The Oxford Advanced Dictionary defines a father as a man in relationship to a child or children born from an ovum that he has fertilized. The world’s perspective of a father is one who brings forth (produce offspring) seeds into the world.
“But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” (1 Timothy 5:8)
Scripture gives a higher perspective on fatherhood. A father is not just one who fertilizes an ovum and brings forth a seed (child) to the earth. A true father is one who brings forth a seed and takes responsibility over that which he or she brings forth.
Scripture is clear that any father that does not take responsibility for his seed has denied the faith and is worse than an infidel. God is raising up faithful sons of the Kingdom, and this will require true spiritual fathers to disciple true spiritual sons.
The impact and success of our ministry as spiritual fathers will remain or be determined by our ability to reproduce ourselves through the impartation of our life and ministry to others who are true sons. There must be a spiritual succession and continuance of God’s eternal purposes. The banner of the Lord must not be brought down because of the death of a leader, so therefore legacy must be passed on to others. Our labour ought not to be in vain, but result in the continuance of God’s eternal purpose. The baton of the Lord must be transferred to the next generation through spiritual succession. This transfer is seen in scripture: Moses to Joshua, Elijah to Elisha, and Paul to Timothy. True sons carry on the vision of the father as the legacy passes to the son, who will continue to fulfill God’s purpose in the earth. The succession must be accurate, as we pass on the legacy onto the right man to bring the continuity of God’s purpose in the earth.
““For I have no one else of kindred spirit…But you know of his proven worth that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel…” (Philippians 2:20, 22).
“I desired Titus, and with him I sent a brother. Did Titus make a gain of you? walked we not in the same spirit? walked we not in the same steps?” (2 Corinthians 12:18).
Timothy and Titus had the same spirit as Paul. They received the impartation of the gift, ministry and grace upon him; hence Paul had the privilege of calling them sons and the confidence to send them forth to the churches.
A father is not a sperm donor or an infidel, but one who brings forth a seed and acknowledges responsibility for his seed.
“I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel” – (1 Corinthians 4:14-15).
There is a myriad of mentors out there, and you may have countless instructors in your Christian walk, yet there are not many fathers. The divine principle that governs spiritual fathering is not what any pastor or leader can take upon himself as a spiritual vocation.
The principle of apostolic fathering and spiritual mentoring is a unique technology that carries an unusual grace and impartation that cannot be acquired anywhere, because apostolic fathers “birth things” and also “establish things” in sons. It all depends on where you are in your spiritual journey in life and ministry.
The family of God as seen in this context of spiritual fathers also applies to natural fathers, because the family is the boundary that helps define who we are. Family, when it is in order as God intended, validates us and gives us our sense of identification and blessings. A father in the family establishes our identity and purpose.
The family of God is the environment where spiritual fathers provide instructions and understanding in doctrines for sons.
“Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law. For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother. He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live” – (Proverbs 4: 1- 4).
A spiritual father that does not expresses the original plan and purposes of God will lack God’s power, and manipulation and control becomes inevitable. Spiritual fathers then begin to control, dominate and manipulate theirs sons to achieve their selfish agenda, and as a result many are wounded and abused in such relationships, and the family is ruined.
A successful ministry is not measured by the numbers, the edifice of the building, the finances or the creative programs. These are religious yardsticks of measuring religious success. A truly successful ministry is in the sons we produce to pattern the ministry, which carries the grace to impart the next generation.
“During his lifetime Absalom had built a monument for himself in King’s Valley, because he had no son to keep his name alive. So he named it after himself, and to this day it is known as Absalom’s Monument” – (11 Samuel 18:18 GNB).
Our true legacies are the son’s we produce to pattern our ministry and carry on the baton to the next generation. The strength of our ministry is the sons we produce. This is an intergenerational relationship that is very essential. When spiritual fathers fail to raise sons, they begin to build monuments to reflect their names. It is amazing to see how the Body of Christ has been corrupted by the leadership concept of calling our ministries after our names, and we think it is a glorification of our achievements, but in actual fact, it becomes a monument like Absalom’s Monument.
