Abram believed the Lord…
Summary: If we look to the Bible for examples of a good father, what do we find? It turns out the answer to that question is, “Not much.”
Thinking about fathers makes me wonder who we should look to for a good example of a father. Of course, we know God is THE good Father, but what about earthly examples?
Abraham (aka Abram) is probably the most famous (earthly) father of all time. The patriarch of the Jewish nation was hand-picked by God to be the “father of many nations” (Genesis 17:5). However, if you are thinking Abraham was picked because he was an especially good father, you’d be wrong.
First, Abram marries his half-sister, and then when he gets scared, he hides the fact that they are married and gives her to another man (Genesis 12:13), twice! (Genesis 20: 1-2) Then, when he and his wife are old he allows his wife to talk him into marrying her servant girl, and when she gets pregnant, he eventually sends her and his first son away (Genesis 21: 8-21). Finally, when Sarah has a son, Isaac, Abraham takes him out in the woods to kill him, only staying his hand when the angel of the Lord intervenes (Genesis 22: 1-19).
Hmmm…
Maybe Abraham wasn’t picked to be the father of a nation because he was such a good father. Maybe it had more to do with the Greatest Commandment? Jesus summed it up for us when he said it this way, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.”
What about David? Was he a good father? After all, he was hand-picked by God to be king over Israel.
Let’s see… David had many wives, but couldn’t resist sleeping with his neighbor’s wife and getting her pregnant. Then he has his neighbor killed so he can marry this woman. (2 Samuel 11: 1-21) Later, one of his sons talks him into helping him gain access to his sister so he can rape her (2 Samuel 13: 1-22). After that, his own son wants to kill David and become king in his place (2 Samuel 13-18). Maybe David is not the best example of a good father.
Is Solomon a good example of how to be a good father? After all, he had a thousand wives and who knows how many children! He even wrote a book of proverbs to instruct his children on how to behave. Unfortunately, the Book of Proverbs should have been called, “The Do What I Say and Not What I Do Book,” because that is what happened. At the end of his life, Solomon allowed his wives to turn him away from being faithful to God (1 Kings 11: 4-10, Nehemiah 13:26).
Wait a minute…
There was something else about Abram. He was different from other men. Genesis 15:6 tells us, “Abram believed the Lord, and he (God) credited it to him as righteousness.” David, too, loved God and was loved by God (2 Chronicles 6:42). And even though Solomon would end up leading Israel into sin, he loved and honored God and God loved him, too (2 Samuel 24-25).
Maybe there is something to the Greatest Commandment after all?
Application: The Greatest Commandment is great for a very good reason; God likes people who love him.
Food for Thought: How does loving God above all else impact our life?
Note- I made some minor edits to the second to the last paragraph for clarification. – JE
I think that is a great question.
Loving God does not change God. He is immutable. He desires our love and worship but it does not change Him.
We need to love God and be in relationship with Him as it changes us. It impacts our lives because we were created to be in relationship with Him (Genesis chapters 1 – 3).
When we love God it changes our heart and mind. It changes our values and behavior. It changes our world view – we agree with God as opposed to Satan and the demonic. It changes our eternal destinies.
We need God in our lives. He fulfills the purpose for which we were created. Matthew 6: 22 – 34 still applies.
Brother Rich,
I’ve added a link to the Matthew 6 passage. Lots of good stuff there!
And I completely agree with you. Focussing on God first changes us in many ways, all of them good. 🙂
11-01-2022, How does loving God above all else impact our life?
We receive Life, and a relationship with our God to the degree we demonstrate this love, by living in obedience to His revealed will over our own.
We receive Life. John 3:16
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 the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.
Mark 12:30-31
Ron,
I like how you combine God’s love with our response to his love. Love is a dance, not a rain shower. 🙂
I know loving God above all else has impacted my life in that I don’t care about what the world has to offer very much anymore. My direction of sight is toward the eternal.
Colossians 3:2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
Chris,
Wow! Nicely said. Setting course for the eternal is the goal!
I agree with everyone else’s comments, but I’d add that Loving our God above everything should be done out of His commandment written on our hearts. Not for what is of this world but for the Kingdom. Some might get their reward now, but the faithful son gets a well done good and faithful servant.