Fathers encourage and comfort their children (1 Thessalonians 2:11–12) “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.” 7. ‘Honor your father and mother’ (this is the first commandment with a promise), ‘that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.’”Īnd in Colossians 3:20, Paul paraphrases this commandment and connects it to our relationship with God: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Paul repeats this commandment to Christians in Ephesians 6:1–3: But this isn’t just an ancient commandment for the Israelites. Dishonoring their parents dishonored God. The Israelites were commanded to honor their fathers and mothers as part of their covenant with God. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” Honor your father and mother (Exodus 20:12) When we recognize our shared Father, it changes the way we see our relationship to others and challenges us to care for one another as brothers and sisters. This echoes Malachi’s words in Malachi 2:10: “Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers?” Jesus reminded his followers that they all belonged to God’s family and that, above anyone else, God is the one who deserves their honor and obedience. “And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.” You have one father, and he is in heaven (Matthew 23:9) Good fathers recognize that discipline comes from a place of love and a desire to teach your children what is right. Sometimes the consequences are more severe. Sometimes “discipline” is as simple as talking to a child about what they’ve done and why it was wrong. And if it resulted in something they desired, they may be more motivated to do it again.Ĭonsequences help us avoid repeating bad behavior. They may not understand why what they did was wrong. But when children make poor choices, disobey, or hurt others, it’s not always immediately clear to them that they’ve done something wrong. “Whoever spares the rod hates their children,īut the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.”Įveryone makes mistakes, and we all sin. The one who loves their children is careful to discipline them (Proverbs 13:24) Fathers aren’t just responsible for teaching their children what is right, but for caring about their needs, hurts, desires, dreams, and problems. For fathers, part of honoring God is loving your children well and having compassion for them. He predicted that one day God would send Elijah to turn people’s hearts toward what is good and right. Malachi challenged the Israelites to honor their covenant with God and reconnect with him or else face the consequences of their separation from him. “He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.” He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children (Malachi 4:6) This passage comes just after Moses shared the Ten Commandments with Israel, but for Christian fathers, the heart of this verse is that God’s Word should be on our minds throughout our day, and we have a responsibility to teach our children what God desires. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. “ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress God’s commands on your children (Deuteronomy 6:6–7) A father can’t know what specific challenges their child may encounter on the path, and he can’t control how his children will react. Parenting isn’t the only variable in how kids turn out though. Dads get to help lay the foundation for those decisions. As kids mature into adults, they make their own choices about what to do with their lives, how to treat others, and how to understand their relationship to God. “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”įathers play a vital role in shaping how their children see the world and understand right and wrong. Start children off on the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6) Keep in mind: there are a lot of encouraging Bible verses that aren’t specifically bible verses about fathers that may fit what you’re looking for too. And God himself is described as our Father in heaven. There are examples of good (and bad) fathers. There are instructions about how to raise children. Throughout the Bible, the role of fathers is extremely important. To help you explore what the Bible says about being a dad, we’ve rounded up some bible verses about fathers, fatherhood, parenting, and qualities of fathers.
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