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1 Thess. 2:3-13
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can download our service on iTunes or tune in for “The Good Word” each day on AM 1230 WSAL or on Hoosier Country 103.7 FM just after 8am. This morning I trust you can look back and say: “I had a dad who made a difference in this world. I had a dad who made a difference in my life!” On Mother’s Day I said no one has ever had, or ever will have a perfect mother. The same thing can be said of fathers – with one exception… We all know the only man that ever walked on earth that had a Perfect Father was the Lord Jesus. I don’t know if you’ve ever thought of it or not, but, because He is the perfect Father, God has both, made it possible and invited all who are willing, to be His adopted children, so we can have a perfect Father! I found this outline and think it expresses some important truths about Fathers, and shows us how to make a difference as a father. May I remind you Dad, it is never too late to start making a difference in your wife’s life and the life of your children! That means, if you need to, you can start today. The blessing of that is, you have the rest of your life to be the difference!
- GOD WILL TAKE AWAY ALL YOUR GUILT!Notice vs. 3, 4. How does God take away our guilt? Read Ps. 32:1-5. God takes away our feelings of guilt only after we acknowledge and confess our sin. Notice v. 3, 4. When we try to hide or ignore our sin our lives are miserable. When we feel guilty, it is usually because we are guilty! When we acknowledge and confess our sin to God, He delights in removing those awful feelings of guilt! God not only removes the feelings of guilt, He also removes the fact of our guilt. Read Isa. 6: 7. When God’s redeeming grace touches our lives our guilt in fact, is taken away. We are cleansed by the blood of Christ Paul tells us in Rom. 5:9. Heb. 13:12 tells us we are sanctified through Christ’s blood; and 1 John 1:7 tells us Christ’s blood cleanses us from all sin. When sin is taken away, its guilt goes with it! A father who makes a difference not only practices that, he teaches it to his family. You have heard me say whenever God takes something away from us, He immediately replaces it with something good and righteous. That same practice must be true in our own lives. When we make a commitment to stop or remove anything ungodly from our lives, we must at the same time replace it with something righteous! If we don’t Satan fills the gap with another, and often more heinous sin. God not only takes away our guilt, but:
- GOD GIVES US THE GOODNESS WE NEED. Goodness is one of God’s most defining attributes, and He delights in sharing His goodness with men who seek Him will all their heart, mind, soul, and strength! God’s goodness means He is the final standard of good, and all He is and does is worthy of approval. Salvation is the mandatory key that unlocks all God’s goodness to all people! All people get some of God’s goodness. Look at Matt. 5: 45; but only God’s family has access to all His goodness. We experience some now, and some later! God empowers fathers through the fruit of His Holy Spirit, and by the living and powerful Word of Truth. God takes great delight in ministering to a father who is dedicated to standing up for Christ all the time, not just when it is easy or convenient! God will also give us
- THE GUIDANCE WE NEED! Look at v. 11, 12. Do you know why Paul was such a good guide in spiritual matters and Christian living? Because he let God guide him! We need fathers and husbands who are guided by God in their daily life! A wise man once said, “A child is not likely to find a Father in God, unless he finds something of God in his father.” God will take away all your guilt, God gives us all the goodness we need, He gives us all the guidance we need, and
- GOD GIVES US A GRATEFUL HEART! Look at v. 13. Dad do you ever spend time thanking God for the blessings He has shared with you? One of the most identifying characteristics of a true Christian is a grateful heart! Paul said “we thank God without ceasing.” I know many of you men thank God every day for your salvation. I know you thank Him for your wife and family, and for your blessings. A grateful heart is one of the most cherished gifts a man can offer God. God knows what it is to pay a high price as a Father. He paid the highest price any Father has ever paid. The interesting thing is God paid that price for us, not Himself. He sacrificed His Son so we could come to Him and have our guilt taken away. He paid that awful price to put us in a position where He could give us all the goodness we need whenever we need it. God gave His Son to give us the guidance we need to be more than men of God, we can be sons of God.If He did no more than that, it would be enough for us to spend our entire life using the grateful heart God gives us. May we strive to be strong, wise, dedicated men and fathers who give God all we have so He is able to give us all HE has for us! May God work in us in such a way that we become fathers who make a difference!
If we can help you with your spiritual questions, call us at 574-643-9419.
