The True Meaning of 'Daddy's Girl'

                Many people call me a daddy’s girl. I work with my father every opportunity I get. I’m almost 20 but I still call him daddy. We have the same interests and taste in music. We have the same allergy and we even both have acute asthma. But what does “Daddy’s” really mean? Is it a possessive form that affirms that Daddy is my owner?

                The answer to this question will bring us to the answer to the propriety of courtship for a daughter’s pre-marriage relationship. In today’s society, many daughters do not feel that their father has any right to have a say in her dating life, especially once she is 18. Courtship is an establishment of a relationship with a father agreeing to work with the young man to win his daughter’s heart. The father’s approval is needed. I once felt that I did not need my father’s approval but now I see that I am owned by my father until he gives my hand in marriage to an approved man. I now rejoice in that truth and if someone is interested in me, he should see him not me.

                This might make you cringe and might say to get with the times. But, let’s not dismiss the idea. The Christian worldview is informed by scripture and no part of life is exempt from God’s sovereignty. We must obey His law even if it means opposing popular culture and going against the grain. But the Bible tells us that we need to be ready to live against the norms of unbelief. The word of God teaches us that the creator of something has certain rights. For example, God is sovereign over all things because he created all things.

“The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell

in it, for He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the rivers.”

-Psalm 24:1

                The same idea is seen in Romans 9:21. The potter can do as he pleases with the pottery that he makes, since he created it. Human ownership is always under the ownership of God. However, God has declared that the rights of the parents are to be honored and revered for the fact that they are the immediate generative source of individuals.

                Fathers are supposed to have a different relationship with their daughters than they do their sons. He must raise his sons to be a provider while he has to raise his daughters to be submissive, godly wives. Independence is not something that should be seeked for by a woman of God. She is supposed to allow headship to her husband. But if she does not agree with that than she will certainly not agree with the father having authority over her. They will find the idea of courtship offensive. But those who acknowledge God’s way is right will come to terms and agree with it.

“All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged

that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by

John. But the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God’s purpose

for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.”

-Luke 7:29-30

                People who are secular find it repulsive that as Christians we give our life and spirit to Jesus Christ and we are not our own. They say that means we can’t do what we want but that is not true. God gives us our own will to do as we please. We give ourselves as a living sacrifice to the Lord willingly.

                Now, back to authority over a daughter. A daughter is not obliged to obey commands from any source binding her to sin, even her own father. Some argue, “What is God tells the girl through signs and visions that she is to marry a particular man? Wouldn’t God’s will supersede her earthly father’s will?” Simply no. In a relationship of father and daughter, God takes a back seat. God has created hierarchy that the daughter is directly answerable to her father and then her father answers to God. This make the father responsible for himself and his daughter.

                You may say that there is scripture that states that the child is not punished for the parent’s sin and the parent is not responsible for the child’s. However, with the way God has set up this form of relationship, the daughter is not punished for anything her father has done. The father may tell a daughter to or not to do something so therefore it is not her own will and doing so he answers because it was his will.

“Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall

children be put to death for their father.”

-Deuteronomy 2:16

                The father’s ownership is so he can raise her to fear the Lord, protect her from harm, other men, and even from herself and foolish decisions she may make. Numbers 30 helps us understand God’s view of the father/daughter relationship.

“When a young woman still living in her father’s house makes a vow to the Lord

or obligates herself by a pledge and her father hears about her

vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every

pledge by which she obligated herself will stand.

But if her father forbids her when he hears about it, none of her vows or the pledges by which she

obligated herself to will stand; the Lord will release her because

her father has forbidden her.”

-Numbers 30:3-5

                The girl has promised something to the Most High but is forgiven because her father has forbidden her from completing the promise. God says “You heard your father. No.” The will of the father is the will of God if he is living according to biblical terms and God’s own will on his life.  In modern “dating” the girl is seen as being to herself. Therefore, most people believe the man just has to ask her permission. But, according to rules of God, the young man must also seek the father’s approval. Since the father has to give himself approval, the man knows he’s being watched and will prove himself worthy of a beautiful gem (Proverbs 31:10). Simple things like sweet words might win over the daughter but that is because she goes by emotions as most other woman. But to get past Daddy’s tests is going to be tougher because he goes by reasoning and wants to make sure the man that takes his daughter’s hand is worthy. A godly father is aware of his daughters abilities and needs and can often determine if the man and daughter complement each other well.

