"God said, `Honor your father and mother. "
Matthew 15:4
YES, SIR
Read It: Exodus 20:12; Matthew 15:4-6; Ephesians 6:2
There isn't much mystery about the word honor. It means to hold in high esteem, to treat with reverence and respect. In the course of this year I'm sure I'll be telling you about my father, Arthur Evans. He has always commanded my respect. Today, even though I'm a grandfather too, I do not go to his home and greet him, "Say, Arthur, what's happening?" I just can't do it. The man would only stare at me. It's "Dad" or "Sir" or some other term that tells him I respect his position. See, kids need their parents to help them understand that you are the adult and they are the child, and that children are to respect adults. In time, they are going to get that right. But what we need to do as parents in the meantime is be consistent, teach it, expect it, and encourage it. And by the way, today's verse from the lips of Jesus, along with the other verses in today's reading, remind us that honor isn't just some nice little concept we teach to help polish our kids' manners and keep them from being rude. It has the power of life and death in it. But let's turn this around for a minute, because if we're going to be worthy of honor as parents, we'd better take a reading of our "honor quotient" tient" toward our parents. For us, honor means two basic things. We've already mentioned the first one, to hold our parents in high esteem and treat them with reverence. So we have no right to speak to them any way we want, no matter what age we are.
That doesn't mean you have to agree with them, but you disagree in honor. The second thing honor can mean is financial help and/or personal care. I believe we as Christian children are responsible to support our parents. ents. It will be our turn soon enough. So as parents we must teach our children to honor us and ultimately to honor God. Why? There are several good reasons for it, according to the Scriptures. We'll talk about them tomorrow. Think About It Honor is meant to move in a cycle through each generation. Today's parents have their chance to pass on the blessing.
No Comments