WATCH THE SERMON ON VIDEO HERE.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Ame

Yesterday was a very important day in the history of our country. In case you missed it, we celebrated the 250th anniversary of our independence from Great Britain. Now, I have to be honest with you, and tell you upfront that I’m not a real big fan of those patriot services in church. Don’t hear me wrong, I love this country, and I love a good firework’s show, but in the house of God, the focus always needs to be upon the Word of God. Our American identity, as special as that is to us, should never be something that supersedes or overshadows our Baptismal identity. After all, nobody goes to heaven just because they were born in the United States, but we do get to heaven by being born from above through water and the Word. So, that means that there’s never a Sunday where someone should be able to show up to church and leave without actually having heard the Gospel.

I remember one year I had some relatives of mine visit from France, who just so happened to be in town for the 4th of July. They came with us to church on Sunday, and rather than saying the Nicene Creed that day, we spoke the Pledge of Allegiance instead. Now, the pledge of Allegiance isn’t bad, but is that really what we should be asking people to do in worship? Some of those family members of mine weren’t even American citizens. Should we be requiring them to pledge their allegiance to a country they don’t even belong to? And what impression did that give them about the Church? Do you have to be an American to be part of God’s family? No. He builds His Church from every tribe, people, and language. 

And yet, even though the focus of our worship services, even on the 4th of July, should still put the emphasis on God’s Word and Sacraments, that doesn’t mean that we have to ignore or neglect what’s going on around us. Just like we thank God for our daily bread, part of that includes thanking Him for the country that we live in and the unique blessings that we get to have here.

So, in this morning’s sermon, as a sort of reflection on yesterday’s events, and thinking about what God has given us here in this place, I want to answer two questions based off our gospel lesson from Luke 5 and the great catch of fish: First, what is the greatest blessing that we have in this country? And second, what is the greatest threat facing our country?

If you ask almost anyone in the world, they’ll tell you that the greatest blessing that we have in the United States of America is our freedom. But even that little word “freedom,” needs more explanation. What kind of freedom are we talking about? Are we talking about the freedom to own your own home? Well, that’s a good kind of freedom to have, but there’s still something missing there. Are we talking about the freedom of democracy, to vote for and elect our own civil leaders and government officials. Again, that’s a good kind of freedom too, but does that freedom necessarily have any eternal value? This summer the United States has been hosting the World Cup for soccer. I’ve been seeing a lot of videos online of visitors from Europe gushing about what things are like in America. The number one thing that they always seem to comment on is the food, and especially the portion size. But we have something better to offer than just Texas Barbecue. We have the Word of God. And without a doubt, the greatest blessing that we have here in this country, at least for the time being, is access to God’s Word and the freedom to hear it, and proclaim it, without being persecuted for it.

Now, I know that that isn’t always the case. Sometimes Christians suffer even here for refusing to violate their consciences and do something that God’s Word forbids. Just a few years ago a cake baker out on the west coast got sued and lost everything that he had because he wouldn’t make a cake that featured two men getting married. A few years ago, a very close family member of mine got fired from his job, because he wouldn’t give testosterone to a woman who was trying to make herself look more like a man. That sort of stuff does happen. And it’s terrible. But, when you look around at other places in the world, I think it’s easy to see, that it’s not nearly as bad as it could be. What if you lived in China, where its illegal for a foreigner to bring in Bibles and pass them out to people unless it’s for your own personal use. Apparently, the government is so restrictive there that you have to register your congregation with the state so that they can ensure that you never say anything critical about them. Or what if you lived in one of those Muslim countries in the Middle East? You know, the places where women aren’t even allowed to show their faces outside, and its punishable by death to say that Allah is not God and that Muhammed was a false prophet? In Finland, just this last year, a Lutheran lay woman, who was part of the Finnish parliament, was convicted of a hate crime for publishing a book that said that marriage is between one man and one woman.

Yes, there are lots weak spots in our armor here in the United States, and we’ll see how long things will last, but for the time being, we can still come to St John Lutheran Church in Denver, Iowa, read the Bible out loud, listen to a sermon that calls sin what it is, and does not compromise the Scriptures, and no one will get arrested. We can go back to our homes after the service, have Sunday brunch, and enjoy the rest of our day. 

