March 22nd, 2015

Young people in the room, if you're living right now with your parents,

you're dependent on them in some way,

what happens in you when this happens?

Honey, we go clean your room.

Oh, sweetheart, that's not going to work.

Would you go change?

I think you've got to go finish your homework.

I know they want you to come go see that movie,

but that's an inappropriate movie.

You can't go.

Children in the room, here's what I want to help you see.

When your parents ask you to do something,

ask you not to do something,

I want you to see someone standing behind your parents, Jesus.

And you know what Jesus is saying to you?

Do it for me.

Obey your parents for me.

Honor them for me.

Do it for me.

So would you look at Ephesians chapter 6, 1 through 4.

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

Honor your father and your mother.

This is the first commandment with a promise.

That it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.

Verse 4.

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger,

but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

Children in the room, live for Jesus.

Live for Jesus.

Obey your parents.

Live for Christ by obeying your mother and your father.

Four points this morning to help you see this.

That to live for Christ is to honor your mom and your dad.

Four points.

Here's the first one.

Ready?

Point number one.

God's greenhouse of grace is the family.

God's greenhouse of grace is the family.

And the goal of the family is for children to grow in godliness.

God's greenhouse of grace is the family.

And the goal is for children to grow in godliness.

We see that in Ephesians 6, 1 through 4.

Roles here of children and of parents.

God wants us to be fully aware of what he wants for children and parents

together in a Christian home moving forward.

So I just want to set out a vision for us as a church

in terms of what's the purpose of a family.

So parents, moms and dads, you're like the greenhouse keepers.

You've been given the responsibility of growing your kids, of raising your children.

That means providing a safe environment, loving environment for them,

making sure the temperature's right, making sure there's enough moisture in the air,

making sure you're doing weed and feed, you know, that kind of stuff around the little kids,

making sure they're growing right.

When it boils right down to it, parents,

you're the ones who are making decisions of what plant goes where, when.

You're making sure your little plants are fed with God's word.

It's like miracle grow.

You want to make sure they're in the best soil at the right time.

More on that in a couple weeks.

But what I want to point out here at the forefront of this sermon is that, parents,

your task is to create a gracious environment in your home

in which your children thrive and grow in godliness.

The family is God's greenhouse of grace where children grow in godliness.

That's the family.

We need to provide food, clothing, shelter.

Even non-Christian parents provide that.

But what sets us apart is godliness.

Children, if parents are the greenhouse keepers, you're the little plants.

Maybe not so little.

The goal of your parents, what God calls them to,

is to provide a place for you to grow

until you're ready to be planted outside the greenhouse.

Your parents are tasked with preparing you

to be able to live for Jesus on your own.

That's what they're seeking to do.

That's the goal of this greenhouse.

It's to position you for godliness.

And the timing is very important.

You know, your parents do know things that you don't know.

That's true.

And they want to be able to help you

and position you

that when you one day you leave your home,

that you will be able to thrive.

That you're ready.

Someday you're going to leave your parents' greenhouse

and start a greenhouse of your own.

One thing to note,

God, young people,

God has placed you in your parents' greenhouse.

It's no mistake.

It's no accident.

It wasn't lucky, kind of draw,

very intentional.

God wants you to grow where you're at

in the family you're in.

You know, when we're talking about the greenhouse

and we're talking about families,

it's very important, too,

to talk about the local church.

What's the relationship between a family,

a greenhouse of godliness,

and a local church?

How does that work?

Well, if you think about a local church like this way,

with this analogy, it would be like this.

A local church is then a network of greenhouses

linked together by Christ.

I mean, we're all looking to God's Word

to direct us

in how to live in a manner worthy of our holy calling,

whether that's as parents or as children.

We're all looking to the same book.

We're all looking to Jesus to help us with this.

And so there's no need to pit the family

against the church

or the church against the family.

It doesn't need to do that.

The church is a network of greenhouses

to support families,

individual greenhouses for the glory of Christ.

