“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” JN 14:18

From the time of Adam, we have all been born with orphan tendencies. Even those who are blessed to have been brought up in healthy families, there are wounds and bents which are simply an inescapably part of the human condition. While this does not condemn us to failure, it does highlight the need for grace and to personally experience the unconditional embrace and acceptance of our Heavenly Father. Another way to think about this is that if Jesus needed to have the affirmation of the Father’s voice saying to him, “This is my beloved son, with whom I am so very pleased” (MT 3:17), how about me?

And yet there has never been a generation more fatherless than the one in which we are living. Sure, wars and plagues and calamities have greatly affected generations of the past, leaving many children without the love and support of one or both of their parents. And yet in our generation fathers are actually choosing to abandon their children. With children being born out of wedlock and divorce rates at all time highs, children have increasingly become victims in this narcistic and promiscuous generation. Add to this ideologies and governments whose extreme views are anywhere from anti-family to murderous, and we have a continuing recipe for disaster. Consider that ISIS shot or beheaded 74 children and broadcast their atrocity worldwide through the internet to send a warning that children who secretly break their fast on Ramadan should be dealt with severely. Indeed, more than 72% of Americans believe that fatherlessness is the most significant family or social problem facing America. The fallout from fatherlessness is both well documented and frightening. God have mercy.

While every child born has a biological father, fewer and fewer children born into the world will ever know what it is like to truly have a father. The effect of this upon society today can be compared to an earthquake which takes place far from our shores in the middle of a vast ocean. Though we feel it, no walls come crashing down, and no gaping cracks open in the ground. We may even think, “that wasn’t so bad. Because of the delay, we continue to live our lives as though nothing happened. Then just when we least expect it, we look up and a tsunami 100 feet high is speeding towards the shores of our communities from which there is no opportunity to flee or hope of defense. We look for trees to cling to in a desperate search for something which will not be moved.

So when Jesus said he was not going to leave us as orphans, this was good news then, and great news now as well. Though it is beyond the scope of this article to detail the affects of an orphaned heart, here are a few of the characteristics which are indicators of this malady:
–A sense of abandonment
–Isolation/Loneliness
—Insecurity & Fear
—Alienation
—Rejection

It often leads to addictive behavior and hostile and violent tendencies. One’s relationships are also deeply affected and are defined by the following:
—Comparison
—Jealousy & Strife
—Need to perform
—Distance (no intimacy)
—Entitlement (lack of appreciation)
—Control

When Malachi prophesied that fathers hearts would be turned back to their children, and children’s hearts to their fathers in the last days, he was indicating a time when this gap would literally be a defining feature of that hour. It describes our day definitively. In other words, he was prophesying that there would come a day when orphaned hearts would be healed, as it states a few verses earlier:

“the Sun of righteousness [shall] arise with healing in His wings; and you shall go out like stall-fed calves.” Mal 4:2

The Old Testament referred to God as “Father” about 15 times. The gospel of John records Jesus referring to “Father” God 100 times! It is clear that He wanted us to get to know Him! In fact, it has been well said that this is the MAIN PURPOSE for which he came and dwelt among us. No wonder Philip said:

“Lord, show us the Father, and it will be enough for us!” JN 14:8

I am sure that Philip did not understand the depth and weight of these words when he spoke them! May you get a richer and clearer revelation of the Father today! May you near His words being spoken over you, “this is my beloved son!” May we hear Him say, “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom” (LK 12:32). He has provided for our fatherless generation! He was not about to leave his disciples orphaned; he’s also not going to leave us that way either! He will come to us, as He promised.

Bill Johnson recently said: “We have the responsibility to reveal the Father to an orphaned planet.” This is so true! May it start with us, and then begin to flow and impact all of those around us…to the ends of the earth. The promise to Abraham was that all of the families of the earth would be blessed. Let it be me. Let it be now. Amen.