Tips From A Successful and Godly Father

Being a godly man is a challenge but being a godly successful father is harder. One piece of evidence for that assertion is the scarcity of men like that in the Bible. Rather than look at the godly men who were not successful fathers; I want to look at one who was.

That man is Abraham; I know he was not perfect. In fact he had some big flaws. But he was one of the very few men in the Bible who was both godly and who had a godly son!

First of all, Abraham was a godly man of active faith. We see that in his belief and obedience. One example is in Genesis 12:1-4; we read about God's command to him to leave his home and follow God to an unknown destination. Abraham's response was to pack up and leave. A second example is in Genesis 22:1-19. In that passage God tests Abraham by telling him to go to Moriah and offer Isaac as a sacrifice. Abraham's response again is obedience as well as faith that God will provide.

These two examples show how Abraham had an active, believing, obedient faith. Both of them involved a costly, difficult obedience. Leaving your family and home for destination unknown, would you do that? But that's easy compared to sacrificing your son! As a father I shudder and stand humbled every time I read that passage. Would I obey? I hope I would, but honestly I do not know. Yet Abraham actively obeys each time.

As great as this obedience and faith is though, it is not what makes him a successful father. There are many men in the Bible who had great obedience and faith yet were not successful fathers.

These two examples show how Abraham had an active, believing, obedient faith. Both of them involve a costly, difficult obedience. Leaving your family and home for destination unknown, would you do that? But that's easy compared to sacrificing your son! As a father I shudder and stand humbled every time I read that passage. Would I obey, I hope I would, but honestly I do not know. Yet Abraham actively obeys each time.

As great as this obedience and faith is though it is not what makes him a successful father. There are many men in the Bible who had great obedience and faith yet were not successful fathers.

God's comment on Abraham shows us what he had to do as a father and head of the household. "For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice ..." {Genesis 18:19}

This verse contains three of the elements that went into Abraham being a good father:

1) He's to be the "head of the household". In every household someone has to be in charge. Abraham was that someone. God mentions this with the phrase "he may command". As I reflect on Abraham's life, the overall impression I get is that he very definitely was the "head of his household". Further, I thought for awhile on households and situations that were godly and successful in the sense that out of them came godly individuals, and all of them had someone who was clearly in charge and the "head".

2) As the "head" he needed to command them especially concerning the importance of keeping "the way of the LORD". The acid test of success is how the next generation turns out. There is a good bit of information on the next generations; here is the Bible's summary: "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even regarding things to come. By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the exodus of the sons of Israel, and gave orders concerning his bones." {Hebrews 11:20-22} Notice two things, the three generations after Abraham are in the "Bible's Hall of Fame" Hebrews 11. Second, each one's introduction starts with "By faith". Apparently Abraham did quite well in this crucial area.

3) He also has to model that kind of life before his children and the larger household. The phrase "after him" hints at this. From the account of Abraham's life in Genesis we know that he was far from perfect. That just lets us know that he was human! But looking at his life as a whole it is an impressive record of lived-out faith and obedience. He did give his household a wonderful example to model their lives from! This is still very important because as the old proverb talks about "more is caught than taught."

Men you can be a better father by modeling after Abraham in these areas: 1) Believe in God, 2) Lovingly fill your role as head of the household 3) Obey God right away, 4) Consistently keep your belief and actions in agreement.

Wives you can greatly help your husbands by loving, encouraging, supporting, and respecting them.

Children you can help your fathers by appreciating, honoring, and obeying them.

Written by Rev. Daniel B. Baker May 2007



Articles by Rev. Daniel B. Baker :: Webmaster: Joseph I. Baker