HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER...ALWAYS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“If a man has two wives, and he loves one but not the other, and both bear him sons but the firstborn is the son of the wife he does not love, when he wills his property to his sons, he must not give the rights of the firstborn to the son of the wife he loves in preference to his actual firstborn, the son of the wife he does not love. He must acknowledge the son of his unloved wife as the firstborn by giving him a double share of all he has. That son is the first sign of his father's strength. The right of the firstborn belongs to him.”

“If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him, his father and mother shall take hold of him and bring him to the elders at the gate of his town. They shall say to the elders, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a profligate and a drunkard.’ Then all the men of his town shall stone him to death. You must purge the evil from among you. All Israel will hear of it and be afraid.”

Deuteronomy 21:15-21

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today’s excerpt from Deuteronomy, Chapter 21, contains two distinct passages on how the Israelites were to deal with their sons.

In the first passage, we see where the rights of the very firstborn son were upheld, even if the father engaged in polygamy.

The scenario given involves “a man (who) has two wives and…loves one but not the other” with both bearing “him sons but the firstborn is the son of the wife he does not love”. With these circumstances in place, there would be a danger that “when (the father) wills his property to his sons”, he might give “the rights of the firstborn to the son of the wife he loves in preference to his actual firstborn, the son of the wife he does not love”. This would be in direct violation of the Israeli customs regarding the inherent rights of firstborn sons and be unjust. In this instance, the actual firstborn son would be penalized just because his father loved his mother less than the other wife.

Given this possibility, God gives clear direction that would ensure that the firstborn son would be taken care of. The father was to “acknowledge the son of his unloved wife as the firstborn by giving him a double share of all he has” because the firstborn son was “the first sign of his father's strength”...the first product of his procreative power…and thus “the right of the firstborn belong(ed) to him”.

Once again as in so many instances in the Bible, we see where the Lord places a priority on justice.

Speaking of justice, we also see it evident in the second portion of our scripture only this time it isn’t favorable for the son.

Why?

Because the son in this second scenario is “stubborn and rebellious”…one “who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him”...”a profligate (one who fully lacks moral restraint) and a drunkard”. This was in direct violation of God’s commandment to “"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” (Exodus 20:12)

Because of this, we see where the consequences for an obstinate disobedient child were severe. For when the parents had done all they could do to get the son under control, the next step was to take the son “to the elders at the gate of his town”. Once there and after the parents had told the elders about the son’s unwillingness to comply with their guidance and the moral expectations of society, “all the men of his town (would) stone (the stubborn son) to death”. This was intended to be a deterrent to this sinful behavior for God showed He wouldn’t tolerate a clear violation of His commandment.

Now, obviously this Old Testament cultural norm wouldn’t work too well today but this doesn’t mean that God has changed His expectation about that children are to honor their father and mother. The truth is that it’s just as valid now and yet…ask yourself this:

How often is it violated today? How often do children take the liberty to disrespect their parents?

I would wager to say it is violated far more than it ever was during the days of early Israel…and that is truly sad to me but I wonder how God feels about it. I can’t imagine he’s too pleased.

So why do so many children have such an issue with respecting their parents?

Well, often it’s because parents mistreat them in some way and thus lose their respect. And yet, does God’s word give us an out clause when it comes to honoring our parents? Try to find one and you’ll find it doesn’t exist.

Why?

Because it’s not up to children to decide whether their parents deserve honor or not. That’s God’s job and trust me when I say He will hold parents accountable for any wrongs they commit against His children…because that’s who they are. All children belong to Him and then He entrusts them to worldly parents, expecting them to provide proper care. Indeed, worldly parents have an incredible responsibility and with that comes with an equal accountability to the Lord who won’t accept failure in this area.

Before I finish, one final thought on honoring parents. For we all have one Father when it comes down to it and we all are His children, children that He expects to honor and respect Him in every way. Unfortunately, I’m afraid that we fail to live up to this expectation more times than not and if we lived in the days of ancient Israel, many of us probably would have been dragged outside the gates of our towns and stoned to the death for our insubordination.

And yet, here we are. Not despised but loved, not condemned but forgiven, all because we have a Father who shows us grace and mercy despite our rebellious, sinful spirits. I would submit to you that we need to emulate our Lord and extend that same grace and mercy to our parents.

Perhaps if we did, we would live in a better world today, a world where we leave the judging to God while we ever seek to honor Him by respecting others, including our parents, while striving to live like His Son, Jesus who perfectly honored His Father.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.