Colossians 3:20

of Colossians chapter 3 in verse 20 first children obey your parents in all things for this is well pleasing unto the Lord and then if you would Ephesians chapter 6 and verses 1 to 3 children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right honor thy father and mother which is the first commandment with promise that it may be well with thee and that thou mayest live long on the earth. May God bless to us the reading of his holy and sacred word this morning. Have you ever been in a store and you see a child asking his mother for some toy or some type of trinket and mom repeatedly says no but that doesn’t end the matter so the child throws himself down on the floor in the middle of the store and has a temper tantrum and he screaming and crying and waving his arms and kicking his feet and he draws a lot of attention to himself and the embarrassed mom hurdly agrees to buy the toy or the trinket to stop the child’s tamper tantrum. As you take this all in, it becomes clear that the child is really running the family and not the parents. One major area of concern for the family is the parent-child relationship. Now Paul has, having spoken of the duties of the wife first, And then the husband proceeds now to deal with the third part of a family, and that is the children in the family. And he takes that up in verse 20. The American family today is in complete disaster because it has abandoned the principles of Scripture with regard to children. Often children run the home. and impose their will upon the parents just the opposite of what our text of scripture indicates. People are following the often foolish advice of so-called child experts who are using man-based philosophy with regard to child raising. It’s no wonder then that children are unruly, rebellious, and defiant toward the children. Their parents. Undisciplined. There’s no restraint on their human depravity. They do whatever they please. Even though the Word of God was completed almost 2,000 years ago, it’s still relevant for human beings have not changed. Parents, in God’s word word, you have every truth, every guideline you need with regard to raising children properly. Now let me begin this morning by saying this. You should realize God has much to say the children. The very first word of our text here, children indicates to us this is a direct communication to the children themselves. You are never exempt from God’s command, regardless of your age of your age, age. It’s interesting the Greek word for children, Teknon here, can refer to very young children, like toddlers, but it also can refer to much older children, like younger adults. All offspring, whether they’re sons or daughters, of any age. When Christ was 12 years old, we read that he went with his parents up to Jerusalem to observe the passive. And recall that he remained behind, and his parents were worried sick about him, and they searched all over, and they found them at the temple three days later. And he was hearing and questioning the priest and the law experts, and his parents said, son, Technon, same word as our text, why hast thou dealt with us thus? He was not a toddler. He was 12 years old. In the parable of the two sons, Christ spoke of a man who had two technons. He gave each son the command, Son, go work today in my vineyard in Matthew 21-28. Now, these were not small children. Apparently, they were old enough to go out and work in the heat of the day and spend the whole day out there in the vineyard laboring in the heat of the sun and so forth. They’re still children in their father’s house. So whether you’re a crawling infant or whether you’re a full-grown young man or woman, you are under your parents’ authority, especially if you remain under the roof of their house. So special respect and concern is to be given to your parents and should continue as long as you live. Now, what is important to note here is that God gives commands to children. even those who are of the youngest age. One of the commandments in the Ten Commandments is specifically directed to children. We read it in Ephesians 6, the honor your father and mother. We read in Ecclesiastes 12.1, Remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth. One, God is your creator. He made you. You should represent. recognize that even as a child, and you are commanded to remember him in your youth. This implies, of course, every godly exercise, worship, praise, prayer, regard for his word. All these things would fit under this category. You know, we have an ungodly adage that a lot of people think in this direction. Youth for pleasure, age for business, and old age for religion. We must not give the devil the prime of our lives and give God the drags. You are not free from God’s rule, even as a child. Children. Here’s a command for you. So he commands your behavior. He holds you accountable and responsible as children. So you’re never exempt from God’s commands, regardless of age. Now, you are acting sinfully as a parent if you allow your children. children to choose for themselves whether or not they’re going to show an interest in religion. You know, child experts and psychologists today tell us, well, don’t impose upon your child any religious views or principles of conduct. Let your child choose for himself. What he wants to do, don’t inhibit your child’s natural development. I got news for you. I know what children’s natural development is. It’s door to their own depravity. Right? But the Bible says, praying up a child in a way he should go. So we have a direct command in this regard. I like what Deuteronomy tells us. Thou shall teach them, God’s commandments, diligently under thy children, shall talk of them when thou thou sitest down in thy house, when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down when thou risest up. What is the indication here? Your whole life really should be geared around to things of God, and the word of God, and we should be constantly being, influencing our children with regard to what God’s word says. What do we read about Timothy? From a child, thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, 2 Timothy 315. So as a parent, you are to press God’s commands upon your children. You’re obligated to do that. teach them with regard to what God expects from them, from their youngest age. I remember reading Spurgeon’s autobiography, and as a young boy, he said he was fascinated. He saw in his grandfather’s mantle a glass bottle. And inside this glass bottle was this big apple. And he picked, he said, no one was there, so I picked it up off the mantle. And I started, you know, there had to be a way to get that apple. in that through