Sermon Tone Analysis

Be a Father Worth Following

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon by Rick Crandall

Grayson Baptist Church - June 17, 2012

BACKGROUND

*Happy Father’s Day again, Dads! -- This morning, let’s look at an inspirational dad from the Word of God.

His name is Jairus.

That means "enlightened by God," and we can learn a lot from his life, so please open your Bibles to Mark 5:21-43.

INTRODUCTION

*Dad’s we thank God for you! -- And we thank you for all of the good you are doing in your family, our church and our community.

*The longer I live, the more I appreciate my dad.

My dad helped raise his two little sisters when his father abandoned the family.

He went off to war to help save us from the Nazis.

And just like Prince Charming, he rescued my mother from a horrible home.

*My dad was compassionate and kind, hard working, funny, and full of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am so looking forward to seeing him again.

But until that day, I want to be a father worth following.

And you can be a father worth following.

Jairus shows us how.

1. First: Seek the Lord.

*This is what Jairus did in vs. 21-23:

21.

Now when Jesus had crossed over (i.e.

back to Galilee), a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea.

22.

And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name.

And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet

23. and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death.

Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.''

*Jairus was in a desperate situation in these verses.

His only daughter was near the point of death, and Jairus couldn’t make her well.

Sometimes our loved ones will be hurting.

And there will be nothing we can do to help them on our own.

*Jairus shows us exactly what to do in a situation like that: Seek the Lord!

Take your troubles to Jesus! Go to Jesus humbly, boldly, passionately, and expectantly.

Go to Jesus.

[1] Seek the Lord for His help.

Call on the Lord!

Throw yourself at Jesus’ feet.

Throw yourself on the compassionate mercy of God.

In Psalm 145:17-18, King David said:

17.

The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works.

18.

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.

*Then in 1 Chronicles 28:9, speaking as a father to a son, King David said: "As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts.

If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever."

*David told his son, "If you seek God, He will be found by you."

-We need to seek the Lord for His help.

[2] But also seek the Lord for worship.

*Matthew 9:18 tells us that when Jairus came to Jesus, he worshipped him.

We all need to worship the Lord.

But dads, our worship is especially important for us to be the fathers God wants us to be.

*Pastor Arlen Payne urges us to see that Jairus fell down at Jesus’ feet without reservation.

And notice that Jairus went himself.

He did not send his wife.

He didn’t send a servant.

He went to Jesus himself.

*Our society would be infinitely better off today if dads would seek Jesus without shame, if we all would be the spiritual leaders in our homes.

Our nation is in the mess it’s in partly because dads are out seeking golf balls on Sunday morning instead of seeking God.

They send the wife and kids to church.

(1)

*Dad’s, let your kids see YOU seeking the Lord in worship: Taking them to church, reading the Word of God, praying together, living for Jesus.

May God help us all to be dads who will faithfully seek the Lord!

*Jesus promises that if we seek, we will find.

-And you can be a father worth following if you will seek the Lord.

2. But also stand-up for your children.

*Take a passionate stand for your children.

There is no question that Jairus dearly loved his daughter.

We see his love in the way he came to Jesus in vs. 22&23:

22. . .

When (Jairus) saw (Jesus), he fell at His feet

23. and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death.

Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.''

*Jairus was passionate about his little girl’s well-being.

And God wants us to care like that.

This is crucial for our children.

The liberal media will tell you that having a dad in the home doesn’t matter.

Don’t you believe it!

We need to realize the tremendous impact that dads have on children.

Dad, your children need you desperately.

*Listen to some statistics from a 1995 book by David Moore:

-Fatherless daughters are 111% more likely to have children as teenagers.

-Fatherless daughters are 164% more likely to have an out-of-wedlock birth.

-Fatherless daughters have a 92% higher divorce rate than girls raised with Dad at home.

-Fatherless sons are 35% more likely to experience failure in their own marriages.

-Fatherless sons are 300% more likely to wind up in state juvenile institutions.

-And fatherless children are twice as likely to drop out of high school.

(2)

*These are terrible statistics.

And the numbers are also bad for dads who are there in body, but not in heart and mind.

That’s why God wants us to be passionate about the well being of our children.

You matter, Dad.

*The National Center for Fathering conducts “Father of the Year” Essay Contests.

In 2005, over 100,000 school children submitted short essays on the topic, "What my Father Means to Me." Some of these are funny, and some have a note of sadness, but all of these show how important you are, Dad.

-A first grader wrote, "My dad is the best dad ever.

I would kiss a pig for him."

-A third grader wrote, "The dad in my life isn’t really my dad.

He’s my Grandpa.

But he’s been like a dad to me since before I was born.

I hope that as I get older Grandpa will teach me all the stuff he knows about wood, and first-aid, and everything else he knows about.

My Grandpa isn’t my father, but I wouldn’t trade him for all the dads in the world."

-A fourth grader wrote, "Sometimes as a joke I’ll put my stinky socks in his briefcase, so at work the next day he will think of me! He’s always at the concerts and plays that I’m in, even though he lives about an hour away."

-A fifth grade girl wrote, "You know what else my dad does?

He braids my hair.

I’m the only girl I know whose dad braids her hair.

I think that’s a perfect dad.