Bible Reading
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3 “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” 4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord 5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free. 9 And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.
Ephesians 6:1-9
Ephesians 6:1-9
Devotional
There was a recent reality television show called "The Parent Test" that went behind the scenes with 12 different families to see which parenting style was best. Within the show, many parenting styles were presented and given names such as Intensive parenting, Natural Parenting, Helicopter, Free-range, Child-led, Routine, Friend...etc. Every parent was given camera time to make a case why their approach to parenting was superior to the others. As Christians, we don't look to culture, TV shows, or Social Media to teach us how to parent. We may find helpful advice in modern society, but as a whole, we should look to Scripture to teach us a healthy biblically-based style of parenting. One major aspect of parenting is the training of children in the ways and principles of the Lord. Paul uses two words which get translated into training and instruction in verse 4. These same Greek words 'Paideia' and 'Nouthesia' are also translated to chastening or discipline and admonition. Paideia is also used in Hebrews 12:5-11, a passage of scripture famous for its description of Godly discipline. It carries the idea of training through corrective discipline, whereas admonition is more of the idea of training through teaching. So you see two very necessary ways parents are instructed to raise up their children, through training and teaching, which comes first, and then corrective discipline, which comes after. A very significant and noteworthy point is that both training and admonition are used to describe the purpose of the Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16 and 1 Corinthians 10:11). Think about that. The same words used to describe how parents are to raise children are the same words used to describe what scripture should be used for. The lesson here is obvious; Parents should use scripture to train children in alignment with the word of God. God's word is our greatest weapon and tool in raising the next generation. And why should a child obey? Because it is a way to honor God, and it is the right thing to do. And why should a parent teach their child obedience? So that it will go well with you, and so you may enjoy a long life on earth. Think about that; learning good parenting skills will help increase your joy and health!
Another key in today's passage centers around the idea of obedience. Paul urges children to obey their parents and slaves to obey their masters. This Greek word 'Hypakouo' does not mean to blindly obey without question. Etymologically it means "under-listen, harken, give ear, give attention and voluntarily submit". Another idea is that to obey in this sense is to "consider what is said and give respect to those who say it." There are other words used in scripture that describe total, unquestioning submission and obedience that are only ever used of God, never for human authority. We must note the difference. Parents are not meant to be unquestioned tyrants in the home, but loving guides who lead with both discipline and guidance. The Bible calls for obedience to authority figures to be given only within the context of honoring and obeying God above all else. Additionally, the Bible also teaches that authority figures are to lead with justice and compassion, rather than cruelty or abuse. Christians have normally divided the Ten Commandments into the first four (directed towards God) and the last six (directed towards their fellow man). But the Jews divided the commandments into two sets of five, seeing the law to honor your father and mother more as a duty towards God than a duty towards man. We honor God by honoring those we have relationships with and understanding our responsibility towards them.
The overarching point is that the parent-child relationship presents a two-sided responsibility. The child is responsible for honoring and obeying while the parent is responsible for loving and teaching the child to obey using the word of the Lord as a guide. We don’t need to teach our children how to disobey because they have each inherited an inclination to sin from Adam – but obedience must be taught. The same is true of a slave-master relationship as well, a relationship that was a prolific part of the Roman empire. Charles Francis Digby Moule, a famous Anglican theologian, had this to say about addressing slavery from a biblical perspective: “The Gospel found slavery in the world; and in many regions, particularly the Roman and the Greek. The Gospel began at once to undermine it, with its mighty principles of the equality of all souls in the mystery and dignity of manhood, and of the equal work of redeeming love wrought for all souls by the supreme Master. But its plan was – not to batter and break, but to undermine… So while the Gospel in one respect left slavery alone, it doomed it in another.”
Another key in today's passage centers around the idea of obedience. Paul urges children to obey their parents and slaves to obey their masters. This Greek word 'Hypakouo' does not mean to blindly obey without question. Etymologically it means "under-listen, harken, give ear, give attention and voluntarily submit". Another idea is that to obey in this sense is to "consider what is said and give respect to those who say it." There are other words used in scripture that describe total, unquestioning submission and obedience that are only ever used of God, never for human authority. We must note the difference. Parents are not meant to be unquestioned tyrants in the home, but loving guides who lead with both discipline and guidance. The Bible calls for obedience to authority figures to be given only within the context of honoring and obeying God above all else. Additionally, the Bible also teaches that authority figures are to lead with justice and compassion, rather than cruelty or abuse. Christians have normally divided the Ten Commandments into the first four (directed towards God) and the last six (directed towards their fellow man). But the Jews divided the commandments into two sets of five, seeing the law to honor your father and mother more as a duty towards God than a duty towards man. We honor God by honoring those we have relationships with and understanding our responsibility towards them.
The overarching point is that the parent-child relationship presents a two-sided responsibility. The child is responsible for honoring and obeying while the parent is responsible for loving and teaching the child to obey using the word of the Lord as a guide. We don’t need to teach our children how to disobey because they have each inherited an inclination to sin from Adam – but obedience must be taught. The same is true of a slave-master relationship as well, a relationship that was a prolific part of the Roman empire. Charles Francis Digby Moule, a famous Anglican theologian, had this to say about addressing slavery from a biblical perspective: “The Gospel found slavery in the world; and in many regions, particularly the Roman and the Greek. The Gospel began at once to undermine it, with its mighty principles of the equality of all souls in the mystery and dignity of manhood, and of the equal work of redeeming love wrought for all souls by the supreme Master. But its plan was – not to batter and break, but to undermine… So while the Gospel in one respect left slavery alone, it doomed it in another.”