[Jesus speaking]
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

This passage makes a few assumptions right out of the gate. First, all earthly fathers are sinful by nature. Second, God is perfect (not sinful).

As we look at this passage, we find that some of the primary roles of a father are evidenced here: Provider, Protector, Gift Giver, and Modeler of Good Conduct. God covers all of these areas perfectly in his relationship with us. We also find that even sinful fathers (like me) know how to give good gifts to their children. My oldest, Jeremiah, was my “guinea pig”, so to speak. I “tried out” being a good father on him, and while I sometimes succeeded, other times I was more of a failure. But in all, I showed up and cared and that matters a lot. I also pointed him to the one who is a perfectly loving Father, God. As I have raised my other kids, I like to think I have learned to become a better father over time.

The great news for me is … God knew I was needy and imperfect when he gave me the role of being a father. And he trusted me with it anyways. Why? Because he always had my back. My job was to model my “fathering” after him and then he would fill in where I didn’t quite measure up. I think this is the gist of what Jesus is saying here. If earthly fathers, who are sinful, know how to give good gifts to their children, how much more does the perfect God of the universe?

So on Father’s Day and every other day of the year, I encourage all of us as we think about our fathers, along with celebrating the good traits, celebrate, listen to, and get to know the Father we are all trying to be like — your Heavenly Father. He is truly the one who gives GOOD GIFTS!

When we ask for specific things, he provides good gifts that meet our needs. When we seek after him with all our hearts, he makes it so that we can find the things that truly matter in life. And when we knock, persistently pursuing his will in life, he will open the door to the ways he would like us to serve him.

Lord, thanks for your truth here. You model what is good because you perfectly love your children! Thanks for being the ultimate model of a Good Father!