A church doesn't take over a family.

A church comes alongside a family,

helps them.

I mean, this is what we see

just played out in front of us

in Ephesians chapter 6.

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

Do you know what happens

when this arrived in Ephesus that first time?

It was read to a congregation,

a local body.

It was read out loud to them.

And so there were parents and children in the room.

And so in the context of a local church,

God's Word went out

in order to instruct them

of what their roles were in their families.

That's what's going on right here, right now.

And so the church is here

to come alongside

and support what God is doing

and families.

It's mutually beneficial.

So there's a place,

a role for parents in the greenhouse,

a role for children.

The greenhouse is kind of interconnected

in the local church.

But I just want to reiterate

the goal.

The goal of the family,

the goal of the greenhouse

is godliness.

Do you know what AKA means?

Also known as AKA?

Bruce Banner,

AKA

The Hulk.

Peter Parker,

AKA

Spider-Man.

Ben Hacker,

AKA

Man Bear.

Clark Kent,

AKA

Superman.

Superman.

Godliness as an AKA.

Christ-likeness.

When we talk about

the goal of the family

being godliness,

we're talking about

the goal being Christ.

Aiming our children

at Jesus.

We want to

instruct children

about Jesus.

We want to help them

love Jesus.

We want to help them

obey Jesus.

We want to help them

become like Jesus.

And it's not limited children.

It's parents too.

We're all in this together.

Jesus is the goal.

So God's greenhouse

of grace,

the family,

the goal

is children

growing in godliness.

Christ-likeness.

And we do that

together as a church.

So that's number one.

Just understanding

of what the family is

and what the family is for.

The second thing

I want you to see

this morning is

what God requires

of children.

You see that

in Ephesians 6.1.

Children

obey your parents.

Children.

That's a rather

broad category.

Every person

in this room

is a child.

All of us

either

have parents

or have had

parents.

Specifically,

Paul is

aiming at

a particular

group of children.

children.

Even in this room

right now.

And the children

Paul has in mind

here are those

children who are

still living in the

greenhouse.

Who are still

living at home.

Who are still

dependent on their

parents.

And we see that

in Ephesians 6.4.

When fathers are

instructed,

do not provoke

your children to

anger,

but bring them up.

Nurture them

in the discipline

and instruction

of the Lord.

the children

he's talking

to are in

need of

nurture.

They're in

need of

growing up.

That's who

he's talking

to here.

Children who

are not

quite ready

to move out

of the

greenhouse.

Obviously,

the children

here must be

able to

understand

because Paul

addresses

children.

And just

to note,

these children

are in the

congregation.

Children are

welcome here.

So,

if you are

in this room

and you're

wondering,

is Paul God

talking to me

here?

The question

is,

are you still

dependent on

your parents?

Are you living

in their home?

Do you need

them for

something?

And if the

answer is yes,

this exhortation

applies to you.

Children,

obey your

parents.

That's the

children.

Now,

children,

notice who

you're to

obey.

Your

parents.

Parents is

plural.

Both parents.

And Paul's

going to call

in some

backup in

just a second

in chapter 6

verses 2

and 3.

And he quotes

Exodus chapter

Exodus 20:12

20 verse 12

and he makes

it very clear.

Honor your

father and

your mother.

Both parents.

parents.

So whether

your parents

are married

or whether

they're divorced

or whether

they're remarried,

if you're a

child in the

room living

with your

parents,

you are to

obey them.

Both of

them.

And notice,

it's your

parents.

God has

entrusted you

to them.

Children,

in the room,

if you would

now look to

the parent to

your right or

left,

let me make

some introductions.

Children,

this person

next to you

is the one

that God

has given

the responsibility

to raise

you.

That's who

they are.

It's not

some lottery

draw.

God

specifically

placed this

child in

your home.

Children,

it's no

accident that

you're there.

So whether

it's

from being

naturally born

into the

family that

you're in,

or you

are adopted

into the

family that

you're in,

or that

there's some

kind of

guardianship,

that person

is someone

you must

obey.

