10 Qualities Of A Kingdom Father by Dr. Myles Munroe: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

The Last Words of the Old Testament

Malachi 4 is the last chapter of the Old Testament — the last thing God says before 400 years of silence. Between Malachi and Matthew, no prophet spoke, no statement was made from God. So the last thing God says before closing the Old Testament, and the first thing John the Baptist preaches at the opening of the New, must be the most important things.

Malachi 4:5-6: "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers — or else I will come and strike the land with a curse."

That is the last statement made in the Old Testament. Then God is quiet.

Luke 1: John the Baptist's prophesied message was that many people he will bring back to God — and he will bring back the fathers who strayed away from their children, and the children who strayed away from their fathers.

Notice his focus. He says when the Messiah comes, he will go before the Lord in the spirit of Elijah — and he will turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the children back to the fathers. He is not going after the children first. And please note: the mother is never mentioned. According to God's perspective, the woman is not the problem. God is going after the fathers.

God made the restoration of fatherhood the most important act of the Messiah.

The Male as Foundation — Not Head at the Top

God created only one human from the soil. He never went back. He made one man — and women were not made from the soil; they came out of the man. Today there are 6.7 billion people. God only made one, and from that one came all.

The word source in Hebrew is Abba — meaning that which releases and sustains. The male is the first creature God created in the human race, and he became the source of all humans. Therefore, the foundation of the human family is the male.

The male has been taught by our culture that he is on top — the head of the family. That is a misunderstanding. According to God, he is on the bottom. The father is supposed to carry the weight the same way a building is carried by the foundation. He is the source of the family.

Men are designed and created to serve as the foundation and anchor of the human family.

Satan does not care if women come to church. He encourages it. Why? He wants to keep the men out. Because if you keep the foundation in disorder, the whole building is no good. That is why most sports events are scheduled during church time. To focus on men is a strategy of satanic proportions. If Satan ignores you, that means you are not important. Satan is afraid of a man worshiping God — because when the foundation comes back to order, everything else comes back into order.

The word father comes from the word Abba — meaning source, sustainer, nourisher, supporter, foundation. Father is not a name. It is a title. It is a description of a function.

When you say God is our Father, you are saying: God is the source of all things created, and he sustains everything he created. God did to the male what he did to himself — he made the male the source and sustainer of the family.

Father: the source, sustainer, nourisher, supporter, and foundation of that which comes out of him.

Any dog can have a puppy — but it takes a real father to raise a child. Spreading yourself around the city does not make you a father. Father means source and sustainer.

The Father as Anchor

What anchors do:

1. Anchors bring rest and peace. Once you have an anchor, you feel restful and peaceful. If a woman knows her husband is not playing around, she has no fear when he goes out.
2. Anchors are tested in storms and pressure. No matter how nice a man talks, how good he looks — see how he handles pressure. Does he break under the first pressure? Anchors are tested by the storms you go through.
3. Anchors are proven in currents. Currents are streams that come against what you want to do — all kinds of belief systems, trends, styles. Can you have a man in the house who says, "I know what the neighbors are doing, but we are not going to do that. We are going to do what God wants"? That is an anchor resisting the current.
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Dr. Myles Munroe
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4. Anchors hold the value and take away fear. She knows, without a doubt, that she is the only one in your life.
5. Anchors secure the whole ship — not just you. You are holding a whole lot of people on that boat. Your unborn grandchildren are going to be affected by what you do.
6. Anchors need a rock to function. A man needs a relationship with God — because you need to hook on to something. God is the rock that never moves.
7. Anchors cannot function in sand. You cannot be functioning on people's ideas and your friends' suggestions and recommendations by people who have failed. That is sandy stuff. The word of God is immovable — it is set, it is standard.

The word husband comes from two words: house and bond — meaning that which glues the house together. A husband is a bonder. So when the pastor says, "I now pronounce you husband and wife," he is announcing: you were born to keep this entire house together. You are the glue.

Fatherhood Is a National Security Issue

Exodus 20:5: "I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."

A father is so powerful that what he does can affect four generations. That means the fathering spirit is so strong it can impact unborn great-grandchildren. Therefore your life as a father may be personal, but it is never private.

97% of young men in prison have problems with their fathers. 80% of them have unresolved issues with their dad. Which means: if fathers simply did their job, we would need fewer police cars, fewer courtrooms, fewer trials — and the nation would be safer.

Being a good father is a national security issue.

The Five Purposes of a Male — From Genesis 2:15

Genesis 2:15: "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."

1. Eden — Presence of God. The first thing God gave the man was Eden, meaning the presence of God. The male is supposed to keep the presence of God in the house. That is not the female's job. If your house is full of strife, stress, and anxiety, it is because the male has created that atmosphere. The male determines the atmosphere in the house.
2. Work — To Become. The Hebrew word for work here means to become something. That means a male is supposed to know where he is going and what he wants to become before he gets married. The woman was made as a helper — but nothing is more frustrating than coming loaded to help someone who is going nowhere. Women make some of the best businesspeople in the world because they use their gifts on themselves when they cannot find a man who understands why they are so gifted.
3. Cultivate — Bring Out the Best. To cultivate means to improve and maximize everything around you — to bring out the best. A real father improves the mother, encourages the children to pursue big dreams, and pays for it. A real man releases women to become the best — he does not oppress them.
4. Protect and Guard. Use your strength to protect your wife, your children. A man who hits a woman is not a real man — he is a coward. Your strength was given to you to protect her. A good father makes his family safe whether he is present or not.
5. Teach. God gave the man the word. He never told the woman about the tree — he expected the man to teach her. A good father knows the word of God and gives his family the word. If you want to understand why Eve was deceived, it is because her husband failed to teach her clearly.

The 10 Functions of a Father

1. He is the source — the foundation of the home
2. He is the nourisher — he cultivates the family
3. He is the sustainer — he provides
4. He is the protector — he brings security like an anchor
5. He is the teacher — he trains the children and gives direction to his wife
6. He is the coverer — he trains and covers what comes out of him
7. He is the leader — he manages his own home well
8. He is the discipline source — the Bible says the father disciplines, not just the mother
9. He is the head — meaning responsible: he gets credit for what goes right and the blame for what goes wrong
10. He is the one who cares — meaning he anticipates needs before they arise and prepares for them in the present

Qualities of a Kingdom Father

1. Fathers produce a true self-image in their children
2. Fathers love Eden — the presence of God
3. Fathers desire to work and pursue their dreams
4. Fathers are able to cultivate and develop others
5. Fathers commit to protect, cover, and secure
6. Fathers know the word of God and teach it

Only a father can make a man out of a boy — and only a father can make a woman out of a girl. The Jewish tradition of Bar Mitzvah captures this: at age 12, in front of all the men, the father says to his son, "Today you are a man." That announcement changes everything.

The secret to unity in marriage has very little to do with love. Unity is a result of vision. If you and I are going to the same destination, we can be in the same car. If you are going to separate destinations, you cannot be together. The question a woman must ask is not only "Does he love me?" but "Where is he going?" — because her gifts and anointing were loaded into her to help him get there.

Oh God, give us fathers like this — and the men will listen to this again and say, Lord, make me like this. I want to be a father that holds the family together.