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You can turn with me in your 
Bibles to the book of Ephesians as we return to our study in 
Paul's letter to the church at Ephesus. We find ourselves in 
chapter 6, specifically verses 1 to 3 tonight. But I want to 
pick up the reading in chapter 5 at verse 15 and read to chapter 
6, verse 9, just to remind us of the context in which we're 
dealing. So beginning in Ephesians 5 at verse 15. See then that you walk circumspectly, 
not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are 
evil. Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the will 
of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, 
in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking 
to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing 
and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always 
for all things to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. Wives, submit 
to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head 
of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church, and He is 
the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church 
is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands 
in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just 
as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her, that 
he might sanctify her or sanctify and cleanse her with the washing 
of water by the word, that he might present her to himself 
a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, 
but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands 
ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves 
his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own 
flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the 
church. For we are members of his body, 
of his flesh, and of his bones. For this reason, a man shall 
leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the 
two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but 
I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless, let 
each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, 
and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Children, 
obey your parents and the Lord, for this is right. Honor your 
father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise, 
that it may be well with you and you may live long on the 
earth. And you fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, 
but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. Bondservants, 
be obedient to those who are your masters according to the 
flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to 
Christ, not with eye service as men pleasers, but as bondservants 
of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill, 
doing service as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that 
whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the 
Lord, whether he is a slave or free. And you masters do the 
same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your 
own master also is in heaven and there is no partiality with 
him. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
gracious God and Holy Father, we thank you for the written 
word. We thank you that it's given by inspiration of God, 
that it's profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, 
and for instruction in righteousness. So guide us now by the Holy Spirit, 
forgive us and cleanse us from all sin and unrighteousness, 
and help us to see the glory of your truth, to see the the 
fact that it extends not just to adults, but to children. It 
extends to Jew and to Gentile. It extends universally because 
it is the word of the living and true God. Bless us now, we 
pray through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, it's been some time 
since we've been in Ephesians, so just by way of reminder, if 
you look back at chapter 4, verse 1, we see that we're in the practical 
section of Paul's letter. So in chapters 1 and 2, he engages 
in doctrine, he sets forth our salvation, how we came by God's 
grace to a place of forgiveness and a place of righteous standing 
in our Lord Jesus Christ. Chapter 3 is a bit of a transition. 
He indicates his place and role in redemptive history. And then 
in chapters 4 to 6, he gets practical. So notice in chapter 4 verse 
1, I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you to walk 
worthy of the calling with which you were called. So we are to 
walk differently than when we were unsaved. If you go back 
to chapter 2, specifically in verse 1, you He made alive who 
were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once walked according 
to the course of this world. So in Christ Jesus now, we're 
supposed to walk in a manner that is consistent with our high 
calling. in Christ Jesus. He carries this theme along. 
Notice in verse 17 of chapter four, this I say, therefore, 
and testify in the Lord that you should no longer walk as 
the rest of the Gentiles walk in the futility of their mind. 
So Paul's emphasis here is upon our conduct. We've received God's 
grace. We have, by God's grace, believed 
the gospel. We have been justified. We have 
been forgiven. We have received that righteousness. 
