✝ Daily Encouragement (12/8/22) "Everlasting Father"
Published: Thu, 12/08/22
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.
The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber.
The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber.
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Thursday, December 8, 2022
 "Everlasting Father"
Note: This week we are sharing a five part series based on Isaiah 9:6, considering one the great Old
Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah.
Message summary: Today let us rejoice with exceeding great joy that we have an everlasting Father!  Listen to our message on your audio player."For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). Sometimes companies will use everlasting in their name to connote the quality and endurance of their product.
In our area we have a roofing manufacturer called Everlast Roofing and in Ohio there's a roofing company called Everlasting Roofing. Now roofing can have a long life. As I recall we have a 30 year roof which should last into our 80's (barring unforeseen destructive weather). But for sure it's not everlasting!
Bur today let us consider the One who is truly
everlasting!
God's design and pattern is for children to be raised by a mother and father. The first reference to father and mother in the Bible is in Genesis 2:24. "This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh." This statement was made before the fall and before Adam and Eve even had children! Did they even knew what children were? Of course all through history this pattern was not always maintained. Death through war, accident or illness, as well as divorce and abandonment, have always been a part of the human condition in a fallen world. When I read the story of Uriah, murdered due to David's attempt to cover up his sin with Bathsheba, I have wondered if Uriah had children who were left fatherless. What about the other men who died in the scandalous cover-up? (2 Samuel 11:17). However now with increasing sexual and moral anarchy the very notion of children needing a mother and a father is questioned, especially a father. However one only has to look at the lawless conditions among so many young men and women raised in fatherless settings due to the "new" morality (or what really amounts to old immorality) to see the devastating impact of this foolish notion. Yesterday I watched an old rerun of the Andy Griffith show and was struck by the good fathering his character
portrayed and how that authoritative role is so lacking for many in our day. Now it seems Satan is on overtime in his efforts to destroy children. From abortion, to the evil taught in so many schools with children being groomed in sexual perversions, to a flood of fentanyl and other life destroying drugs.
The need for a father and mother is cross cultural and cross generational. In previous ages the need for a father figure was well-understood and, upon a tragic death or abandonment by a child's father, another male such as a brother, uncle or grandparent became a father figure. But this is diminishing and now the need of a father figure is debated in certain "enlightened" social circles. After all we're told the "village" can raise the child with more government programs. A father is really not needed. These current social conditions have a bearing on how one views God, whom Isaiah calls "Everlasting Father". Many have had undesirable experiences with their earthly father they must overcome as they learn to trust their heavenly father. While the view of God as the Father is used in the Old Testament, it is not a major theme. Deuteronomy 1:31 speaks of God's care for His people through the wilderness: "There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place”. But the emphasis of God as father becomes a great focus in the New Testament, as Jesus frequently referred to
His Father. He begins what we call the Lord's Prayer with this wonderful title, "Our Father..." Just meditate for a moment the blessing of the plural He used. God is our Father!
He often urged His followers to have a fatherly view of God such as His command, "In the same way, let
your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). In Christ's time of great agony he cried out to His Father, "Now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with that glory I had with You before the world existed" (John 17:5).
Each of the writers of the New Testament epistles allude to God as Father such as Paul, "For this reason I kneel before the Father" (Ephesians 3:14). The writer of Hebrews alludes to both earthly fathers and our heavenly Father when he wrote, "Furthermore, we had natural fathers discipline us, and we respected them. Shouldn’t we submit even more to the Father of spirits and live?" (Hebrews 12:9). James wrote, "Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning" (James 1:17). And Peter's prayer begins, "Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:3). John wrote "Look at how great a love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children" (1 John 3:1). Jude "To those who are the called, loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ" (Jude 1:1). And finally in that grand finale revealed in Revelation we read, "I will give Him the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I also won the victory and sat down with My Father on His throne" (Revelation 3:21). Today let us rejoice with exceeding great joy that we have a truly everlasting Father! Be encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13) Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 
Daily prayer
: Dear God, of all the descriptions ascribed to you the title of Father reveals Your nurturing, protective, disciplinary and loving care. Not just present during our young years, or our time on earth, but You are eternal, existing before time began and You will be our Father forever throughout eternity. Your role as our Father keeps us from sinking in the miry clay, for You uphold us with Your righteous right hand, which keeps us from falling
and being cast down. Amen.Special Year-end Financial Appeal
We want to thank all who have financially supported our ministry this past
year (and some for many years!). Like most ministries, we typically see a spike in giving at the end of the year for which we are most thankful. We realize there are many fine ministries and causes requesting
support at this time but if you would like information about making a donation to our ministry see here.
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Stephen & Brooksyne Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"His Name Shall Be" Video Matt Redman
"Everlasting Father" Video Maranatha!
Music
Further Study:
What is the meaning of
“Everlasting Father” in Isaiah 9:6? (from gotquestions.com)
Indicative of the challenges that parents face and the sheer evil that is sweeping our country and destroying
children:
‘Medicine and Science Are Being Politically Perverted’ to Oppose Trans Procedures: Biden Official This man pretending to be a woman used to be a doctor at the same hospital we use in Hershey, PA and then became Secretary of Health. This hospital like many (probably most) has gone all in with the agenda of
perversion.
Finally today:
Brooksyne's note: Yesterday I found this decorator plate at the Gift & Thrift Shop where I volunteer
periodically as a cashier. I was excited upon spotting it, I purchased it and I excitedly washed it and displayed it on my kitchen counter. I have been mediating on this passage in Matthew 1:20-23 and have memorized the first half and am working on the entire passage. I took a photo of the plate so I could meditate on this verse while reading my devotions in the living room. Anyone interested in joining me in memorizing this beautiful passage of Scripture this
Christmas?
 It looks like Stephen thought these bread rolls were worth posting. I took a photo of them for my siblings since
this was a recipe my mom left the family, and only now, after 46 years of marriage did I use her recipe. I think it got lost in the family line and only came to my attention over the last few months. Mom was a wonderful baker and she always made rolls for church potlucks and for our holiday meals. We were so proud of her rolls at church dinners because everyone always fussed over them and we were proud that it was our mom that made them. You know the feeling, don't you! Anyway, it was a joy
to make them this past Monday and memories flooded my mind as I was kneading the bread and thinking about the special holiday gatherings we had as a family. Mom and Dad have been with the Lord now for over twenty years and I am now older than the years God allotted them on this side of glory.
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