Happy Father’s Day to all you fellow fathers out there…
“Father’s Day is the day to honor fathers and celebrate fatherhood. It was during a 1909 sermon about Mother’s Day when Sonora Smart Dodd became inspired to create Father’s Day. She wanted to show how thankful she was to her father for taking care of her and her siblings after the death of her mother. Thus, the first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910.” (http://www.history.com/content/fathersday, accessed on 6/20/2009).
Have you noticed…?
[ These are quick sermon notes…not cleaned-up…and missing the "extras" that come out in the audio (which, sadly, is not available). All quotes are from the English Standard Version unless otherwise noted. ]
Have you noticed that Mother’s Day sermons are always about how great mothers are, how they are all super-moms, how much we all owe them, etcetera, etcetera?
And that Father’s Day sermons are always about how fathers need to be more responsible, spend more time with their families, etcetera?
🙂
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Today I want to talk about the “original” Father…
Last week Larry’s sermon was titled, “It’s Not About You.” Who “is it” really about? (God.)
Sin’s beginning…
However, even with sin we make it about us. Where did sin really begin?
Ezekiel 28:11-19
11 Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Son of man, raise a lamentation over bthe king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord God:
“You were the signet of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden, the garden of God;
fevery precious stone was your covering,
sardius, topaz, and diamond,
beryl, onyx, and jasper,
sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle;
and crafted in gold were your settings
and your engravings.
On the day that you were created
they were prepared.
14 You were an anointed guardian cherub.
I placed you;4 you were on the holy mountain of God;
in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created,
till unrighteousness was found in you.
16 In the abundance of your trade
you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned;
so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God,
and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub,
from the midst of the stones of fire.
17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.
I cast you to the ground;
I exposed you before kings,
to feast their eyes on you.
18 By the multitude of your iniquities,
in the unrighteousness of your trade
you profaned your sanctuaries;
so I brought fire out from your midst;
it consumed you,
and I turned you to ashes on the earth
in the sight of all who saw you.
19 All who know you among the peoples
are appalled at you;
you have come to a dreadful end
and shall be no more forever.”
Revelation 12:7-9
7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And tthe great dragon was thrown down, uthat ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, vthe deceiver of the whole world–whe was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
Revelation 12:3-4
3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth.
Where did sin begin?
“You were in Eden…”
“You were an anointed guardian Cherub…”
“You were on the holy mountain of God…”
Revelation 12:9 “And tthe great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world–whe was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”
Revelation 20:2 “…And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan…”
Sin began in Heaven with Satan
Now, we don’t know exactly what was said, done, etcetera in heaven…but we may be able to get a significant clue looking at when sin first afflicted humanity…
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Humanity’s fall
Genesis 3:1-13
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, aand they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
What what Satan implicitly calling God?
A liar.
What was Satan implicitly saying about God’s rules? His government of our original parents?
That they were arbitrary–that God made them up for no reason…and even worse…made rules that were not in Adam and Eve’s best interest.
Do you think that when Satan convinced one third of the angels to rebel that he took a similar approach and made similar accusations?
John 8:44
44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
As a quick aside…
Was the tree in the Garden a test? God seeing if Adam and Eve were trustworthy? (Discuss the suggestion that the tree was protection instead of a test…Job would be a good example of why…)
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What went wrong?
Looking back at verse 8, what were Adam and Eve’s reactions to hearing God after they ate of the tree?
They hid themselves…they were afraid…they no longer trusted our Father.
Did God change? (No.)
Who changed? (We did.)
At the fall humanity learned to trust themselves…trust Satan…trust just about anything except God.
What went wrong? We changed. We stopped trusting our Father…
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What is the solution?
What are we saved through?
Ephesians 2:8-10
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
We are saved through faith. Throughout all history, Old and New Testament, this has been true.
John 20:30
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Acts 16:30-31
30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
But this says we are saved by belief? Is that a contradiction?
No…
Faith, belief, trust…all basically the same thing…
G4102 is “through faith” in Ephesians 2:8, G4100 is “believe” and “believing” in John 20:30, and G100 is also “believe” in Acts 16:31.
New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries
4100. πιστεύω pisteuō; from 4102; to believe, entrust:– believe(118), believed(73), believers(3), believes(29), believing(10), do(1), entrust(1), entrusted(6), entrusting(1), has faith(1).