Now we're to live in light of that truth. And then in chapter 
5, he gets specific again. He tells us in chapter 5, specifically 
in verses 1 to 7, to walk in love. Then specifically in verse 
8 and following, he tells us to walk in light. And then in 
verses 15 to 21, he tells us we're to walk in wisdom. And 
so notice specifically in that section in chapter 5, verses 
15 to 21. He tells us in verse 17, do not 
be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Do not 
be drunk with wine in which is dissipation, but be filled with 
the Spirit. And then he goes on to flesh 
out or indicate or demonstrate what filling with the Spirit 
looks like. and he does so in verses 19 to 
21. Notice, speaking to one another 
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody 
in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things 
to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and 
then finally, submitting to one another in the fear of God. So 
that's a general reference there, submitting to one another in 
the fear of God, but now Paul does something that was common 
to writing and literature in that particular generation. He does what's called a household 
code. He brings to bear truth upon 
the ethics in our day-to-day life. So the general statement 
of verse 21, submitting to one another in the fear of God, is 
now brought to concrete reality in the husband-wife relationship. in the parent-child relationship 
and in the master-servant relationship. So from 522 to 609, he deals 
with those categories. We've already covered the husband 
and wife. This evening, we're going to look at children and 
parents, specifically the children aspect. And God willing, next 
time, will take up the parental role in verse four. So notice 
in chapter six, verses one to three, children obey your parents 
in the Lord for this is right. Honor your father and mother, 
which is the first commandment with promise that it may be well 
with you and you may live long on the earth. I think there's 
two things at work here. First, the rightness of obedience. The rightness of obedience in 
verse one And then secondly, the requirement of God's law 
in verses two and three. So he appeals to the fifth commandment, 
which shows us that the commandments of God, the Decalogue, the ten 
commandments, are not confined to Old Covenant Israel. They 
are trans-covenantal. Whether you're in the Old Covenant 
or you're in the New Covenant, they are applicable. They're 
applicable to Jews in the old, they're applicable to Jews and 
Gentiles in the new, they're applicable today. And so the 
apostle appeals to that fifth word to bring to bear upon the 
children in the congregation of their duty with reference 
to their parents. But let's look first at the rightness 
of obedience in verse 1. Notice the addressees, children. 
Children in this context was different than other contexts. 
Again, there were household codes where philosophers and ethical 
teachers or teachers of ethics would tell people how they were 
supposed to live. You've perhaps heard of Aristotle. 
He had a famous book on ethics. There were others like him. They 
didn't typically address children. They just assumed that children 
would toe the line, but they didn't go out of their way to 
address children, whereas the Apostle Paul does. And notice 
as well that the Apostle Paul doesn't say sons, he says children. In other words, he gives dignity 
to the individual, whether a boy or whether a girl. They are children. They are in the context of the 
local church. That is assumed by Paul. Notice, children, obey your parents 
in the Lord, for this is right. Notice what he doesn't do. He 
doesn't say, okay, pastor, I want you to stop the sermon or the 
reading of the epistle. I want all those children that 
are schlepped off into another room in children's church. I 
want you to bring them up now because I want to address them. 
No, the assumption was is that children along with parents were 
under the preaching and the reading of God's holy word. This reflects 
what you find in Old Covenant Israel, specifically Deuteronomy 
chapter 31, verses 9 to 13. It was all the assembly, including 
the little ones. In the book of Nehemiah in chapter 
8, when the Levites give the reading in the sense of the law, 
it's those mothers and fathers and all who could understand, 
they were under the word of God. So the Apostle Paul assumes that 
children are going to be present in the context of Christian worship. 
So there's not this segregation, there's not this removal from, 
there's not a separate sort of activity for the children during 
the preaching of God's word or the reading of God's word. No, 
they're to be under that word. They're to learn, they're to 
understand, they're to know. Whether they get every jot and 
tittle out of it, you as parents need to enforce the responsibility 
or rather enforce the duty that they listen, that they pay attention, 
that this is something that is under God, and this is something 
that is ultimately good and beneficial for their soul. So the apostle 
assumes their presence, and then he gives the particular exhortation 
or command when he says, obey your parents in the Lord. Now, 
I don't think he means obey your parents, parents that are in 
the Lord. In other words, obey only Christian parents. I don't 
think that's the argument. I think it's obedience that is 
in the Lord. In other words, children in the 
church at Ephesus that were converted had a religious obligation in 
obedience to their parents. And notice there's no qualification. 
I'm gonna make a qualification in a moment because I think it's 
necessary, but there's no qualification. Obey your parents in the Lord 
on four out of 10 things. On 8 out of 10 things? No. Obey 
your parents in the Lord. What's your responsibility as 
children? It's not to mouth off. It's not to reject parental authority. 
