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by Kevin Pauley
But they did not understand what He said to them. Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with people. - Luke 2:50-52 HCSB
In today’s culture of convenience, it has become commonplace for children to ignore their duty to their parents. As the parents age and become infirm, it becomes more and more difficult to care for them. Often their minds begin to slip and they develop a stubborn unreasonableness straining the relationship even further.
In many cases, the parents themselves are at fault because they did not teach their children to serve at an early age. Because our society pushes us to center our entire life on our children, we feed, clothe, house, wait on and entertain them from the day they’re born until they move out on their own. Then we wonder why they are self-centered and egotistical! Children raised this way grow up (without necessarily maturing) with a built in sense of entitlement.
Kavod (pronounced kah-VODE) means to honor. Honoring one’s parents does not entail abject, unthinking obedience. It means to grant dignity, respect or weight to someone’s opinion. It figuratively implies granting weight to their word.
Imagine a balance. On one side would be our parents’ commands. On the other would be other considerations. The Bible is not teaching that our parents’ advice outweighs everything but that it should take a lot to overcome their views.
Our Master obeyed His parents even though He knew better than they what was going on. He didn’t obey them in all things, since He refused to quit His ministry and come home at his mother’s request.[1] However, Mary’s requests carried a lot of weight with her Son, even pushing Him to alter His timetable.[2]
Kavod also means to grant majesty, glory or splendor. Children who mistreat their father or neglect their mother are a public disgrace and an embarrassment.[3]A child who listens to his parent’s teaching without fail grants majesty to them. Such filial duty honors and beautifies, not only the lives of the parents, but of the child as well.[4]
Kavod is such a serious responsibility that God gives deadly warnings to those who fail to practice it. According to Quoheleth, robbing your parents and then saying, “What’s wrong with that?” is as serious as committing murder.[5] If you curse your father or mother, the lamp of your life will be snuffed out.[6] He goes so far as to threaten, “The eye that mocks a father and despises a mother will be plucked out by ravens of the valley and eaten by vultures.”[7]
An ungrateful child who secretly despises his parents is proud beyond description and disdainful. Such a person will end up practicing all types of injustice.[8]
[1] Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21
[3] Proverbs 19:26; 1 Timothy 5:8
Kevin Pauley is a pastor and writer. He lives in Illinois with his wife, Lynn, their five children and two dogs. His internet address is Berea.
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