Now,

I just want

to give you

a sneak peek

at something,

kids.

A little bit

more of what

God is going

to require

of your

parents.

We see it

stated explicitly

in verse

four.

fathers,

do not

provoke your

children.

But all

throughout the

Bible,

there's an

address to,

it includes

both mom

and dad.

Here's what

your parents

are going to

seek to do.

And here's

why there's

a call to

obey them.

Your parents

are going to

provide for you.

They're going

to protect you.

But God is

calling them

to more

than that.

They want

to be a

part of

growing you

to become

like Jesus.

And so,

way back

in your

Bible,

in the

book of

Deuteronomy,

we read

something very

important.

Deuteronomy

chapter six.

Moses has

just reiterated

the ten

commandments

in Deuteronomy

chapter five.

They're about

to enter the

promised land.

And so,

it is a

kind of

renewing of

the covenant.

And in

chapter six,

verse four,

we read the

Shema.

Hear,

O Israel,

the Lord

our God,

the Lord

is one.

You shall

love the

Lord your

God with

all your

heart,

with all

your soul,

with all

your might.

And these

words that I

command you

today shall

be on your

heart.

Words,

of course,

are the

commands,

the law.

They were

to be on

the heart

of these

adults going

into the

promised land.

They were

to control

their actions.

They were

going to

aim them.

And then

look at

verse seven.

You shall

teach them

diligently to

your children,

and you

shall talk

of them

when you

sit in

your house,

and when

you walk

by the

way,

and when

you lie

down,

and when

you rise.

Do you

know what

miracle grow

is?

Miracle

grow is

like this

super

soil,

that when

you're

planting a

plant,

you put

miracle grow

in,

and it's

like super

nutrients that

the roots of

a plant suck

up, and it

gives them

health, gives

them strength.

And so what

we're being told

here is this,

as parents,

and children,

you've got to be

aware of this,

of what God's

calling your

parents to.

They are to

get God's

word on their

heart, and

then God's

word is going

to go from

their heart

into you.

And so

essentially what

it is, is your

parents are

seeking to get

the soil around

the roots of

your heart,

they're seeking

to put the

miracle grow

of God's

word in

there, so

that you

can grow.

You can

know Jesus,

and love

Jesus, and

obey Him,

and live

for Him.

That's what

God is calling

your parents

to do.

children, you

are to obey

your parents,

and this is

the command

of this

little section

here, obey

your parents

in the Lord.

I need to

make a really

important distinction

here, because

we can miss

something here.

I'm not sure

if you were

here for when

I preached on

the role of

wives to

submit to

their husbands

to the

Lord, but

one of the

important

distinctions to

make is this,

that a husband

and wife are

made in the

image of God.

They are

image bearers of

God, therefore

they are the

same value in

God's sight.

But God calls

them to different

roles according

to their

maleness and

their femaleness.

When we look

at Ephesians

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6,

1 through 4,

we've got to

make the same

distinction.

Because a

parent and a

child are both

image bearers of

God.

Therefore, they

are of equal

value in God's

sight.

So, a parent

who has authority

is not more

value to God

than a child

who's to be

playing a

submissive,

obedient role.

They are the

same value in

God's sight,

but they're

called to

different roles

based upon their

relationship according

to God's

design.

And so, they're

to exercise

those roles in

faith.

And what God

is calling a

child to hear is

to obey their

mother and their

father.

To come under

their parents'

God-given

authority to say

yes to their

mom and their

dad.

It is essentially

an act of

humility.

of coming

under your

parents.

Of trusting

God's design.

Trusting that

God has

goodness for

you.

So, to

obey means

to say yes

to your

mother and

your father.

To do what

they ask you

to do.

They have the

right to do

that based

upon God's

design of the

family.

He has good

for you.

I want to

help you kids

think rightly

about obedience.

So, here are

three little

phrases that

are designed to

help you

understand how

to obey when

your parents ask

you to do

something.

