Devotional: Honor Father and Mother Exodus 20:12

“‘Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you’” (Exod. 20:12, NASB).

The scripture cited above is the fifth of the Ten Commandments that are in the covenant that God gives to His people, the children of Israel. In Ephesians 6:2 Paul repeats this commandment in writing to the church. A parenthetical phrase is inserted. It says, “(which is the first commandment with a promise).”

The Lord is taking His people into a land where the inhabitants of the land do not know God. These people have practices that lead to violence and death. They are ignorant of God’s laws that leads to a long and happy life; both as individuals and communities. God wants the sons of Israel to obey these commandments for their own well being and as an example to the other nations.

The first four commandments tell the people about their relationship to the Lord. The Lord is their only God. They are not to worship the gods of the people in the land that they are entering. The last six commandments tell the people how they are to relate to each other. The sixth commandments given here will result in a community that is more productive than the communities (tribes) in the land. Violence, war, and death can be avoided if everyone obeys The Ten Commandments.

The first of the last six commandments gives us the foundation that family and community life are to be built upon. So, here is a question for us to ponder. This question needs to be answered by all people and especially the African American community in which over fifty-nine percent of the homes are led by single parents and most of these in which the father is absent. Now, this is the question.

How can a child honor a father that they do not know? The commandment is given with the intent that mother and father are living in covenant relationship to God. The mother and the father honor and obey the Lord. The father and mother set the example of what it means to honor the one that has the higher authority. They learn from God and they teach to their children what they know and experience. The Lord promises the people that if they will keep this commandment they will occupy the land for a long time.

I cannot give my child all the material things that she desires. I may lack in the means to provide many material things. However as King David says, “I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread” (Ps. 37:25, NASB). This is what every father can do for his child. He can be there actively participating in the life of the child. Love, encouragement, examples of success and examples of overcoming failures, instilling confidence in the child, honesty, self worth, love of others and love of God are all things that cannot be purchased. These require the presence of the mother and the fathers. A child honors their mother and father when they follow the example that has been shown them. So, I ask again: How can a child honor a father that they do not know?

Prayer: Father in heaven, I thank you that I had a father in my life. I pray that more fathers will be active participants in the life of their children. Amen.