Happy Father's Day to all our dads with us today! One of the great gifts of a father is to provide both guidance and freedom at the same time. Good fathers help form their children, teach them right from wrong, keep them safe, and yet leave enough room for them to become who God created them to be.
Each year when I reflect on Father's Day, I’m filled with gratitude for the ways my dad has shaped my mind and heart. Throughout my life, I've wanted to make him proud. I think every child wants that. We want mom and dad to look at us with joy. We want them to be pleased with who we are and what we do.
I've shared this story before, but one of the most meaningful gifts my parents ever gave was the chalice they presented to me at my ordination. On that chalice they had engraved the words spoken by God the Father at the baptism of Jesus: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Now as a side note, I did notice they stopped before the next line: "Listen to him." But I'll take what I can get.
The reason that inscription means so much to me is because what our parents think of us matters. One of the most painful things a parent can say to a child is, "I'm disappointed in you." Growing up, hearing those words would have been far worse than being grounded or losing privileges. On the other hand, if some random stranger said they were disappointed in me, I wouldn't lose much sleep over it. The importance of the relationship determines how much that opinion matters.
Which brings us to today's Gospel.
Jesus says something that sounds strange to modern ears: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna."
For a long time, I assumed Jesus was simply talking about the devil. But praying with the Gospel this week, another possibility emerged. What if Jesus is telling us that we should care more about what God thinks of us than the opinions of anyone and everyone else? What if Jesus is reminding us that there is such a thing as a healthy fear of the Lord?
Unfortunately, many people misunderstand that phrase. Fear of the Lord does not mean being terrified of God. It does not mean imagining God as angry, waiting to punish us, or send us to hell. Scripture is very clear that God loves us. Jesus immediately reminds us that our heavenly Father knows even the number of hairs on our heads. In other words, he knows us and loves us even better than we do ourselves!
Fear of the Lord means recognizing that God's opinion matters more than any other. It means caring more about pleasing God than pleasing the crowd. It means worrying more about disappointing God than disappointing the virtual community on social media, our coworkers, neighbors, or friends. It means giving more weight to pleasing God and what he thinks of us rather than some fleeting impression that others have of us which can change very quickly.
Far too often, that's our struggle!
How many times do we stay silent because we're afraid of what others might think? How many times do we compromise our values because we want acceptance or at least an uneasy truce with friends and family? How many times do we know what Christ is asking of us, but we hesitate because we're worried about criticism, rejection, or looking different?
Jesus says: fear no one. In other words, don't give anyone that much power over your life. There is only one opinion that ultimately matters. The Divine Opinion is the one that holds power over eternal life or eternal death. Every other opinion pales in comparison and importance.
Jeremiah understood that. Everybody seemed to be against him. Friends betrayed him. Powerful people wanted him silenced. Yet he continued speaking God's truth because he feared God more than anyone else. The saints understood that. Their loyalty to God powered them through temporary suffering into everlasting glory. Every faithful Christian eventually has to learn that lesson as well if we want to share in their eternal happiness.
The irony is that when we put God first, we become less fearful, not more. When we stop worrying about pleasing everyone else, we become freer. We discover that we don't need the approval of every person around us because we already possess the love and approval of our Heavenly Father.
That's why Jesus follows his warning to fear God with words of tremendous comfort. He reminds us that we are worth more than many sparrows. God knows us. God sees us. God cares for us.
The goal of the Christian life is not to walk around terrified of God. The goal is to love Him so much, respect Him so deeply, and value our friendship with Him so highly that we never want to lose it. Much like a good son avoids disappointing his father not simply because of the punishment, but because he loves him and wants to make him proud.
As we celebrate Father's Day, perhaps that's a good question for us to ask: Whose approval am I really seeking? Whose opinion drives my decisions? Whose disappointment do I fear the most?
If we can honestly say that God's opinion matters most, then many of our other fears begin to lose their power. And that is exactly the freedom Jesus came to give us. May we acknowledge and chose Christ in all things and above things so that we can rest forever with him in glory and peace!
