TOP TEN
Kimberly Lawrence
Today's Scripture: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ (this is the first commandment with a promise).” Ephesians 6:1-2, ESV.
Theme: Honoring our parents because of our respect for God is a commandment given with a promise of blessing.
A PARENT’S LOVE
I love my children. I have loved them enough to nurture, teach, and even discipline them every day of their lives. Like most parents, I want nothing more than for them to live long, healthy, and fulfilled lives. When they experience pain or disappointment, I can literally feel it in my own body.
A parent’s love for a child is so strong it can elicit a physical reaction in a parent. I recall watching my young son sled down a hill, directly into a parked vehicle. Although my body wasn’t physically involved, I immediately went hot and flushed over the fear and pain he experienced. It was like he was still connected to my body! It’s hard to imagine anyone in the world loving them more. As a mature adult, it’s easy to forget that I, too, am someone’s “baby”. That same love I have for my children my own parents have for me.
The parent/child relationship is God-given. It replicates the relationship and connection that God, our Father, has with us. And, just as we are called to honor our heavenly Father, He calls us to honor those He chose to carry out His plan for our existence. We must care for those who first cared for us.
THE “BIG TEN”
When God delivered His people from Egypt, He gave Moses the Ten Commandments. It’s hard to believe He could boil it down to just ten! I doubt God randomly rattled them off to Moses without thought about priority. Could Moses have possibly gotten them out of order? Also, unlikely. The first five commandments reflect our obligations to God while the last five instruct us regarding our relationships with others.
We don’t get to pick and choose which of the ten we like best or which we think are most important. God already did that. So, out of ALL the rules God could have outlined for our well-being, He not only included honoring our father and mother, but He also made an intentional promise. Paul relayed this promise in Ephesians 6:2-3 (paraphrased: “Honor your father and mother…so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth. ‘This isn’t meant to imply there will be no hardship in life if we master this one simple commandment. It’s more about the general pattern of a life lived under God’s design. Honoring parents produces wisdom and stability, leading to healthy relationships and character. This often results in better decisions, leading to a more well-ordered life.
SPEAK KINDLY
Parents, because they are human, can be difficult. When we are small children, parents just seem to have a lot of rules. As teens, we think our parents don’t know anything. As young adults, we think the world has changed and they just can’t relate. When we are mature adults, we can finally consider the value in their experience.
At times, there can be a bit of a role reversal where we begin to “parent’ our own parents. Honoring them means to regard them with respect—at all times—for their position in our lives. This may mean prioritizing time to see them or simply checking your tone and volume when they need your assistance. You can pray for them, about your relationship with them, or maybe even for yourself if you’re encountering difficulty connecting.
Make It Personal: Do you become easily frustrated or impatient with your mother or father? If so, it’s time to reflect on how you can honor God by honoring them. Why? Because it’s a reflection of our own faith in what God has called us to do. This was so important to God that it made the “Top 10” and it needs to be an intentional commitment and priority for us.
Pray: God, thank You for those You’ve chosen to call my Father and Mother. After You, they were the first to love me. Show me the ways I can honor them daily and thereby, honor You. Help me, God, to see the good in them, loving beyond any imperfections, just as You have loved me through mine. Amen
Read: Exodus 20:1-21, Colossians 3:20; Matthew 15:4-5
Weekly Memory Verse:
“Listen to your father who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.” Proverbs 23:22, ESV