Is that not a profound gift from God? Should we not with all the joy that we can muster, praise the Name of Jesus, and glorify Him for giving us such a gift?

The Word of God is never bound, but here in this place, there seems to be much less obstacles for it to go around. And thanks be to God for that, because look at what the Word of God alone can do? That’s our Scripture lesson today from Luke chapter 5. Saint Peter and the other apostles were fishing all night, and didn’t catch anything. But then then Jesus showed up and told them to try one more time. In the middle of the day, right in deep water, the worst possible time and place to catch any fish, He said, “let down your nets for a catch.” And what did Peter say back, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” Peter subjected his reason and his experience to the clear words of Christ, and then there were so many fish to haul in that the nets were practically breaking. Such is the power of the Word of God. And not just to give us the things that we need for this life, but to give us the gift of eternal life too. God’s Word is the sole tool and instrument of the Holy Spirit uses to bring us to faith in Jesus. It how’s He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, so that, on the last day, there will be a magnificent harvest.  

And that’s what we have access to here in this country. We have access to God’s Word. We can read it. We can preach it. We can live it. We can pass it on to children and their children’s children too. And yes, we could do that anywhere in the world, as many Christians throughout history have, but we can do it here with relative ease. God has answered our prayers of “lead me not into temptation,” by sparing us the kind of intense testing and suffering that maybe some of us, or most of us, would not be able to handle. In His divine mercy and forbearance, He has allowed us to live peacefully here as Christians, even though that is not always the norm for the people of God.

So, yes, the greatest blessing that we have here in this country is freedom. But it’s not just any freedom, it’s the freedom to listen to God’s Word and have access to it all of the time. It’s the freedom to worship Jesus, by receiving His gifts of Word and Sacrament without having to go through hardly any trouble to get it. That is a treasure beyond compare.

And that also shows us, then, what the greatest threat to our country is too. The greatest threat that we face as American citizens is not what you hear about on the news. It’s not foreign invasion, high interest rates, leaders that you do or don’t like, or global warming. It’s apathy towards God’s Word. It’s neglecting the one thing needful, and not appreciating what we have.  

Martin Luther used to compare the Gospel to a rain cloud in the sky. He warned the people in Germany in his time that if they did not cling to God’s Word, and receive it with joy, it would go on to another place for lack of thankfulness. Just like a storm moves from one location to another, if they would not receive the blessings of God’s Word, which had been given to them, the Holy Spirit would take that blessing to someplace else. And sadly, it seems like that’s exactly what happened. Germany was the place of the Reformation. It was the spot where the Holy Spirit once again uncovered the fullness of the pure gospel, and brought it to light in a very public way. And yet, if you know anything about Germany today, how many faithful Christian churches are still there? Practically none. It’s almost completely secular. This was the center of confessional Lutheranism in the world, but guess how many confessional Lutheran congregations still exist? We in the Missouri Synod have only been able to stay in fellowship with one single church body, because of compromises to God’s Word, and even that church body is struggling right now with whether or not they are going to accept women’s ordination. 

The point I’m trying to make is that it can happen anywhere. And we should not be so naive as to think that it could not happen to us. God has given us an immense treasure and privilege in being able to have access to His Holy Word and the freedom to hear it and proclaim without the kind of persecution that we see elsewhere, but how have we used it?

I can’t imagine what it would be like to live in the fear that going to church might get you arrested. We can go to church whenever we want, but look at the church attendance numbers in our country? People skip worship for sports, and sleeping in, and who knows what, acting as if there will always be more time to go. What if there isn’t? How long do you think God will allow those sorts of things to continue, before He brings down His swift and righteous judgment upon us.

Or what about our country’s national sin? In the last 50 years, over 70 million children have been lost their lives to the heinous act of abortion. Rather than bring these precious gifts of God to term, and giving them the chance to be brought to the waters of Holy Baptism, instead their own mothers have decided to let them be murdered in the womb. And it’s not just overt examples like that. The overall attitude towards children and being fruitful in marriage is looked down upon and held in disdain by many, even in the church. God’s Word says that children are a heritage from the Lord, and blessed is the one who fills his quiver with them, and yet, how often do things like money, career, free time, and pleasure cause couples to prevent themselves from having more kids despite God’s clear Word of blessing? Did you know that at the beginning of the 1900’s we in the Lutheran church had the highest birthrate, even among the Catholics? Now, we have one of the lowest birthrates, even among all the other Protestants.  Will we listen to the Word of God, or not?

