripture but the message of the Bible from beginning to end is the struggle with mammon. Jesus refers to it in His sermon on the mountain and the parable of the unjust steward. The Old Testament is a testimony to the eternal struggle of man and mammon. Jesus came to earth to show men they cannot live by mammon alone. Everyone today struggles with the powerful influence of mammon in their lives. Jesus died because of mammon. Our life beyond the grave will be determined by how we deal with mammon. It is impossible to serve the Lord God and to serve mammon.

Defining the word mammon is to understand the lust of the flesh, the pride of life and the lust of the eye. Like the forbidden fruit of Eden, mammon is the aroma of temptation that draws the heart away from God. The treasures of earth have a great attraction because they are fun, exciting and glitter brightly to the desires of man. Mammon is the fulfillment that brings satisfaction to the flesh exalting the pride of man to make him believe he is a god. Satan is after the heart of man and when he fills the soul of man with riches of this world he is succeeding in turning man into a worshipper of mammon. The lamp of the eye of man is the soul of man and what it becomes is what man becomes. Mammon brings darkness and how great is that darkness. The reality of mammon is that it is transitory.

God and mammon cannot be in the same heart. Man’s heart was created to only have room for one thing. Loving and serving mammon will exclude God. They cannot abide together. Devoting the heart to God will drive the desire of mammon from the mind of man and give him greater hope and greater promise. Jesus stated a simple fact: no man can serve two masters. Either the Lord God will reign in the heart or the lie of mammon will give a temporary pleasure before death destroys the soul. Every one of us serves one of two masters. Do you serve God or do you serve mammon?

My Grandson Can’t Play In The Championship Game

They are the Gilchrist League Rookie Baseball All-Stars and they have an undefeated season. The past few years this group of young men have put up an impressive score in basketball and little league baseball of very few losses. This season they have won the first championship and are entering the second championship with no losses. The games have been hard with close scores. Each player has stepped up and delivered a stellar performance to move their team to winning. They have embodied the spirit of team play. More games are ahead that will test their metal but they are a winning team on the field and off the field. Today, they won a hard fought game with a good team defeating them 6-4. With this win, they move to the championship game. Sadly, my grandson will not be able to play in the championship game.

He was not injured or disqualified. The reason for his not playing in the championship game was not because of sickness or weather or the like. When they won the game today there was great jubilation as the team together succeeded to secure another spot in a championship game. In a world gone carnal to its core, he will not be able to play in the championship game because it is scheduled for Sunday morning 9:00am. I know this is not news to many people as this has been happening in many places for many years. It is not the norm.

There was a time when society respected the first day of the week. Many stores were closed on Sunday called the “Blue Laws.” Publix, a major grocery store, was closed on Sunday. Many business do not open on the first day of the week but this is changing more and more. Ball games are now played all day on Sunday and no one seems to care. There was no doubt Kendon would not be able to play the championship game because his first cause is the Lord. His parents have affirmed that in him but how heartbreaking for a young man to learn the cruel twist of a carnal world. It is not so much about him being in a place of worship on Sunday morning instead of being on the ball field. The sad truth is the world our children and grandchildren are growing up in is a world that has no respect for the first day of the week.

What is more startling than the scheduling of games on Sunday is the silence of parents and teams who participate. Most in the world could care less because God is not in their lives anyway. There was a time that good religious people honored the first day of the week. Chick-Fil-A and Hobby Lobby have both shown through the corporate world that success can be had without being open on the first day of the week. Now our good religious neighbors gladly go off to parlay with the world in a championship game on the first day of the week with no sense of regret or conscience. What is more tragic are brethren who justify taking their children to ball games on the first day of the week. At a congregation I preached a woman and son came to the early service to take of the communion so they could rush out to play in a ball game (they were from out of town). Sadly for her, the communion was not served until later and she left to take her son to play ball. She turned her back on Jesus Christ for a ball game. What good is that game going to do a person who stands before the Almighty God and explain why they chose to play in a silly ball game instead of communing over the body and blood of His Son?