Fathers must understand that their grace and strength must be transferred to sons. I read that the Japanese believe if a mentor doesn’t teach his protégé to far exceed the teacher, he has failed in his training towards the protégé. Unfortunately, many teachers and fathers end up competing with their sons instead of completing them by impartation. Sons on the other side end up leaving, instead of laying hold of legacy.
“Set your mind now on sons—don’t dote on father and grandfather. You’ll set your sons up as princes all over the earth. I’ll make you famous for generations; you’ll be the talk of the town for a long, long time” – (Psalm 45:16-17 MSG).
The priority of fathers is sons. We must set our mind now on sons, so we can impact the next generation. The absence of the restoration of father and son relationships that expresses the heart of God to prepare a people will bring a curse.
“And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law” – (Genesis 19:12-14).
A true son will always heed to the instruction of a father and be obedient to his call. But in this case, though Lot had sons in law but they were not legitimate sons by birth, so they were not true to him as a father. The effect of this lack of procurement of a man child (son) by father Lot to preserve his heritage resulted to the sexual perverseness of his daughters laying with him, and this brought forth the wrong seed in the earth fighting against the purposes of God until this day.
“And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth: Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day” – (Genesis 19:30-38).
Of what purpose was the affair of the daughters of Lot with their father? Their concern is that there was not a man (son) on earth to come in to them after the manner of all the earth to preserve a seed. The result was an abuse. The same scenario continues to linger in the present church that is creating an abuse within the Body.
The failure of fathers within the house to walk in an apostolic mind-set and in the spirit of Elijah to produce spiritual sons, will ultimately affect the upcoming generation. The absent of godly and responsible fathers hinders the power of the family to nurture discipline and provide a validated identity.
Spiritual fathering is a transcending power that flows from God, and it invades our lives and enables us to father others into the purposes of God. This is why spiritual fathers don’t raise sons unto themselves, but spiritual sons are raised unto the LORD to fulfil an eternal purpose for the Kingdom, bringing us into Ephesians 4:13 – “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”.
We have to know God for ourselves, by being in a personal relationship with Him. However, spiritual fathers are set in place by God to help sons come into a certain level and quality of spiritual maturity, relationship and fellowship with God.
Abraham had a unique relationship with the Father – God, and he brought his son Isaac into that dimension of covenant relationship and walk with God that it was said, He (Jehovah) became the God of Abraham and also the God of Isaac. God spoke highly of Abraham and said:
“For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him” – (Genesis 18:19).
When we talk about sonship, we are speaking in context of growing into spiritual maturity in the purposes of God. This goes beyond the outer-court experience of salvation and comes into a deeper level of experiential relationship and knowledge of His Lordship, and taking responsibility as fully-grown son.
“But now to continue—the son who will receive his father’s property is treated just like a slave while he is young, even though he really owns everything. While he is young, there are men who take care of him and manage his affairs until the time set by his father. In the same way, we too were slaves of the ruling spirits of the universe before we reached spiritual maturity. But when the right time finally came, God sent his own Son. He came as the son of a human mother and lived under the Jewish Law, to redeem those who were under the Law, so that we might become God’s children. To show that you are his children, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who cries out, “Father, my Father.” So then, you are no longer a slave but a child. And since you are his child, God will give you all that he has for his children” – (Galatians 4:1-7 GNB).
God is our Father and fathers us directly. Nevertheless, He has pre-ordained certain men within the Body to express out His Fatherhood in the earth to establish the family of the sons of God. They serve to take care of the sons and to manage his affairs until the time set by the Father. Those who are not pre-ordained, called and sent by God cannot function or impart the life and power of a father to serve sons.
Beyond knowing about God, He wants us to know Him personally. Spiritual fathers are endowed with a special grace to bring their sons into a unique quality of relationship and fellowship with the Father-God, which is a fruit of their experiential relationship pattern with Father-God.
“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” – (1 John 1:3).
Our relationship with the Father – God will greatly determine the impartation of our ministry to others, because we can only bring people into the realm we are currently walking in.
Fathers train their sons, but sons must be submissive to learn from their fathers, and not being critical.
Jesse E. Canty, an apostle of the Lord based in South Carolina – USA, brought to my attention while ministering together in Vanuatu Island in the South Pacific, that the LORD never spoke to Moses assistant (son) until his death. Joshua never received a word directly from the LORD while Moses was still alive. God always spoke through Moses to Joshua.