that narrow neck. And so he said, it didn’t screw off on the bottom. And he’s looking and there’s no place where the glass was able to be like a twist apart or anything of this nature. And yet that big apple was inside that bottle. And he couldn’t figure that out. How did that apple get through that narrow neck into that sawglass bottle? He said, I remain puzzled for quite a while. He said, but then one day he said, I was out in my grandfather’s apple orchard. and it came across a tree, and on the tree he saw this glass vial hanging there, and a little apple had been pushed through inside the bottle. And then I realized, aha, he put the apple in the bottle when it was small, and let it grow in the tree that way, and it got big inside the bottle. Now, I used that, and I’m using it this morning for this purpose. When it comes to your children, steep them in the waves of, God from the youngest years, try to get them in the kingdom of God as early as possible. You should realize God has much to say to children. You’re never exempt from God’s commands, regardless of age. And we as parents have an obligation to train up our child, our children, and the ways of the Lord. Now, secondly, children, you are to obey your parents in all things, because he says, this is the command he gives here, a general command. Children obey your parents in all things. You are to be obedient. That’s your prime duty as a child. Basically, the word obey means to listen with attentiveness and respond positively to what is heard. The word obey here means to hear under. We hear under the authority of the parent. The child is to be looking for a command from the parent and then be willing to put it into action. practice. There’s a sense in which parents are to stand in God’s proxy, to be God’s proxy authority, to stand in their position as God’s special stewards over them, and they’ll impose upon them God’s commands. You recall, I said that Jesus was 12 when he went up to the temple, or he went to Jerusalem for the Passover, and then he, he went to Jesus, you know, he was, he was, you know, got separated from his family, but he stayed behind at the temple to talk there. So his parents are on this long journey home, and they have all their relatives and friends with him. They’re going back to Galilee in the north, and they get a day’s journey and realize, you know, he’s over there with Uncle Bob or something, and he’s not there. And they can’t find him. And so they go back to Jerusalem, and there he is at the temple. And you’re told that they were. were astounded and amazed that he was there. And Jesus said, wish you not that I must be about my father’s business. And then you’re told that he went back to Nazareth with him and was subject to them. He was obedient to what they commanded them. Him. Here’s the very son of God. And he submits here to Joseph and Mary. He obeyed their commands as, parents. Why did he do that in order to fulfill the law? Honor thy father and thy mother. And he does it. He set an example for all children in this regard. So you’re to be obedient. Now you’ll notice here you’re to be obedient to both parents. It doesn’t say here, children obey your father. Obey your parents, both the father and the mother. both parents are clearly included here. While the father is the head of the home, the mother shares the authority of the father with regard to the children. Now, respect of obedience to both parents is important. It’s reflected in God’s law. Exodus 2115, He did smite if his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. Exodus 2117, he that curses the father. or his mother shall surely be put to death. Whether you verbally or physically abuse your parents, you’re in serious trouble. You’re guilty of a capital offense, according to scripture. Mothers are especially susceptible to abuse by their children because they spend more time with them. And sometimes children try to get away with a lot. They try to sass their mother or speak back to her. But God will hold you accountable. accountable. Children also have a habit of playing one parent against another. They go to mommy and mommy says no, I’ll go to daddy. See if he’ll say yes. And children know all the tricks. They’re not dumb. They figure out quickly how, you know, if they can maneuver around situations. But if mom tells you to do something, you better listen and obey because he has as a much authority as dad over you in this regard. Let me make this observation. If you can’t, you cannot be right with God if you despise your parents and don’t honor them. So you are to be obedient to both your parents. You’re to be obedient to your parents, it says here in all things. This indicates to us whatever your parents command. It’s rather comprehensive here. It’s a general statement, of course. But it indicates to us that we are to, in all things, do what they have said. when the British General Montgomery took command of the Allied forces in North Africa early in World War II, things were in desperate condition. The Allied forces have been pushed back all the way to El Alamein. The Suez Canal was threatened by the Nazi army there in North Africa. and Montgomery realized his troops needed better discipline. A victory is ever going to be secured. He told his troops that he expected his commands to be carried out. Here’s where he put it. Orders no longer form a basis for discussion, but for action. And he explained. Previous orders had generally been questioned by subordinates right down the line. I was determined to stop this state of affairs at once. Now, if I can put this into the fact. family relationship, we have to realize here that children are not to argue with their parents, not to debate with their parents over what they have been commanded to do. The idea of honoring your parents means respecting them. You’re merely to give grudging obedience to your parents either. Merely do the letter of the law, not the spirit of it. It’s like a little boy that was misbehaving and his mother told them to sit down and not get up. and he said, I may be sitting down on the outside, but I’m standing up on the inside. He had a defiant attitude. Attitude is important. God expects not only outward obedience, but also a proper internal attitude as well. It’s important that your child not only obey you, but not with an angry spirit or a defiant heart. I remember, well, we have this little mocked. that my parents taught me when I was younger, I’ll be glad to. If I was given a command to take out the trash and I grumbled about, you know, what’s our motto? And I had to repeat the motto. I’ll be glad to. It’s like, I’m not really glad to, but I, but that’s, you