                No man can approach me as my own boss because I belong, until marriage, to my father. That is why the father walks the bride down the aisle. At the time of my marriage, my father gives me to my husband through a lawful change of ownership. Reading further into Numbers 30 we see there is no free time for the female to gallivant on her own apart from a covenant head. How do we know the daughter belongs to the father until marriage? Further into Numbers 30, the husband gains the same authority over the wife that the father once had.

“If a woman living with her husband makes a vow or obligates herself by

a pledge under oath and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her and

does not forbid her, then all her vows or the pledges by

which she obligated herself will stand. But if her husband nullifies

them when he hears about them, then none of the vows or pledges

that came from her lips will stand. Her husband

has nullified them, and the Lord will release her. Her husband may

confirm or nullify any vow she makes or any sworn

pledge to deny herself…If however

he nullifies them some time after he hears about

them, then he is responsible for her guilt”

-Numbers 30:10-13…15

                You might not be completely in sync with your Dad. Maybe you’re just like your mom or are a mix of both. But you should be no less of a Daddy’s girl than any other young female. You may get married at 18 or you might not get married at all. Either way, you are under your father’s care until you are given into marriage or the Lord takes you from this life. Your responsibility as a daughter is this: Do the will of your father on earth so that you may do the will of Your Father in heaven.

Marriage and Divorce

“Hatred stirs up dissension but love covers all wrongs.”

-Proverbs 10:12

                Love is a beautiful thing. It is a thing of God. 1 John 4:7-8 tells us to love one another because love is from God. Whoever does not love does not know God. God lives in us and is complete in us if we show love. You might ask what I’m getting at. Well, today I want to discuss marriage. And what is at the center of a marriage? God and love.

 Marriage: the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or  wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law; a covenant.

                Marriage was the first institution created by God in Genesis chapter 2. It’s a sacred and holy covenant. God says that it is a good thing for a man and a woman to be married together.

“He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.”

-Proverbs 18:22

                We are not to go out and look for our spouses but let love be found on its own. God will place that right person in your life when He feels the time is right. Don’t listen to Christianmingle.com commercials; it’s not our duty to go out and do a duty that God is supposed to do for us.

“Do not arouse or awaken love, until it so desires.”

-Song of Songs 2:7

                God has ordained us and given us permission to marry! But we are only to have one spouse. Note how in the next verse it does not say husbands or wives.

“But since there is so much immorality, each man should have

his own wife, and each woman her own husband.”

-1 Corinthians 7:2

                Marriage is sacred thing but today’s divorce rates are high; as a matter of fact, approximately fifty percent of marriages fail. Why? There are several plausible reasons. They might have had a relationship based on lust or one partner mistreated the other. They might not have had God at the center of their relationship. God does not agree with divorce nor does He support it. When you commit to marriage with your spouse, you are making a promise to God as well. You aren’t supposed to break promises with Him.

“When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has

no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not

to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. Do not let your

mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger,

“My vow was a mistake.”

-Ecclesiastes 5:4-6

                So, what does the bible say exactly about divorce? It’s detestable unless for a legitimate reason. And what is that reason? Marital unfaithfulness. Matthew 5:32 says that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness (adultery, prostitution, pornography, etc…), causes her to become an adulteress. She can never remarry once she divorces her husband. If she does marry again, the man who marries her will be an adulterer.

“I hate divorce,’ says the Lord God of Israel…”

-Malachi 2:16

“To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not 
separate from her husband.But if she does, she must remain unmarried or 
else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not 
 divorce his wife. To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother 
has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to 
live with her, she must not divorce him.For the unbelieving husband 
has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has 
been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children 
would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.”

-1 Corinthians 7:10-14

“But if the unbeliever leaves, let it be so. The brother or the sister is 
not bound in such circumstances; God has called us to live in peace.  
How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or, 
how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?”

-1 Corinthians 7:15-16

“For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as 
long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the 
law that binds her to him. 3 So then, if she has sexual 
relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an
 adulteress. But if her husband dies,she is released from that law and 
is not an adulteress if she marries another man.”

-Romans 7:2-3

                So, how can you avoid divorce? Apply the Bible to your lives and your relationship. The basic instructions of the bible can help you in all relationships and all aspects of your life.

WIVES

“Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.

For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head

of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ,

so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.”

-Ephesians 5:22-24

“Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the  
behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.”

-1 Peter 3:1-2

“A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown,

but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones.”

-Proverbs 12:4

HUSBANDS

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her

to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,

and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any

other blemish, but only holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands out to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.”

-Ephesians 5:25-28

“Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with

 respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so

that nothing will hinder your prayers.”