It's not to rebel against that. It's not to be a lawyer and say, 
well, you know, that's just not going to work for me and I've 
got 10 reasons why. I'm sure some of you are raising future 
lawyers that We at least were convinced one of ours was heading 
down that pathway as well as he could argue. We thought, oh, 
he's a shoo-in for that particular activity. But with reference 
to this, just like in the command to the wife in chapter 5, verse 
22. Wives, submit to your own husbands 
as to the Lord. There's no qualifier. There's 
no only in those things that you really feel like doing. Same 
thing with reference to children. It's not only in those things 
you feel like doing, but it's a general overarching exhortation. Children, obey your parents in 
the Lord. John Gill says, children should 
be subject and obedient in all things lawful, just, and good, 
in everything that is not sinful and unlawful by the word of God, 
and in things indifferent as much as in them lies, and even 
in things which are difficult to perform. And this obedience 
should be hearty and sincere, and not merely verbal, and in 
show and appearance, nor mercenary, and should be joined with gratitude 
and thankfulness for past favors." That's not unreasonable. It's 
perfectly legit. Your parents provide everything 
you have, and so it is legit that you obey them in the Lord. 
Now, Gil makes that sort of provision or qualification, as I do as 
well. We did it when we looked at Ephesians 
5, 22. Wives, submit your own husbands 
as to the Lord, unless your husband commands you to sin. Children, 
obey your parents and the Lord, unless they command you to sin. 
then you must obey God rather than men. You invoke that principle 
of Acts 5, 29, when the apostles are chided and rebuked and threatened 
and told not to preach the gospel there in Jerusalem because it 
was such an offense to the unbelieving Jews. Well, what did they do? 
They said, well, OK, we're going to just submit to Caesar. We're 
going to submit to these unbelieving Jews. No, they said we must obey 
God rather than men. So when it comes to any controversy 
between parental command and authority and God most high, 
you always side with God. But in terms of not being commanded 
to sin, as Gil says, and things indifferent, you are to, get 
this, obey. I'd like to dazzle you with Greek 
tonight and say, well, obey me. It means obey. It means do what 
they say. I know that's revolutionary because 
today, children are given the rule of the roost and we don't 
ever want to affect little Johnny or Susie and hurt their delicate 
psyche. Well, that's not the world the 
Apostle Paul trucked in and that's not the world that Moses, the 
lawgiver under God most high trucked in when he gave the fifth 
commandment. Children, obey your parents and 
the Lord. That's just it. There's no, well, 
you know, you don't really know my parents. You don't really 
know how I'm made up. You don't know that there are 
certain challenges. Just obey. Just do what you're 
supposed to do. Listen to Solomon in the Proverbs 
when he bid you to reflect upon the reality that the way of the 
transgressor is hard. Or the person that curses his 
father and mother. What happens? The birds of the 
air, the ravens will peck out his eyes. In other words, parental 
authority is given by God Most High for specific ends, for specific 
purposes. It is the wisdom of the infinite 
mind of God Most High to station parents in your life as an authority. And so the Apostle Paul, very 
simply, very clearly, and very much earnestly says, children, 
obey your parents. And then notice the rationale. 
He says, for this is right. It's right. You don't even have 
to be a Christian to see the rightness of this. You don't 
have to be religious to see the rightness of this. I think what 
the apostle is doing here is he's making an appeal to what 
we call the created order. Or in theology, we call it the 
light of nature. There are certain things that 
are hardwired in to creation. General revelation speaks to 
us. I think that's Paul's appeal 
in 529. He certainly argues from redemptive 
categories for the wife's submission to the husband and the husband's 
love for his wife, but he argues as well in light of nature categories. Notice in 529, for no one ever 
hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it just as the 
Lord does the church. In other words, it's just right. It's built in. We're image bearers 
of the living and true God. We don't come from the hand of 
God without any sort of hardwiring. We don't come from the hand of 
God without some sort of an operating system. We come from the hand 
of God bearing his image. There are certain structures 
in place. And then when we look around at the created order, 
it resonates with us that, yeah, it's right that the children 
that we gave birth to It's right that the children we feed and 
clothe. It's right that the children 
that we provide shelter to, it's right that they obey. So Paul's 
appeal is to the light of nature here. Paul's appeal is to the 
rightness of the activity. Listen to Gil. He says, for this 
is right. Children obey your parents and 
the Lord. It appears to be right by the light of nature, by which 
the very heathens have taught it. I mean, even the heathen 
gets it, right? The heathen stumbles on this 
fact that two-year-old Johnny doesn't have the wisdom to give 
the marching orders for the family. I mean, who does that, parent? 
