June 20, 2010, Father’s Day Pastor David King

This morning is father’s day and we have the annual privilege of recognizing God’s gift to the family, namely dads! In a book entitled, Point Man, Steve Farrar compares the role of a father to that of a military “point man.” He writes, “If you are a husband/father, then you are in a war. War has been declared upon the family, on your family and mine. Leading a family through the chaos of American culture is like leading a small patrol through enemy-occupied territory. And the casualties in this war are as real as the name etched on the Vietnam Memorial.”

A Calling to Personalize the Great Commission (1-4)

Deuteronomy 6:1-4 1 “Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess,2 that you may fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.3 Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you— ‘a land flowing with milk and honey.’4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!

Verses 1-3— Corporate Call to IsraelThese were commands given to the nation as a whole that included a love for God and a love His laws as reflected in their complete obedience to it. Verses 6-9 move the command to the nation to the command to the fathers to ensure its completion of the command.

The Great Commission is the final commands given to the church corporately and as parents, specifically fathers, we are called to internalize this message in our lives and press it upon our children.

Verse 4— Author of the CallConfirmation of the Unity of God—One God!

This verse has been called the Shema, from the Hebrew word translated Hear. The statement in this verse is the basic confession of faith in Judaism. The verse means that the LORD (Yahweh) is totally unique. He alone is God. The Israelites could therefore have a sense of security that was totally impossible for their polytheistic neighbors. The ”gods“ of the ancient Near East rarely were thought of as acting in harmony. Each god was unpredictable and morally capricious. So a pagan worshiper could never be sure that his loyalty to one god would serve to protect him from the capricious wrath of another. The monotheistic doctrine of the Israelites lifted them out of this insecurity since they had to deal with only one God, who dealt with them by a revealed consistent righteous standard. This confession of monotheism does not preclude the biblical doctrine of the Trinity. ”God“ is plural (’ělōhîm), possibly implying the Trinity, and one (’eḥāḏ) may suggest a unity of the Persons in the Godhead (cf. Gen. 2:24, where the same word for ”one“ is used of Adam and Eve).1

Keeping the Gospel Central

Taking the Church’s calling personal

Elevating God and His Word

A Calling to Personalize the Great Commandment (5-6)Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27

Matthew 22:37 37 Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

Mark 12:30 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is

1Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., & Dallas Theological Seminary. (1983-c1985). The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures (1:274). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

Family Life SeriesPart 7- The Disciple Making Father

Deuteronomy 6

the first commandment.

Luke 10:27 27 So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”

Deuteronomy 6:5-6 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.

Love God above all else and all others

Love Others above self

Parenting is rooted in a personal, love relationship with Jesus

A Calling to Personalize the Great Responsibility(7-9)God now moves from a call to the nation of Israel to a call to the fathers of Israel in specific to lead their families in God’s path.

Deuteronomy 6:7-9 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Parenting is YOUR calling, not the church’s, school’s, etc.--YOU—shall teach them…

Parenting is primarily a lifestyle of discipleship

Teach them diligently (7)

Teach diligently is one word in the Hebrew and it means to sharpen or whet with a knife.

Talk of them when you sit, walk, lie down (7)Talk…

Sit Down—To Dwell

Walk by the way

Lie down

Rise Up

These terms strongly imply that parenting is a lifestyle! It begins when you wake up, it continues as you go through the day and it ends when you go back to sleep to start it all over again!

Bind them as a sign (8)

Verses 6–9 make it clear that the Word was to be made a part of the home, the center of conversation, and the means of instructing the children to love the Lord and obey Him. Unfortunately, the Jews took the letter of this law and not the spirit, and ended up making phylacteries (Matt. 23:5), little boxes containing passages from the Law. They wore these boxes on their arms and heads, but this did not mean they had the Word in their hearts. 2

It is probable that Moses used the phraseology in De 6:7 merely in a figurative way, to signify assiduous, earnest, and frequent instruction; and perhaps he meant the metaphorical language in De 6:8 to be taken in the same sense also. But as the Israelites interpreted it literally, many writers suppose that a reference was made to a superstitious custom borrowed from the Egyptians, who wore jewels and ornamental trinkets on the forehead and arm, inscribed with certain words and sentences, as amulets to protect them from danger. These, it has been conjectured, Moses intended to supersede by substituting sentences of the law; and so the Hebrews understood him, for they have always considered the wearing of the Tephilim, or frontlets, a permanent obligation. The form was as follows: Four pieces of parchment, inscribed, the first with Ex 13:2–10; the second with Ex 13:11–16; the third with De 6:1–8; and the fourth with De 11:18–21, were enclosed in a square case or box of tough skin, on the side of which was placed the Hebrew letter (shin), and bound round the forehead with a thong or ribbon. When designed for the arms, those four texts were written on one slip of parchment, which, as well as the ink, was carefully prepared for the purpose. With regard to the other usage supposed to be alluded to, the ancient Egyptians had the lintels and imposts of their doors and gates inscribed with sentences

indicative of a favorable omen [WILKINSON]; and this is still the case, for in Egypt and other Mohammedan countries, the front doors of houses (in Cairo, for instance) are painted red, white, and green, bearing conspicuously inscribed upon them such sentences from the Koran, as “God is the Creator,” “God is one, and Mohammed is his prophet.” Moses designed to turn this ancient and favorite custom to a better account and ordered that, instead of the former superstitious inscriptions, there should be written the words of God, persuading and enjoining the people to hold the laws in perpetual remembrance.3

Write them on the doorposts (9)

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. Deuteronomy 6:6-8

2Wiersbe, W. W. (1993). Wiersbe's expository outlines on the Old Testament (Dt 1:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

Opening: Reading from Point Man by Ferrar

Read beginning at page 14…”It’s 1966. You are only eighteen. You are in the absolute prime of youth…”

page 17, “Gentlemen, this is no imaginary situation. It is reality. If you are a husband/father, then you are in a war. War has been declared upon the family, on your family and mine. Leading a family through the chaos of American culture is like leading a small patrol through enemy-occupied territory. And the casualties in this war are as real as the names etched on the Vietnam Memorial.”

War has been declared on the family… 1 of 2 marriages end in divorce Median age of divorce: 34-men; 30-women 1960-1 of 10 homes maintained by a single woman…1996-2 of 5

homes! 1 million teens will get pregnant; 500,000 of these will abort their

child 60% of all church-involved teens are sexually active 66% of American HS seniors have used illegal drugs Every 78 seconds, a teenager in America attempts suicide

Closing: Reading from Point Man

Page 24—statistics from 1,000 campers at a Missouri camp where the majority of the campers are not on Satan’s statistics list…95% of the boys say their fathers regularly tell them, “I love You.”

98% of the firls say their mothers tell them regularly, “I’m proud of you” or “You’re doing a great job.”91% say their fathers attend their athletic events.97% of the boys say they get hugs from their dads100% of the girls say they get hugs from their moms and dads100% of the girls remember having stories read to them by their mothers. 85% of the boys recall having sotries read to them by their dads89% of the boys say their fathers have taken them fishing100% of the girls say their parents have taken them to Sunday School

All of these activities take time and for the person who says it is not about the quantity of time it is about the quality of time. “one fatal error. You never know when quality time is going to show up.”

Gentlemen, I know that you love your families. You love your wife. You love your children. You would be willing to die for them. In most wars, that is what men are asked to do. They go off to war because they’re willing to die for their families.

But in this war, it’s different. In this war, Jesus Christ is looking for men who will live for their families. That’s what He would have you to do.

In the spiritual war on the family, it is father who leads best.

3Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments. On spine: Critical and explanatory commentary. (Dt 6:1). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.