Opening Verse

“The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.”

John 3:35

A Reflection on Fatherhood

Why do children love their fathers? It isn’t because Dad demanded it. Love like that is earned in a thousand ordinary moments: a promise kept, a question answered, a hand on the shoulder when things fall apart. So when your children are grown, what will they say they loved about you, and why?

In Part 1 of this lesson, we opened John 8:28-29 and listened to Jesus speak about His Father: “I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me… He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” Read through the “My Father” statements in John’s Gospel and one conclusion rises above the rest: Jesus loves His Father.

Now we ask the question that follows naturally. Why did Jesus love His Father so much? Scripture gives us the answer, and every part of it is a pattern for fathers who want to lead their children to the throne of God.

Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.  (John 15:9)

Strong families build strong churches!

Why Did Jesus Love His Father So Much?

Jesus loved His Father because of what His Father gave Him. Here are eight of those gifts.

His Father Gave Him Purpose

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38). Jesus never wondered why He was here. Do our children know they were made for something bigger than themselves?

His Father Gave Him a Home

“In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2). Our homes should be a small preview of the Father’s house: safe, welcoming, and full of His presence.

His Father Gave Him Love

“The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand” (John 3:35). That same Father “so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16), and He “has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace” (2 Thessalonians 2:16). Children should never have to guess whether they are loved. Tell them, and show them.

His Father Gave Him Confidence

In Gethsemane, Jesus prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). His confidence was not that He would get His way, but that His Father’s way was right. That is the confidence we want our children to carry.

His Father Gave Him Discipline

Jesus, “knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands,” took a towel and washed His disciples’ feet, then said, “For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you” (John 13:3, 15; see John 13:5-20). “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). Discipline is more than punishment. It is training in humility, service, and self-control (Hebrews 12:5-11).

His Father Gave Him a Listening Ear

“Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me” (John 11:41-42). Jesus rose early to pray (Mark 1:35), prayed at His baptism (Luke 3:21), prayed so faithfully that His disciples asked Him to teach them (Luke 11:1), and prayed in the garden (Matthew 26:36). Two questions for fathers: Do your children know you will listen to them? And do they see you talking to your Father?

His Father Gave Him a Hope for the Future

Jesus looked ahead to the glory He shared with the Father “before the world was” (John 17:5). “For the joy set before Him [He] endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). There is the throne. And the way there is through the Son: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6). A crown of righteousness waits for all who love His appearing (2 Timothy 4:8).

His Father Was a Promise Keeper

“And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you” (Luke 24:49; see Luke 24:46-49; Acts 1:4). On Pentecost, Peter declared, “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself” (Acts 2:39). God keeps His word, and He keeps it for the next generation too. Do your children know that when Dad says it, Dad means it?

Taking It Home

1. Give them a purpose and a home. Help your children see they were made for God’s work (Luke 19:10), and make your home a preview of the Father’s house (John 14:2).
2. Say it and show it. “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you” (John 15:9). Love that is never spoken is easy to doubt.
3. Discipline to train, not just to punish. Jesus “learned obedience” (Hebrews 5:8). Bring them up “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).
4. Listen, and let them see you pray. “I knew that You always hear Me” (John 11:41-42). Be the ear they run to, and the example they follow to the Father.
5. Keep your promises, and point them to the throne. The promise is “for you and your children” (Acts 2:39). “Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16).

Closing Thoughts

Jesus loved His Father, and it is not hard to see why. His Father gave Him purpose, a home, love, confidence, discipline, a listening ear, a hope for the future, and promises that never failed. And because Jesus loved Him, He obeyed, He taught what He had been taught, He honored His Father, and He never lost sight of going home.

That is the calling of every father: not merely to raise children who obey Dad, but to raise children who love the Father and know the way to His throne. In the lessons ahead, we will keep listening to the “My Father” statements in John and keep asking what they mean for our homes.

So, fathers, here is the question to carry with you this week: When my children are grown, will they know the way to the throne because they watched me walk it?

And if you have never come to the Father yourself, the door is open. “No one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6). Believe in Jesus as the Son of God, repent of your sins, confess His name, and be baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of your sins (Acts 2:38; Galatians 3:26-27). The promise is for you and for your children (Acts 2:39). Strong families build strong churches!