Dear friends, how’s it going? I hope you’re reading! I think it’s so awesome to go through this with you all. I’m pumped because this week as we continue digging into Ephesians we come to a verse I’m sure you’ve all heard over and over again. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord… Honor your father and mother”.
I think that for those of us who heard this from our parents, sometimes it seemed like it was an answer when they didn’t feel like explaining why we should listen. “Because it’s in the bible!” or “because God told you to!” But what I think is interesting here is that after Paul says “obey your parents” he says “this is right”. Paul doesn’t say we should obey them because they do everything right- they don’t. Not because they have all the answers- they don’t. (Surprised?) We obey our parents because God placed them over us, and to disobey them would be to disobey the authority God has given them, and to disobey God.
In verses two and three, Paul quotes an Old Testament law
book; Deuteronomy. It uses an
interesting word: HONOR. This is
different from OBEY.
What does the word HONOR make you think of?
It moves from a command: “Honor your father and mother” to a promise “that it
may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” Paul says that not only should we honor our
parents because they are the parents God has given us, but that when we respect
that authority, we will be blessed.
Then Paul charges the Fathers. “Do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” (Exasperate is a big word that means irritate or annoy. Isn’t it funny that Paul tells your parents not to annoy you?)
Just as we are called to obey our parents, God has charged them with a HUGE task: raising us right, raising us in the instruction of the Lord, which is the word!
Peace,
Jason
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