Romans 4:11–17
Since YouTube’s inception on the World Wide Web , it has evolved from a website for funny videos clips, to television series. Perhaps one of the most interesting, and helpful things about YouTube is its ability to help people learn how to do just about anything.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a third of American children are living in fatherless homes, and some sociologists have even declared to say that the absence of a father in a child’s life is one of the greatest social problems facing the United States. Certainly it would be absurd to consider YouTube as an adequate alternative to an actual father-figure. But, many fatherless children turn to YouTube to learn how to do many tasks. Some will turn to YouTube to learn how to change a tire, how to tie a tie, and how to balance a checkbook.
However, YouTube will never be there to pat you on the back or give you a hug. YouTube will never be there to straighten your tie, or tighten your oil filter. YouTube will not be there to pray for you, or shepherd you. You may be able to watch millions of videos about faith and God, but it will not replace the influence of a father of faith.
Such statements do not mean that a mother doesn’t have the ability to spiritually shape and mold a child. I can attest that I did not have a father of faith, but I did have a mother of faith. I have had fathers in the faith, and still do, who have had more influence on me than my father did.
Biological fathers have a responsibility to be more than just a male figure in the home. They have the spiritual responsibility to live a life of faith. Your wives and children are relying on you to impart your spiritual influence. Fathers are to exemplify faith to their families.
Abraham the Father of Faith
To help the church in Rome understand the foundation of faith as a means for salvation, Paul uses Abraham has the ultimate example. Abraham’s faith in God was counted as righteousness (Rom. 4:11). Abraham was Paul’s example because the promises given to Abraham preceded the command for circumcision, which the Jews held as validation for their claims as spiritual offspring, and recipients of God’s promises and salvation. Paul wanted the Gentiles and Jews to know that Abraham’s faith was for all, not just the circumcised.
We are first introduced to Abraham in Genesis twelve, with the record of God calling Abraham to believe and to be the recipient of God’s promises.
Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed (Genesis 12:1–3)
God tells Abraham to:
- Go from your country (Gen. 12:1a)
- Go from your family (Gen. 12:1a)
- Go from your father’s house (Gen. 12:b)
With the promises:
- I will make of you a great nation
- I will bless you
- I will make your name great
- You will be a blessing
- Bless those who bless you
- Curse those who curse you
- All families on the earth will be blessed because of you
Abraham became a father of faith because he was willing to believe God. If we are going to follow in the steps of our father Abraham, then we should consider his choices and lifestyle.
I. Abraham Lived Set Apart
Abraham lived in Ur of Chaldees. This was an important place for moon worship. Abraham was an idolator and the son of an idolator (Josh. 24:2-3). Though he was from the long line of Noah and Shem, somewhere in his family history men no longer worshiped the True God, and instead worshiped idols.
As we read in Genesis twelve there isn’t an introduction given between Abraham and Jehovah. However, it is God who initiates the call of Abraham. There wasn’t anything inherently good about Abraham that provoked God to call Abraham. Instead, it was God’s grace that initiated the call of Abraham.
The conditions of God’s promises were for Abraham to leave his country, his family, and his father’s house (Gen. 12:1-3). This was no easy undertaking for Abraham. Everything that was familiar was to be forsaken, and Abraham was to become a pilgrim without a home (Heb. 11:9). But if Abraham was going to be a father of faith, he would have to leave the cultural norms and societal tolerances to find godly purpose. Abraham couldn’t be a father of faith in Ur. Old lifestyles and mindsets would have to be left in Ur. All that Abraham had known paled in comparison to what God Almighty was willing to give him.
a. Abraham had to leave the old ways
Men, just because you had an idolatrous father, or family doesn’t mean you have to be. You can break from the generational habits and shortcomings that plague your family history. If you will hear God’s call, you can forsake the cycles that harm relationships, and ruin futures.
Too many men feel as if they have to behave and live as their fathers and grandfathers did. If they were ornery, cruel and mean that means they have to do the same. Men, God is calling us to break the habits and pitfalls of sin, and worldliness to be separate (2 Cor. 6:17). Abraham was doomed to live as Terah did, had it not been for God’s grace and call. You don’t have the power to change yourself. There aren’t enough self-help books that you can read and inspirational seminars for you to attend to break the bonds of sin, and generational failures.
b. Abraham had to leave family
Abraham was going to have to leave his family behind in order to possess God’s promises. This was not a dishonoring or disrespecting of family. Rather, this was about leaving the comforts of familiarity, and the dependence upon family. Abraham was going to follow God by faith, and depend on God’s providence to take care of him and his family. But have no doubt that there will be those in your family who will challenge your faith. Many have had to make the difficult decision to leave family creeds and traditions to obey God’s word. They would not be bound to cultural dogmas and domestic religions.
