06/23/2026
Sermon Transcript: Rev. Frank Jones, Sunday, June 21st. Fathers Day
“You Do Not Have Many Fathers”
You see lately that there is a lot of change in our world. It is no longer just us. A lot of people are involved in a lot of different things. When we talk about the signs of the coming of the Lord, you can see them and hear them everywhere.
Can you imagine — and that is not my message this morning — but can you imagine that we could be the generation who sees the coming of the Son of Man, the King of glory, when He cracks the sky?
Hallelujah.
Our generation.
I remember getting married in 1984. That seems so long ago, and yet just a few short years ago, seemingly. In 1984, I never thought I would see the year 2000. Because we thought, “Oh, the Lord will come before then.”
And we are here today, still looking, still searching, still waiting with anticipation.
So here we come again.
I want to talk to you today from a perspective that Paul writes to us in 1 Corinthians chapter 4. It is Paul’s relationship with the Corinthians. Toward the end of this chapter, it is called Paul’s paternal care.
In 1 Corinthians 4:14-17, Paul says:
“I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Therefore I urge you, imitate me. For this reason I have sent Timothy to you, who is my beloved and faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church.”
Wow.
Look at that again.
“For this reason, I have sent Timothy to you, my beloved and faithful son in the Lord.”
So what is he telling us here?
“As I teach everywhere in every church.”
Paul writes to the Corinthians and tells them, “You are my beloved children. You may have ten thousand instructors, mentors, teachers, or whatever else, yet you do not have many fathers.”
He is referring to himself as their spiritual father.
In the world, there is so much going on that we wonder what to do. We struggle with desires, decisions, finances, relationships, work problems.
Anybody ever been there?
We have spiritual encounters or not? In these last days, people are looking at religion and wondering if we could be religious.
Well, we do not need to be religious.
Can somebody say amen?
Amen.
We need a real relationship with Jesus Christ. We hear about Christ Jesus, and we are afraid that we will not measure up, so we fill our minds with activities that keep us from focusing on our relationship instead of focusing on the main thing.
And the main thing is a real relationship with Jesus.
We let the cares of life, busyness, and all these things fill us.
Have you ever just sat down and talked to people?
Just talked.
Without any television on. Without any social media. Without a cell phone.
As I told you last week, and I have been reminded of it this week a few times, I left my phone at home.
Anybody ever done that?
I know me and Brother Darrell are not the only ones. Anybody else ever left your phone at home and wondered, “How are we going to make it?”
Because our dependence has been upon a cell phone rather than the King on the throne.
Think about that this morning.
Sometimes we fill our lives with things that really do not matter.
There are a lot of newlyweds and dads who are concerned about, “What do we do? What do I do?”
The first thing you do, can I tell you?
Get some life insurance.
That is fatherly advice right there.
If you do not have life insurance, you better get some. Get it. Because you do not know what can happen, and your day is coming.
You say, “Pastor, are you selling life insurance?”
No, I am not in insurance sales. But I am telling you, if you do not have life insurance and something happens to you, guess what happens? Your family is left without.
God did not leave us without, did He?
He never leaves us nor forsakes us.
Now I want you to turn with me to the book of Psalms, chapter 139. I want to read two verses of scripture to you. I am going to read this from the New Living Translation. This is not the Bible I read on a daily basis. This is just my devotional Bible. I like it because it is easy to read when you are reading and thinking about things.
Psalm 139:23-24 says:
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends You, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”
Search me and know my anxious thoughts.
Today, people are more anxious than we have ever been. People do not sleep at night because of anxiety.
I remember Brother Lawrence saying about his father, and it reminded me when he said his dad would pray before he went to sleep and say, “Lord, it is up to You now. You and the banker. I did all I can, and I am going to sleep and rest because it is in Your hands.”
We sometimes do not know how to give our anxiety and our thoughts to the Lord.
He will renew your mind.
See, most anxiety comes from your spirit inside of you screaming, because your mind does not know who you are. Your mind is putting up with a lifestyle your spirit would never put up with. Your mind is inviting people into your life that your spirit would not put up with.
And when you are around those kinds of people, your spirit is screaming, “That is not you. This is not you. This is not who you are. You were made for more than this.”
Because we feel like we never measure up, and we can never be like somebody else.
But God did not call you to be somebody else, did He?
He called us to be us.
Be us, and God can use us.