And we could go on and on. Sexual deviancy is celebrated in our streets. People refuse to tithe, but then they gamble away their money betting on games. Taking drugs that cloud the mind and impede our prayers is as common as drinking a glass of water before bed. Even so-called conservative politicians want to legalize pot in our state just so they can tax it. Lord, have mercy on us all. It is our society and our culture too. Even if we are opposed to these kinds of things with our words, we know, that all too often we not stood far away enough from them with our actions. 

When Saint Peter realized that the boat that he was standing in was sinking, and that the Son of God was right there next to him, what did he do? He cried out to Jesus for help. He confessed his sinfulness and looked to the Lord for forgiveness. We should do the same thing too. So, that we don’t sink down along with the unbelieving world, we should wrap our arms around the legs of Christ and cling to Him and His Word without letting go.

We don’t have the promise that our country will be around forever. In fact, we know for certain that no nation of this earth will last for eternity. But there is still hope for the people of every nation through faith in the Word of God. As Saint Paul tells us in Philippians chapter 3, “Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” 

This land that we live in now is not our true home. Our true home is in heaven. It is the place that Christ has prepared for us through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the tomb. And the way that we come to that blessed place is through faith in the promises of our Savior. It’s through repenting of our sins and trusting in Christ for forgivness. When the people of Nineveh repented, God spared the whole city. Even before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, He was willing to spare it for the sake of five faithful people. And when God wiped out the whole population of earth in the time of the flood, still He protected Noah and His family, who didn’t despise His Word, and kept them sake in the ark. That’s God’s promise to all believers. It’s His assurance for all those who trust in His Word.

What did the disciples do after Jesus let them catch all of those fish and spared their lives? And the end of our text, it tells us that they left everything and followed Him. That doesn’t mean, as some wrongly teach, that we need to take a vow of total poverty and sell everything that we have. But it does mean that the Word of God needs to come first. What Jesus tells us in the Bible, both His law and His gospel, always has to go before everything else. That is our greatest gift, because that is the tool that Jesus uses to bring us to heaven. It is the way that the Holy Spirit opens our hearts to the gift of salvation, and causes us to receive it.

So, thank the Lord for the access that we still have to His Word in this country. May we not take it for granted, but cling to it always, even if no one else does. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Without a doubt, the number one reason that people give for why they’re not a Christian or why they don’t go to Church anywhere, is because the Church is just full of a bunch of hypocrites. I can’t tell you how many times in my life I’ve heard a variation of that statement before, and I bet you have too. Sometimes, in the past, and I admit this was true for myself, I thought that the right response to give to those people was something like, “we’re all hypocrites, but that’s what being a Christian or going to church is for.” Now, I understand what’s trying to be communicated when we say those sorts of things, but in this morning’s sermon, I’m going to make the argument that that isn’t quite getting it right. There’s something a little bit off there that isn’t really biblical. Is it true that all Christians are actually hypocrites and that we should gladly and willing accept that title as valid?

First, I just want you to consider what Jesus says about what makes a person a real hypocrite in our Gospel lesson today from Luke chapter 6. This is the famous “judge not” part of the Bible, which, as you know, has to be one of the most misunderstood and misapplied texts in all of Scripture. But at the end of that passage, Christ tells us a short little parable, that helps clarify what He means. He says, “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, [there’s the word] first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.”

So, here Christ teaches us that a true hypocrite isn’t just someone who sins, but someone who casts judgment on another person’s sin before or without acknowledging and repenting of their own. The issue is not simply with showing other people that what they’re doing is wrong and telling them that they need to stop. It’s with doing that to others apart from doing it to yourself first. You got to do both! As Jesus says, “first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.”

Well, is that what we Christian do, or not? Do we admit our own sins and live daily lives of repentance over them, or don’t we? Are we sorry for the things that we do against God’s law, and do we want to be forgiven for them? If the answer to any those questions is “no,” then we actually are hypocrites, and the words of Christ condemn us. But if the answer is “yes,” meaning that we do mourn our sins and we do want to do better, then it isn’t being hypocritical at all to ask others to do the same along with us. 