It is sad Kendon will miss out in the championship game. He is okay and I am proud of him. It is more sad than he will grow up in a world that will try everything it can to destroy his faith. Something as simple as a ball game on Sunday morning at 9:00 will be how Satan hurts the body of Christ. The church is going to be filled with parents who think nothing of taking the children to these ball games because they are so important to the development of the child. All the while, teaching them to hate God. What other things hinder our service to the Lord on the first day of the week. When on vacation do we vacate God? If our child has a school function or a party do we hate God and let them go? Please know this – if God is not first He is last and if He is last there is no love for Him. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Let’s be clear. If we do not obey God we hate Him. Stop pretending that disobeying the Lord is love. Jesus Christ did not die so we could play ball instead of remember His sacrifice. If the communion of the Lord is not first – God help you.

Let us be prepared for the continual onslaught of an evil and adulterous generation. This is not new news because the early church faced the same problem. We must stand for truth no matter how many games we miss and friends we lose. God is first. Jesus is first. The Holy Spirit is first. His word is first. Nothing is first in our lives but the Lord. May God richly bless parents who train their children in the way of righteousness and truth and reject the overtones of a world that rejects God.

For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘THE LORD YOUR GOD WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR BRETHREN. HIM YOU SHALL HEAR IN ALL THINGS, WHATEVER HE SAYS TO YOU. AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERY SOUL WHO WILL NOT HEAR THAT PROPHET SHALL BE UTTERLY DESTROYED FROM AMONG THE PEOPLE.’ Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘AND IN YOUR SEED ALL THE FAMILIES OF THE EARTH SHALL BE BLESSED.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.” (Acts 3:22-26)

The New Testament Church In The Old Testament

Following the healing of the lame man at the Temple, Peter and John are surrounded by a multitude of people curious about the miracle that transformed the cripple. The apostle explained the healing wonder of the lame man was by the power of the One they had killed called Jesus. He was the Holy One and the Just, Prince of life whom God raised from the dead. While the rabble crowd cried out for the death of Jesus, they were fulfilling what had been prophesied in the days of Moses and the succeeding prophets. Moses had spoken of a Prophet coming that would bring the words of salvation. Believing on this Prophet would bring life and disbelieving would bring destruction. All of the prophets beginning with Samuel spoke of the coming Prophet that would be unlike any man. Peter reminds the people that even Abraham spoke of this Jesus when the Lord promised the blessings of the seed would bless all families on earth.

Genesis through the final book of Malachi is filled with the evidence of the promised new covenant that God would make with all men. The New Testament church is revealed throughout the Old Testament as fulfilling the promise of the seed. Jesus Christ is the head of the church and His work of redemption was spoken by Abraham, Moses and all the prophets. Moses said the Lord would raise up a Prophet like himself. There is a shadow and type found in Moses as he led the people out of bondage to the promised land. Jesus has opened the path of salvation through the church – redemption for all men. When the Lord commissioned His disciples to preach the gospel, He commanded those who believed and were baptized would be saved and those who did not believe would be condemned. This is the same message spoken of by Moses concerning the Prophet that was coming.

Salvation would come to those who heard the word of the Prophet and obeyed. Destruction would come to those who did not heed the word of the Prophet. The promise to Abraham was that in the fulfillment of the seed all the families of the earth would be blessed. Jesus said during His ministry that He was the only way, the only truth and the only life. No man can bless all families on the earth like Jesus and He is the only Savior of man. There is no other way. Truth can only be found in Jesus Christ. Eternal life comes from the Son of God alone. These are the basic doctrines of the New Testament church.