He has a calling on our lives. God has a calling on each one of our lives.
If you are breathing, there is a purpose for you.
Look at your neighbor and say, “You have a purpose.”
Children are not looking for perfect. They are looking for consistency.
Let me say that again.
Children are not looking for perfection. They are looking for consistency.
Men are in a conundrum. They do not know who they are. Social media is saying one thing. People they love are saying another. The world is telling them, “Be yourself,” and people today do not know who they really are.
We have an identity crisis in the world. The world has polluted and is telling people how to fix their problems.
But I want you to tell your children about Jesus and live it out.
In this world we are living in, many children are wondering who they are, what they are, and why they are. We have an identity crisis.
We need men, and not just physical fathers, to stand up with consistency and say, “There is a God, and this is what God says.”
We must be like Abraham. We all must be like Abraham. Even in ourselves, we put ourselves and our children on the altar and give our children to God.
Romans 12:1 says:
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice…”
Ooh, come on. That is right.
We give ourselves to God. And when we give ourselves to God, God takes us and turns things around for us.
The problem is, we come to the altar — and I do not know if you remember this old song — we used to sing:
“Bring all your needs to the altar.
Bring all your needs to the Lord.
He is so faithful and willing to help you.
Bring all your needs to the Lord.”
We do. We bring our needs to the Lord.
“God, here they are. Lord, here is my problem.”
And when we leave, we take them back with us.
Come on.
We have to leave all our needs on the altar. Leave them there, and God will take care of the situation.
Children would rather watch and listen to some entertainer, some hardened-mind, worldly thug that thinks he is an entertainer because he is an influencer of the day.
No one wants to be doctors anymore. No one wants to grow up and be a policeman. There are reasons to understand that. No one wants to be a minister anymore. We are all on the same ball of, “Who is going to get the girl? Who is going to get the guy? Who is going to get the money?”
Can you imagine going to college today and playing basketball and getting two or three million dollars because you can play basketball?
Wow.
I went to college at the wrong time.
I cannot play basketball anyway.
There seems to be a disconnect from the traditional family. People turn to the internet.
Let me ask everyone: when was the last time you sat down as a family and talked?
I am grateful for Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Tennessee, and Utah, who took the month called Pride Month and turned it into Nuclear Family Month. Florida has not gotten there yet.
But families are important, aren’t they?
Are we not all part of the family of God?
Yes.
Keep God in the conversation. We have to talk about Him.
I know people say, “Well, I can send my kids to summer camp or VBS, or I can send them over here to church camp.”
Wonderful and good. But that is only one week out of fifty-two.
What are we doing here?
Are we communicating to children that we have rule over and are watching? Because everything in the school system is not going to be of God.
And I know I am talking to guys because it is Father’s Day, but I do not care if your daughter is 40 years old. You tell your daughter she is beautiful.
Your daughter and your son need to hear that. They need to hear that you love your wife, that she is beautiful.
I am by no means perfect. But I have always told my daughter she was beautiful.
One time, when she was in school, somebody said, “Who told you that you were beautiful?”
She said, “My daddy did.”
To her, that was all that mattered.
She sent me a handwritten card about five years ago. She said, “Dad, I just want to say thank you for teaching me and showing me how a woman should be cared for and treated. It has made a difference in my life.”
I have told my son some hard things.
How many know what I am talking about?
Not mean, not hurtful, but things that shape our children by our actions and our words.
God is gracious to forgive and restore relationships. Ask Him. He will do that.
Listen, I want to hit it a little hard right here.
Your children do not need another friend. They need a father.
When they get older, they can become more than that. But I do not know if you have ever done it, but I have told my daughter, “You are not leaving that house dressed like that.”
Amen.
“What do you mean? Everybody else is doing it.”
I do not care what everybody else is doing. You are not leaving dressed like that.
Why?
Because we care.
We need men who will look at their children and say, “I do not know what to do or how to do it, but we can pray about it.”
And then they need you to actually do it.
When Jesus leads His disciples in the model prayer, He says in Matthew 6:9:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.”
He did not say, “Our King in heaven.” He did not say, “Our Judge in heaven.”
He said, “Our Father.”
God is our Father.
Amen.
He is our Father.
At times, we are bombarded with fear, anxiety, disappointment, weariness, and fatigue. But we must keep our eyes on Jesus. Keep going. Our faith has to be strong.
