Honour Your Father - Pastor Belinda Shongwe 16Jun24

The speaker begins by greeting the congregation and acknowledging Father's Day. They discuss the importance of honoring fathers and the impact of fatherhood on individuals and society. They provide statistics on single-parent households and emphasize the need to appreciate and support fathers. The speaker cites biblical verses that emphasize the importance of honoring parents and warns fathers not to provoke their children. They highlight the role of fathers in nurturing and disciplining their children. I greet you in the mighty name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I just want to greet the pastors, elders, the entire congregation in the name of Jesus. Amen. I've been given this opportunity by Apostle Joseph Sithole and Pastor Joseph Sithole. Amen. To stand before you this morning to send the word of God. Amen. I want to say to the fathers in this place, with due respect, may you please stand up so that we appreciate you. Wow, wow. Can we shout thank you, thank you, thank you. Let's clap hands for them. Thank you for being there for us. Thank you for loving us. Amen. You may be seated. It is a powerful day to be celebrated. It's just a gesture to say this is Father's Day. Amen. Celebrate your mother's day. Celebrate your women's day. And then we will have youth day. And then we are somewhere swallowed. Today we acknowledge. Amen. And also let me say happy youth day. May our youth stand up, we want to appreciate you. Wow, wow, wonderful, wonderful. Happy youth day to you. Amen. We love you, you may be seated. Amen. We learned that you enjoyed yourself yesterday. And then this morning you are really running the program. And you are blessing us so much. When we see these young faces, soft faces coming to the pulpits to render items. We can see that the future is setting. Amen. As you have heard that in Exodus 20, verse 12, this verse is one of the commandments that was given to the nation of Israel. Moses was given this law while he was at Mount Sinai in the presence of the living God. Amen. Hence today God has given us this verse to remind ourselves. The topic for today is honor your father. Honor your father. When we talk of Father Wood today, to many it is a thorn. Some when growing up they would like to be asked who is your father. When they were still growing up. Because this is one of the subjects that has various external effects. Amen. Father Wood sometimes leaves a void in many's life. Some their fathers have died. Some they never knew them. They never met them. They were not told who their father is. Because somewhere somehow is a pain to their mother. That's why I say it's one of the difficult subjects. And some would not like to hear a child asking them who is my father. Hallelujah. And this is a reality of life. And as a church we have some such situations. Hallelujah. According to Statistics South Africa for 2021, it shows that about 31% of households in South Africa have both parents. Only 31%. Amongst blacks. And amongst the colored nations is around 56%. Amongst the Indians is around 86%. And amongst the whites is 80%. I'm talking of families where they have both parents. And that is a reality. And then the church is not immune to such. Amongst us we have single mother families. And amongst the black culture or folks, it's not popular to have a single father family. And as I read some of the statistics says, it's only around 3.9% where we have a single father family. Hallelujah. Where the fathers are the ones that are taking care of their families. And in most cases it's women. Hallelujah. So we just want to say to fathers, you are so special. And today we honor you. Regardless of the circumstances you went through. We are bringing in you taking care and nurturing, providing and disciplining your own children. Let's clap hands for the fathers please. Now let's learn from the father. The almighty God. As I went through this subject of honoring the father, I realized that this is one of the subjects that is deep in the heart of the almighty God. Because God is the father. As we were singing this song, giving God the honor by yet in my spirit I was just worshiping. That to close that gap of 70% where the families don't have both father and mother, I say father you have closed that gap. Father we give you the honor. We say by yet almighty God, father of life. Indeed there is no shadow of turning back. It's the real father. Exodus 20 if you can read for me. We are going to read various verses today. Because I'm giving a talk about fatherhood. All day I'm preaching. Exodus 20, verse 12. Please read it for us. Exodus 20, verse 12. Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Thank you. Read Ephesians 6, verse 1 to 4, so that I don't allow you to repeat it again and again. Ephesians 6, verse 1 to 4. Ephesians 6, verse 1 to 4. Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with a promise, so that it may go well with you, and that you may enjoy long life on the earth. Fathers, do not exasperate your children. Instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Amen. We thank God for the reading of this holy book. Brothers and sisters, where we have read in the two scriptures, one is in the Old Testament, the other one is the New, and this really shows that God means business with this issue of fatherhood. In the Old Testament, which is in Exodus 20, verse 12, we learn that God gave Moses this commandment. Among the ten commandments, this was the fifth commandment, where God said, tell my people to honor their fathers and their mothers, so that they live well and possess their land. They were on their way to Canaan, and God did it fixed that He should command them that they must honor their parents. This commandment number five, the Jews say, this is one of those commandments God directed. They were given this law so that they may think and honor God. But to other theologians, we say the first four are towards God, and the last six, the remaining six are towards men. But according to the Jews, they say this commandment was also talking about the Heavenly Father, that He needs to be honored, so that they are able to possess their possessions, possess their land, possess their inheritance, and God also emphasized it in the New Testament, where Paul says, children obey your parents, in the Lord. Talking about even spiritual parents, founders of churches, we need to honor them. And it continues to say, honor your father and your mother, so that it be well with you. This is a commandment with a promise. Promise. He says, it's the first commandment. In the New Testament, He's telling us that honoring your father and your mother is the first thing. And that's why I was controversial from the beginning of this sermon, to say to some it's a bit a thorn to the heart, because it left a void. But I want this message today to sink into your heart, so that you may find a space in your heart to forgive your father, whether you know him or not. And allow God to close that void. Hallelujah. Why God is saying we must obey and honor? Why obedience and honor is so critical? In 2 Corinthians 6.18, God said, I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters. This is so critical to the heart of God. That's why He loved us so much. That's why He gave Jesus to die for us, so that we be reunited with Him, because we belong to God. Honor means to attach a sense of value, price or quality. You will seek to enhance the reputation of someone when you honor somebody. Hallelujah. When we say you honor somebody, you do by all means, to ensure that you enhance the reputation of that person. Your speech, your talk about that person, it will be good. When you talk about this person before other people, for an example, when you talk about Apostle Sitole, wherever you will be, when you enhance, when we say you honor him, who will hear you, when you enhance, when we say you honor him, who will hear you talking good about him, telling people about how you were inspired by his preaching, then we say you are honoring. Honoring is not only when we say it's pastor's appreciation, and we say you must pop out some money so that we bless him. Yes, it's part of it. But the key thing is that after taking out that money, you say you are honoring him. Then when you go out, you beg bite, you do other things, you speak evil, that is not enhancing his reputation. Hallelujah. I was just giving you an example, that when you talk of honor, you put a price, a value, and quality on that thing. On that thing. Hallelujah. God is so particular about honoring the fathers, because the first parents in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve, they dishonored God. That's why we are still in their nest. They disobeyed God. And sin entered through disobedience. That's why God is emphasizing even in the New Testament, that children, honor your parents. Because he doesn't want you to go back to the situation of Adam and Eve. The sin of disobedience. Hallelujah. Today, we honor the fathers and remember them today, I want to highlight this issue, and this is what the fathers must not do. Why? Before I can say it, it is because various kids in the nation are troubled. Like the statistics that I've already given. Some of the social ills that we see, it is based on the upbringing. When children commit suicide, some they rape other children, some they do evil teenage pregnancy, those are some of the repercussions that are the effects of the root cause of lack of fathers. So, to the fathers today, beware of this. Let's read Ephesians 6, verse 4. Ephesians 6, verse 4. Fathers, do not exasperate your children. Instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Hallelujah. This is what the word of God is saying. Be cautious. Do not provoke. Do not provoke children to anger. In as much as God was saying, honor your father and mother, God is also giving fathers instructions that they will not provoke children to anger. Do not provoke children to anger. Honor your father's instructions that do not provoke your children to anger. Don't be unkind. Don't be overcritical in your attitude. Hallelujah. Fathers, this is what God is saying. In as much as you are nurturing, providing for your children, please try by all means to be kind. And also, when you are disciplining your children, don't be too overcritical in your attitude. Hallelujah. We know that fathers want to build. They are builders. They are nation builders. And if they want to instruct, if they instruct and somebody is not following, Hallelujah. Let's look at the qualities of a good father in his father's day. One of the qualities, I have about four qualities. We have the quality of expression of love, another one of being compassionate, another one of discipline, and another one of instruction. Amen. Those are the four qualities I want us this morning to go through. Expression of