Sermon Tone Analysis

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\\ Being Father's Day today, I recognise that I'm a little biased about this field of knowledge.

Then again, who knows better the joys and sorrows of being a man and a father then a man and a father?

Whether I'm a good representation of either or not is beside the point, but let me share with you some of the joys of being a man, in order to prove my credentials:

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1.

Only one suitcase is required for a 5-day trip.

2. We can open our own jars.

3. We can go to the bathroom without a support group.

4. The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe even decades.

5.

If someone forgets to invite us to something, they can still be our friend.

6. Underwear is $10 for a three-pack.

7. We don’t have to clean the house if the meter-reader is coming.

8. Car mechanics tell us the truth (at least most of the time ... I hope).

9. We can sit quietly and watch a game with a friend for hours without thinking "He must be mad at me."

10.

Gray hair and wrinkles add character.

11.

If another guy shows up at a party in the same outfit you just might become lifelong friends.

12.

One wallet, one pair of shoes, one colour, all seasons —enough said.

13.

We can do our nails with pocketknife.

14.

We have freedom of choice concerning growing a moustache.

15.

Christmas shopping can be accomplished for 25 people on the day before Christmas and in 45 minutes.

\\ As you can see, at least I know a few things about being a man.

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\\ Now, about being a father, while there are some similarities to the experience of being a mother, I still think there are some differences.

Of the similarities, author Fred Barnes is said to have reminded us that

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/Fatherhood isn’t brain surgery.

I say this in defiance of the new conventional wisdom that being a father is breathtakingly difficult, that it creates tough dilemmas, and that fathers need a strategy for carrying out their duties.

I don’t think so.

Most men I know have an instinct for fatherhood that is triggered the day their first child was born.

They instantly recognised the number one requirement of fatherhood: to be there./

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This point is exceedingly true, and particularly for fathers, who don't always have the freedom to be as present for their children as they would like.

\\ Dr. James Dobson reports an experience with his dad which, I'm sure, will also resonate with the mothers:

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/My dad also loved me.

I’ve known that from my earliest moments of awareness.

I’m told that when I was a small child, perhaps three years of age, we lived in a one-bedroom apartment.

My little bed was located beside the bed of my parents.

Dad said it was not uncommon during that time for him to awaken at night and hear a little voice whispering, "Daddy?

Daddy?"/

\\ /He would answer quietly, "What, Jimmy?"/

\\ /Then I would reply, "Hold my hand!"/

\\ /My dad would reach across the darkness and grope for my little hand, finally engulfing it in his.

He said the instant he encompassed my hand, my arm would become limp and my breathing deep and regular.

I had gone back to sleep.

You see, I only wanted to know that he was there!/ —Dr.

James Dobson, /Straight Talk to Men and Their Wives/

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As a father, I can tell you that such experiences, like when a young child reaches out to you for comfort and is actually comforted by the action that you offer, such experiences are wonderful and make fatherhood worthwhile.

\\ However, there is one category of experiences that are definitely unique to fatherhood.

The following anecdote is a good example:

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/A young boy was driving a hayrack down the road, and it turned over right in front of a farmer’s house.

The farmer came out, saw the young boy crying, and said, "Son, don’t worry about this, we can fix it.

Right now dinner’s ready.

Why don’t you come in and eat with us and then I’ll help you put the hay back on the rack."/

\\ /The boy said, "No, I can’t.

My father is going to be very angry with me."

The farmer said, "Now don’t worry, just come in and have some lunch and you’ll feel better."/

\\ /The boy said, "I’m just afraid my father is going to be very angry with me."/

\\ /The farmer and the young boy went inside and had dinner.

Afterwards, as they walked outside to the hayrack, the farmer said, "Son, don’t you feel better now?"

The boy said, "Yes but I just know that my father will be very angry with me."/

\\ /The farmer said, "Nonsense.

Where is your father anyway?"

The boy said, "He’s under that pile of hay."/

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I can almost guarantee that no son or daughter would do such a thing to their mother.

This is a category of experiences unique to fatherhood —Are there any fathers here who want to give up the job now?

\\ So, while I will share with you, this morning, a message from the Word of God, know that, althoughI will speak mostly to fathers, it will also be quite appropriate for all of us, as I do believe the African proverb: /It takes a village to raise a child./

!

Children and Fathers

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\\ The passage of scripture that I would like us to reflect on this morning is found in /The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians/.

Read along with me Ephesians 6:1-4:

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/Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

"Honour your father and mother" —which is the first commandment with a promise— "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."/

\\ /Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord./

—Ephesians 6:1-4

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This is probably a very familiar passage, but let me share with you some of the background to this passage anyway.

!! Background

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\\ Scholars tell us that in many of the books of the New Testament (NT) a pattern is noticeable, where the author introduces the themes of /obedience/ and /subordination/ after discussing /worship/ (B.

B. Thurston, /Reading Colossians, Ephesians, and 2 Thessalonians/, 2007).

This pattern is definitely recognisable in /Ephesians/ (see also Romans 12; Colossians 3; Hebrews 13; James 1; and, 1 Peter 2), where the first half of this book is much more expressive of the nature of the Church as a body, a temple, a mystery, and finally a new creation; that new creation, however, demands a new lifestyle, which is described in the final half of the book.

\\ Following the destruction of the second temple at Jerusalem (ca.

70), the disciples of Jesus were scattered around the empire and began to question their faith in new ways.

Many of the leaders of the Church had died, the second coming of Jesus had not arrived (as was expected), the threat of persecution loomed large and with it the recognition that Christians can and do sin.

As a consequence, the writers of the NT turned their attention to practical issues, such as codes of conduct for Christian households.

Our passage from /Ephesians/ falls in the middle of a typical example of such a code (Ephesians 5:21–6:9; see also Colossians 3:18-4:1; 1 Timothy 2:8-3:13; 6:1–2; Titus 2:1–10; 1 Peter 2:13–3:7; /Didache/ 4:9–11; /Epistle of Barnabas/ 19:5–7; and, /1 Clement/ 21:6–9).

\\ However, before we assume that we can just transpose this code directly onto our own situation, we need to keep in mind that the typical household of the time was more like a /family business/ than our contemporary /nuclear family/ (cf.

Acts 16:11-15, 40).

So, to refer to a person's /household/ would naturally include the extended family who, very likely, lived in the same complex, as well as slaves and hired servants, and even business partners.

Nevertheless, the underlying principle of this code of conduct for Christian households —"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21)— this principle remains true for ancient, as well as contemporary, families.

!! "Children, obey your parents"

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\\ With that background in mind, let us investigate the message of this passage directly, beginning with verses 1-3, which are directed at children specifically:

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/Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

"Honour your father and mother" —which is the first commandment with a promise— "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."/

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This is, perhaps, not a message that children want to hear —at least not teenaged children— but we would all do well to keep it in mind for two reasons:

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1.

It is our natural duty.

2. It establishes a healthy lifestyle.

\\ In verse 1, there is a little phrase, "in the Lord", that is more challenging than it may appear.

Scholars tell us that this phrase may not have appeared in the original text because of the manuscript evidence.

I guess that we cannot confirm this unequivocally, but the phrase raises intriguing issues.