Our resolve must be that of Job: if I lose it all, if God takes me out, I am still going to trust Him.
As Job said in Job 13:15:
“Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.”
We have to have that determination.
We have to have the determination of David when he was rejected by his father.
Yes, he was.
Do you not remember? His father had all his boys lined up to see if Samuel was going to anoint one of them as king. Samuel said, “Do you have anybody else?”
“Oh, yes. I have this little one out there, my youngest. He is out there watching sheep.”
But David was the one.
You do not know what God is doing in someone’s life or in your children’s life.
David had that determination and focus. When he faced the giant, he said, “You will not defile the God of the armies of Israel.”
In 1 Samuel 17:45-46, David declared that he came in the name of the Lord of hosts, and that the Lord would deliver the giant into his hand.
David was strong in his faith, even when he was rejected.
We must know that we are going to see heaven, and our children need to see it. We must lead them there.
Many say, “Well, I am not a pastor. I am not a minister. I do not know much about the Bible.”
That is okay.
You do not have to be a minister to be the priest of your home, men.
Amen.
Sometimes we have thrown that off on the wife to lead. It is not her responsibility. Even though she does, men are supposed to lead.
That has been our problem in society today. We do not have men who will lead and say, “Hey, this is what God’s Word says.”
I am telling you today, lead your family. Do not be wishy-washy about your faith. Let your children and grandchildren see it in action.
Pray with fervency. Pray for your children. Worship. Let them see you worship.
Do not worry or be fretful about it. Stand up and be counted.
Our children are not looking for another social media influencer, TikTok star, YouTube star, or best list.
They are looking for godly people.
You know why a lot of people do well in the military? Because they want somebody to tell them what to do and give them direction on how to do it.
If we do not, as saints of God, the world will tell them.
We need to be influenced by the Spirit. Influence our house, influence our job, influence our school, and influence where we shop. We need to prepare our hearts and lives for the things to come.
I hate to bring it to you, but it is not going to get easier.
It will take more prayer, more fasting, more seeking His face, and more trusting Him to lead us.
Our priority should be God.
Not everything else.
God.
Put Him first.
We have to seek God like we have never prayed before.
Sometimes you see internet feeds and different things about churches growing. Churches growing out the yin-yang. Big churches. Growing on each side.
But what are they saying?
You just cannot come down here and make a decision for Christ. The Spirit has to draw you.
Can I help somebody?
You cannot just say, “Oh, I decided to follow Jesus,” and then leave the church and go live like the world.
You cannot do it.
I remember when people used to get saved, and when they got saved, they got so good and saved that they could not wait to get out the door to call somebody and say, “Guess what happened to me? I got saved.”
Now people get saved and say, “I do not want to tell anybody.”
Because they never got changed.
Change comes on the inside. And when genuine change comes, the world can see it.
Amen.
That is right.
The church needs to be the kindest, most loving place people can come.
God loves His people, and He loves them so much that He gave His Son to die for us.
John 3:16 says:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”
If He loved us that much, do you think He is going to give up on us?
No.
Sometimes we think God has given up on us, but God has not given up. We have given up on ourselves.
I want to help somebody this morning.
Sometimes this is what we do. We come and spend time in prayer. By the way, if you do not come on Monday night, you need to if at all possible. Six o’clock, we have prayer.
But anyway, we get down on our knees and say, “Lord, oh heaven…”
We pray and pray, and then we say, “Amen.”
And when we say amen, sometimes we just need to sit down and listen and let God speak to us.
The problem is, we say amen and go right back to doing what we were doing.
“Lord, I need this. Lord, help my finances. Help my body. Heal my body.”
Then we get up from prayer time, say amen, walk right back out the door and say, “I do not know how I am going to make it.”
You know what you just did?
You canceled out all that time you spent on your knees.
Pastor?
Yes. I said it.
When we go to complaining, griping, fussing, and going right back into the same old stuff, we cancel it out.
When we repent, repent means to turn and not go back to it.
When you say, “Lord, forgive me,” and you spend time with God, and you cry, and those tears are broken before Him, and then you leave your prayer time and go right back into it, that is a little difficult, isn’t it?
We have a problem.
We need to listen.
When my grandkids were growing up, my daughter would tell my grandsons, “Put your listening ears on.”
Anybody ever say that to your kids?
Put your listening ears on.
Listen, we are children of God, right?
Amen.