You're to

obey right

away, all

the way, with

joy.

You're to

obey right

away, all

the way, with

joy.

Not a delayed

obedience, right

away.

Not a partial

obedience,

but all the

way.

And not

resentful, but

joyful.

And that

last one, to

obey with

joy, that's

the heart-est

one.

It's the

heart-est

one.

joy.

Because it's

possible to

obey right

away, and

all the

way, and

resenting your

parents the

whole time.

Do you know

how to do

that with

joy?

Jesus.

Jesus.

Jesus

called you to

this.

There's a

word you're

going to find

joy.

joy.

So, when

your parents

ask you to

clean your

room, right

away, all

the way, with

joy.

When your

parents ask

you to

clean yourself,

right away, all

the way, with

joy.

Do your

homework, right

away, all

the way, with

joy.

To pick up

after your

dog in the

backyard, right

away, all

the way, with

joy.

Colossians 3.20,

Paul says it

this way,

children, obey

your parents in

everything, for

this pleases the

ruler.

This is sweet

to God when

children obey

this way.

It honors

him.

He loves

it.

But I

got to tell

you, expect

conflict.

Because we

bump heads, we

bump hearts,

don't we?

We ask our

children to do

things.

Children, you

are asked to

do things, and

you don't want

to do it, for

a variety of

reasons.

So, what do

you do?

Here's what God

would say.

You obey your

parents.

You yield to

them.

You say, yes,

okay, I'll do

it.

But is there

room to ask

why?

Yes, there

is.

If your first

response, kids, is

to your parents

when they ask

you to do

something, it's,

but mom, but

dad, take a

deep breath.

Step back.

Don't put up a

defense right

away.

Here's what you

want to ask.

Here's what you

want to say.

Mom, dad, I

want to honor

you by obeying

you, and I'm

going to do

this, but would

you help me

understand why I'm

not seeing it

adding up.

And so if

there's a dad

that's asking

his son to

iron his

underwear every

morning, you

know what?

If the son

asks dad, you

know why, why

do I have to

iron my underwear

every morning?

And the dad

says, you know

what?

It's, it's a

salvati tradition

going back

generations.

Hopefully that

dad's going to

hear himself

saying that, and

he's going to

be like, you

know what?

It's kind of

ridiculous.

Don't worry

about it.

But let's say

your teenage

daughter comes

downstairs in the

kitchen.

This is not

directed to

anybody in the

room.

But let's say

your teenage

daughter comes

down, and she's

wearing a low

cut shirt.

And you're

like, oh boy,

honey, I think

you need to

change your

shirt.

And right

away you can

see in your

daughter that she

doesn't like what

she's hearing.

There is a

place for

daughters to

say, dad, I'll

honor you, and I

will obey you, but

can you help me

understand why?

And so now

dads, moms, you

have the opportunity

to talk about

modesty.

And you're

able to say,

sweetheart, you

don't want to

bring boys'

attention to

your chest.

You don't want

to draw their

gaze there.

You want to be

known for Jesus,

honey.

And so that's a

little too

immodest.

So can you

change?

You see what's

going on there?

We want to give

explanations to

things.

So kids, it's

okay to ask why.

Just making sure

you're asking why

humbly.

By the way, there

is a place to

actually disobey

your parents.

Remember, this

is children, obey

your parents in

the Lord.

So if your

parents are

asking you,

forbidding you,

asking you to do

something that God

forbids, or

forbidding you to

do something that

God requires, you

know who your

allegiance falls to?

Jesus.

You know, Jesus

talked about that.

He's going to

divide families.

It's about as

important of a

relationship we get,

and Jesus is

saying, hey, it's

about following me.

What my experience

has been, those are

few and far between

when parents are

asking their

children to do

something that

Jesus would

forbid.

Children, I

also want to

help you understand

something as

well.

Your call to

obey your

parents in the

Lord here is

for a season.