love, compassion, discipline, and instruction. Under the quality of the expression of love, God is saying to us, Fathers, when you are nurturing these children, do it with love. That's why he says in Ephesians 2, walk in love like Christ. And it continues, verse 25, to say, have sons love your wives. And verse 28, it shows that when you love your wife, your children, you love yourself. Never forget that. That when you express one of the qualities, a father is full of love. He loves the wife, he loves the children, and then he loves himself. And then he loves himself. And when a father is not expressing this love correctly, we will know that the underlying root is that this person doesn't love himself. He is angry to life. Hallelujah. Amen. When you look at Bester, the Facebook rapist, as you look at him, angry at him, saying you can show your stuff. That young man has already died many times. Because of the upbringing, maybe the absence of the father, and the circumstance, today we are reading the replication of what happened to the life of that young person. Love is a critical subject. As much as it is sweet, when it is absent, oh, it is hatred. In Ecclesiastes, the Word of God says there is time for love and time to hate. Time to love and time to hate. Where there was supposed to be love, and it is denied. It can be some situations like that of Bester. You can see that he is hating life. 1 Peter 4, 8 says, love each other deeply because love covers multitude of sins. As we let our children grow, parenting them as fathers, let's do it with love even if they make mistakes, let's rectify that with love. Because love covers multitude of sins. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. The second quality is compassion, to be compassionate. Psalm 103, 13 says, like a father pities his children, so the Lord pities them that fear him. The example of being a good father, we take it from the Almighty God as our father. That's why he says as a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those that fear him. Luke 15, 20 says, while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. Hallelujah. When God says love covers multitude of sins and he continues to say have compassion. It is because he knows he did that. Inasmuch as Adam and Eve sinned and disobeyed God, God made sure that he became compassionate over them. And he came with a new plan of salvation. He didn't just say they disobeyed me, let the devil kick them and destroy them. He came with a new plan because he was full of compassion. So even in this case in Luke 15, there was a rich man wearing the youngest son said give me my inheritance and I want to leave the house. And he took everything, went away and he blew it. Now, after that circumstances you know the story, you can read it. After he went and ate and took care of the pigs, he found that no, I must just go home. At home there are seven, they are hired, there is food there and plenty of change. Why should I stay here and suffer? Let me go back home. That's where we see that the father saw him while he was still far. I'm saying fathers, no matter how deep your children are in drugs, in substance abuse, failing to continue with their academic work or studies, ready to see the good in the bad situation. His father was expecting the child bad as the situation was but you could see the heart of this father. He was patiently waiting that one day that wayward child will come back home. So God is saying to us today as fathers, never lose hope to that child whose biting you, telling people how bad you are, who has destroyed your money, never lose hope. There is hope for the living dog than a dead lion, painful as it is. Do you think this father was happy when the child gets while in his house there are seven? He went, he ran to the child. You know at some point I was helping in one rehab, one of the key things is that those children they've been rejected and there's no little hope in their lives that one can embrace them. They know that they're stinking, they know that there's nothing good about them, but when we, when they arrive, when we hug them, they will cry and weep. So you may take this hugging light, but this is very critical to give a hug. Why not to you? It's that simple. They are those that hunger to be embraced by a father figure and to be confirmed that you are good my boy, you are wonderful my daughter. They have a void in their heart to be appreciated. God is saying to us, hug your children, please your children, embrace them even if they failed and give them hope. Another quality is that a father disciplines will not be where we are in families if we didn't have fathers. Because the role of the father also is to discipline. Sometimes as women, when we feel the pain, he says that you don't have but the father is there to enforce discipline. Hebrews 12.7 says every child is to be disciplined by his father, just like God who disciplines us. Every child is to be disciplined by his father. The laws of this country say don't don't don't. But to us, God is saying discipline them. This wonderful father can be a lion, he can be a lamb and also he can be a lion. Even Jesus has four faces, the face of a lamb, the face of a lion, the face of an ox, a wild beast and the other one, the face of a lion, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of a lion, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the face of an ox, the 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