Matthew 6:9-10 — After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven…

I have few regrets in life, they are not productive, but one is that I am not really a father. I acquired a stepson late in life but we don’t really have a father/son relationship. Some of you will know, too, that I never had that kind of relationship with my own father.
It has taken me a long time to realize how holy the whole business of fatherhood is.
Fatherhood is a key expression of the Trinity — the truth that there is one God in three mutually interdependent persons.
The prayer that Jesus taught us has perhaps been analyzed as much as any part of scripture. Still, as I pray it, and study it, and read about it, new aspects are revealed. Martyn Lloyd-Jones points out in his “Studies In The Sermon On The Mount” that the sequencing of the prayer is revealing — the first three requests in the prayer are related the the Father’s glory. And, if you are inclined to make much of Biblical numerical details, you might also note that three is the number of the Trinity.
Mr. Lloyd-Jones’ insight was new to me, but there’s nothing new about the point that the first words of the prayer are Our Father. The model prayer starts by expressing the family unity of all Christians, under the Father, with the Son and the Holy Spirit.
It’s interesting that the Bible offers few, if any, really good examples of great fathers. Perhaps Joseph would come close if we knew more about him — but we know so little, and I am in any case inclined to doubt it. Jesus had another model! That business of models is an interesting one. We hear so much about how important is is for fathers to be good role models for their sons that you might expect the Bible to be full of good examples. I think it goes another way. Every father there ever was has messed up — many times, and in many ways. The message of Biblical fatherhood is “It’s OK. That’s what human father’s do. Here’s a lot of advice about how you can do better — but your best plan is to look up for guidance!”
The Father and the Son. I’m sure there is one, but I’ve never seen a book that just talks about their relationship — culminating in those desperate personal moments in the garden of Gethsamene and the terrible separation of the cross — and what must have been a glorious celebration after the Father reached down and lifted the Son out of the grave. I’m expecting my thoughts to dwell on the relationship over the next few months …
For now, God bless all you men who are seriously working at one of the hardest challenges a man can face — happy Father’s Day.