Father to the Fatherless

November is orphan awareness month, and the first Sunday of the month is designated as Orphan Sunday.  So we’re going to focus on discovering God’s heart for the fatherless and needy.

God uniquely created mankind in His own image. This includes everyone, from the wealthiest individual to the poorest beggar child living on the street.  Everyone is a fearfully and wonderfully crafted masterpiece, and God’s love, purposes, and care extends to all.  But why is there such inequality among the world’s populous?  Why do some live in comfortable, well-furnished houses while others are in shacks or even on the street?  The answer is sin. Sin has greatly corrupted and wreaked havoc in our world so that the innocent are often afflicted with the most suffering while the guilty enjoy plenty.  And who are the most innocent of all?  Children.  Orphans. Children are most often made parent-less due to the indirect consequences of the unprincipled choices and actions of others, whether it is war, personal selfishness, nation-wide population control, and the list goes on.   In all these instances, a decision was made by adults and it is the innocent children who suffer the most, becoming neglected orphans and growing up without the love of a family.  But GOD loves these children!
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As the Psalmist David wrote,

“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation."

​Throughout Scripture, God declares His love and protection over the fatherless, poor, and needy.  His heart is turned toward the broken, defenseless, and lonely.  And who is not more lonely, defenseless, and broken than an orphaned child?  If God’s heart is toward the orphan, so should ours.  As Christians, God’s heart should be our heart and we are to be His hands and feet here on this earth.  So if our Maker is the Father to the fatherless, then so should we.  In his epistle to the early Church, the Apostle James clearly outlined our God-give mandate:

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

This is not a suggestion but a command.  We are to look after orphans because God looks after them and we are striving to become more like Him.  However, we are not to obey this command out of duty or responsibility, but out of love and gratefulness for what our Savior has done for us.  As David Platt so eloquently stated,

So join me, as we seek to further understand God’s heart for the orphan and discover ways in which to fulfill our divine mandate.