What God, the

timeless claim on

you is to honor

your father and

your mother.

And for a

season, that

honoring is going

to look like

obedience.

obedience.

Let's just say

from when you're

three to twenty, it's

going to look like

obedience.

And then from

twenty to forty, you

know what it's

going to look like?

How you honor your

mother and your

father?

Seeking advice.

Respecting them.

Being in their

lives.

Welcoming them into

your life.

And then you know

what?

From forty on, you

know what it's

going to look like?

How to honor your

mother and your

father?

Caring for them.

Being with them.

loving them.

And so all the way

through our lives, we're

going to honor our

mother and our

father.

But for this

particular season,

zero, two, through

eighteen or nineteen,

the call on you is to

obey.

To obey your mother

and your father.

You might be asking a

question here, what if

my parents are not

Christians?

Still binding.

And so you're to

obey right away, all

the way with joy for

Jesus.

You know what makes

your parents' job

really easy?

Is when you invite

them in.

Recently I had a

child of mine come to

me and say, Dad, will

you help me?

Will you help me

follow Jesus?

Will you help me

grow?

That's like a

lob.

It's like, oh yes.

Let me direct you to

your Bible.

Let me aim you at

Jesus.

Children, are you

not obeying your

parents?

Are you being slow to

obey your parents?

Are you partially

obeying your parents?

Are you resenting your

parents as you obey

them?

Are you hiding

something from your

parents?

God wants you to

obey them.

Do you know what

backup is?

Backup TV show?

This is Adam 793.

I need backup.

Stats.

39th and Main.

Whip, whip, whip,

whip, whip.

You know what I'm

talking about?

Backup?

The Apostle Paul

had just made a

statement.

Children, obey your

parents in the Lord.

And then in verses 2

and 3, he calls in

backup.

He quotes Exodus

Exodus 20:12

chapter 20, verse 12.

I mean, he goes big.

He goes 10 commandments

big.

So what we see,

point 3, is a

timeless command with

a vibrant promise.

And it's backup.

The Ten Commandments.

The Ten Commandments.

You know, there were

613 commandments in the

Old Testament that

constituted the law.

613.

That's a lot of

commandments.

And the Ten Commandments

are those commandments

that apply to everyone

all the time.

And so those 613,

many of which were

applied to this person

in this situation.

So men with oxes,

when your ox falls down,

this is what you do.

So it's very specific.

And so the Ten Commandments

are kind of the intro

to the rest of the law.

And they are the big ones.

They are applied to

everyone all the time.

And those Ten Commandments

are actually broken

into two groups.

Commandments 1 through 4

are very much Godward

in their aim.

And Commandments 5 through 6

are very much horizontal,

dealing with relationships.

Do you know

the first commandment

that deals with

human relationships?

Do you know which one that is?

Honor your mother

and your father.

It's Commandment 5.

It's very important.

What Paul is saying here

by quoting Exodus 20

is that this

is of significance.

Children,

this is really important.

What did honor mean

to the original recipients?

Well, it was a deep,

deep respect.

It was very serious.

Can I just turn something,

turn back in your Bibles

to Exodus chapter 20.

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

I'm going to do this

to show you how serious

this is

to honor your father

and your mother

in God's eyes.

I'm not sure

if you know

this is in your Bible.

So,

Exodus chapter 20,

Exodus 20:12

verse 12,

we read,

honor your father

and your mother

that your days

may be long in the land.

Now,

turn your page over

to Exodus chapter 21,

Exodus 21 · chapter mention

and we're looking

at verse 15.

whoever strikes

his father

or his mother

shall be put

to death.

Look at verse 17.

Whoever curses

his father

or his mother

shall be put

to death.

Are you picking up

on the weight of this?

It is incredibly

important to God.

The way that you

respond to your parents

speaks of your heart

towards God.

What I want

to help you

to see here

is this.

This command,

children,

to obey

your parents,

it's actually

a double command.

It's command

two times over.

You are commanded

to obey your parents

out of obedience

to God.