Joshua was being mentored by his father Moses through this season of submission in his life. Joshua gained valuable knowledge, skills, confidence, and he learned from experience, and was not critical. Moses by the instruction of God sent out 12 spies and 2 came back with a positive report, but 10 came back and brought an evil report of the land. Joshua at this point learnt the principle of 2, and when it was time to take over the land of Jericho, he did not send out 12 spies (thus avoiding a mixed report), but he sent out 2 spies and had a smooth victory.
Fatherhood and sonship has to do with character, integrity and spiritual maturity, because the desire of God is for us to come into the fullness of Ephesians 4:12 – 16 – “For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”
True fathers help establish character in sons; because of the lack of fatherhood, many are operating with the anointing, but without character. Our gifting’s and unique anointing is important, but character is principal, and this is what fathers also help sons to walk in. Character will keep you where the anointing brings you to.
“And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another, What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? And one of the same place answered and said, But who is their father? Therefore it became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets?” – (1 Samuel 10:10-12).
You can be so charismatic and controlled by the Spirit and have prophetic ecstatic dancing and shouting, but when it is all said and done you must be able to show your seed and your father’s house – who is your father? or be counted polluted and disqualified from the purposes of God.
“And these were they which went up from Telmelah, Telharsa, Cherub, Addan, and Immer: but they could not shew their father’s house, and their seed, whether they were of Israel: The children of Delaiah, the children of Tobiah, the children of Nekoda, six hundred fifty and two. And of the children of the priests: the children of Habaiah, the children of Koz, the children of Barzillai; which took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called after their name: These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found: therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood” – (Ezra 2:59-62).
We have already come to understand that there are not many fathers – 1 Corinthians 4:15, even though many out there are calling themselves fathers, but in a true sense they are just spiritual instructors that provide mentorship, while some are just sperm donors and infidels. However, we must understand that fathers are mentors, but more than providing mentorship – counselling and teachings, they carry a divine grace that is able to form the character of Christ’s nature in us. It is an apostolic function that continues to offer the channel for the life of Christ, and makes it visible in us.
“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you” – (Galatians 4:19).
Spiritual fathering does not shape us into the image of any man, but creates the mode for the formation of the image of Christ in us. This is the divine plan of God as he has predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Any apostolic ministry or apostles that are not doing this are not accurate.
“God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. After God made that decision of what his children should be like, he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name, he set them on a solid basis with himself. And then, after getting them established, he stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what he had begun” – (Romans 8:29-30 MSG).
“And he shall go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just; to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him” – (Luke 1:17 ASV).
The primary purpose for spiritual fathering is to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. We must not miss this central truth for spiritual fathering and reject the process of our transition, as the pathway into His fullness is revealed to us. The Lord is seeking for a glorious church – a people who have been conformed into the express image of His Son.
Luke 2:40-52 gives us an insight to the principle of accessing an ‘increasing grace from God’ through spiritual fathering as portrayed in the life of Jesus who is the pattern-son.
“And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him” – (Luke 2:40).
The grace of God was upon the life of Jesus at the age of 12, and you could see him afterward manifesting to some extent the wisdom of God in doing the business of His Heavenly Father, but without the awareness of his earthly parents, and they invalidated what he did. This did not offend him; because he learned right there that submission to this natural dimension of fathering was a necessary requirement to fully express his divine sonship to His Heavenly Father.
“Then he went down with them and returned to Nazareth; and he remained in submission to them. His mother continued to treasure all these things in her heart” – (Luke 2:51 ISV).
Though He is the Son of God, and knew His calling and mission, yet the result of His submission and obedience to His natural parents released an increased grace upon Him. Not only was the grace of God upon Him, but He kept on increasing.
“Meanwhile, Jesus kept on growing in wisdom and maturity, and in favour with God and his fellow man” – (Luke 2:52 ISV).
Willing submission to earthly spiritual fathering unlocks the fullness of God’s grace in our lives.