You're a 35-year-old, you know, man or woman. Okay, we're gonna 
check in with you today, junior. I know you've got infinite wisdom 
at age two, so we're thinking about spending money, we gotta 
fit it into the budget. What do you think? None of us 
do that. Why? Because it's not right. 
It's just not right. There's a pecking order in God's 
world. There is an authority structure 
built in by God. So back to Gil. For this is right. 
It appears to be right by the light of nature, by which the 
very heathens have taught it. And it is equitable from reason 
that so it should be. And it is just by the law of 
God. That's the category. Next. the 
requirement of the law, so we see the rightness of it, light 
of nature, general revelation, and then we see the requirement 
of the law. So what are we to conclude? There's no war between 
general and special revelation. Wow! They actually jive. They actually go hand in hand. 
They work together. So he says, and it is just by 
the law of God which commands nothing but what is holy, just, 
and good. Matthew Poole, same sort of a vein. He says, for 
this is right or just every way so by the law of nature, of nations, 
and of God. Belgic Confession, Article 2, 
asks the very good question, by what means God is made known 
to us? Well, there's two books according 
to the Belgic Convention. There's the Book of Creation, 
and then there's the Book of Revelation. It says, we know 
Him by two means. First, by the creation, preservation, 
and government of the universe, which is before our eyes as a 
most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are 
as so many characters leading us to contemplate the invisible 
things of God, namely, His eternal power and divinity, as the apostle 
Paul saith, Romans 1.20. The Apostle Paul says that we 
can know the Creator, we can know Him by the creature. We can argue from the effect 
to the cause. That's precisely what Paul does 
in Romans 1. So there's a light of nature 
or general revelation that is just right. It's right that Junior 
submits. It's right that Junior obeys. 
It's right that Junior doesn't challenge. That he doesn't have 
15 reasons why he's not going to clean up his room today. No, sorry Junior, sorry pal, 
but the light of nature itself tells us, here's 15 reasons why 
you're going to clean up your room. It goes on to say, all 
which things are sufficient to convince men and leave them without 
excuse. Secondly, He makes Himself more 
clearly and fully known to us by His holy and divine word. 
That is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this 
life, to His glory and our salvation. So there's no at odds between 
God's revelation of Himself in creation and what He reveals 
to us in the scripture. In fact, there's glorious harmony, 
and the apostle has no problem appealing to light-of-nature 
arguments there in Romans 1 to argue for the existence of God, 
and here to argue for the rightness of obedience on the part of Junior 
to his parental authority. Now, then Paul invokes the requirement 
of the law. It brings us to verses 2 and 
3. This is Exodus 20, verse 12, and Deuteronomy 5, verse 16. Three things I want to observe 
here. First, the appeal to the law. Secondly, the explanation 
of the command. And then finally, the promise 
attached to the command. But notice the appeal. It's intriguing, 
isn't it? This is a Christian church, and 
yet Paul is using the Ten Commandments? Yes, absolutely, he's using the 
Ten Commandments. What does that demonstrate? I've 
already alluded to it, the trans-covenantal utility of the Ten Commandments. In other words, it's not just 
for the Jews in the Old Testament. The same law that was thundered 
on Sinai for the nation of Israel is the same law thundered to 
the children, the Gentile children, in the city of Ephesus in the 
first century. Thus, it is still applicable 
to us. Now, we need to use the law rightly. If you look at 1 Timothy 1 for 
a moment, the apostle gives us caution here. Look at 1 Timothy 
1, specifically verse 8. He says, we know that the law 
is good if one uses it lawfully. Unfortunately, I don't think 
we do know that anymore. And I mean broadly, in terms 
of the church, generally speaking. There's a lot of antipathy against 
the law. There's a lot of enmity against 
the law. There's a lot of bad reasoning 
against the law. Well, the law is no longer for 
us. Well, Paul says we know that the law is good, but the qualifier 
there is very important, if one uses it lawfully. So what does 
that infer or imply? It means there is an unlawful 
use of the law. If we preach law as a means of 
justification, that's an unlawful use of the law. If I said to 
you tonight, you need to get saved, carry out the commandments 
of God, go home, work it out, do your best, and in the final 
analysis, God will look at that and accept you. That's not good. That's the killing aspect of 
God's law. Why is that? Because in Adam, 
all die. Because we are at enmity with 
God Most High. Our minds are not subject to 
the law of God, nor can they be. So to preach it that way 
is to preach it unlawfully. But in the Reformed world, we 
have three uses of the law. The first is what we call the 
civil use. And that simply means the preaching 
of the law as a means of restraint for creatures. In other words, 
the speed limit, for instance, I'm not saying everybody abides 
by that, but it functions in such a way as to restrain the 
recklessness of man. I mentioned last week in preaching 
on abortion, someone once well said, the law doesn't change 
the heart, but it does restrain the heartless. And the first use of the law 
does that. The civil or political use of the law, it's a restraint. 
The second use is what we call pedagogue, and that simply means 
child tutor. The law shows us our sin and 
misery. The law shows us our need for 
the Lord Jesus Christ. The law brings to bear upon us 
the reality of a guilty conscience, a guilty heart, transgression 
of that law. And what does it do? It causes 
us to see the glory of the cross. There's hope, there's blessing, 
there's forgiveness. There's a righteousness that 
avails with God, imputed by him, received through faith in his 
son. So the law in that regard is absolutely crucial as well. 
And I'm gonna end there tonight for you little ones, young people. 
You're not all little ones, but young people, this law shows 
you your need for Jesus. When you hear that, obey your 
parents. When you hear that, honor your 
father and your mother. Search your little hearts. Is 
that always you? Is that constantly you? Is that perpetually you? Is that 
exactly you? Is that entirely you? I'll go 
ahead and answer for you. No, it's not. So where do you 
go for righteousness? You don't go back to Moses, you 
go to Jesus. Now having said that, the third 
use of law is called normative. So after the child tutor function 
of the law shows us our sin and depravity, After we see and appreciate 
the blessed crosswork of our Lord Jesus, once we're saved 
by grace, justified freely by grace, how does the Lord Jesus 
deal with us? He gives us the Holy Spirit, 
and He points us, guess what, back to the law. Why does he 
do that? Because it's a pattern for our 
sanctification. We know what pleases God when 
we look at those 10 commandments. We know it doesn't please God 
to have idols. We know it doesn't please God 
to be blasphemers. We know it doesn't please God 
to break his holy day. We know it doesn't please God 
to disobey our parents. We know it doesn't please God 
to murder or commit adultery or theft or lie or covet. So 
the law of God gives us a revelation of the nature of God, and it 
functions in a normative way. How do I know what to be holy 
is? Well, I'm not left to guess. I'm not left to try and figure 
it out. The law of God is there for me. The Spirit empowers and 
enables the justified by faith believer such that he walks according 
to it. Not again, in order to be saved, 
but as a consequence of his having been saved. And so the apostle 
appeals to the fifth commandment, brings it to the city of Ephesus, 
to the church specifically, and tells children, Gentile children, 
you need to honor your father and your mother. So that indicates, 
again, that it's trans-covenantal, as well, it is universal. It's 
not just for the Jews, but it's for Jews and Gentiles. It's not 
just for boys, but it's for boys and girls. It's not just for 
men, but it's for men and women. In other words, it's extensive. 
It is the revelation, at least to some degree, of the nature 
and the being of God. It is the answer to, what is 
it that pleases God? Well, it pleases God, as I said, 
when you don't engage in transgression of that holy law. And then secondly, 
the explanation of the command. Notice what he says in verse 
two, honor your father and your mother. Now the word honor, Cam 
alluded to this in his prayer. I don't know that he saw this 
coming, It means to be heavy. It means to be weighty, burdensome, 
honored. And I think the connection between 
honor and heavy is clear. We're not supposed to treat our 
parents lightly. We're supposed to treat them 
with honor. We're not supposed to treat God 
lightly. We're supposed to treat him with 
honor, with reverence. So if children obey describes 
the actions involved from child to parent, honor describes the 
inner heart disposition. You're to honor your parents. 
You're not to mock them. You're not to scorn them. You're 
not to abuse them. You're not to reject them. You're 
not to resist them. You're to honor them. That's 
the particular requirement involved at Sinai and now brought here 
specifically to Ephesus. So the connection between heaviness 
and honor is clear. We're not to treat our parents 
lightly, but esteem them and realize their worth in our lives. 
And it means, the connotation specifically, is to make honorable, 
to honor, and to glorify. And notice, honor your father 
and mother. Look back for just a moment at 
522. Wives, submit to your own husbands 
as to the Lord. That doesn't mean she's, you 
know, horrible. It doesn't mean she's wicked. 
It doesn't mean she's evil and vile and second-class. It means 
that she has a particular role related to her husband. She has 
a particular role alongside of her husband with reference to 
her children. So children, you're to honor 
your father and your mother. Again, this would be a bit revolutionary 
in terms of philosophy and ethics in this time frame. Women didn't 
get the sort of treatment that Paul is giving them here. Now, 
you might as a woman say, well, I'm not sure that that's the 
kind of treatment I want. Well, you should repent because 
that's the kind of treatment that God sanctions, God commands, 
and God has given ultimately for your good. But with reference 
to the command, it reflects what we find in the Old Testament. 
Honor your father and your mother. And again, the ancient Near Eastern 
codes and Old Testament times, do you think they gave a lot 
of dignity to women? Do you think they gave a lot 
of equal authority in terms of husband, wife, parental authority 
toward their children? know. This is beautiful stuff. So with reference to this admonition, 
there's a few other passages to look at in the Old Testament. 
So go back to Exodus 21. Remember the function of Exodus 
21 to 23. It concretely applies the principles of Exodus 
20. So we've got the giving of the 
Decalogue or the 10 words or 10 commandments in Exodus chapter 
20. And then the question comes, well, how do we apply these things 
in civil society? Well, 21.1 tells us, now these 
are the judgments which you shall set before them. And then it 
gives concrete application. Notice in 21.15, he who strikes 
his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. And then 
again, excuse me, in verse 17, and he who curses his father 
or his mother shall surely be put to death. Turn over to Leviticus 
19, Leviticus chapter 19. And note the close connection 
here. Leviticus chapter 19, verse three, 
every one of you shall revere his mother and his father and 
keep my Sabbaths, I am the Lord your God. Now we typically categorize 
the fifth commandment in what we call the second table of the 
law. So the first four commandments are our duty to God. So no idolatry, 
no blasphemy, no Sabbath breaking. And then the latter six are our 
duty toward man. Honor your father and mother, 
do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not 
lie, do not covet. But that fifth kind of occupies 
a foot in both grounds, right? I mean, I'm not suggesting it's 
a first table thing, but it's a great transition between the 
two tables because the parental authority represents God. And 
if you're gonna struggle in the home as a child with parental 
authority, you're probably going to struggle outside of the home 
with any kind of authority. it just the way it is. I mean, 
again, there's exceptions. You know, some people struggle 
as kids, they get converted, and they become, you know, really 
wonderful human beings. But in terms of the light of 
nature, if you resist parental authority, which comes to you 
in the context of love, you're likely to have problems in a 
workplace where the boss doesn't love you. you're likely to have 
problems in society as a whole where people don't care about 
you. So there is a close connection 
between submission as a child to parental authority and a happy 
life down the path. And that's what is enjoined upon 
us specifically in terms of the rationale. Now again, I'm not 
suggesting that every child that always renders obedience is only 
going to ever have a great life. No. Axiomatically, however, in 
terms of God's general providence, again, there's exceptions to 
every rule. But in God's general providence, 
when you do what you're supposed to, life seems to go a little 
better. I think it was Ronald Reagan 
that said, the harder I work, the luckier I've been. You get 
that, right? It's not luck. Things don't just 
happen. You've got to put in a bit of 
effort. So fathers and mothers occupy a place of God-given, 
God-sanctioned authority in the home. So every one of you shall 
revere his mother and his father. And then again, Leviticus chapter 
20 and verse nine. This is not isolated. Leviticus 
chapter 20 and verse 9, for everyone who curses his father or his 
mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father 
or his mother. His blood shall be upon him. 