You obey,

you honor

your mom and dad

out of obedience

to Jesus.

So,

what this means

is this.

So,

when you disobey

your mom,

you disobey God.

Not because your mom

is God,

but because God

has commanded you

to obey your mom.

Paul here

is quoting

Exodus chapter 20

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

because he wants

to help children

see,

and us too

as parents,

what God

is wanting

to get done

in the family.

Children must obey

in order for there

to be godliness

in the home.

So,

why is Paul

pointing this out?

Why is Paul

calling on

the backup

of Exodus 20?

Well,

he's saying

that this is

a timeless,

unchanging,

and universally

binding command.

This is true

all the time.

So,

it was true

for Jews

back in the day,

and it's true

now for Christians.

You see,

when Christ

came on the scene,

he didn't come

to abolish the law.

He actually

came to fulfill it.

And we're going

to see in a second

how he did that

with this command.

But what I want

you to see here

is this.

Paul is quoting

Exodus chapter 20

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

to give weight

to his exhortation

to children.

It's very serious.

Now,

I'm guessing

some of you

in the room

are asking

a question

like this.

What happens

if I've disobeyed

my parents?

What happens

if I am

disobeying

my parents?

What happens

if I have

disobeyed

my parents?

So,

let's just

kind of

remove the tension

in the room.

Who in their life

has ever

disobeyed

their parents?

Please raise

your hand.

Right.

Randy Ryan-Earson

obviously has not.

I've been waiting

for months

to do that,

Randy.

Randy.

We've all

disobeyed

our parents.

So,

do you know

what this means?

God's law

hasn't changed.

Do you know

what it means

for all of us?

Each of us

has broken

God's timeless,

unchanging,

universally

binding law.

Which means

each of us

is a transgressor.

Each of us

is a sinner.

And what is

the consequence

for sinning

against God

this way?

Well,

if Exodus 21

says anything

about that,

it's very serious.

Disobeying

your parents

results in

being condemned

by God

for the wages

of sin

is death.

we're all

there

on this

command

alone.

You raised

your hand.

So,

what do we

do?

We look

to Jesus.

In Luke 2,

there's a really

interesting story

about Jesus.

His family

was in Jerusalem.

Mary and Joseph

say,

hey,

it's time

to go back

to Bethlehem.

They think

they pack

everybody up.

Jesus is 12

years old.

They're on their

way back

to Bethlehem

and they look

around and

they're like,

hey,

where's Jesus?

They freak

out.

They head

back to,

who's ever

lost a child?

You know

what they're

experiencing.

They head

back to

Jerusalem.

And do you

know where

they find

Jesus?

In the

temple,

instructing

the instructors.

And you

remember what

Jesus says

to them?

They say,

Jesus,

where have

you been?

And you

remember what

Jesus says?

Did you not

know that it

would be in

my father's

house?

He knew.

But what I

want to point

you to in

Luke is what

happens next.

Luke 2,

Luke 2:51

verse 51.

And after

they talked

about this,

Jesus went

down with

them and

came to

Nazareth and

was submissive

to them.

Jesus was

submissive to

Mary and

Joseph.

God in

the flesh

obeyed his

earthly father

and mother.

father.

It's amazing

to think

about.

Jesus did

what we

can never

do.

He perfectly

obeyed his

parents all

the time.

Every time he

was asked to

do something,

it was right

away, all the

way with joy.

Every time.

Every time.

He did

something we

could never

do.

He was the

perfect son.

And then

he made the

perfect sacrifice

for the

sons of

disobedience.

He died in

our place.

He took on

himself what

our disobedience

deserved.

He bore the

wrath for

us.

So not only

is he the

perfect child,

he's the

perfect savior.

All in

one.

And when

we put our

faith in

Jesus, not

only are we

forgiven of

all of our

disobedience,

but he grants

us all of the

obedience of

Jesus.

We are fully

accepted in

God's sight.

Isn't that

awesome?

