Our Father
“A Father of the fatherless, a Defender of widows, is God in His holy habitation.”
As a child, were you ever so confronted by a “schoolyard adversary” that you verbally resorted to the utterance of an intimidating, albeit indefensible, claim: “My daddy can beat up your daddy”? As benign as this pronouncement may have been, it was nonetheless worthy of note that our most immediate refuge in such a “bully confrontation” was the patriarch of our family…our father! In fact, it may have been that some fathers were actually quite “soft” – “gentle giants” – easily knocked out in the first round but always willing to take such risks in defense of the family, and their Lord God.
In our Heavenly Father, we are akin to a universal and limitlessly endowed Protector of all who are willing to take significant risks in expressing their faith in Him through the acknowledgement of His Son Jesus, our Saviour, by whom we can access the keys to the Kingdom. He is thereby a loving “Daddy” who, by our invitation, can overcome all darkness and evil with His pure and powerful love.
As King David reminds us in his 68th Psalm (included above), our “Father, who is in heaven,” also cares for and protects those who are vulnerable, such as the widows and orphans, as a “Father to the fatherless.” Because God loves us beyond any love human fathers may express to their children, He also lovingly disciplines us so that we can be safe, honouring Him while fulfilling our greater purposes in life.
Our Father God, likewise, had a unique and fulfilling relationship with King David, and their hearts resonated. But He was displeased that David had shed much blood and instigated many wars “in His sight.”
Not wanting His temple to be in any way corrupted during its construction, the following dialogue ensued between the Lord, King David, and (their son) Solomon. Let’s read the following conversation, as recorded in 1 Chronicles 22:7-10:
“And David said to Solomon: ‘My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of the Lord my God; but the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “You have shed much blood and have made great wars; you shall not build a house for My name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight. Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days. He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be My son, and I will be his Father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.”’”
The Biblical concept and principle of “Father” (or “Fathering”) points to a heritage that humankind acquired in the beginning as God wove His own DNA into the fabric and very being of men and women and their offspring. His oft given admonishment through Jesus’ teaching to humankind is to care for the widows and orphans, and to “feed My sheep.” This can be accomplished in a cyclical system of protection and sustainability often watched over on earth by the family patriarchs and matriarchs who together draw their strength and conviction from their love of, and relationship to, the Heavenly Father.
Through the adoption of orphans, our marriages, our partnerships, and in other practical ways, we often have the privilege of lending, or even giving, our name in the love and support of another. When considering such an act of selfless love, we also begin to understand how very precious is our Heavenly Father’s gift of Jesus, and the privilege it is to bear His matchless.
- Doug