And then turn to the book of Proverbs. Proverbs is most helpful 
parents for instructing children in the wisdom of Christ most 
high. It is a wonderful book. It speaks 
often. to the parent-child relationship. And notice specifically in chapter 
15, just cover a few of these texts. 1520, a wise son makes 
a father glad, but a foolish man despises his mother. Proverbs 17, verse 25, a foolish 
son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore 
him. Proverbs 19 and verse 13, a foolish 
son is the ruin of his father and the contentions of a wife 
are a continual dripping. 1926. He who mistreats his father 
and chases away his mother is a son who causes shame and brings 
reproach. And then I've already alluded 
to 3017, Proverbs 30, specifically at verse 17. Notice what this 
wise man says, the eye that mocks his father and scorns obedience 
to his mother, the ravens of the valley will pick it out and 
the young eagles will eat it. And then one other passage, you 
can turn to the book of Romans, Romans chapter one. So we're 
considering what's called a household code in Ephesians 5, 22 to 6, 
9. That's pretty commonplace, again, in philosophy and ethics 
at the time. There would be these instructions 
given to various people groups on how they were to live their 
lives. Well, there's also what Paul invokes, and they're called 
vice lists. In other words, if these are 
the virtues you're supposed to carry out in this household situation, 
here's the vices that you're supposed to resist. You're supposed 
to reject. And in Romans 1, basically what 
he's illustrating is man's rebellion against the living and true God. 
He knows that God exists. God has made it manifest to him, 
but he has rejected it. He has resisted it. The fool 
says in his heart, there is no God. So notice, what God does 
is He gives them over. And as He gives them over, they 
engage in all manner of wickedness. I've always thought that when 
you see conduct like we read here in Romans 1, in society, 
the question isn't, I wonder if God's going to judge us. The 
question is probably, or not the question, the answer is probably 
he's judging us right now. When we see the types of lawlessness 
that is promoted, when we see the kinds of rebellion and transgression 
of the law of God, when you take that seventh commandment and 
see how it's being twisted and abused and distorted when you 
see the lack of concern for human life and abortion and euthanasia. I don't think it's a question 
of, well, I wonder if God's going to judge Western civilization. Kind of looks like that's precisely 
what we're looking at because verse 24, God gave them up. Verse 
26, God gave them up. Verse 28, God gave them over. And then notice in verse 29, 
being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, 
covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, 
deceit, evil-mindedness, they are whisperers, backbiters, haters 
of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things. And 
then notice, disobedient to parents, undeserving, untrustworthy, unloving, 
unforgiving, unmerciful. This disobedience to parents 
is a vile transgression. I just don't 
think we get that. You see some kid losing his mind 
in Walmart and yelling at his parent. That's not funny, brethren. That's pathetic. That's sad. Again, that kid probably, I mean, 
they may not need to put aside money for university. They might 
need to put aside money to visit him in jail. That's not good. Again, if a child is not restrained, 
the father said, if you haven't broken their will by two years 
old, you've lost that. I think that's severe. I think 
that that's a statement that I wouldn't endorse, but I get 
the sentiment. I get the reality. Train up a 
child in the way he should go. And we're going to deal with 
this when we get to 6-4. Fathers, don't provoke your children 
to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of 
the Lord. The light of nature teaches them lots of things, 
but special revelation is absolutely crucial for bringing them up 
in the training and admonition of the Lord. So all that to say, 
with reference to Ephesians 6, we have trans-covenantal utility 
universally applied to Gentile children in Ephesus with the 
specific admonition that they obey, because the light of nature 
shows this, and that they honor because the fifth commandment 
demands this. And then notice in terms of the 
promise attached to the command. Look at how he responds here. 
