by Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t
<\/p>\nI. One of the Ten Commandments of the Old Law is brought to the New Law intact. It is the\ncommandment to honor our parents\n A. The word “honor” in this passage means to fix a value on something, to consider\nit a prized possession.\n B. The original Hebrew from Exodus 20:12 is interesting. It comes from a word\nmeaning “to be heavy.” It is used to ascribe someone heavy with wealth. Someone\nwho is considered important and impressive.\n
1. Like the man of God, held in honor by the people – I Samuel 9:6<\/p>\n
II. What does it mean to honor one’s parents<\/p>\n A. Ephesians 6:1 – Paul tells children to obey their parents and proves his point by\nquoting the command that says to honor your parents. \n
1. Therefore honoring your parents means to obey them when you are a child<\/p>\n
2. Such obedience is pleasing to God – Colossians 3:20<\/p>\n
B. It means listening to their teachings and applying them to our lives – Proverbs 1:8-9<\/p>\n
C. Even when being disciplined, children are to pay attention – Proverbs 15:5<\/p>\n
D. A child is to be grateful for what his parents have done for him – Proverbs 30:11<\/p>\n E. Honoring your parents means that you do not mock them or treat them scornfully,\neven with a look – Proverbs 30:17\n
1. Honor is shown in our body language – Leviticus 19:32<\/p>\n 2. Slouching in a chair and saying, “Hi pops!” is not honor, though I know\nmany parents who take what little acknowledgment they can get.\n
3. It means having a bit of fear or reverence for them – Leviticus 19:3<\/p>\n
F. A child must not curse his parents – Proverbs 20:20, Exodus 21:17<\/p>\n
1. This doesn’t just mean not to use profanity at them.<\/p>\n
2. To make light of them, to treat them with contempt<\/p>\n G. A direct application of this law is that a child must not strike his parents – Exodus\n21:15\n
H. It means they are not someone to overrun and think nothing of it – Proverbs 28:24<\/p>\n
I. The idea of honor includes seeing to their needs – I Timothy 5:3,8,16<\/p>\n
A. Your parent is the person who has raised you or is raising you.<\/p>\n
“This commandment is not qualified. It does not mean: • Honor only if the person is personally perceived as deserving<\/p>\n
• Honor only if the person always reciprocates<\/p>\n
• Honor only if it is pleasing to you to do so<\/p>\n
• Honor only if you get compliments for doing so<\/p>\n
• Honor only if it “feels right”<\/p>\n
• Honor only if other people also do so.”<\/p>\n
Dr. Laura Schlessinger, The Ten Commandments<\/i>, page 144<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
1. Consider I Samuel 24:10-11. <\/p>\n a. This takes place when Saul is trying to kill David by hunting him\ndown with an army.\n
b. Saul is David’s father-in-law, but notice how he addresses Saul.<\/p>\n c. Even when the man is trying to kill him, David treats him with\nrespect.\n
2. Respect for a parent does not mean following them into sin. <\/p>\n
a. A parent’s authority is granted by God.<\/p>\n b. If a parent violates the laws of God, a child must follow the higher\nauthority.\n 3. Respect for a parent must not exceed our respect for God – Matthew\n10:34-37\n C. Interestingly, while there are several passages which command parents to love\ntheir children, such as Titus 2:4, there is no equivalent command requiring a child\nto love his parents.\n
1. Perhaps it is because such love is naturally given.<\/p>\n 2. Perhaps it is because the required discipline makes love difficult at the\ntime of correction.\nIV. While honoring your parents is not dependent on your parent’s behavior, there is implied\nin this command obligations on each parent’s part\n A. If a child honors his parents by listening to their instructions, then a parent must\ngive instruction and that instruction better be in accordance with God’s will\n
1. Ephesians 6:4 – Instructing them in the Lord<\/p>\n
2. Deuteronomy 11:19-21 – A constant reminder of what is right<\/p>\n
B. If a child is to respect his parents, that respect must be expected of him<\/p>\n
1. Foolishness is in the heart of a child – Proverbs 22:15<\/p>\n
2. If you truly love your child, you will discipline him – Proverbs 13:24<\/p>\n 3. A child doesn’t necessarily have respect unless a habit of respect is\ninstilled in him.\n C. When a child is taught to respect his parents, it is the beginning of a greater\nperspective about the world.\n
1. Young children are notorious for their self-centered view of the world.<\/p>\n 2. By respecting his parents, a child begins to see there are others worthy of\nconsideration.\n
3. It is the beginning of eventually loving your neighbor as yourself.<\/p>\nV. As with each of the Ten Commandments, there is more to God’s law than what appears\non the surface.\n
A. It is not just a command to children, but also to their parents<\/p>\n
B. As with all commands of God, the following benefits each of us.<\/p>\n
1. This command comes with a promise of a longer life.<\/p>\n C. But following the commands of God also leads you to the living waters of eternal\nlife.\n D. Is there any here who wish to obey God, not just in honoring their parents, but in\nmaking God their Lord and Master?\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 6:1-3 I. One of the Ten Commandments of the Old Law is brought to the New Law intact. It is the commandment to honor our parents A. The word “honor” in this passage means to fix a value on something, to consider it a prized possession. B. The original Hebrew from…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,1028,32],"tags":[665,110,198,550,29,1509,107],"class_list":["post-43092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-parenting","category-sermon","tag-child-rearing","tag-children","tag-honor","tag-honor-your-parents","tag-parenting","tag-parents","tag-raising-children"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1710,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/honor-your-father-and-mother\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":0},"title":"Honor Your Father and Mother (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 12, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton The command to honor your parents was carried over into the law of Christ intact. \"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. \"Honor your father and mother,\" which is the first commandment with promise: \"that it may be well with you and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33626,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/doesnt-telling-children-to-obey-their-parents-enable-abusers\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":1},"title":"Doesn’t telling children to obey their parents enable abusers?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 3, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I completely disagree that you would teach\u00a0obeying parents\u00a0to children or people at your church.\u00a0 Honor does not mean \"obey\" and if a child or adult is being abused by their parent, they should\u00a0not\u00a0obey. You may want to rephrase your messages on your website unless you are enabling abusers within\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14168,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-dont-protestants-honor-mary-as-catholics-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":2},"title":"Why don’t Protestants honor Mary as Catholics do?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 10, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: The original question was: Why do Protestants not honor Mary as Catholics do? We are to imitate Jesus Christ, are we not? Well, Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law perfectly, and part of the Law is the Fourth Commandment. Jesus honored his Father and his Mother, so we should do\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":52938,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/when-does-someone-stop-being-a-child\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":3},"title":"When does someone stop being a child?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 5, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Ephesians 6:1-2. \"Children\" has no absolute age-associated concept to it, does it? If it was only used in the sense of young children, well then. But it refers all over scripture to offspring generally. When does the principle of a child as a minor actually come into play here?\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29496,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-adults-need-to-honor-their-parents-by-obeying-them\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":4},"title":"Do adults need to honor their parents by obeying them?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 11, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I read your take on the commandment\u00a0Honor thy father and thy mother and noticed that you used the word \"child\" and \"children\" quite a few times. So is your interpretation\u00a0to obey isolated to children who have not reached independent legal adulthood or does it imply that even the adults\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":84778,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/honoring-your-parents\/","url_meta":{"origin":43092,"position":5},"title":"Honoring Your Parents","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Perry Hall I have two adopted children whom we taught to honor their biological parents by praying for them. The greatest self-respect comes from my character, not theirs. I understand the difficulty of honoring parents who are unworthy. I am also called to love my enemies, and sometimes, that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43092"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43092\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}