The first book of the Bible (Genesis) reveals that humans were created in God’s own image. This means that there is a semblance between us and God. Something about God is reflected in humans, his relational creatures. It is not that God is like us, since he existed before all things, but that we are like him. And one relational concept in which we find this semblance is in fatherhood.
It isn’t that God is like us, but that we are like him.
The Bible portrays God as a Father (Isaiah 63:16-17; Psalm 103:13; Matthew 6:9; John 5:17). From caring for us as his children to providing for our needs, we find this picture throughout scripture. And it’s these qualities of fatherhood that we readily see—or expect to see—in our own fathers. Human fathers are expected to be a certain kind of people. Whether it is in the protection of the household or giving direction to their children, a number of qualities are assumed in the role of father.
Through its revelation, the Bible therefore helps us see that God is using our own understanding of fatherhood to disclose himself to us. We demonstrate attributes of fatherhood only because we were created in the likeness of God, the eternal Father. And he helps us in our weakness, by teaching us about himself through this same image.
A God Unlike Our Fathers
First, we should understand that God is not entirely like our human fathers. There is a wide gulf between the Creator and us, his creatures. In view of this, God cannot be defined in terms of anything. He is simply, “I am who I am” (Exodus 3:14). No human father comes close to this.
We find this difference in several of God’s attributes, including the following:
Eternity
All our fathers grow old and die. God alone endures forever. His days will never come to an end (Deuteronomy 33:27; Psalm 90:2).
Omnipresence
Even with all the marvels of modern technology, no human father can physically be in two places at the same time. How I would love to be at work and also with my children in school! But God isn’t so limited or constrained. Wherever we are, he is fully there (Psalm 139:7-10).
Perfection
While we may adore our fathers, they all have their imperfections. God’s word declares that all have sinned, coming short of his glory; this applies to all fathers. But God is flawless. He is without defect (Job 11:7; Psalm 18:30; 19:7; Matthew 5:48). We are always only weak images of our perfect God.
A God Like Those Same Fathers
Nevertheless, there are many ways in which human fathers mirror what we know of our Father in heaven. Some of these are highlighted below:
Provision
As our provider, God supplies all our needs. Right from after the flood when God assured Noah of the constancy of the seasons (Genesis 8:22), God’s grace has been evident in his provision of rain, sunshine, air, and other things essential for human life nd flourishing (Psalm 104:21; Psalm 145:8, 9, 16; Matthew 5:45; Acts 14:17). The psalmist assured us of the certainty of God’s provision for his people when he stated that “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread” (Psalm 37:25).
Wisdom
We expect fathers to be wise people who can give direction and counsel to their children. Scripture shows us that this quality of wisdom is actually rooted in God (Psalm 104:24; Daniel 2:20; Romans 16:27). God displays his wisdom across his different works: in the way he created the world; in the way he goes about redeeming his fallen universe; and even in how he directs human affairs (Romans 11:33; Ephesians 3:10).
Government and Discipline
Fathers are also leaders. They administer or rule over the affairs of their household. Similarly, God oversees the affairs of his world (Lamentations 3:37-39; Colossians 1:16-17). From the tiniest details (Matthew 6:26-29), to mighty shifts in history (Isaiah 45:1-4), everything is under his sovereign rule.
A Father God Like No Other
No father has gone to the extent of love shown to us by God.
But nowhere is the similarity and dissimilarity of the heavenly father most fully displayed than at the cross. For there the beloved Son of the Most High hung on a tree, accursed on behalf of sinners. And this was the same Son in whom the Father was pleased (Matthew 3:16-17). Most fathers love their children, but none have gone to the extent shown to us by God. For a world of ill-deserving sinners, he endured the agony of having his only Son crushed in death.
Indeed, as Charles Wesley rightly refrained:
Love divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of Heav’n to Earth come down,
Seek the Father
Like all humans, fathers are made in the image of the heavenly Father. And his divine fatherhood beckons us to seek his grace so we may become the right kind of father—fathers who do not seek their own interests, but are eager to love and bless their own children, and through them the world.
God gives us the ability to become better fathers.
Let us look then to the Father in heaven for grace. Not only does he provide a model for fatherhood; he gives us the ability to become better fathers. He teaches love through the sacrifice of his Son, and he provides power through the presence of his Spirit. We can have no better help.