We are God’s children. Whom He loves, He chastens. Whom He loves, He corrects. Whom He loves, He blesses and touches.
Hebrews 12:6 says:
“For whom the Lord loves He chastens…”
He also speaks.
But we have to have our listening ears on, don’t we?
What are You saying to us today, Lord?
How are You leading us?
What would You have me do today?
Where are You guiding me?
When we pray, believe that we receive, and we will have it.
Mark 11:24 says:
“Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
Now, when you pray, believe that you receive, and you shall have whatsoever you ask.
You say, “Why did I not get it?”
Well, think about it a minute.
When you got up from your prayers, did you get up and cancel what you just said?
I pray for you, that God will take your heart and touch your mind and help you focus on the good things of God.
I want to ask somebody this morning: has God answered anybody’s prayers this week?
Look around.
God answers prayer.
Look at your neighbor and say, “He still answers.”
If we call, God answers.
Think about this just a minute.
We are in trouble. America is in trouble. America has forgotten where it came from.
It seems to me that Madalyn Murray O’Hair began a lot of that. How many remember who she was?
I remember going to school, and some of you can too, when we read scripture, prayed, and said the Pledge of Allegiance.
Now they do not do any of that, maybe once in a while.
And we wonder what happened.
If we do not pray with our children at home, if we do not pray for our grandchildren at home, if we do not take the time to pray in our home, then what course does this world have?
Prayer changes things.
Prayer changes people.
You cannot get in God’s presence and leave and not be changed.
We are in Your presence, O God. Change me. Change my heart, O God. Make it ever true. Change my heart, O God. May I be like You.
You are the Potter. I am the clay. Mold me and make me. This is what I pray.
Yes, Lord, let me be like You.
I want to be like You, Lord. I want to be like Jesus.
When we get older — and me included — we have to be careful because sometimes we are not as patient as we used to be.
Somebody say amen.
I want to testify.
Yesterday, me and my lovely bride went into Aldi. We got all our stuff that we needed. And Aldi has one, two, three, four, five registers, right?
But when you go to Aldi, you have five registers and only one person checking out, and the line is down the aisle.
That is why it should be called “Always.”
But the light was on at register five. So I went to register five and started unloading my stuff. There was nobody in line.
I thought, “This is unreal.”
Then the gentleman said, “Sir, that register is closed. You are going to have to come down here.”
Help me, Lord.
I loaded everything back up, went down to the first register, and five or more people got in front of me.
They said, “No, wait a minute. He was first.”
I said, “Go ahead.”
I was getting frustrated.
Anybody ever gotten frustrated?
Sometimes that happens to us. But then we have to remember, we represent the Kingdom.
Amen.
We bring change everywhere we go.
We are supposed to, right?
The atmosphere should shift when God’s people walk into the room.
We are His children. We are kings and queens and priests, if you will. We are God’s chosen people.
We should be so full of God that when we walk into a room, the atmosphere shifts because we bring His presence.
And where Jesus is, there is peace and joy.
This morning, I want to say, Lord, in this life we are living, it is easy to get worried, frustrated, anxious, and overwhelmed.
People, things, our world, the coming of our Lord, all of these things. Your phone is dinging, sending you texts, emails, and all this stuff, bombarding you with information.
“Do this. You need to do this. You need to try this. This is waiting on you.”
All the information, commercials, and infomercials are flooding our minds.
Sometimes we just need to be still and know that He is God.
Psalm 46:10 says:
“Be still, and know that I am God.”
There is always something going on, constantly feeding your mind, constantly trying to get your attention.
If you are of age, now you are starting to get a bunch of stuff telling you, “It is time to change your Medicare,” or “It is time to get the new plan,” or “You have a $900 card you can get for free groceries.”
Scam.
It is not free.
Somebody has to pay for it.
With everything going on in our minds, with all that pressure, I want us to realize this:
God, I trust You.
I do not need another influencer. I do not need another mind thing. I do not need to be glued to a screen.
I need to be still and know that You are God.
Know Him for yourself.
Yesterday evening, I came over here and sat down and prayed. Right before I left, I sat down here and prayed.
I had this lady prayer partner one time. Her name was Sister Neva Campbell. She lived in Indiana. Wherever I was pastoring — Kentucky, Virginia, Florida — it did not matter. If Sister Campbell was alive and well, and you called her, she would answer the phone day or night.
