Well this morning God really showed me something cool in my personal Bible study time. I think it is connected to what is going on in my life right now. Just this weekend I have experienced some things that show me this truth in me and in someone else. So here it is.
Read 1 Chronicles 28:9-10. David is preparing for his death. He is officially handing the kingdom over to his son, Solomon. He speaks to the nation and then he addresses his son. The address to his son is powerful. You should read it. Dads, read it carefully. Then read it again. Let God speak to you.
This is what I see. “As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father…” The whole quote is priceless, but this opening statement hit me. David stopped addressing the nation and addressed his son. He was king to all of the people, but he was father to Solomon. He had a legacy to leave to his nation but that legacy was not passed on to the people of the nation but to his son who would lead that nation.
He did not say Solomon one of my people. He did not say, Solomon one of my soldiers. He did not say, Solomon one of my advisors. He said Solomon my son. He knew who Solomon was and who he was to Solomon. David did not tell Solomon to follow the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob either. He did not say follow the God of the tabernacle. He did not tell him to follow the God of his grandfather, mother, or brothers. He said follow the God for you FATHER!
Wow, what an incredible statement. The hope of that nation was the same as the hope of that son. The hope was in God and God alone. David was not passing down tradition or power or a throne. David was passing down faith. He said follow the God you have seen me follow. Learn from me. He knew the imperfections and sins of his life. He knew that Solomon was the son of a relationship that started in sin, but he was not a man leaving a legacy of adultery and murder, but of love for God.
Fathers, what are you passing down? The hope of your family is not in your bank account, nor your children’s sports abilities, nor your coaching prowess. The hope of your children is not in the God of Junior Church or children’s church, it is not in the God of Life Groups, or the God of Fellowship Church. Yes, God is the God of all those things, but the hope your children need is in the God of their father.
This Sunday I baptized my son, Daniel. That celebration of confession was not the conclusion of my spiritual leadership in his life, but the beginning of it. The God I know and love he needs to know and love and he needs to learn how to love and know him because he watches me love and know him. He and his sisters need to see it in Wendy and me every day. In the lives we live, the prayers we prayer, the truths we teach, the service we give, and the truth we tell to those who need to know Jesus.
With my family the day that Daniel was baptized was a family of faith. Wendy’s Granny, my parents, Wendy’s parents, Wendy’s aunt, my sister and her kids. Why? Because I am following the God of my father and mother. Wendy is following the God of her father and mother.
Maybe that is not your story or testimony, but it can be for your kids. Decide today to tell your kids to follow the God of their father. Then give them something to follow so you too can say, “Be strong and do it.”
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