I remember an encounter with a brother while ministering in Australia. I spoke on this concept of spiritual fathering and sonship, and the dynamics it provides to help us transition into what the Father is doing in order to make ready for Himself a people [perfectly] prepared [in spirit, adjusted and disposed and placed in the right moral state]. This brother walked up to me after the meeting and held my hand and complemented the ministry and the apostolic grace that was manifested, but he went on to say that he disagreed with me on one point. He said, ‘I love my pastor, I honour and I respect him, but he cannot be my spiritual father. No man on earth can be my spiritual father, because God is my Father’. I asked him why he believes that no man on earth can father him spiritually in the purposes of God. His response was Matthew 23:9 which says, “….call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven”.
I love the way the Good News Bible (GNB) translates this with the fact that the word “Father” was capitalized, which refers to God. We are to call no man on earth “Father (God)”, but others can be call “father” with a small letter “f”, referring to men. We are not talking here of the Catholic tradition of using the title, “Father”; what we are talking about here is relationship – father and son.
“And you must not call anyone here on earth ‘Father,’ because you have only the one Father in heaven” – (Matthew 23:9 GNB).
Some of us may find ourselves in the same understanding and spiritual condition of this brother with regard to Matthew 23:9, and as a result we have conflicting thoughts when embracing the concept of spiritual fathering.
I went on to ask the brother a few fundamental questions to help him reflect on his position of belief and to gain more accurate understanding on spiritual fathering, so he does not miss out on the ways of God.
My Question:
1. Do you have a man whose sperm united with the ovum of a woman that resulted in your conception and birthing into this world you live? If so, who is that man to you?
2. What was the relationship between Joseph and Jesus, and who does the scripture says Joseph was to Jesus?
3. Have you ever seen God who is your Father with your physical eyes? If not, how then do you relate with this Father that you have not seen and what principle has He set in place in relating to you to father you?
“No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, or the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom [in the intimate presence] of the Father, He has declared Him [He has revealed Him and brought Him out where He can be seen; He has interpreted Him and He has made Him known].” – (John 1:18 AMP).
“The Father wants all people to honor the Son as much as they honor him. When anyone refuses to honor the Son, that is the same as refusing to honor the Father who sent him” – (John 5:23 CEV).
“Then Jesus said to them again, Peace to you! [Just] as the Father has sent Me forth, so I am sending you” – (John 20:21 AMP).
“He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me” – (Matthew 10:40).
“The one who listens to you, listens to me. The one who rejects you, rejects me. And rejecting me is the same as rejecting God, who sent me” – (Luke 10:16 MSG).
God is our Father, however His fatherhood is expressed in our lives through certain men here on earth that He has sent and ordained by His Son. These men are therefore called spiritual fathers that carry a transcending power that flows from God the Father Himself, invading their lives and enabling them to father us into the purposes of God, and reveal the love of God that is in the pattern Son, Jesus Christ.
The capacity to listen, receive, submit and honour these men who are spiritual fathers sent by the Lord Jesus (God’s begotten Son) is the same capacity by which we have listened, received, submitted and honoured God the Father which we have not seen with our eyes.
This is the same principle that applies with our professed love for God as seen in the Epistle of John.
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us……If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also” – (1 John 4:7-12, 20-21).
The same proportion by which we express love to one another is the same proportion by which we love God. The degree of our love for God is therefore measured by our love for our brothers. There is no way out!
Well, the brother seemed confused afterward, looking at me like a startled deer caught in glaring headlights in the night, yet his heart was that of a reprobate mind refusing to embrace the knowledge of God that is being revealed to him.
Interestingly, his pastor afterward, without knowledge of our conversation, informed me about some of the problems the brother was encountering which they were trying to help him overcome.
He is married and divorced to three different women, and the fourth marriage is on the verge of divorce as he is separated from the new wife. The leaders of the church decided to do some enquiry into his past marriages so they can best counsel him and help him out. They discovered the same problem has reoccurred and caused the marriages to collapse. He is an abusive husband and the women could not handle his violent character and it resulted to divorce.
In the process of counselling, the brother was asked why he is violent and why he beats up his wife. His response was that all his wives had not been submissive to him as the authority in the family, so he had to discipline them. His back-up scripture was, ‘Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord’ – Ephesians 5:22.