Many believed the words of Peter and John and the number of the disciples grew to be about five thousand. The first converts to Christ learned of salvation from reading the Old Testament. Philip taught the eunuch from Ethiopia beginning at Isaiah 53. The conclusion of the eunuch was the necessity of baptism. Early disciples learned much about the church from the writings of the Old Testament. The Holy Spirit continued to reveal His word as the church grew and the canon of the New Testament was formed. Never forget the Old Testament is about Jesus Christ and the eternal purpose God had in establishing the church of the New Covenant. The church of the New Testament is the Prego of the Old Testament: it’s in there.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The Fruit Of The Spirit Is Goodness

Virtue is found in the simple character of being a good person. Men seek for deep and intellectual meanings of life but there is nothing more intrinsic to the quality of a Christian than being filled with the spirit of goodness. Defining the attributes of the fruit of the Holy Spirit goes no further than what men miss in their pursuits of prideful self-glorification. How basic is the idea of being a good man. It is not hard to develop or learn how to show goodness to others and yet how vital to the personality of the Christian when he fills himself with the Holy Spirit. One of the attributes the Christian is to be known by is his good character. He is respected as an upright person of integrity who is measured by his good speech, action and kindness. The fruit of the Spirit is kindness and goodness shows forth that kindness. Benevolence is in the hand of the good hearted Christian.

Examining the fruits of the Holy Spirit is a contrast in the wisdom of man and the wisdom of God. Men seek higher planes of self-identification through great and noble deeds. Honor before the Lord comes from a character of being a good man and a good woman. Doing kind deeds shows the spirit of goodness. Having an example of goodness comes from the good treasure of the heart that loves his neighbor. The way of the good man is ordered by the Lord as he delights in following the pattern of righteousness. He deals graciously with others guiding his affairs with discretion. Goodness is something that is seen in the life of the child of God as the light of Christ shines in everything they do and say.

Filling the heart with the word of God a character of goodness develops because the goodness of God is seen in Christ. No greater example of good can be found than the love the Father had in sending His only begotten Son to die for miserable man. The life of Jesus was a life of goodness. His death was the ultimate good that brought man to the Father. If we are to be like Christ we must be people of goodness putting away dishonesty, meanness, immorality and indecency. Filled with the Holy Spirit we learn to say good things and speak the truth always. In the spirit of kindness we do good to others. Goodness overcomes evil in every form. Nothing is more basic to the moral compass of the Christian than being a good person – not for the sake of earthly glory – but to show the glory of God through our goodness.

To be like Christ is to be good. No frills, no fanfare and no deep philosophical or religious meanderings of intellectual babble. Here is the quiet and simple pattern of life: be a good person. This goodness does not come from the wisdom of man. The fruit of the Holy Spirit is goodness and this fruit can only be found in the orchard of God’s grace when we partake of His fruit. Learning to be good comes from the nectarine of the words inscribed through the Holy Spirit upon the pages of holy writ. If you desire to be good, obtain favor from the Lord and you will find a cornucopia of blessings abounding in the spirit of His goodness flowing in your heart. It is always good to be good when we do good in the name of Jesus Christ. Be good because you are good. Fill yourself with the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel. (Numbers 14:10)

The Glory Of The Lord

It was supposed to be a time of great victory for the children of Israel as they stood at the threshold of a land promised to their fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In the long ago the Lord told Abram he would be given a land as a promise when his descendants would become a great nation. That time had come following many years of cruel bondage in Egypt and a perilous journey to Kadesh-Barnea. Spies had entered the land but reported great fear at the giants that lived there causing the people to turn against Moses and Aaron. Only Joshua and Caleb, two of the twelve spies sent it to survey the land, exhorted the people to enter the land with the power of the Lord and certain victory. There was a great conflict among the people. They wanted to choose another leader and return to Egypt. When Joshua and Caleb pressed the people to fight against the people of Canaan, they rose up against the two leaders threatening to stone them with stones.

