Thinking of GOD as a FATHER
While most Christians are familiar with God the Father, the first person of the Trinity; I wonder-how many have ever given thought to God as a Father. Family imagery is used throughout the Bible and like the rest of God’s words, was intentional on God’s part and likely meant to teach us far more than we normally recognize.
I believe this imagery, and especially this facet of that imagery (God’s Fatherhood) yields a wealth of valuable information and instruction for parents in child-rearing. When it comes to Biblical instruction about child-rearing, there are only a few passages and isolated verses that often come to mind — Ex 20.12, Eph 6.1-4, Pr 1.8, Pr 22.6, Pr 29.17 and others.
However, when we begin to look at God AS A Father; specifically, how He raises His children in the Bible, a whole new outlook emerges. For instance, consider God’s dealings with His “first” children, Adam and Eve. God provided a home for them, gave them basic instructions, and left them to accomplish their tasks (much like parents of children might do today). He checked on them regularly and had a warm and loving relationship with them (again, much like today’s parents).
The difference between how God “parents” and how many of today’s parents “parent” becomes apparent when Adam and Eve deliberately disobey the basic instructions God gave them. After they sinned, God comes to them as usual; but they hide, knowing their guilt. God gives them opportunity to confess their sin (repent), but they are full of excuses. God’s children mirror today’s children in their response to confrontation for sin, excuses and blame-shifting are the norm. God dismisses their excuses and then provides what is needed to rectify the consequences of their sin. He kills an animal and uses the animal’s skin to clothe them, covering their nakedness and (by implication) their sin. But then He punishes them in a manner that seems quite severe. He pronounces a lifelong curse upon them and banishes them from the home he had provided.
By today’s standards, His punishment is draconian. In response to children’s disobedience, today’s parent often simply gives the child “a talking to” or “a time out,” or the proverbial “slap on the wrist.” Such punishments are rarely effective in preventing or deterring future disobedience. However, the biggest problem is that those kinds of weak and ineffectual discipline inadvertently may give the child the wrong view of God.
Parents are God’s representatives in the home and children are on loan from God Himself. He desires that parents raise those children to revere and love Him. If parents are weak in their discipline, children may grow up expecting God to be equally weak and inconsequential as their authority.
If disobedience (sin) doesn’t have horrible consequences, then why choose obedience? Christian parents should know that sin, indeed, brings horrible consequences. A child’s disobedience gives the parent an opportunity to teach the child by giving strong enough discipline to deter future disobedience.
We should remember that disobedience, in particular, was the sin God emphasized and punished severely throughout the Old Testament. We see this with Adam and Eve, the first (but sadly not the last) of God’s children to disobey and receive painful punishment. Consider the great characters of the Old Testament: Moses and David. Though beloved of God, still they received stern punishment for disobedience. Many other figures in the Bible suffered for disobedience as well. When God’s representative, Samuel, pronounced God’s punishment on Saul, we find a strong statement about the importance of obedience.
And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. (1 Sa 15:22-23)
While most Christian parents know this passage, do Christian parents teach the application of the passage to their children by the way they deal with their children’s disobedience.
“The fear of the Lord” is the beginning of wisdom. Children should be taught that if they are obedient, they have NOTHING to fear. If, however, they disobey, there should be MUCH to fear. That is the way God the Father operates with His children and that is the way today’s parents should also operate … IF they want to emulate their heavenly Father and hope to have their children grow to emulate him also.
Debbi Johnson is a pastor’s wife in Victoria, BC, the mother of five children and grandmother of seven (and counting).
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay