COMMENTARY

Don Atkin

THE YEAR OF THE FATHERS AND THE SONS

Included in a recent writing by Danny Steyne is a section on The Year of the Fathers.

He proposes that there will be a significant increase in what I would identify as the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy:

And He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers . . . (Malachi 4:6).

One of the paragraphs reads,

When I began seeing this word about the Fathers I realized that many had been set aside, discarded, and devalued by younger aspiring leaders. Many of them, in fact, had given these younger leaders their own ministries, only to find they would be later shunned along with their wisdom. My heart broke as I saw it, and then I realized this was a part of the separation that was occurring to produce the purity that God desired. Those who paid no price for their positions would find that they could not hold their positions when the Lord brought about His clear purposes and direction for His Church, because they don’t carry the wounds of Jesus in their lives!

I can personally attest to this tragedy happening. I remember one specific week when three individuals independently told me, "I don’t need a father!" (I knew that they had been talking with one another.) All three had come out of the post Vietnam counter culture, and none had a holistic relationship with their earthly father.

I am convinced that, while we are not to call anyone on earth our father (Matthew 23:9),

we are to honor our fathers and mothers (Ephesians 6:2). Paul’s testimony was that we do not have many fathers (I Corinthians 4:15), and indicating that he indeed was a spiritual father to the church in that city.

Today, there is an increase of fathers, thanks to the outpouring of the spirit of Elijah! It will take many fathers to produce many sons. God is bringing many sons to glory (Hebrews 2:10), and He is using fathers to do it! The fruit of fatherhood is sonship! Sons are the objective. Fathers are the means to that end.

I will be videotaping a significant series for DVD duplication on the topic of the Spirit of Adoption (Sonship), March 2 and 3, in Matthews, North Carolina. Contact us if you are interested in being a part of the live congregation for these teaching sessions.