This is the message I had the humble privilege of preaching last Sunday:

Jesus was the Son of God – it was this act of God sending His only Son to this earth – this display of Father-Son relationship that brings at any rate God’s love into reality, and in some small way we can understand because it reflects an earthly relationship. Today we celebrate Father’s Day, and as we celebrate, we can and should direct our attention to our Heavenly Father, with whom our relationship with is only capable through the gift of Jesus Christ. Think about that – if God had not sent Jesus as His Son, among so many other things, this display of Father God’s love would never have been understood tangibly by us.

So what does this mean, Jesus is the Son of God?

It means that Jesus was of His Father – God. He shared and continues to share the very “DNA” of His Father…that’s what makes the amazingly unique and sometimes mind-blowing idea of Jesus being both human and God. As the Son of God, there were things He had to endure and submit to as His Father willed. He had to obey, grow, and walk in the guidance of Almighty God.

Ok. So what does this mean to us?

We need to look at this perspective of Jesus as Son of God because check this out: we share the same Heavenly Father. How amazing is that! We are children of God as it says so many times in the Word of God.  If you don’t believe me let’s read it: Galatians 4:4-7:

“But when the right time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent Him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that that He could adopt us as His very own children. And because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir.”

Declare this over your life: “I am a child of God.”

So the relationship and responses that Jesus had can teach us an invaluable lesson of how we should live as children of God, as well an example to father’s on what it truly means to love their children.

1. Jesus was wrapped in the love of His Father

Familiar Passage: John 3:16 –“For God so loved…” God so loved. He sent His Son. It was out of this love that Jesus was sent to Earth. God’s Child was in itself Love. We, as children of God, are wrapped in the love of our Heavenly Father! But sometimes, actually a lot of time, I don’t think we walk with that knowledge or recognize it. With a perspective that God loves us, that can transform our mundane, daily perspective into one of excitement, perseverance, and trust.

Fathers, I will challenge you: are your children wrapped in your love? Do they know that they are loved by their dad? Let God be the example of Perfect Love from a Father.

2. Jesus walked in truth (obedience)

Jesus walked according to the truth. He lived with the Word as the basis of His life (He is the Word made flesh, btw . See John 1:1). Being God, He walked in perfect truth, yielding to the Father in all He spoke. I think so often we place a picture of Jesus in our mind that separates us from who He truly is. The Word says that Jesus spent time with Almighty God, would rise early in the morning and pray, and commune with His Father. This laid a foundation of not only a relationship with Him, but also a foundation of truth, assurance, and obedience in God. He had a very direct response to seeing His Son walk in obedience: Let’s turn to Matthew 3:13-17:

Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?” But Jesus said, “it should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize Him. After His baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on Him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”

Jesus’ obedience to what the Father directed Him to do brought God great joy!

What an amazing display Jesus walking in truth and His Father’s response. And what this means to us: we bring Almighty God joy when we are walking obediently to His Truth – His Word! Just think about that! You know, in the book of Zephaniah it says that God delights in you (3:17). What an emotion. But are we holding our end of the promise – we must walk according to the truth. We must walk obediently to what God commands us. What does this mean?

1.Walking by the Word of God – It’s our Manual to live! Everything is in that book. It is complete truth, and nothing new will be revealed that doesn’t align with the Word of God!

2.Walking by God’s direct commands to us – God speaks today. Let me say that again…God speaks today! And what are you doing with what God is saying? We have the choice whether to reject, or obey.

3.Walking by the Holy Spirit. It’s no surprise that Paul in His writing devotes chapters to walking according to the Holy Spirit. Remember what He is? Our helper, compass, reveals the thoughts of the Father! And we must obey and daily ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in all we do!

It scares me to think, if we bring joy to God when we obey Him, what does God feel when we don’t? What a conviction! I think to myself, “May I strive to never cease bringing joy to my God.” Is that your heart this morning? If so, that requires something. We must give up ourselves, what we want to do, and surrender everything to God and say, “Have your way God. I want to follow You.” That brings Him joy.

And look at Paul, reiterating this perceptive in His Words from 3 John 4:

“I have no greater joy than this than to see my children walking in the truth”

Proverbs 10:1 states: “a wise child brings joy to his Father.”

I pray the same is true for father’s in here today, that you delight in your children, and you have joy in seeing your sons and daughters growing in the things of God, and that you let them know that you have joy. Now I’m sure you can’t always say they bring joy! But when they are making right decisions, and serving Jesus, that should bring ultimate joy.

3. Jesus submitted His will to God’s Will

So we have looked at Jesus and how much the Father loved Him, His Son. We also looked at how Jesus walked in obedience to the Truth, and how we bring God joy when we ourselves do so as well. Finally, let’s look at Jesus’ will. Jesus had a choice. He could decide to do His own thing or that of God. Satan even tempted Him on this when Jesus was in the wilderness. Jesus never chose His own. He always submitted to what Almighty God willed. Let’s look at a real example of this: Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Here the Son of God desperately spoke to His Father, saying “If you can do anything else, please pass this cup from me….but I don’t want to get in the way of what you want to do, so not my will, but Your will be done Father.”Look at how Jesus responds. He follow God’s will. This ultimately led to the Cross, and thank God for the cross. We must carry out how Jesus responds in our own lives. All too often we say “But God, But God….but WHAT! What if Jesus said “But God” prior to His sacrifice. Where would we be? Many of us today are waiting for god to move and work in our lives but the reality is He is and we are totally ignoring or missing it! We don’t see or don’t allow it because we are not submitting our will to God!

God loves you so much that His will for you is the best. Remember as the Scripture says…I make all things work for good for those who….what? Love their Heavenly Father. A life that is not submitted to God’s will, His calling, and purpose is a life that will always be wavering, searching for more, unsatisfied, and ultimately unfulfilled. God has called to live an abundant life, but that life must be submitted to Him. It requires everything. It requires SACRIFICE. Look at Jesus – HE WAS THE SACRIFICE! Once again look to Jesus. He obeyed His Heavenly Father. He submitted everything to Him. And we must do the same.

James 1:16:

So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us His true Word. AND WE, OUT OF ALL CREATION, BECAME HIS PRIZED POSSESSION.”

Today, allow God, in His beautiful mercy, to do what He alone wants to do in and through you. When you submit your will and align your vision to Gods – that’s when you see Him work, that’s when you see impossible things happened, you walk in the amazing knowledge that you belong to God and nothing is going to separate that, and finally, that you are fulfilling God’s call on your life, and bringing Him ultimate joy, as He looks down on you, and says, this is my child, whom I AM WELL PLEASED.