I was reading Foxe's Book of Martyrs the other morning and read the account of the Prince of Orange during the persecution of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands.
The Prince of Orange was assassinated for his reformed Protestant faith and was reported to have had "one of the grandest funerals ever seen in the Low Countries and perhaps the sorrow for his death, the most sincere, as he left behind him the character he honestly deserved, viz., that of a father of his people." - John Foxe, Foxe's Book of Martyrs
There is hardly a higher compliment I can imagine than to be honored as having been a father to your people. Many abdicate their God-given role as father to those He has given them. They, at times, choose to give their fatherly attention to boyish pursuits, hobbies or the corporate ladder. They give the first and best of themselves to vain glory. Others do not give any fatherly attention to anything, refusing to grow up or take responsibility for anything or anyone... even themselves.
The heart of fatherhood is sacrificial responsibility. It is in keeping with what has rightly been defined as the heart of masculinity...
"the glad assumption of the sacrificial responsibilities that God assigned to men" - Doug Wilson
God is a Father and those in whom He dwells should have the same family resemblance. They should have a heart in keeping with fatherhood that seeks to serve, provide and protect His flock. Those you have been given by grace are yours to keep by responsibility.
"First a man must choose his love, and then he must love his choice" - Henry Smith
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