It has been over a year since I wrote this article, “Finding the Creator in the Cradle.” It is essentially the musings of a very new and extremely exhausted dad. Much has changed since then, and much has stayed the same. Today, I seek to share how God is continuing to teach me through fatherhood.
I am still the same stubborn, hard-headed, messy guy I was in November 2023. I still cannot do anything for myself and am completely reliant upon my God for everything. And I am confident that the One who began a good work in me will bring it to completion (Philippians 1:6).
I am still learning daily what it means to be a dad. I am still screwing things up pretty much daily. I let my son down and my wife down more than I would care to admit.
Yet I am still striving. I am still growing. I am still pressing on. But best of all, God is still teaching me things.
So what is it that God is teaching me? One of the greatest lessons I am learning right now is what exactly I am called to as a father.
A Noble Work
I recently read Katharina & Martin Luther: The Radical Marriage of a Runaway Nun and a Renegade Monk by Michelle DeRusha. The author goes into great detail about how Luther revolutionized the culture’s views on marriage and family.
Luther is quoted from The Estate of Marriage as writing:
“The greatest good in married life, that which makes all suffering and labor worthwhile, is that God grants offspring and commands that they be brought up to worship and serve Him. In all the world this is the noblest and most precious work, because to God there can be nothing dearer than the salvation of souls.”
Luther rightly understood that the most valuable thing to God was sinners coming to Christ. This understanding, coupled with his knowledge of Scripture, led him to the conclusion that it is the duty of every parent to take an active role in parenting their children in the Christian faith.
Also from The Estate of Marriage:
“God, with all of His angels and creatures, is smiling — not because the father is washing diapers, but because he is doing so in Christian faith.” (Emphasis mine)
Luther set a beautiful example of how to raise children in the faith. He once said that every morning he would pray the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and a Psalm with his children. Furthermore, Luther’s Small Catechism (still in use within the Lutheran Church) was born out of instruction used in his own family worship time.
The Great Commission Begins at Home
This has quite literally re-shaped my view of parenting. The Great Commission begins at home. I have been called as a missionary to my child. When I am reading to my son from our favorite Christian book series (Baby Believer and The Biggest Story), praying with/over him, and taking him to church, I am fulfilling the Great Commission.
This should not come as any surprise. Going back as far as the Law of Moses, we see God commanding in Deuteronomy 6:6–7:
“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
Paul reiterates this concept in his epistle to the Ephesians in chapter six, verse four:
“Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”
One of my favorite parts of being a Christian is how we can hear something hundreds if not thousands of times throughout our lives and then one day it just hits us completely differently. The noble work of being a missionary to my son would certainly fall into this category.
Prophets, Priests, and Kings
As I have sought the Lord and the wisdom of older saints, I have seen how the offices of prophet, priest, and king relate to parenting.
Just as an aside, all Christians, not just parents, are called to exercise the threefold office of prophet, priest, and king (Romans 10:9, Romans 12:1, James 4:7). All of us saved by grace through faith have this call on our lives.
One of the most helpful explanations of how this threefold office applies to parents comes from Dr. Joel Beeke’s book Parenting by God’s Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace:
“As Christian parents anointed with the Spirit of Christ, we are teachers [prophets] by whom the Mediator [Jesus Christ] instructs our children; intercessors [priests] who obtain His help for them and channels through whom He blesses them; and ministers [kings] of His kingdom, through whom He rules over them.”
What an incredible responsibility we have as parents! It is a uniquely humbling responsibility that we as Christian parents have. In light of what I mentioned earlier about not being able to do anything (we are all in this boat) on my own, I am constantly reminded of my need for my Father.
References
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
DeRusha, Michelle (2017). Katharina & Martin Luther: The Radical Marriage of a Runaway Nun and a Renegade Monk. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
Beeke, Joel R (2011). Parenting By God’s Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace. Sanford, FL: Ligonier Ministries.
Cover photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash.
This article was originally published on Medium.
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