As we once again celebrate "Father's Day", it is worthwhile taking a moment to reflect on what we are doing. As far as I can determine, the observance of "Father's Day" only commenced in 1910, and the main driving force today seems to be the advertising media, who see it as another excuse to persuade us to buy more "things".(Note the many catalogues!)
The honouring of Fathers is not wrong. It is one of the Ten fundamental Commandments that God gave as guidelines for His people. As the Apostle Paul points out in his letter to the Ephesians, it is "the first commandment with a promise - 'that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth'." (Eph 6:2,3)

John Sandford, who is a very experienced counsellor, makes the point very emphatically that "to the degree that we do not honour our parents, to that degree will it not go well with us." He claims that many of the problems we encounter in life have their roots in our failure to honour our parents, with the subsequent loss of God's blessing.

This honouring of our father (and mother) is much more than merely heaping them with more material possessions. In fact, it is quite possible to give them a very handsome gift, but still be guilty of dishonouring them. I saw some children being interviewed on television about how they were going to celebrate Father's Day. While most of them said they loved their father, and were planning to do something special for him, they nevertheless spoke disparagingly about certain aspects of his behaviour, seemingly echoing their mother's comments.

The honouring of our father and mother has to do with our respect for their authority, especially in our obedience to their directions. Paul quotes this command in support of his instruction to children: "obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." (Eph 6:1)

This is more than just a matter of our personal relationship with them. It has to do with our fundamental attitude to authority. For our parents represent the authority of God to us in our formative years. That is why God commanded that a "stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him" was to be stoned to death! It was "an evil" that had to be purged from their midst! (Deut 21:18-21)

Respect for, and obedience to Fathers is, I believe, the missing ingredient in fatherhood today. And this lack is a primary cause of much of the lawlessness that is sweeping our society. Studies have shown that a great majority of criminals have bad or non-existent fathers.

A couple of years ago, in the MorningStar Journal, Rick Joyner told of how he had been compelled to share a message almost everywhere he went that he was given on lawlessness. As he shared in Colorado just a few months before the Columbine High tragedy, "Lawlessness has been sown in the hearts of our children, and we are about to start reaping it." He went on to say this incident would not be the last. "We have come to a period when this kind of lawlessness is being released on an entirely different level." The past couple of years have proved him right, and the lawlessness of young people is becoming a major social problem in our city.

Of course, Fathers need to be willing to exercise their God-given authority, and not shy away from it as many do. The pressures of work and other commitments must not be allowed to keep us from our most fundamental God-given responsibility. And Mothers need to support and encourage them in this, and eschew the current trend to belittle the man of the house. But, nevertheless, it comes back to all of us to honour our Father (and Mother) - that it may go well with us.

John Davies
2 September 2001