I can’t tell you how important it is to understand this distinction when we are trying to communicate with those that have been sucked into the so called “Pride Movement.” This last month the LGBTQ stuff has been all over the place. What’s the difference between us and them? The difference isn’t that they sin and we don’t, or that they need forgivness and we don’t. The difference is, or at least it’s supposed to be, that we’re sorry for our sins and they’re not. We don’t celebrate our sins. We fight against them. Is that what they do? The literal name of the movement is “pride.” It’s about being proud of doing things that the Bible says are wrong. Are you proud of the sinful things that you sometimes do in your life? Are you happy when you get angry at your spouse and children and treat them unkindly? Do you think that it’s good when you lust after someone you aren’t married too, or covet things that don’t belong to you? Are you of the opinion, that it’s the God pleasing thing to do to skip church, dishonor those in authority, and talk behind people’s backs? Would you walk in a parade that promotes those sorts of things, and do you consider them to be the essence of who you are, and part of your God given identity? 

I should hope not. Because if you do, then you are hypocrite, and the Bible says you’re going to go to hell. If you’re not sorry for your sins, and you don’t want the forgiveness that comes from Jesus for them, then the Holy Spirit doesn’t dwell in your heart, and in your current spiritual condition, you won’t be saved.

Now, I think we need to admit that sometimes when people say that the reason why they don’t go to church because it’s just full of a bunch of hypocrites, they might have a legitimate point. Doesn’t Jesus tell us elsewhere that there are weeds mixed in together with the wheat, and goats among the true sheep? It’s entirely possible that they’ve met someone before who goes to church on Sundays, and outwardly attach him or herself to the means of grace, but also lives a completely different life outside of the sanctuary, and embraces all kinds of sinful things without repentance.

For example, sometimes you do run into people who are vehemently opposed to things like homosexuality, but totally okay with watching pornography and dirty movies, living together before marriage, or getting an unbiblical divorce. Sometimes there are people who want to be known as Christians that actually are total jerks who don’t forgive others, hold grudges, and constantly act as if everyone sins but them. They shake their heads when they see a trans person on TV, but then they go right back to their own pet sin, as if theirs aren’t really that big of deal. 

That’s not right. And each one of us should examine ourselves and our own lives to see whether or not that is the case for us. We should listen to the Word of God and judge everything that we see by His standard, and not our own personal one, so that we don’t expose ourselves to the danger that Jesus warns us about in our reading. Remember what Christ says in our text, “With the measure that you measure it will be measured to you.” That means that whatever sins you condemn in the lives of others, God will hold you accountable for those same sins too. And if you’re not sorry for them, and unwilling to put them away, then you’ll end up in the same place as all those other unrepentant sinners that you look down on too.

But the solution to that problem is not to try and lower the bar of God’s Word, and redefine sin differently, so everyone gets a pass for it, which isn’t really possible. The solution is to repent of our sin and look to Christ for forgivness for it. It’s to keep on doing that over and over again, every day of lives, and never act as we don’t need Jesus.

The true Church of Christ, that is, all the real believers, is not made up of a bunch of hypocrites. It’s made up of a bunch of penitent sinners. It consists exclusively of those who hunger and thirst for righteousness because they know that they don’t have any of their own. And when we invite someone to join our church, we’re not inviting them to become a hypocrite, we’re inviting them to become a penitent. We’re asking them to do the same thing that we want for ourselves, which is to repent and believe the Gospel. It’s to cast our sins aside and run to Christ for absolution, trusting that He will never turn us away, but always cleanse us, forgive us, and make us new every time.

So, is it right to respond to people who say that they don’t go to church because it’s just full of hypocrites by telling them that “there’s always room for one more?” Not really. That makes it sound like true believers are actually unrepentant of their sins, even though the Bible says that’s impossible. How we should respond to those people instead is first by acknowledging that it’s possible that they have met someone before who identified as a Christian that was a hypocrite, and we’re very sorry for that. Maybe a good approach with those kinds of people would be to ask them what they do for a living. Let’s just say they’re a barber. Well, one time I met a barber who gave me a terrible haircut, so now I don’t go to any barber at all. What do you think the person’s going to say to that? “Hey, that’s not fair, you shouldn’t judge every barber the same way just because you met a bad one once.” That’s true. And you shouldn’t do that for people who identify as Christians either, because even though there are such thing as false Christians, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t genuine ones too.