Some families would rather their children be drunkards and drug addicts rather than Christians. They’d rather their family members disobey Scripture than leave traditions. But if you’re going follow Jesus Christ and be considered His child, then you may have to forsake family trees to embrace Calvary’s tree.
Abraham’s family was wealthy. Abraham was leaving an inheritance in Ur of Chaldees. He was leaving the family business for the the Father’s business. He was leaving fortunes, to become a pilgrim without a home. But Abraham caught a glimpse of God’s riches bound up in His promises that far surpassed Ur and Terah. Men, get your eyes off of the riches of this world, and look for heavenly treasures. You may not be wealthy on earth, but your possessions will not be measured by Forbes magazine.
c. Abraham had to leave worldliness
Abraham had to leave Ur of Chaldees and the idolatrous lifestyle that was prevalent. Ur of Chaldees did not offer what God could. Though Abraham never truly possessed the Promised Land, the promise was far greater than than the present reality in Ur. Despite not having a child yet, Abraham realized Ur of Chaldees wasn’t a place to raise his children. Far too many fathers are willing to let the world raise their children, than allow God, the church, and Scripture to impart the wisdom they need.
Brothers, we are called to be holy. We are called to be separate from the things of this world. We are not isolated from the world, rather we are be insulated from the world. Fathers, if you are going to be a father of faith, or lead your family by faith, then you must be the example of consecration and separation. You mustn’t be acclimated to this world.
II. Abraham Lived by Faith and Sacrifice
If you look at the story of Abraham there are mountain peaks of achievement and valleys of disappointment. Abraham had to set himself apart from his nephew Lot and allow Lot to experience the consequence of bad choices (Gen. 13,14,19). Abraham built altars and worshiped. He also lied and wilted when he needed to be courageous (Gen. 20). When he should have trusted God, he listened to the doubt of his wife Sarah (Gen. 16). We see Abraham falling flat on his face in failure, yet always soon restored to the path of faith.
Abraham didn’t have angel’s wings, or a glowing halo hovering above his head. Abraham had clay feet, but possessed fervent faith. He faced difficulty and looked frustrations in the eye, and yet had faith planted in his heart. When Sarah was barren and without child, Abraham was pregnant with faith. The dusty terrain of the Ancient East was temporarily marked by the footsteps of faith. Winds blew his path away, but God kept shining a light for Abraham to walk with.
“Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:18–22).
How to be a father of faith:
- In hope he believed against hope
- He wasn’t weak in faith
- He didn’t stagger with unbelief at God’s promises
- He was strong in faith
- Gave glory to God
- He was fully persuaded in God’s promises
This could be summed up in one sentence: “The righteous shall live by faith” (Rom. 1:17).
Abraham lived by faith, but he also lived by sacrifice. The dusty footprints of Abraham’s walk of faith was coupled with the altars that he frequently built. Abraham’s faith was united with worship. If Abraham taught anything to Isaac and Ishmael it was faith is nothing without worship. Abraham journeyed the desert with heaven in his heart, but he also carried the tools to build an altar. These were not the altars built to worship the moon. No, Abraham made unsightly altars to worship the God of heaven. Abraham was not worshiping the stars. No, God had promised to give him offspring as numerous as the stars. Such a God was worthy of Abraham’s worship.
III. Abraham Lived as an Example
Abraham’s faith was lived out before his family. Isaac didn’t need to go somewhere else to learn how to worship God. The greatest example of faith was in the home. Often parents want the church to teach what they should be teaching. They would rather relinquish their influence so others could do what they won’t do. What do we see Isaac doing when he’s grown? Resigning the wells his father had dug, and building his own altars (Gen. 26:17-25). That’s the type of example Abraham lived before Isaac.
Men, we are to be worshipers. Faith is best exemplified with the outward manifestation of worship. Whether that’s lifting your hands, making a joyful noise, or building altars of sacrifice. The best inheritance you can leave your children is the treasure trove of faithful worship. Abraham taught Isaac how to build altars. Abraham taught Isaac how to worship. Abraham taught Isaac how to live by faith and not by sight. Abraham taught his family what faithfulness looked like.
Chances are that you are worshiping something. It might not be Jesus that you’re worshiping. Your children will know what you worship. Where your treasure is, that’s where your worship will be found. If you worship entertainment, sports, celebrities, wealth, and pleasure, then do not blame the church for your children’s worship of those same gods.
Conclusion
You and I may not have the dramatic calling that Abraham had. But we can walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had (Rom. 4:12). Abraham had many great accomplishments in his life of faith. Possibly, Abraham’s greatest achievement was that the covenant promises that were given by God were confirmed in Isaac and later to Jacob. However, you and I stand here as a testament to a father’s faith. Abraham never could have imagined that his faith would have offspring some six thousand years or more later.
Fathers, your faith and example matter today, and it will matter many years from now. You may never possess all that God has for you in this life, but your children, and grandchildren may possess it. But it begins with you, just as it began with Abraham, the father of faith.