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Wednesday, Apr. 27, 2005 | ||
Honoring our parents
By JOHN HATCHER With Mothers Day only a few days away, our continuing conversation about the Ten Commandments is very appropriate as we focus on number five today: Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you (Exodus 20:12). Lets look at what the commandment does not say. First it does not say obey your father and mother. There have been times when a child must take a grave stand and refuse to fully obey a parent. A child should not obey a parent if the child has been directed to be involved in some sort of perversion. And you can think of other instances at which times a child must take an awesome stand in disobedience. Second, the fifth commandment does not say to worship your mother and father. Although there have been millions of Godly fathers and mothers, none can stand the test of worship. All are flawed at some point. One of the worst things a parent can do to his or her child is to make that child believe the parent is perfect and worthy of worship. Third, this commandment does not say only honor one parent over the other. I am told that on Mothers Day, telephone companies and Hallmark make a bundle. Yet, on Fathers Day, the business is nothing to write home about. Children grow up somehow believing the Father is the most important voice in the family, but in the end, mothers get more love and affection. Go figure. In this instance, the Word of God plays an equal opportunity role: both parents are to be honored from the get-go to the get-gone. Its not a matter of which parent was your favorite. Both are to receive honor. Fourth, the big five of the Big Ten does not contain a statute of limitations: meaning there is a time limit for this thing of honoring. Lots of folks think the honor clause is limited to the time we live under the roof of our parents and once we are out of the nest, living on our own, that we can forget the fifth. Not so. The fifth commandment is like every other commandment found in the Bible. Its effective for all the days of lives. We even continue to honor our parents after they are dead and gone. I have honored my father more in the last ten years than I probably honored him the 22 years I had with him. He died in 1969. He was able to see man walk on the moon and to see his son graduate from the University of Georgia. Go dogs! For those of you who perhaps think of your parents as poor parents, I challenge you to search the corners of your mind, seeking to find evidence to honor them (even if they too are dead and gone). The command clearly says to honor our parents. It does not say if they are good parents to honor them. Dont we hope that our children will find reasons and maybe new ones to honor us when we are gone from the scene? Now, with five things the fifth commandment does not say, what does it say? It says that we are to treat our parents as heavies. Thats the literal meaning of the Hebrew word for honor. They are to be revered, not worshipped. They are to be respected, not tolerated. They are to be heard and sought after for their wisdom. The honor due parents should be rendered with joy. Every child should sing with joy when mother asks for the trash to be taken out. Its a splendid opportunity to show honor. Honor is something you give to another. It does not taste good if it is demanded, but it must be taught. The fifth commandment requires that parents and church join hands in teaching children to honor their parents. No parent does his child any favor to attempt to be the best buddy or best friend. Your child needs you to be the best parent and that means you must teach through modeling and instruction that your child must honor you. To close out, the fifth commandment seems to be the only commandment with a promise attached: you will live a longer life by close compliance to this commandment. Have you seen where old, old parents have old, old children? You can read an obituary of a mother who dies at age 102 leaving behind a child in her eighties. I just bet that those old children will leave a legacy to their children of honoring parents. The Word of God will not be mocked. If you sow the word in your life, you will reap the fruit of your labor. You honor your parents; you will have a long and joyful life. Thats a promise you can take to heaven. |
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