The Glory Of Fatherhood

The glory of children is their father.

Proverbs 17:6

Whatever happened to the idea that a father knows best? In a few short decades, we went from a television show called Father Knows Best, in which the father was a wise, strong, and loving head of his home, to the film Father of the Bride, in which comedian Steve Martin played a lovable doofus of a dad, always being corrected by his unflappable and all-together wife.

There seems to be little glory left in fatherhood in the modern world. Television shows (especially commercials) and movies have stereotyped fathers as either absent physically or absentminded. As usual, the culture has it all wrong. The term father is applied with honor to a host of biblical heroes: God Himself, prophets, priests, male parents, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, ancestors, and leaders such as Abraham and Paul. Those are big shoes for modern fathers to fill, but strong fathers are God’s will.

Dads, don’t succumb to the cultural demotion of fatherhood. Let your practice produce the honor that your position deserves.

Fortunately, every earthly father has a role model in God the Father. Being honored as a father begins with honoring your heavenly Father.