Like Father Like Son

I had the priveledge of teaching up at Word of Life this last weekend at the annual Father/Son Conference. I felt a little out of place when my friend called me and asked me if I would speak. I do not have a son, but I have a Father and I am a son, so I said yes. My friend Troy and I arrived in NY on Thursday night in Albany International Airpory and my friend Chad and my Dad met us there. I do not get to spend as much time with my dad as I would like, since I have moved away. He is the kind of guy that everyone wants to be around. Growing up my friends thought he was cooler than me. He had long hair, which eventually evolved into a mullit and than back in to one length, ( we have all been guilty of long hair short hair) But anyway he could barefoot ski, and rock climb and fix everything. As I thought about what I would say to this mish mash of evangelicals and one Catholic, I thought about God the Father and how His Son is just like Him, Like Father like son, right? I could see the relationship of my Dad and I and how I was very much like him. The way he laughs, his sense of humor, How he treats my mom (which is great), all of that. I was realizing that Jesus was very much like His Father. Everything that he said was a reiteration of something His Father said out of His word written by Him so long ago. Little things like when the devil was tempting Jesus and all the devil wanted was for Jesus to bow down and worship Him. Jesus knows that His Father taught Him that, "You shall worship and serve the Lord your God only." It is interesting to me that Jesus quotes it correctly, he does not leave out the serve part. The serve part is always left out today. We think that we can worship without service. The devil thought that if Jesus just gives him this "lip service" worship once and that is all than He can have all the kingdoms.

Jesus corrects Him with His Father's words and says basically that you think that you can have true worship without service but you cannot according to my dad. Like Father like Son. What if Jesus usurped God's word, what if he was not like his father, what if he left out the details and made the verse what he wanted. What would have happened I think, is that Jesus would have jumped off the temple during the other temptation and the angels would have caught him and he would have mande that graceful landing in the courtyard by the temple. I think that if he had done that they would have worshipped him and they would not have, (this is totally specualtion), crucified him. He would not have died, Satan would have one, just the same way he won with Adam. Like Father Like Son, Jesus knew His dad enough to know that His obedience was crucial to our salvation. What if Jesus had not known God's word well enough and when the devil said, "worship me" without service, Jesus would have just worshipped him? Jesus knew that true worship goes hand in hand with service, because that is what His Father said.

My knowledge of my dad is not as profound, but we both like to play jokes, but I will tell you this much, I remember the important stuff he taught me and when I choose to forget it, I am in a bad place. Like father like son. My dad, grandpa, and two brother in laws were at the meetings to support me, and I told endless stories of the lessons I had learned from my Dad. Like Father Like son. I am glad to be like my Dad...