He's the

perfect Lord.

This is a

commandment with

a promise.

it's a

timeless

command.

And it's a

command with

a promise.

This is the

first of the

Ten Commandments

that has an

explicit promise

attached to it.

In fact, it's

the first of all

of the commands

of the law

with a promise.

And the

promise is that

it may go well

with you, that

you may live

long on the

earth.

Do you know

what God is

saying here?

I've got good

for you,

children.

I've got good

for you.

Obey your

parents.

Obey my

word and I

will bless

you.

I'll take

care of

you.

I'll see to

it.

You'll

experience peace

and blessing

and trust in

your relationship

with your

parents.

You will not

have to fear

them.

It's motivating.

Rightfully so.

He's promising

blessing.

So why is

Paul emphasizing

this promise?

I mean there's

a little

parenthetical

apostolic

comment there.

It's the

first commandment

with a promise.

He wants to

motivate us by

grace and

obeying your

parents.

But I want to

point you to the

greatest of all

motivations.

This is the

last point.

The ultimate

motivation.

It's back in

6.1.

It's the three

words.

Children obey

your parents in

the Lord.

In the Lord.

In chapter

5 we already

saw at the

end wives

submit to

your own

husbands as

to the Lord.

Husbands love

your wives as

Christ loved the

church.

When we turn

to the corner

and a little

bit later here

in chapter 6

we're going to

see slaves

obeying their

masters as

unto Christ.

Masters don't

be mean to

your slaves.

Why?

Because you

have a master

in heaven.

It's all unto

Christ.

It's all unto

Christ.

Fathers raise

your children

in the fear

and instruction

of the Lord.

It's unto

Christ.

Children obey

your parents

in the Lord.

It's for

Christ.

Here's what

he's saying.

He's saying

children obey

in the Lord

your parents.

Children obey

your parents

as unto

the Lord.

The ultimate

reason to

obey your

parents kids

is to please

Christ.

Obey your

parents is

pleasing to

Jesus.

this is

about walking

in a manner

worthy of

your calling

as a

Christian.

Obeying

your parents

is a

way to

live in

a manner

pleasing of

your calling.

And it's

also cross

cultural.

No.

Counter

cultural.

If you

looked at

Romans chapter

Romans 1 · chapter mention

1,

when sinners

reject God,

God hands

them over to

their sin.

And what you

read in Romans

1, 28-30 is

one of the

sins they

are handed

over to is

disobeying

their parents.

In 2 Timothy

2 Timothy 3:2

3, verses 2

and 3, the

last times,

they're going to

be awful.

We're living in

them.

And one of

the marks of

the end times

is disobedience

to parents.

Verse 3.

Obeying

parents is

counter

cultural.

To obey

mom and dad

for Jesus'

sake is

unusual.

and it

is

right.

In God's

sight.

So,

children,

what should

you do when

your parents

ask you to

do something

but you

don't want

to do it?

Or maybe

they've been

mean when

they tell you

to do

something?

Well,

you're to

obey right

away,

all the way

with joy.

With the

Jesus joy.

What should

be going

through your

mind when

you're asked

to do

something?

Three

words.

In the

Lord.

Obey

your parents

in the

Lord.

Just a

couple other

points here

and we'll

wrap up.

Children,

what should

you do when

a friend asks

you to

disobey your

parents?

Hey,

come and

see this

movie with

me.

No,

I can't.

Well,

why not?

My parents

wouldn't want

me to.

Well,

why wouldn't

they let

you go?

That's the

moment you

can throw

your parents

under the

bus,

by the

way.

Well,

my parents

are looking

out for

me.

And I

know they

would be

uncomfortable

with this

movie.

Well,

then tell

them that

you're going

to see

another movie

and we'll

go see this

movie at

the same

time.

Well,

I can't

do that.

Well,

why not?

Well,

that would

be lying

to them.

That's not

honoring

them either.

Seriously,

what is

your deal?

Why are

you so

controlled by