-1 Peter 3:7

SPOUSES

“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands love

your wives and do not be harsh with them.”

-Colossians 3:18-19

“Do to others as you would like them to do to you.”

-Luke 6:31

“Serve one another with the gifts each of you received,

thus becoming good managers of the varies graces of God.”

-1 Peter 4:10

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility

consider others better than yourselves.”

-Philippians 2:3

“A gossip betrays a confidence,

but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.”

-Proverbs 11:13

“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,

but he who hates correction is stupid.”

-Proverbs 12:1

“When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.”

-Proverbs 10:19

“There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”

-Proverbs 12:18

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only

such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give

grace to those who hear.”

-Ephesians 4:29

Understanding the Book of Revelation: The Praise and Armageddon

                 Chapter 19 describes the praise in Heaven and the war at Armageddon.

Hallelujah

                Hallelujah is two Hebrew words combined. Hallelu means praise and jah is a shortened form of Jehovah. Therefore, hallelujah means praise Jehovah. In contrast to the mourning of the world over the destruction of Babylon we now have rejoicing over her destruction by those in heaven. This burst of praise is in response to the answer to the saints’ prayers because God has judged the great city for the way she has treated them. God made Rome rightfully pay for killing and tormenting His people. 

The Marriage

                Verse 7 mentions the bride of Jesus. Christ’s wife is the church, all believers from all ages. We can see this in the parable of the virgins in Matthew 25. We can take a look at the marriage customs of the Hebrews. First is the betrothal. This is considered more binding than our 'engagement'. The terms of the marriage are accepted in the presence of witnesses and God's blessing pronounced upon the union. From this day groom and bride are legally husband and wife (2 Corinthians 11:2). Next comes the interval between betrothal and the wedding-feast. During this interval the groom pays the dowry to the father of the bride if this has not yet been done (Genesis 34:12). Sometimes the dowry is in the form of service rendered (Genesis 29:20). Then comes the procession at the close of the interval. The bride prepares and adorns herself. The groom, arrayed in his best attire and accompanied by his friends, who sing and bear torches, proceeds to the home of the betrothed. He receives the bride and conveys her, with a returning procession, to his own home or to the home of his parents (Matthew 9:15; Matthew 25:1). When the groom had to come from afar, the feast was at times spread at the home of the bride. Finally there is the wedding-feast, which includes the marriage supper. The usual festivities last seven or more days. The bride is the church and Christ the bridegroom. The church is betrothed to Christ and Christ has paid the dowry for her with his own blood. The interval of separation is the current dispensation during which the bride makes herself ready. At the end of this dispensation the Bridegroom accompanied by his angels comes to receive his bride and the wedding feast begins. It does not last a few weeks but throughout eternity. In Christ the bride was chosen from eternity. Throughout the Old Testament dispensation the wedding was announced. When Christ assumed our flesh and blood; the betrothal took place. The price, the dowry was paid on Calvary and now after an interval, the Bridegroom returns and the wedding supper of the Lamb begins Even now Jesus is preparing a place for his bride who he will come back for and who will be with him forever. The reason why the bride wears white in verse 8 is because of her purity and righteousness. It is just like at a wedding here on earth. The bride wears pure white during her first wedding because she is pure. 

The Rider on the White Horse

                In verse 11 Christ becomes the fighting General to fight against the Antichrist and his army at Armageddon. He designates himself as 'the faithful and true witness' in the letter to the church in Laodicea. His eyes are flames so that He may carry out judgment on mankind. He wears crowns because of His glory and royal authority. He has a name written which no one knows but Himself because there are certain aspects of Christ that we have not yet experienced and only He knows. He wears a garment dipped in blood in verse 13 because He has tread the winepress of God and he sacrificed himself for mankind. 

                The armies in Heaven are the overcoming believers. The sharp sword that comes out of his mouth is not an actual sword but it is words of judgment used against the nations. In verse 15, to shepherd is to rule. An iron rod signifies strong power. Therefore, Christ will shepherd with strong power. Christ’s garment signifies righteousness and his thigh represents standing strength. His title is on his robe so all can easily see it. 

The Feast of God

                In verses 17 and 18 the bodies of all types of people will be offered to the flying creatures. This is from Ezekiel's prophecy about Gog in Ezekiel 39:4, 17. You can also look at David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:46, 'Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel'. Verse 19 is referring to the battle at Armageddon, the valley of Jehoshaphat, near Jerusalem. The Antichrist and the false prophet will be the first cast to Hell with Satan. The rest will suffer the words of God’s judgment.