PASTOR TOKUNBO OSHOKOYA
THE MAN THAT GOD SEEKS FOR: HUSBAND, FATHER, SON, SERVANT & FRIEND
Phil Cooke’s Blog:
“Disconnect to Reconnect”
All of us need to be reconnected with our wives, children, friends, brother and sisters in the Church.
Who is a Good Father?
Biblical Definition – All in the scriptures to show us what is in God’s heart about who a Good Father is.
To define a Godly Father, we check Psalm 112 verses 1 and 2
This man fears the Lord greatly and loves His commandments.
His Attitudes, amongst others, are:
-He is not looking for loopholes to get round the injunctions of God.
-He does not feel that they are impositions on him
– He does not outrightly rejects them
– He receives them and delights in them.
So really who is a Good father? He is the one who fears God and desires to honor Him always.
He accepts responsibility for whatever commandment is given, for whatever is expected of Him.
He provides guidance for the family and provides direction.
The Man that God seeks after is the one that can raise blessed family, families and nations!
So let us impress on ourselves some home truths, a look at FIVE ATTRIBUTES:
– A good father fears greatly.
– He submits humbly.
– He leads faithfully.
– He instructs consistently.
-He loves abundantly.
What makes a bad father? Bad fathers are …
- Invisible
- Impossible
- Inconsistent
A great father is a PROVIDER for his family.
A great father is a MINISTER to his family.
He must lovingly provide for his family’s spiritual needs.
What is God’s Measure of a Good Man and Father?
The same thing can be said for the scope of the spiritual world where the traffic of men’s souls moves not just on a daily docket but on an eternal path.
What the Bible said that a godly man is:
- A man of knowledge.
- A man moved by faith.
- A man fired by love.
- A man like God.
- A man careful about the worship of God.
- A man who serves God and not men.
- A man who prizes Jesus Christ.
- A man who can weep.
- A man who loves the Word.
- A man who has the Spirit of God residing in him.
- A man of humility.
- A man of prayer
- A man of sincerity.
- A heavenly man.
- A zealous man.
- A patient man.
- A thankful man.
- A man who loves the saints.
- A man who does not indulge himself in sin.
- A man who is good in his relationships.
- A man who does spiritual things in a spiritual manner.
- A man thoroughly trained in religion.
- A man who walks with God.
- A man who strives to be an instrument for making others godly
Our churches would change, our families would change, and our destinations would change.
My prayer on this Father’s Day 2012 is that we pursue the things that God measures men by.
THE MAN OF GOD: Man measured by What He Flees From
- 1 Corinthians 6:18—Flee from fornication.
- 1 Corinthians 10:14—Flee from Idolatry.
- 1 Timothy 6:11—Flee from covetousness and the love of money.
- 2 Timothy 2:22—Flee from youthful lusts.
This is still good advice in our generation. We live in a sensual, idolatrous, money-loving, lustful society. Every device the devil can use, he will do so to subvert our souls. We have to flee!
The second thing that the man of God is measured by is what he follows after. We are to follow after these things with the same amount of energy that we have used to flee from the trappings of this world.
Make it the goal of your life to achieve these six things:
- Righteousness
- Godliness
- Faith
- Love
- Patience
- Meekness (Gentleness)
Man measured by What He Fights For
Fight the good fight. . . agonizou ton kalonagona. . . agonize in good agony
Our generation needs fighting men more than they ever have before. Stay at your battle stations and do the right thing.
George Barna has identified some troubling statistics for the church at large in America:
- Women are twice as likely to be involved in discipleship in the church as men are.
- They are 57% more likely to attend Sunday School.
- They are 56% more likely to hold a leadership position.
- They are 54% more likely to participate in a small group.
A godly man is measured by what he fights for! We cannot become disconnected and isolated from the house of God. We have to take the fight to the devil!
There are three dominant things that seem to surface:
1) Love for apostolic doctrine and lifestyle;
2) Prayer;
3) You are in a spiritual battle!
There are some things that we ought to be willing to fight for in our generation.
- Fight for your own personal identity as a man.
- Fight the battle for personal holiness.
- Fight the fight for your family.
- Fight through the pain of living in a fallen world.
- Fight for some close godly friends.
- Fight for a strong faith.
THE POWER OF A FIGHTING FATHER
PRAYERS
No one can take the unique place of a father!
One of the biggest threats to the generation we are now raising is the breakdown of the family.
Lifelong marriages provide the foundation for social order; everything of value rest on those underpinnings.
Historically, when the family begins to unravel in any culture, everything else is adversely affected.
Statistics:
70% of black babies and 20% of white babies born in North America are born out of wedlock. Most of them will never know their fathers – or a father’s love.
Only 1/3 of children born in North America will live with both biological parents through age
How does this affect us?
85% of children with behavior disorders are from fatherless homes
71% of high school dropouts are from fatherless homes
70% of teen pregnancies are from fatherless homes
80% of rapists are from fatherless homes
75% of teen patients in drug abuse centers are from fatherless homes
70% of juveniles in correctional institutions are from fatherless homes
85% of youths in prison are from fatherless homes
63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes
Thirty years ago, we believed that poverty and racial discrimination were primarily responsible for juvenile crime and behavioral problems. Now, nearly all of the evidence points to family breakup as the real culprit, and predicts a societal catastrophe if we don’t turn this trend around!
72% of North Americans say the physical absence of fathers is the most serious problem facing our families. How can you buck the trend? By committing your life totally to Christ and raising your family to do the same!
Christian fathers do not lie, steal, lust and covet! Christian fathers do not serve the god of money! Christian fathers do not sire and then abandon their children!
Christian fathers do not cheat on their wives!
Christian fathers don’t send their kids to church, they take them!
Christian fathers have a REAL relationship with God.
EVERY INDISCIPLINE IS A LACK OF OPERATION OF WISDOM