A Father's Day Reflections: The Fatherhood We Were Made For

Bruno Borges, PhD(c)

On Father’s Day, we honor the men who have shaped our lives—through presence, provision, protection, and guidance. But for Christian fathers, the calling runs even deeper. In God’s design, fatherhood is not just a social construct or biological role; it is a sacred calling woven into the fabric of biblical sexuality. It’s a living testimony to God’s character and a mirror of His relational design for humanity.

From the beginning, Scripture presents fatherhood within the framework of God’s ordered creation. In Genesis 2, we see Adam placed in the garden, given responsibility, identity, and a mission before ever receiving a wife or children. He was called to work, to protect, to obey, and ultimately to live in covenant with God. This foundational identity—grounded in God’s design for manhood—prepares the soil for godly fatherhood. Biblical sexuality is not merely about behavior or desire; it’s about becoming who God created us to be. For men, that includes the calling to reflect God’s fatherly heart.

In a culture that often blurs the lines between gender and undermines the importance of fathers, the Church must reclaim a clear and compelling vision of biblical masculinity and fatherhood. Sexuality, as revealed in Scripture, is deeply relational and purpose-driven. It is ordered toward covenant love, fruitful union, and generational faithfulness. Fathers, then, are not just providers or disciplinarians—they are shepherds of their children’s hearts, spiritual leaders in the home, and living examples of the Gospel.

The Apostle Paul captures this weighty role in Ephesians 6:4: “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” Biblical fatherhood is formative. It disciples. It protects. It draws lines not out of fear or control, but out of love and clarity—showing children the beauty and goodness of God’s design for their bodies, relationships, and identity.

But many men today carry wounds that have distorted their understanding of fatherhood—wounds from absent fathers, moral failures, or unresolved struggles with their own sexuality. The Gospel offers healing not just for behavior, but for identity. Jesus reveals the Father to us (John 14:9), and by uniting us with Him, we are adopted into God’s family and made new. A father redeemed by grace becomes a powerful witness of God’s love, even if his past is marked by failure or confusion.

Fatherhood in light of biblical sexuality also means modeling integrity in a sex-saturated world. Our children are watching. They notice how we treat our wives, what we click on, how we talk about people, how we confess sin. Fathers who live with repentance, humility, and resolve show their children that biblical sexuality isn’t about perfection, but direction—a life moving toward God’s design, not away from it.

Moreover, a biblical father doesn't just teach his children what not to do—he casts a vision for what’s beautiful. He teaches his daughters that their femininity is a gift to be cherished, not exploited. He teaches his sons that strength is for service, not selfishness. He celebrates marriage, honors singleness, and points his family to the eternal Father who defines all of life’s meaning.

This Father’s Day, we thank God for the men who have embraced this sacred call. Whether biological, adoptive, or spiritual fathers, their lives echo the Gospel and shape future generations. They are guardians of truth, builders of legacy, and image-bearers of the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named (Ephesians 3:15).

May we pray for our fathers, encourage them, and equip them—because in God’s design, a faithful father is not just a blessing to his home but a beacon of hope in a world desperate for direction, love, and truth.