God's Design For Fathers
Sermon Response
God's Design For Fathers
The Text:
Read Genesis 2:5-17
The creation account. The world is still without sin. Adam is created from the dust of the earth and is tasked with one objective. Work the land and take care of it. (Vs. 15) In the perfect garden of Eden man was designed to work, laziness was never an option. For the men in your group this will be a conversation about getting up and getting to work in their homes.
Discuss:
1. Why do you think God designed men to work in order for the world to flourish? Why would God not just do everything for them?
Respond:
Men were designed to work in all areas of life. When they do so that area flourishes, when they grow lazy that area suffers. I proposed three areas where men were designed to work in the home.
Sacrificially loving their wives
Providing spiritual direction for the family
Providing physically for the family by working
Questions: Answer the following questions by giving examples from your own life.
Read Ephesians 5:25-28. What happens to his wife when a man grows lazy in his sacrificial love for her? What happens when he puts in the effort and sacrificially loves her well?
What happens to the spiritual climate of the family when the man grows lazy in leading? What happens when he does the work?
What happens when a man stops working to provide for his family? What happens when a man works hard for a living? What happens when a man uses the demands of his “job” to keep him from having to work in the other areas of his home?
How can men better live into God’s design for them to work in their homes?
Prayer
God reveal where I am lazy, let grace abound where the ideal is not happening, and show me how to work well in my home. Wives pray this everyday for your husbands.