The Portrait of a Good
Father, Part 1
Sermon Notes
June 13, 2010
Rev. Jim O’Neal,
Senior Pastor
(480) 895-8766
Luke 7:1-10 NIV
1When Jesus had
finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered
He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to
say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble
yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider
myself worthy to come to you. But say
the word, and my servant will be healed.
8For I myself am a man under authority,
with soldiers under me. I tell this one,
‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one,’ Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does
it.”
9When Jesus
heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he
said, “I tell you, I have not
found such great faith even in
A. Introduction
1. Why do we keep daddy around?
a.
Young Billy asked his mother, “If the stork brings babies, Santa
brings toys, the Lord gives us our daily bread, and Uncle Sam our Social
Security, why do we keep daddy around?”
b.
It’s not easy being a dad.
Too often we fail to appreciate all the things that dad and other
special men do for us. That’s why we set
aside one day each year to honor fathers.
However, every week we ought to thank the men who in and for their
families live out the love of Jesus. Every
day, and not just on Father’s day, we should honor those men who make promises
and keep them. Let us throughout the
year express gratitude to men who put their families first and who seek to set
an example for those who believe and trust in them.
2. Today’s Scripture: Luke 7:1-10
a.
Our Scripture lesson today is about such an honorable man. He was a Roman Centurion. We don’t know if he was a father or not. We don’t even know his name.
b.
However, we do know this:
He was a man of compassion, a man who respected others, a humble person,
and a man of faith. He gives to us a
wonderful portrait of what a good father is like.
B. Compassion
1. Today’s Scripture: Luke 7:1-3
a.
Today’s Scripture tells us:
“When Jesus had finished saying all this in
the hearing of the people, he entered
b.
These three little verses tell us that the Centurion had a tender
heart. He valued the people on his
staff. We don‘t know the age of this
servant. Perhaps it was a young person
with lots of potential. Maybe it was an
older man who had been with the family for years. Perhaps even a servant who had helped to
raise the Centurion. Now, in today’s
Scripture, the servant is critically ill and the Centurion is quite upset. He is concerned about his servant and he wants
to do something.
2. Will
a.
Comic Will Rogers was entertaining people at the Milton H. Berry
Institute in
b.
Will
3. Actor Martin Priest: “Pop, I need 500 bucks!”
a.
Actor Martin Priest, who starred in the play, THE PLOT AGAINST
HARRY, counts as one of his blessings his father. Martin’s dad was a middle class guy who
worked long hours as a pattern maker in the garment industry. Martin recalls: “When I used to say to him, ‘Pop, can I have
$10’ he’d give me five. Once I said, ‘pop,
I need 500 bucks.’ Next day, on my
bureau was $500. So I said to him, ‘I
don’t get it. I say give me ten, you
give me five. I say 500, it’s on the
bureau. Why?’ Dad replied, ‘Listen, if you need ten or
five, that’s for nonsense. If you need
500, you must be in trouble, and that’s what a father is for.’”
b.
The good father is a man of compassion, who does his best to help
his family.
C. Respect
1. Today’s Scripture: Luke 7:4-5
a.
The Centurion heard about Jesus and all the people he had
healed. This Roman soldier was hopeful
that Jesus could and would heal his servant.
Instead of going himself, the Centurion asked his Jewish friends for
help. They sent a delegation of elders
from the town to ask Jesus to heal the servant.
Today’s scripture says, “When they came to
Jesus, they
pleaded earnestly with him, ‘This man deserves to have you do this, because he
loves our nation and has built our synagogue.’” (Luke 7:4-5 NIV)
b.
Not all Romans fit the stereotype of arrogant brutes. This Centurion was a soldier, a man of power
and authority. He was, also, a man who
respected other people’s beliefs. He had
respect for those different than himself.
He even helped them build their synagogue. In today’s Scripture lesson it’s not hard to
find a good man!
2. Don’t spend too much on Father’s Day!
a.
It was the Monday after Father’s Day and Sam was bragging at
work, “My kids were so nice to me on Father’s Day! They did whatever I asked them to do!” Joe commented back, “Same for me. Father’s Day is the one day my kids listen to
me. This year I said, ‘Don’t spend a lot
on me.’ And they did not.”
b.
Next Sunday is Father’s Day.
Of course, you don’t have to wait till then to show respect to your
father and the other significant men in your life. More important than spending a lot of money
on your dad is taking the time to thank him for all he has done for you. Today, do not put off telling dad that you have
appreciated his lessons on being a person of honor, who treats others with
dignity and decency. All of us have men
in our lives who are great role models concerning respect. Think of some of those moments where dad or
some other special man taught you. And
now hear about a man named Gregory Allan-Williams, who as he risked his own
life to save others, shows us what respect is all about.
3. Actor Gregory Allan-Williams and the
a.
Actor Gregory Alan-Williams was driving down Century Boulevard,
on the way to the gym, when he heard the jury’s not-guilty verdict in the
Rodney King beating case. Though angry
he prayed not to hate. As he left the
gym on the way to the grocery store he heard the first reports of
violence. He heard about the white truck
driver who had been beaten by a mob.
Gregory saw a white couple head in that direction. He thought of warning them, but said to
himself, “Mind your own business.” Then instead
of going in he sat in the car outside the store. Gregory recalled times he had been
discriminated against, and thought of a time as a teen he had been assaulted
for “holding his head too high.” For many
years Gregory was filled with hate. Then
a friend led him back to the Lord and the Church. He worked in his Church’s assistance office
and it made him feel good to help people, all people.
3. Actor Gregory Allan-Williams and the
b.
Gregory knew what he must do.
He started his car back up and headed for the area near the intersection
of
c.
This is an extreme example of people not treating others with
respect. It is, also, an example of a
few brave souls, despite personal danger, doing their utmost to protect others. Hopefully each of us will be spared such
difficult tests. However, may all of us
hear God’s call to treat others as we would have them treat us. Real men and women show respect to other
people, even when it is not easy. We see
this quality in the Centurion in the Bible, in Gregory Alan-Williams, and many
of us have seen this quality in significant men in our lives. And we hear God’s call to follow.
D. Conclusion
1. Recap of Today: Good fathers, caring mothers, and devoted
Christians demonstrate these two characteristics for others…
a. Compassion
b. Respect
2. Next Sunday: On Father’s
Day, we add two more characteristics…
a. Humility
b. Faith
The Portrait of a Good Father
Good fathers, caring mothers, and devoted Christians demonstrate
these four characteristics for others:
1. Compassion
2. Respect
3. Humility
4. Faith
Luke 7:1-10 NIV
1When Jesus had finished saying all this
in the hearing of the people, he entered
He was not far
from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not
deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to
you. But say the word, and my servant
will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under
me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes;
and that one,‘Come,’ and he
comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’
and he does it.”
9When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at
him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great
faith even in