And the other way to respond to that accusation, of course, which is the more important one, is again, just to explain how you’re sinful too, and that’s why you go to church in the first place. You don’t go to celebrate how you’re better than other people, or celebrate your sin, and get God’s approval for it, you go because you know that you have big old plank in your eye, and the only One who has the power to take it away is Christ. So, if you want to have the peace that passes understanding, which comes from having a clean conscience before God in heaven, then come with me to place where you get it. Come and join me, and the rest of the Body of Christ, in confessing our sins to the Lord, and hearing His absolution. This isn’t the place where we lie. It’s the place where we tell the truth. The truth about ourselves, and how we sin. And the truth about Jesus who died to take all of our sins away. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The parable of the prodigal son from Luke chapter 15 is a great text for us to hear on Father’s Day, because this is a story about a dad and his two boys. Besides giving us a wonderful picture of the gospel, this passage also shows us what it looks like to be a good father. Those two things, of course, go together. You can’t be the kind of dad that your kids need you to be, if you don’t know the love of your Father in heaven. What does it matter what kind of other stuff you give your children, if you can’t even give them the one thing needful?

So, first, this text teaches us the gospel. The gospel is the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. It’s the message of God’s underserved mercy and kindness towards us sinners. Even though we deserve His wrath and punishment, God forgives us and receives us back for Jesus’ sake.

This is exactly what we see playing out in the parable. The first son treated his father like absolute garbage. He demanded that his dad give him his inheritance early, which was more or less the same thing as telling him to drop dead. When do you normally inherit something from your parents? Usually, you only get it after they die. So, the one son was basically saying that he would rather his dad be dead, then alive, so that he could have his share of the money. It was an awful thing to say. But that’s what we sinners say to God through our actions every time that we sin. When we disobey His commandments, and go off on our own way instead, we act as if life would be better off without Him. “Just give me what’s mine and let me do what I want with it!” That’s the beginning of every sin.

And yet, where does that attitude always lead us? Well, what happened to the first son in the parable? He thought that things would be better off away from his father’s house, and in almost no time at all, he realized just how wrong he really was. After he squandered away all of his property in reckless living, a famine came upon the land, and he ended up broke and homeless. The situation got so bad that at one point he longed to be fed even with the pods that the pigs ate, but, as our text says, no one gave him anything. 

This, of course, shows us what kind life is really waiting for us apart from God and His Word. God’s law isn’t just a bunch a bunch of arbitrary rules, it protects us from doing dumb things that bring us harm. Sin might feel good in the moment, but that feeling never lasts forever. Eventually it fades away, and all we’re left with is pain, suffering, guilt, and sorrow.

When the first son finally came to his senses, and realized just how terrible of a person he’d been, he made a plan to go back his father’s house. Part of that plan was actually right. The son had every intention of apologizing to his dad and admitting what he done wrong. “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” That’s what the son planned to say to his dad when he made it back home. And lots of people get to a very similar place in their spiritual journey too. They realize that they’ve made an absolute mess of their life through their sin, and that there’s no one to blame for it but themselves. But then they do exactly what the son did in our reading, and go on to assume that they have to do something on their own in order to make it right again. What else did the son plan to say to his father when he got back home? He wasn’t just going to admit that he’d done something wrong, and ask for forgivness, he was going to ask his dad to treat him like one of the hired servants instead. The son hoped that his dad would be merciful to him, but he wasn’t sure of how far that mercy would go. That’s how a lot of people think about God. They hope He’ll forgive them, but they’re not really sure. They hope He’ll take them back, but just to be safe, they think the need to cut a deal with Him to increase their chances. 

And yet, what did the father do in the story? While his son was still a long way off, he took off running for his boy, and threw his arms around him and embraced him. He didn’t even let his son make it to the end of his pre-planned speech, but cut him off in the middle of it, and told the servants to go and get the best robe, the family ring, and sandals for his feet. The father completely restored his child, and treated him as one of his sons again, even though he didn’t even deserve to be a slave.