know, that was, they were working on my spirit. You know, it’s not enough to just obey. You have to have the right attitude about it. Now, they could have explained that better to me at the time, maybe, but at the time I’m thinking, well, you know, what are they doing here? You know, if I do it, isn’t that enough? No, it’s not enough, see? I had to do it with the right attitude. Now, the only exception to your duty as a child to obey your parents and all things is the same thing we talked about with regard to the wife. If your parents would ask you to do something wrong, of course, you shouldn’t be doing it. if they ask you to lie or, you know, tell the boss, I’m not here or something, you know, when they answer the phone or something like that, you’re not to lie for them or steal something from the store for them, or something of that nature. In that case, we have to say what Peter and John did, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God judge you. You have to obey God rather than man in those circumstances. When you read the book of Esther, Remember, beautiful Esther was taken by the king’s servants to be considered as the new queen for King O’Hazueris. And you read that she carefully obeyed her stepfather by not telling anyone that she was a Jew. The Jews were not favored in the kingdom of Ahazuarez, and they kept a low profile. We read this in Esther 220. Esther had not showed her king. nor her people as Mordecai had charged her. For Esther did the commandment of Mordecai like as when she was brought up with him. She was always obedient to her father. I think it was her stepfather in this case. I think it was her uncle that raised her. But here even as adult, she’s still showing respect to him in this regard. So you learn from this how obedient. you must be to your heavenly father. If this is true with regard to children obeying their parents in all things, what about us as the children of God obeying our heavenly father in all things that he’s commanded us? Yes, I think it shows us our duty as well. What subjection we owe to our heavenly father in this regard. So children, you are to obey your parents in all things. You’re to be obedient. You’re obedient to both parents? and you’re to be obedient to both parents in all things. Thirdly, children, you are to obey your parents because it is well-pleasing unto the Lord, as this text indicates to us. You should realize God’s law requires your obedience. We read it in the book of Ephesians chapter 6 and verses 2 and 3. Honor thy father and my mother, which is the first. First command with promise that it may be well with thee. And now may us live long on the earth. Now God clearly tells us in his Ten Commandments what pleases him. This is what I want you to do. And specifically for children, he says, this is what you are to do. You’re to seek to please the Lord by doing what he commands. This is the duty God expects from you as a child. You’re to be unlike those aggressive, rebellious children, proud children who have no regard for the things of God. Certainly those children who know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior should demonstrate it by their obedience to His command in this regard. By your fruits, you’ll be known whether you have the Spirit of God within you or not. Notice here that God provides you with two incentives to obey this commandment. quality of life that it may be well with you. Do you want harmony, satisfaction, peace in your life? Obey God’s command. And secondly, quality, a quantity of life, that thou mayest live long on the earth. That your life is not cut short by the judgment of God because of your disobedience and evil doing. So, if you’re a child, if you want to be happy, if you want, enjoy a good life and a long life, obey your parents. That’s what God says. Let me make this observation. Christianity does not do away with the law of God. You’ll notice that Paul quotes here one of the Ten Commandments and applies it directly to the New Testament Christians. The family. He says, Here’s what God’s word says. He doesn’t say, well, that’s obsolete. You know, we’re no longer under the law. He says, this is what it says, and this is why you ought to be obedient. So he uses the law of God in this way. See, you should realize God’s law requires this obedience. You are required also. You are to realize also that you are serving the Lord by obeying your parents. You know, Scripture teaches us about little Samuel. In 1 Samuel 2, 18, ministered before the Lord, being a child, girded with a linen effort. Now, here he is a little boy, and I’m sure he had to do some mundane things. May he open the curtains of the tabernacle, maybe running errands for Eli, the high priest at the time. But he was ministering before the Lord. He was doing what he was commanded to do. Children should realize that it serves. serving Christ involves carrying out the orders of their parents. And you as a parent, I think, should impress upon your children that to obey Christ means you will have to obey me. And if you want to honor the Lord, you should do what he commands in this regard. This pleases the Lord. It’s well-pleasing to him that you do this. So impress upon them this. Those household chores. Whether it be, you know, mowing the lawn or taking out the trash or cleaning up your room or wherever the case may be, are to be done with an eye to pleasing Christ. Even as a child, this should be impressed upon our children. That what’s important is that they’re seeking to please the Lord in what they’re doing. Well, that child throwing the temper tantrum at the store, embarrassing his mother, is really the one running the family. The American family is in such terrible shape today because we don’t follow the principles of God’s work. Proverbs is full of training about child rearing, you know, information about it. Our text, I think, is relevant. It’s as relevant as the day Paul penned it. It simply needs to be implemented by the family. It’s just one verse of scripture. It’s a very general command, but it’s sort of all-encompassing, isn’t it? it. God makes demands on children. He expects children to obey their parents. He expects the parents to bring them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. This is what pleases him. Now, as a parent, see to it then that your children are obedient to you. That’s one of the responsibilities you have. And as a child, realized rendering obedience of what the Lord expects. He gives you two good incentives here. Do you want to have a child? a happy life? You want to have a long life? Obey your parents. That’s what God says in his word. Well, let us close with a word of prayer.