In devoting his sermon exclusively on fathers, the Rev. Roger Jackson, pastor of Fenimore Street United Methodist Church (FSUMC), at the corner of Rogers Avenue in Brooklyn, on Sunday, June 18, Father’s Day, preached that when God’s divine presence is with fathers whose hearts are attuned and in sync with His will, the entire household will be protected.
Using Gen. 35: 1-5, as the text, with the topic, “The Heart of a Father,” Rev. Jackson admitted that, on the surface, “it’s kind of strange to be looking at an aspect of Jacob’s life in celebration of fathers.
“After all, most of the recorded account of Jacob’s life is not one to be immolated or celebrated,” he preached. “But what was true of Jacob is true of all who were not born saved and have participated in some questionable activities before God grabbed hold of our hearts, which then led to a change in the ways that we think about life and how our actions affect others.”
In the parlance of biblical speak, Rev. Jackson said it’s what the Apostle Paul meant when he said, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.”
Rev. Jackson said Jacob was a man of two natures, and, because of this fact, “he is an illustration of the conflicted presence that resides in every disciple of Jesus Christ, whether we care to admit it or not.”
He said Jacob’s life was one of inconsistencies.
“At times, his flawed character traits work in his favor and, at other times, those same traits caused him a boat load of trouble,” Pastor Jackson said. “But, at this moment in his life’s journey, Jacob had turned the proverbial corner in the process of his spiritual maturation.
“Jacob was now made ready by God as an instrument of Spiritual blessings for his entire household,” he added. “Jacob has dispensed with past patterns of thought and behavior. What he now treasures in his heart above all else is helping his children and household to prepare themselves to meet God in the only way that is acceptable to God.”
Therefore, Rev. Jackson added: “Thank God that our past does not have to necessarily be a predictor of our future, because, at the will of God, He can change the trajectory of one’s life.
“That’s why, as people of faith, we can’t give up on anyone,” he continued. “There’s no throwing in of the towel when it comes to wayward children, because, in doing so, it suggests that we know more than God concerning the future.
“Jacob, who now has a heart of a father, exemplifies for fathers who was once suspect can now be used as instruments of God in helping loved ones to get to the place where God can reveal Himself as the all-sufficient one,” he said. “Jacob was able to respond as he did because he had experienced a change of heart, and a change in his character at the very moment that God changed his name during Jacob’s first trip to Bethel in anticipation of meeting his brother Esau.”
On this occasion, Rev. Jackson said Jacob’s heart, as a father who is leading his household, was now “beating in sync with the rhythm of God’s love, instead of possessing fear over the outcome of coming face to face with his brother, who he cheated out of his birthright.
“And because he was in sync with the heartbeat of God, Jacob’s response included a directive to all who were under his care to cleanse themselves of worthless idols by burying them in this place that they were about to leave and never return to,” he said. “But because Jacob was now in sync with the beat and rhythm of the heart and love of God, he knew that the time had come where he needed to help his entire household to do that which was right to do.”
Thus, Pastor Jackson said God is calling all fathers, whose hearts are attuned to His will, “to return and remain permanently in that Spiritual place where you first fell in love with Jesus Christ, because it was there where He saw you for what and who you were, and still called you unto Himself.”
And, as in the case with Jacob, he said, “once you get back to the place of Spiritual bliss, worship God there with the understanding that you are not going back to your old self, with its patterns of thought and behavior that disconnected you from the will of God for your life.
“May this Father’s Day be the day when all men either discover or re-discover that we are back home spiritually, and we are grateful to God for it,” Rev. Jackson said, “because a father’s heart will always be exposed at the level of engagement.”
He said the level to which fathers are willing to go in engaging Jesus Christ will determine the breath and length that they will go in encouraging, comforting and urging their children and/or their grandchildren to live their lives pleasing to God.
“Fathers, who are attuned to God, will follow the directives of God, and will discover that their hearts are in sync with the will of God for their entire household,” Pastor Jackson said. “And because you are in sync with the will of God, God doesn’t need to tell you when it’s time to prepare your household spiritually for where the Lord is leading you to.
“The linkage of a father’s heart with the will and love of God will result in everyone walking in obedience because the divine presence will be with them, and divine protection will keep the enemy of our souls at bay,” he added.
“When the heart of a father is in sync with the will of God, his entire household will experience God in ways like never before, and all will arrive together at God’s destined place for their lives and for His glory,” Pastor Jackson continued.
The two-hour-long Worship Service was led by the church’s United Methodist Men, who, among other things, conducted the Praise and Worship, prayed and read the Scriptures.