That’s the kind of love that God the Father has for each and every one of you. You sin against Him with your thoughts, words, and deeds. You dismiss His law and ignore His commandments. You do the things that you want to do without any regard for anyone but yourself. And you make a mess of your life. There’s no one to blame but you, and you can’t do anything to fix it on your own. But what does your Heavenly Father do for you anyway? When you repent, He receives you back as His beloved child. Purely by His grace and mercy, and not your own merit, He forgives you your sins. He washes you clean in your Baptism. He covers you with the robe of Christ’s righteousness. He gives you a place at His table and restores to you all the privileges of a true son or daughter. 

God’s love for us sinners is such a profound and extraordinary thing that no human being can fully comprehend it. In fact, it’s so outrageous to our fallen senses that many people flat out reject it. That’s what the older brother did in the story. He resented his father’s love and didn’t think it was right. He thought that what his dad was doing was irresponsible and unfair. “How could you let this son of yours back into the house again after he devoured it with prostitutes? Why on earth would you ever want him back?” The older brother didn’t realize how much he had benefited from his father’s grace too, so he didn’t appreciate it when someone else got it either.

At the beginning of the story, it was the first son who didn’t want to be at his dad house, but at the end of the story it was the second one. He wouldn’t go into the home and join the party because he thought that being there was something that you had to earn, and only he had earned it. In that way, he represents all those who trust in their own works for salvation and consider themselves to be righteous on their own. They miss out on eternal life too, not because they choose to live in their sin, but because they don’t think that they have any sins that need forgiving. They don’t understand that the only way to be in God’s house at all is by grace, and that grace is by nature something that you don’t deserve.

And yet, just like the father in the story, God pleads with them to come to the Feast too. “Son, you are always with me,” the dad said, “and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.” God wants all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. He wants that for hardened sinners who have chosen a life of sin, and He wants that for self-righteous sinners who don’t think that they sin at all. Nothing makes God happier than when someone repents and comes back home. He is always waiting to forgive them, restore them, and welcome them back in.

The parable of the prodigal son doesn’t just give us wonderful picture of the gospel, it also shows us what it looks like to be a good dad. The most important thing that any dad can do is teach his kids the Word of God. It’s not just his job to make sure that they know how to tie a neck tie or throw a baseball, his main responsibility is to bring them up in the instruction and fear of the Lord.

The first way that that happens is by teaching your kids the law. A good dad doesn’t make excuses for his children’s sin, he helps them see it for what it is. The dad in the parable never said that his first son didn’t do anything wrong. He didn’t defend his bad behavior or explain it away as just a natural part of growing up. He said that the boy was lost. He called him dead. That’s what God’s Word says about our sin, and so that’s what we need to teach our kids to believe about it too. Sin isn’t just a couple of mistakes that we make here and there, it’s a total corruption of our nature that completely separates us from God and leaves us eternally damned. There no such thing as a sin that doesn’t matter or a commandment that you can willingly break that won’t destroy you spiritually. You don’t play around with sinful stuff, and act like its no big deal, you repent of it, and run away from it. You do every day of your life, and never pretend, like the older brother did, that you don’t have any sins that need forgiving.

And secondly, and most importantly, a good dad teaches his kids the gospel. The father in the parable showed his son that forgivness isn’t something that you earn, it’s something that you receive. He did that by giving it to his boy even though he didn’t deserve it. Fathers teach their kids the gospel not just when they forgive them for the sins they commit against them, but also when they explain to them how all of our sins have already been forgiven in Jesus. Before we ever deserved it, before we could do anything to pay Him back, yes, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 

The Bible tells us that fathers are the head of the household. Being the head of the house isn’t about getting everything that you want and bullying your wife and kids. It’s about imitating our Father in heaven. Its about making our homes places where the Word of God is preached and taught so that everyone that lives there can hear it. It’s about taking you kids to church, doing home devotions, praying with them before bed, and telling them over and over again about the forgivness that comes from Jesus. That’s what the gospel is all about it. And that’s what it means to be a good dad too. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.