4101. πιστικός pistikos; from 4102; trustworthy:– pure(2).
4102. πίστις pistis; from 3982; faith, faithfulness:– faith(238), faithfulness(3), pledge(1), proof(1).
4103. πιστός pistos; from 3982; faithful, reliable:– believe(2), believer(4), believers(5), believing(1), faithful(44), faithful one(1), faithfully(1), sure(1), trustworthy(7), who believe(1).
4104. πιστόω pistoō; from 4103; to make trustworthy, hence to establish:– convinced(1).
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon
4100 πιστεύω [pisteuo /pist·yoo·o/] v. From 4102; TDNT 6:174; TDNTA 849; GK 4409; 248 occurrences; AV translates as “believe” 239 times, “commit unto” four times, “commit to (one’s) trust” once, “be committed unto” once, “be put in trust with” once, “be commit to one’s trust” once, and “believer” once. 1 to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in. 1a of the thing believed. 1a1 to credit, have confidence. 1b in a moral or religious reference. 1b1 used in the NT of the conviction and trust to which a man is impelled by a certain inner and higher prerogative and law of soul. 1b2 to trust in Jesus or God as able to aid either in obtaining or in doing something: saving faith. 1bc mere acknowledgment of some fact or event: intellectual faith. 2 to entrust a thing to one, i.e. his fidelity. 2a to be intrusted with a thing.
4101 πιστικός [pistikos /pis·tik·os/] adj. From 4102; GK 4410; Two occurrences; AV translates as “spikenard + 3487” twice. 1 pertaining to belief. 1a having the power of persuading, skilful in producing belief. 1b trusty, faithful, that can be relied on.
4102 πίστις [pistis /pis·tis/] n f. From 3982; TDNT 6:174; TDNTA 849; GK 4411; 244 occurrences; AV translates as “faith” 239 times, “assurance” once, “believe + 1537” once, “belief” once, “them that believe” once, and “fidelity” once. 1 conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervour born of faith and joined with it. 1a relating to God. 1a1 the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ. 1b relating to Christ. 1b1 a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God. 1c the religious beliefs of Christians. 1d belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same. 2 fidelity, faithfulness. 2a the character of one who can be relied on.
4103 πιστός [pistos /pis·tos/] adj. From 3982; TDNT 6:174; TDNTA 849; GK 4412; 67 occurrences; AV translates as “faithful” 53 times, “believe” six times, “believing” twice, “true” twice, “faithfully” once, “believer” once, and not translated once. 1 trusty, faithful. 1a of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties. 1b one who kept his plighted faith, worthy of trust. 1c that can be relied on. 2 easily persuaded. 2a believing, confiding, trusting. 2b in the NT one who trusts in God’s promises. 2b1 one who is convinced that Jesus has been raised from the dead. 2b2 one who has become convinced that Jesus is the Messiah and author of salvation.
4104 πιστόω [pistoo /pis·to·o/] v. From 4103; TDNT 6:174; TDNTA 849; GK 4413; AV translates as “be assured of” once. 1 to make faithful, render trustworthy. 1a to make firm, establish. 2 to be firmly persuaded of. 2a to be assured of.
What is the solution?
Restoring the trust that once was.
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How dow we restore that trust?
There isn’t enough time to go over this portion completely…but a some important scriptures…
Hebrews 1:1-3
1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Matthew 13:17
17 For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
John 14:8-11
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else wbelieve on account of the works themselves.
John 12:32 (KJV)
32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
The trust is restored by looking at Jesus…Jesus came to show us the Father…so once again we could trust Him…
In case you think that Jesus cares more about you than the Father does…
John 15:26
26 In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; 27 for the Father himself loves you…
And lest you think that it’s all come back to being all about us…
John 12:32, in the King James Version has “men” in “And I, if I be lifted up from earth, will draw all men unto me” in italics. Why? (Because the word “men” doesn’t exist in the Greek.)
Jesus draws “all”…not just “all men”…He restores trust in God throughout the universe.
To wrap up…
2 Corinthians 5:18-19 (GNB)
All this is done by God, who through Christ changed us from enemies into his friends and gave us the task of making others his friends also. 19Our message is that God was making the whole human race his friends through Christ…
Will you willingly take this task and lift up Jesus so He can draw all unto him?
Will you help restore trust in the original Father this Father’s Day?