Abraham and Father's Day

 

Father’s Day is coming up, and I thought it good to talk about Biblical fathers of the past. As a father, I raised two beautiful grown daughters. But I did have to watch lest I exasperate them, as the New Testament enjoins fathers to avoid doing. But this story today goes deeper, perhaps touching on the very character of the father, who sometimes unwittingly passes on his worst characteristics to the next generation. There is an excellent record of it happening, beginning in the life of Abraham.

And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.
Genesis 20:2

Abraham, living in a foreign land, was afraid for his life. He made a poor choice, recorded in the Bible, lying to Abimelech, and denying that Sarah was his wife. I love the stories of Genesis because they tell it like it is. We are told that Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him as righteousness. That is true, but it is also true that Abraham was full of frailty and like one of us, was inclined to make poor choices. This sin, Abraham’s preferred choice, was to entangle his family for generations.

The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
Numbers 14:18

I am not going to argue that Abraham made a poor choice; rather it seems obvious that he did, and I am going to trace his poor choice through his generations. In other words, what Abraham did had long-lasting effects on his family that went far beyond his own considerations. Notice next, Isaac, his son following dutifully in father’s footsteps.

 And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.
Genesis 26:9

Years later, Isaac somehow recalls the sin of his father, and claims that sin for his own. He is not excused, as Abraham was, by saying that his wife really is his half-sister. So, we might fairly say, the little sin of Abraham has grown into a bigger sin for the son, Isaac. Isaac in turn, passes this on to his son, Jacob.

And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
Genesis 27:36

No matter that Esau despised his birthright—let’s focus on Jacob, a master trickster. He finds ways of supplanting Esau and taking his birthright, showing himself to be a master trickster. How humbling it must have been for Jacob to have to work under a true master of trickery, his uncle Laban. Laban tricked him so many times, and but for the grace of God, would have sent Jacob away penniless.

Jacob has his twelve children, all of whom show father’s characteristics. His brothers sell Joseph into slavery but convince poor dad that an animal killed his beloved Joseph. But Joseph is clearly in the “trickster” mode when he is later able to fool his brothers and hide his identity, even to the point of accusing his brothers of theft.

But the brothers of Joseph are guilty of heinous things. They sell Joseph and pretend that he is killed, and they keep the secret for years from their father.

Notice the sin of trickery, of deception. It has now come a full four generations and is much worse than when it first appeared. What is the message to fathers, on a Father’s Day? It is a heavy responsibility to be a father, and we fathers ought to always know our children are watching, and very prone to adopt our weakness, our sin, and make it their own. How careful we ought to be then! Thankfully, most of us try to live exemplary lives, but we fathers ought to know all the same, our children will see through to our weakness, and may well adopt it for their own. Fathers, what a call to excellence, to walking in the Spirit humbly and seeking righteousness before God. Isn’t that what we want our children to inherit?