As anarchy enveloped the nation of Israel, the Lord God watched patiently. Finally, He had enough. When the people threatened Joshua and Caleb, the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting to bring an end to the rebellion. The appearance of the glory of the Lord was a visible manifestation of the power of the Lord God. It was neither a mist nor a common cloud. His presence was known and His will was impressed upon the rabble that stood to stone Joshua and Caleb and God made His presence known to the people. His anger had been aroused. He was full of wrath at these ungrateful people who had been delivered by His hand. The glory of the Lord was seen by everyone and it was a powerful testimony to the Almighty God they were rebelling against. The Lord told Moses He would destroy the nation and raise up another in its place. Only by the pleading of His humble servant Moses did the Lord relent the destruction of Israel. The punishment for their rebellion cost the nation of Israel forty years of wandering and the death of those who rebelled against Him. The ten spies who gave a false report died by the plague.

The glory of the Lord appeared many times to the people. It was a visible reminder to the people of the presence of the Lord and to impress upon them the awesome greatness of who He was. The people should not trifle with the Lord. What was tragic about the events at Kadesh-Barnea was the people had seen the glory of the Lord in His deliverance of the Hebrews from Egypt. The plagues and crossing of the Red Sea was sufficient evidence of the glory of the Lord. While at Mt. Sinai, the mountain shook with the glory of the Lord with thunders, lightening, and a thick cloud. In the presence of this powerful glory, the people bowed down to a golden calf. Now at the borders of the promised land, a rebellious and ungrateful nation rejected the one who had delivered them. They would come face to face with the glory of the Lord for the next forty years.

There is no mountain, tabernacle or Temple where the glory of the Lord will appear. His glory is found in something greater than all of these. The glory of the Lord is now seen in a place called Golgotha where the Son of God gave His life for all men. His death is a long shadow cast upon the world for two thousand years telling all men of the grace, mercy, love and kindness of the glory of God. Jesus is the fulfillment of all the promises made by His Father. He can be seen in the word of God. Most men reject the saving power of the Lord like the people did at Kadesh-Barnea. The coming of the glory of the Lord did not change the hearts of those who rebelled because they could only see a cloud, fire and smoke. Most men reject Jesus because they cannot see what a cross can mean for their life. The glory of the Lord is the final hope to redeem men and without that glory there is no joy or peace. All men will stand before the Lord God and see His glory face to face. What will make a difference are those who bear the glory of the Lord and those who do not.

If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.(Hebrews 12:7-11)

Respecting Our Fathers

The celebration of Father’s Day has been a long tradition since the Middle Ages among Catholic Europe. In America, it was first recognized in 1910 in the State of Washington and was designated a national day of honor by President Johnson in 1966. President Richard Nixon made the third Sunday of June an official holiday in 1972. Americans like their holidays. We have a holiday to everything including National Apricot Day, National Bubba Day and Eat Your Vegetables Day. There is a misplaced confidence that if we celebrate a certain day there is a huge respect for that day in the minds of the world. Father’s Day is set aside to honor the institution of fatherhood. Like most holidays, it is more about the commercial side of things than the original meaning. What is lost in the fervor of the next sale on tools and televisions is the reality of a lost fatherhood in our nation.

Numbers differ depending on how to view the role of fathers in the home but data suggest more than 30% of homes do not have a father living in the home. This will change dramatically within cultural communities where some average more than 50% without a father in the home. Taking the numbers that have a male presence in the home, what percent of those fathers are leading the family in a role of respect and honor becomes a frightening statistic. It is imperative to have a father and mother in the home to guide the children but when parents fail to fulfill their responsibilities in leading the home there is failure. On the one hand, American society berates and degrades the husband and father as a useless part of the home promoting the lifestyle of same-sex families as healthy in contradiction of the natural design given by God of one man and one woman in the home. Women’s liberation rights have been so infused into the family culture the man has abdicated his role of leadership to a place of incompetence. Roles are reversed where children grow up never seeing fathers take their place of leadership in the home. The end result is not just the destruction of the home but the culture that denies the authority of the only Father that matters in the universe of man: God.

