Dr. Ron Sumners
June 19, 2011
One of the names used to describe our God is Jehovah Shammah - The God Who Is There.
Many homes in America are suffering from the phantom father. The father is not there.
And even when he is not physically absent, he is not really there! Many men have children and then simply walk away from the family. Fathering a child does not make a man a father, for to carry the title of father means accepting great responsibilities.
Some men, though living with the family, are so absorbed in their careers that they seldom spend time with the children. The effects have been and are devastating, not only to the family but we also see the effect in our society.
Are you aware that a decade ago, the number of murders committed by teen-agers was approximately 1,000 per year? Today, that number is 4,000 a year.
Some would like to blame poverty, broken homes or physical or mental abuse, but as one psychologist put it, "Many who come from the same background are not committing violence."
Recent reports tell us: because of a lack of father figures in the home - in the past 30 years there have been:
550% increase in violent crime
400% increase in illegitimate births
200% increase in teen pregnancies
300% increase in teen suicide
More than 70% of all juveniles in state reform institutions come from fatherless homes. The home doesn't need a man in the house - it needs a father! In the section of scripture, we are looking at today, we are told of a man named Jairus. He was a religious man, a ruler in the local synagogue. The most important thing for us today is that he was a father.
Verse 21 tells us that Jesus was coming back to Capernaum. He had come through the tombs in Gadara, where he delivered a demon-possessed man. When He arrived from across the Sea of Galilee, the people were there on the shore to meet him.
There were many there but the scripture focuses on one man. It was Jairus, the ruler of the local synagogue. He was an important man in the town. He was the presiding member of the local Jewish congregation. He was not a preacher or a teacher; he was the administrator of the synagogue. He was the keeper of the sacred books, and was well-respected in the synagogue and the community. He appointed those who would read the scripture and if there was a visiting Rabbi, Jairus invited him to read the scripture and comment on them.
So, we have a man of good reputation, a high standing in the community who also had a desperate need! You will never become so wealthy or powerful or successful or popular that troubles cannot reach you.
This man's little girl, the apple of his eye, was dying. There was nothing his position or influence could do to help the situation. He needed help, big help, from outside himself.
I want to mention several things that Jairus' daughter saw in her father. These are things that speak to his love for her and his willingness to think more of her than he did himself. She saw he was not ashamed to seek out Jesus.
Jairus did not send his wife, servant or anyone in his place. He went himself to seek out Jesus. Was Jairus worried what people would think if he, the ruler of the synagogue, went to this itinerant rabbi for help? If he were, he was more concerned for his daughter.
Father, the welfare of your children is your responsibility. Their spiritual growth is your responsibility. Often, we want to believe that it is the responsibility of school and church to train our children. The church is to confirm what you teach at home. It is to be your support system, not to bear your responsibility. Ephesians 6:4 says, "...bring your children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord."
It is the father's responsibility to teach children about God. It is not the major responsibility of the mother, but the church and many mothers have had to take on that role and responsibility because the fathers would not do it.
It falls upon the father to give a child the kind of upbringing that prepares them for living lives that are pleasing to God. Let me re-emphasize: it is the family unit, not the Church that is primarily responsible for the biblical and spiritual training of children, Church and Sunday school only assist in the training of children!
"May I give you a few words of instruction?"
One, dedicate your children to God. This will cause you to realize that they are a gift from God. If you do not believe they are a gift, discuss that idea with a couple who cannot have children and want them desperately.
Two, teach your children to fear the Lord and to turn away from evil and to love righteousness. That will be a hard thing to teach if you have not settled that in your own heart!
Three, instill in them God's attitude toward sin.
Four, protect them from ungodly influences. This may include friends who are a bad influence.
Five, establish them in the church. This means that you will not just take them to church and leave them.
Six, encourage them to be separate from the world. Sex before marriage is not a decision made when a teenager feels the time is right as TV would have us believe. Sex before marriage is a sin and violates God's specific commandment to us.
Seven, teach them to have reverence for God and the things of God; that includes the church and the building that houses the church. I have seen parents allow children to behave and do things in the church building that they would never allow .at home! On second thought, maybe you do allow it at home, and that is the reason they behave the same way in God's house.
Eight, Teach them that God has a purpose for their lives and encourage them to follow that plan.
Nine, teach by your actions, not just words, for words mean little if they are never applied!
Teach your children that God loves them too much to allow disobedience to go unpunished.
Teach them that God's love is unconditional by giving them your unconditional love.
Jairus did not send his wife or someone to take his place - but he, as the father, sought the Lord himself. Regardless of his social position, without regard to the onlookers, Jairus humbly knelt before Jesus and begged that Jesus come because his daughter was dying. I am sure that there were tears in his eyes as he made the request. Children, do you understand how much you are loved by your parents? Do you know how many times they have placed your name with the Lord with tears of agony because they could see the error of your actions or attitudes? Children, you are loved!
Father, show your children that you are committed to God; to your marriage, and to your family. It is time for some men to get off their blessed assurance and start being fathers and leaders of the home that God intended for them to be.
The second thing I want you to notice is:
Jairus' daughter saw that he was not ashamed to bring Christ into his home.
You may ask why was that such a big deal. You must not forget that Jesus was to those in the religious community, a friend of sinners, a winebibber, and the work that He was doing was from the devil. To a good, righteous Jew, it would be unthinkable to have this man in your home. None of that mattered to Jairus because his daughter was dying!
Father, understand that without Jesus Christ, your children are dying. Does that frighten you or break your heart?
In that first Passover, it was the responsibility of the father to place the lamb's blood on the door lintel so the Death Angel would pass over that house. Father, there is a death angel passing through our nation, He is coming with drugs, sexual disease, and rebellion. He wants to enter through the TV cartoons, movies, HBO, MTV etc. He wants to enter through false-friends and acquaintances. John 10:10 tells us that Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. He is out to steal innocence and destroy lives and families.
Dad, we have to say with Joshua, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Father, you are the head of the home. Who is the head of you? Jesus?
When Jesus entered the home of Jairus, He was immediately in control. Jesus chose who was to be there and ran the others out. He took the authority in another's home. Are you willing to let him have that authority in your home?
Jairus' daughter saw that he was not ashamed to express his love toward her.
What took this Jewish leader from his daughter's side, to seek out a teacher? What compelled him to fall at the feet of Jesus and cry out for mercy? What caused him to forget all propriety and his place in society? It was love for his daughter !
The little girl was already dead when Jesus arrived. The professional mourners laughed Jesus to derision when He said that she was only sleeping. He then said gently, "Little girl, get up." She woke and Jesus said, "Giver her something to eat."
We don't know how long the girl lived after that day. But there was not a day that went by for the rest of her life that she did not know that she was alive because of Jesus' resurrection power - and her daddy's love for her! Her life was a living example of the power of God and - the love of a father.
Father, don’t be ashamed to let your children see you seek the Lord; have Him in your home and show your love.
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