A Father Of Faith
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. (Hebrews 11:8)
While it’s true that there might not be just one model of fatherhood, there is one ministry all fathers should have in common, and that is to be a father of faith. Abraham’s life shows and demonstrates that faith is fundamental and foundational for fatherhood.
If Genesis 12 and Hebrews 11:8 form bookends in the story of Abraham’s life, the constant theme is the centrality of faith, specifically faith as a verb rather than faith as a noun. He is not the father of THE faith, where faith refers to a set of doctrinal beliefs. Instead, he is the father of faith, where “faith” is a verb, a form of action in which one demonstrates unwavering trust and confidence in God.
Remember, Abraham is called by God in Genesis 12:1 to leave his father’s house and to journey into a land that God would show him. He is faithful and obeys God’s call to leave his homeland. In Genesis 17, God commands Abraham to practice the painful act of circumcision, but despite the pain he must endure, Abraham is faithful to the command. In Genesis 22, he was faithful and obeyed God when God commanded him to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice atop Mt. Moriah.
The promise God makes to Abraham over and over again, that he would be the father of many nations, is intimately connected to Abraham’s ability to be faithful to where God is telling him to go. If Abraham had refused to be faithful, he would have never enjoyed the blessing of being a father.
The give of faith is perhaps the best gift a father can give his child. Not money, not material things, but faith. Charles Kettering once said, “Ever father should remember one day his son will follow his example, not his advice.” With that in mind, let’s all of us fathers strive to set an example of faith, because that will be an example worth following.
While it’s true that there might not be just one model of fatherhood, there is one ministry all fathers should have in common, and that is to be a father of faith. Abraham’s life shows and demonstrates that faith is fundamental and foundational for fatherhood.
If Genesis 12 and Hebrews 11:8 form bookends in the story of Abraham’s life, the constant theme is the centrality of faith, specifically faith as a verb rather than faith as a noun. He is not the father of THE faith, where faith refers to a set of doctrinal beliefs. Instead, he is the father of faith, where “faith” is a verb, a form of action in which one demonstrates unwavering trust and confidence in God.
Remember, Abraham is called by God in Genesis 12:1 to leave his father’s house and to journey into a land that God would show him. He is faithful and obeys God’s call to leave his homeland. In Genesis 17, God commands Abraham to practice the painful act of circumcision, but despite the pain he must endure, Abraham is faithful to the command. In Genesis 22, he was faithful and obeyed God when God commanded him to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice atop Mt. Moriah.
The promise God makes to Abraham over and over again, that he would be the father of many nations, is intimately connected to Abraham’s ability to be faithful to where God is telling him to go. If Abraham had refused to be faithful, he would have never enjoyed the blessing of being a father.
The give of faith is perhaps the best gift a father can give his child. Not money, not material things, but faith. Charles Kettering once said, “Ever father should remember one day his son will follow his example, not his advice.” With that in mind, let’s all of us fathers strive to set an example of faith, because that will be an example worth following.
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