What Makes A Dad

I had a conversation with my friend, Brian, the other day. We started talking about kids and parenting since we have both been married to our wives for two years. As we talked, he said something that caught my attention.

"Any body can make a baby but it is all the other things that make you a dad."

I began to ponder this. My thoughts went immediately to my father. No, not my physical father. My spiritual Dad.

It make me sad to see people who don't see God as their Dad. Even a lot of Christians don't. They say things like "Our Heavenly Father". But saying isn't knowing or believing. God really is their Dad but they only see him as "Creator" (biologically). He doesn't provide for them. He becomes the distant, drunk, abusive guy or the strict man that they have to call father. He causes harm and heartache.

This isn't what a dad does. And no, the "he does it because he loves me" isn't an excuse. That is called battered woman/child syndrome. It's a lie.

So what does a real dad do? It's not that birthing of a child that's makes you a parent, it's how you care for the child.

“You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him." Matt 7:9-11

Isn't it true that God is good all the time? Why can we then justify that he does terrible things to people "for the greater good"?

I have news for you. Jesus died for the greater good so we could be saved from death. You aren't Jesus. You don't save. He does.

Yes, people are persecuted for the Gospel (not by God). After all, "no one ever hated his own body, but feeds it and cares for it, just as Christ does the Church - for we are members of His body." Eph 5:29-30

I never want to balance God's goodness by saying, "Sometimes God has to ______ in order to ______." He doesn't change. He won't lower His standards to anything less than being a perfect Dad.

So, do you look at God as just the Creator or do you see Dad. It is the good things he does for us to care for us that makes Him a Dad. Not because He has to but because He wants to.