The problem of the Brother was not farfetched. His inability to submit to the authority of God over his life through a set-man (spiritual father), has resulted to the fruit of divorce which he has harvested in his marriages. What you sow is what you reap – Galatians 6:7.
You cannot reject God’s principle of authority over your life through a spiritual father and expect your home and church to be in order. A rebellious wife and children, and a broken home and church will become your harvest.
Pride is a hindrance to our ability to submit, and submission brings us to a position of authority. Pride and lack of accountability is an issue that many leaders must recognize as a sin which brings limitation in our life and ministry. We must change our paradigm so we can then see beyond our limitations and our independent spirit, and be set into a family to bring us into a higher level of authority and identity.
“Therefore, as you go, disciple all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you each and every day until the end of the age” – (Matthew 28:19-20).
The great commission is an apostolic assignment to disciple all nations in obedience to the Father. This discipline of the nations is a fathering principle that mentors people to a lifestyle of obedience. This is why we stated earlier that the primary purpose for spiritual fathering is to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. We are commissioned to go disciple all nations for the Lord. We must not miss this central truth for spiritual fathering and reject the process, principle and purpose of our discipline.
True spiritual fathers will disciple, teach, instruct and chasten their sons, and sons who reject this process and principle of discipline in their lives will fail.
“And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby” – (Hebrews 12:5-11).
Our profiting in God’s kingdom is a product of His chastisement through a spiritual father who aligns us to His purpose.
An interesting scenario is the account of Adonijah who was the son of David and Haggith. His pride and fall was the lack of a functioning father in his life to reprimand him of his ways, and he ended up hiring men as bodyguards running before him, and he was crowning himself as one who has arrived – a king. The sad part is that he had people flocking around him to celebrate his premature leadership. Without doubt, this is a trend we see that has developed in the Body of Christ today; it shows the gross lack of true apostolic fathers.
“Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom. He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they followed Adonijah and helped him” – (1 Kings 1:5-7 ESV).
The process of receiving a fathering grace over our lives can be a painful experience sometimes, but the good part is that it deals with many issues of limitations and gives us clarity on things and specific assignment in our life. This was the case with Paul the apostle who is a spiritual father to Timothy; he had to circumcise him, not to make him acceptable to God but to be acceptable to his assignment. Circumcision was a biblical instruction that legitimate fathers are to administer to their sons. This on the other hand implies that sons must give fathers the permission to circumcise them and remove the things that would obstruct the manifestation of Christ’s nature and ministry through them – Acts 16:1-3.
Although the Bible doesn’t use the words mentor or mentoring, but it frequently refers to fathers and sons. The paradigm of spiritual fathers and sonship is clearly seen in the Scriptures as a pattern:
Moses was a spiritual father to Joshua, and Joshua related to him as a spiritual son.
Elijah was a spiritual father to Elisha, and Elisha related to him as a spiritual son. Elijah was a spiritual father to many, and they related to him as a company of spiritual sons.
Paul was a spiritual father to Timothy, Titus and many others, and they related to him as spiritual sons.
Jesus was a spiritual father to the apostles who were considered as His spiritual sons.
Once again, as stated earlier, spiritual fathers are few. Not all who call themselves fathers are fathers. True spiritual fathers are apostles or apostolic. They are elders in the Kingdom.
It is important to receive the fact that women can be spiritual fathers, because when we speak of spiritual fathering, it is a spiritual position, and not a physical position. If we can embrace the fact as men, that we are the bride of Christ, which naturally is a woman’s position, but in the Spirit, men can take this position and be called the bride of Christ.
If God used a donkey and a rooster to speak, why can’t He manifest a father’s heart of an apostle through a woman? God is not limited by gender, traditional beliefs and humanistic doctrines. God is God and He is sovereign in His ways – Selah.
Spiritual fathers are not called to be dictators, or to control their spiritual sons as slaves. True spiritual fathers will love, serve and sacrifice to see their sons mature into fatherhood to reproduce their own family, and fulfil their true destiny in God. They will always bless their sons to receive the inheritance in conforming to the image of Christ.
Copyright © 2017 by Israel Onoriobe
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