Sword in the Fire

In a previous post, I discussed the nature of being a father.  The source and model of fatherhood is the Father above.  On one hand this brings great comfort because fatherhood is built into the cosmos and our nature.  Grace accompanies this action, and is able to assist the shortcomings we face as sinful men.  Direction is given as  we look to the workings of God in Revelation. On the other hand, this understanding of fatherhood comes with a heavy burden.  Even among secular psychology, the father plays a crucial role in shaping a child's understanding of God.  This should be no surprise when the truths above are considered.  Whether God is viewed as loving or hateful, just or unfair, erratic or controlled depends largely on dad.  Over the years, I have seen many reject faith in God because they could not get past an angry, abusive, or absent father. The other great burden of fatherhood is the demonstration of true masculinity.  In ...

Eph. 3:14 & 15, "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named" What does it mean to be a father? To find this answer, we must turn to the source. For the Christian, all theology flows from two currents: the Trinity and the Incarnation. For this answer, God the Father is sufficient. Within the Trinity, each Person is equal and fully God yet each Person is unique. The Father is the source of the Trinity. He is the locus of unity, peace, and love within the Trinity. Among all things, that we can say a father should be, at the root of his role is one of unity for the family. It is his responsibility to be the one to prevent chaos and keep things united in love within the home. Christian author Don Miller, writing on manhood says: " I firmly believe that the job of a man is to bring peace into chaos. A man (and a woman too for that matter) can look into an empty fie...