Wednesday, August 4, 2021

The Ten Commandments

John Stromgren

The Fourth Commandment

The commandment about honoring parents is going to sting for anyone who has been neglected or abused. And there are plenty of church leaders over the years who have wielded this commandment like a club. But it was not meant for that. In his Small Catechism, Martin Luther writes about it under the presumption of goodness:

“Honor your father and your mother.”

What does this mean for us? We are to fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and others in authority, but respect, obey, love, and serve them.

When the Apostle Paul wrote about this commandment, he followed it with a warning to parents not to provoke their children to anger. We could really use two commandments here: one that only the parents see and one that only the children see. Both are pleas for love, and respect. If parents followed their mandate and children theirs, both would inherit the promise that comes with this commandment in scripture – “that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.” If either party thinks they are owed something, the promise might not be fulfilled. The rule that works for everyone is simple, and we’ve heard it before: Love one another.