Most times, she had people sitting around her table talking about the things of God.
She became one of the prayer warriors.
I would say, “Sister Campbell, I need prayer.”
She would say, “Brother John, what is going on?”
I would tell her a little bit. She would give me a little word, a little piece of advice, and then she would begin to pray. She would pray in the Spirit, and the Lord would begin to speak.
Last night, I was sitting here saying, “Lord, I sure could use a Neva Campbell.”
And I heard in my spirit:
“The same God that used her is the same God that lives in you.”
Yes, we need to pray one for another, but we need to realize that God in us is more than able to do more than we could ever ask or think.
Ephesians 3:20 says:
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think…”
God is able, in His infinite power and wisdom, to meet and exceed all our expectations, all our dreams, all our hopes, and all our plans.
God is able to do more — exceedingly, abundantly above all.
Not just enough.
Our God is the God of more than enough.
He is still Jehovah Jireh, my Provider.
He is still Jehovah Nissi, my Banner.
He is still Jehovah Rapha, my Healer.
He is God all by Himself.
When we begin to give God glory, honor, and praise, He begins to come on the scene, and the whole thing begins to turn around because He is Lord in our life.
Would you stand with me all over this place?
I want you to throw your hands up. Come up to this altar. Everybody that can, come on up to this altar. Come on, everybody, get close.
I want us to lift our hands to heaven this morning and say:
“God, You are the Lord of me. You are the Lord of me, and Lord, I give praise and glory to You.”
Come on, people. Get up here close.
Lift your hands to heaven today and say:
“Lord, You are God all by Yourself. I need You more than ever. Lord, I need You. I need You. God, I need You.”
Tell Him how much you need Him.
Lord, You are the Lord of me.
Through life’s journey, from here to glory, Lord, I am Yours.
If you are here this morning at this altar, and you believe God to meet and exceed your expectations, to supply all your needs according to His riches in glory, and to take all the worry and care that the enemy wants to put on you away, just throw your hands up to heaven.
Maybe you are in your seat. Just lift up your hands and say:
“God, I need You. I need You, and I am believing that You will meet and exceed all that I am able to ask or think.”
Philippians 4:19 says:
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Father God, I thank You for it. I praise You today, God. Glory and honor and power and majesty belong to You. Hallelujah.
You alone are worthy to be praised.
That scripture says, “You have not many fathers.”
Pastor, what are you saying?
Sometimes a father will do this:
“Hey, you may not need to be doing this stuff. Hey, baby, wait just a minute. Let’s worry about that situation. Let’s pray about that.”
That is what a father does to a son. That is what a father does to a daughter. That is what a spiritual father does.
A spiritual father says, “You are doing wrong. I love you, but I am telling you, get your life straight.”
That is what spiritual fathers do.
We need spiritual fathers.
Amen?
Do not be afraid.
Get close to Him. Stay close to Him. Stay so tight with Him that if He moves His foot, you slide yours just as quick as you can where He is.
You want to follow Him that close. You want to be that close to Him.
I saw this, and as a baby is in the womb of its mother and hears the mother’s heartbeat for nine months, when the baby comes out, what comforts that baby is the mother’s heartbeat — the sound and rhythm of it.
I want to be so close to God that I can lay my head on His chest and hear His heart.
That is how close I want to be.
But if you want that closeness, it will cost you.
Sometimes we hear the heart, but we may try to talk ourselves out of it.
No, no, no. Do not talk yourself out of it.
Get close to Him.
In these last days we are living in, get closer to Him than you have ever been before.
He has your best interest at heart. He knows the thoughts He thinks toward you, to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11 says:
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
God also knows what is going on in your life and what you need before you even ask Him.
The Word says He will answer your prayer before you even ask it.
Isaiah 65:24 says:
“It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”
God knows your need.
Trust Him today.
Would you just lift your hands?
Father, I take privilege today as the under-shepherd of this house, and I say, Lord, bless Your people.
Bless their coming and their going.
May Your peace be on them.
May Your face shine upon them and grant them peace.
Lord, go with them. Guide them. Keep them. Direct them.
God, help us, Lord, in these last days, in these times of spiritual warfare, in these times of uncertainty.
Lord, be that steady constant that we need.
Lord, we praise You for it. We honor You in this house today.
Glory and honor and power to the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
In Jesus’ mighty name.
Everybody said amen.
Amen.
God bless you.