What children learn in the home will furnish the building blocks for their understanding of God. A family that does not respect the role of the father in the home will have a difficult time respecting the role of the heavenly Father in their hearts. Discipline is the instructive training of the child to respect and honor authority which includes punitive discipline enforcing the rule of authority. Fathers who exercise discipline in the home teach their children to honor and respect them. Failing to discipline children will teach them to disrespect and dishonor the role of leadership. This carries over into the child’s understanding of the word of God. The Lord disciplines us and we learn to respect and honor Him because we accept the role of His leadership in our lives.

Fatherhood is the keystone of the home only when the leadership comes from the mind of God. The Hebrew writer exhorts the early Christians to learn the love of God in the role of discipline so that respect and honor will be given to the Lord. This first begins in the home. Celebrating fatherhood is more than trinkets of tools and electronics. The church needs men who will take their places of leadership and women who willing accept the word of God to be in submission. Culture does not change the word of God. Blending the roles of the father and mother in the pattern of discipline will create a home of peace, holiness and righteousness. This will lead to a greater understanding of the presence of God in the hearts of our children. May God richly bless the fathers who take the mantle of responsibility in their homes with the fervency of His Spirit and His word.

Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. (John 6:32-35)

He Is The Bread

The human body is a marvel of creation. Formed by the hand of God, man declares the power and majesty of his Maker by the fashion and design of his physical form. Created in the womb and brought forth in the miracle of birth, life is an incredible assembly of millions of cells working together for a constant energy of reproduction and replenishment with each passing year in an endless function of beauty. All of this purpose in the human form is dependent upon two important facts: hunger and thirst. The brain and heart are vital to life as well as other essential organs and limbs but without food everything will die. Life is based upon the sustenance of refueling the body with the proper nutrients to allow life to continue. Short periods of time can pass without food or water but in time the body begins to break down and die. The consequence of sin was God taking away the tree of life originally placed in the center of man’s world. Bread is a term used to describe all the needs of man to maintain his life. The Lord told Adam in the sweat of his face he would eat bread until he returned to the ground from whence he came. Life is about hunger and thirst.

Jesus uses the necessity of life in the physical body to illustrate the design of the Father for the spiritual needs of man. Like the human form, the inner man of eternity requires the holy nutrients of the Father to sustain life. Man cannot feed himself these things as they must come from the Lord. Jesus reminded the Jews of His day that Moses did not give the ancient Hebrews manna but this bread came from God. Moses was a servant of the Lord but the manna appeared through the power of the Lord without any help from man. It came from above by the power of God alone. This manna kept the people alive for forty years as the wandered the wilderness. Their provisions were blessed by the hand of God where they never hungered, thirst or lacked anything. Their clothes did not wear out or their shoes. All of their needs were cared for by God. Jesus declares that as the manna was given by God to nourish the bellies of His people, so now Jesus would become the bread of life for all men to partake and live.

Hungering and thirst are the two basic needs of man. Without food and water, man will die. The eternal man requires food and water and this can only come from Jesus Christ. Life is found in the bread and the everlasting water. There is only one bread of life and the Son of God gave His life to become that life giving stream. Like the manna of old, Jesus came from the Father and if men refuse to partake of the bread they will die. Two things are required to find life in Jesus. First, men must come to Him. God sent the manna to the children of Israel but they had to go and gather what they needed. Jesus came into the world to save sinners but those who are lost must seek the Lord. The hunger of the soul brings men to seek out Jesus. He will not come to them if they are unwilling to come to Him. Secondly, bread alone will not save. It requires quenching the thirst. Like the human body, food and water are both needed for life. Coming to Jesus alone does not save. Believing that He is the Christ, the Son of the living God is where man finds the quenching of his spiritual thirst. The bread of life is found in Jesus Christ for those who hunger after Him and fill their thirst abiding in His word. This bread of life will never go away and will always sustain the life of those who hunger and thirst after the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Are you hungry? Are you thirsty?