By the Rev. Graham Tucker

This week-end being Father’s Day weekend and our thoughts turning to our fathers, I was interested in the early usage of the word “Father”.

The word is used with reference to the head of a household as well as to the parent of a certain child or children. It is also used as a title of respect, protector, guardian, ancestor, or founder or patriarch.

The word comes from a root word signifying a nourisher, protector or upholder.

The word has not changed today.

My mind goes back to my earthly father and of the many memories I have of him.

He was a simple country boy whose mother had instructed him thoroughly in the Scriptures because in those days the churches did not always have pastors.

This left most of the teaching to the families.

He learned from his parents who had learned from the church, and in turn he taught my sister and me. He and Mother saw to it that we were in church regularly and supplemented their teachings with the teachings that we learned in church.

In our early years country churches still had not reached a point where they always had fulltime pastors.

Therefore, the teachings were still left in the hands of our parents.

The one fact that was always part of the teachings was that our father was the representative of God in the home.

I am reminded that God’s Word instructed the Hebrews to teach their families the word of God and to keep it ever before their families. They were to teach it to their families day and night. This meant there was a constant reminder of God the father in the family.

One of the similarities I find between God the Father and my earthly father comes from Isaiah 64:8. The Bible says in that scripture: “But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our Potter; and all we are the work of Your hand.” You see, even as God the Father molds us, our earthly father also molds and shapes us.

The second concept in the “Fatherhood” of God is found in Deuteronomy 8:5, “You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you.”

And then, Deuteronomy 8:11 says, “Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statues which I command you today…”

In Exodus 20:12 one of the 10 Commandments says, “Honor your father and mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord is giving you.”

When we obey this commandment, we observe the similarities above.

This will help us honor our Father on this special day.