“PARENT/CHILD RELATIONS”
PASTOR DAVID MOORE
Old Testament reading: Exodus 20:1‐17
And God spoke all these words:
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
“You shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name.
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
“You shall not murder.
“You shall not commit adultery.
“You shall not steal.
“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
Theme today: The relationship between parents and children.
New Testament reading: Ephesians 6:1‐4
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—“so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”
Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
If I don’t have to obey them, then why do I have to honor them? Because the Bible says there is no excuse for not honoring your parents. Obedience and honor are two separate things. We need to learn to separate these or we will never be able to honor our conscience on this command for God. ~D. Moore
We know that there is a moral structure in the universe, a moral order, given by God, who created us. ~D. Moore
Effective parenting is not whether it ‘works’ or not, but whether parents take up the office they are called to. I think most parents understand our job is to mature and pass along values. ~D. Moore
How do we honor our parents?
1. Take them seriously.
2. Forgive our parents.
3. Make sure you are a son or daughter of the Heavenly Father.
The only way to be free to honor our parents is if we can look beyond them and say,
“No, really, it’s God’s approval, my Heavenly Father’s approval that I need.”
Being a Christian is fundamentally having God as our Father. You may be leading a moral life, you may know about God, but until you have God as a Father, you are still not a Christian. ~D. Moore
Do you bear the imprint of your Heavenly Father in your life? Do you live in the knowledge, deep in your bones, that you are completely forgiven, completely accepted, completely loved? The way we finally grow up is to have God as our Heavenly Father. This only happens through Jesus.
John 1:12, “But as many received him, who believed in His name, to them He gave power to become sons of God…”
And you are. ~D. Moore
This week ask yourself, “Is God your Heavenly Father?” Dwell on John 1:12.
God bless.