Look how he continues. Honor your father and your mother 
and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. The 
first commandment suggests what? Other commandments, right? It's 
the first in a series of commandments, namely nine others. There is 
a consistency and a wholeness to the law. Now there's a promise 
attached to the second commandment, but it's a negative sanction. 
It is the threat of punishment. And it probably extends to the 
entirety of the 10 words. This is the first positive promise 
with reference to the commandment. And then notice what he does 
specifically here. He says that it may be well with 
you and you may live long on what? On the earth. Now, in the 
Old Testament setting at Sinai and on the plains of Moab and 
the giving of the law in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5, what was 
the promise appended or attached? That you may live long in what? 
In the land that the Lord your God is giving you. Wasn't that 
central in the whole redemptive plan in the Old Testament? You're 
in Egypt, you're in bondage. God made this promise to Abraham, 
Isaac, and Jacob that he's gonna give you this land of Canaan. 
He's gonna give you this land of inheritance. Well, what does 
Paul do? He universalizes that. Again, 
it's not just the Ten Commandments for Jew as Jew in the land of 
Canaan. It is the Ten Commandments for 
human as human wherever he or she finds himself. Again, the 
promise isn't formulaic. You turn in 18 years of solid 
obedience, and you're going to get the best jobs. You're going 
to have the best life. That's not it. You can't treat 
it formulaic. I think people do this with the 
Proverbs, and they get a bit exasperated. Well, Solomon says 
to live this way, and I live that way, and it just didn't 
happen. No, you got to allow for the reality that this is 
a sin-cursed world, that there are a lot of things that can 
go wrong. Asaph speaks to that in Psalm 73. He said, I saw the 
righteous suffer and I saw the unrighteous prosper. It was just 
a vexing thing for me. So, the Proverbs of Solomon and 
these particular statements, they're not formulaic. You can't 
say to God, well, you know, I did render 18 years of good, solid 
obedience to my parents, and I can't get beyond a minimum 
wage job. What's happening here? Again, you cannot treat those 
promises that way, but in the general providence of God, for 
those who do what God calls them to do, it may be well with you 
and you may live long on the earth. As Hodge says, it's the 
usual course of his providence. The usual course. Again, bad 
things happen. Sometimes people get hit by cars. 
Sometimes, you know, horrific things happen. Edy says it is 
a principle of the divine administration and the usual course of providence. But I think interesting to note 
is this expansion upon this land promise. See, if we didn't have 
the apostolic use of the Old Testament, then we wouldn't know 
how to deal with those promises made to Israel in the Old Testament. But how does Paul and Peter and 
James and John apply Old Testament promises to Old Covenant Israel? They take those Old Testament 
promises and they apply them to New Covenant Israel, which 
is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. So there's not this radical 
separation between Jews and Gentiles as separate peoples of God, but 
Jesus is the true Israel of God, and those who by grace believe 
on him are in union with him. So promises received by him are 
given to his church, given to his people. So the Ten Commandments 
are operative. The Ten Commandments are functioning. 
The Ten Commandments are for us, provided we use them lawfully. Not as a means of justification, 
but certainly with reference to a civil use, a pedagogical 
use, and a normative use. So all that to say, children, 
obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. And then honor 
your father and your mother, so both things are addressed. 
So you might engage in the outward act of compliance, but your heart 
may be at odds. See, God doesn't leave anything 
sort of untouched or undealt with. It's not just the picking 
up of the socks and transporting them to the laundry basket. It's 
the heart disposition. It's not just the cleaning the 
garage, because dad said so, but it's the heart disposition. 
You see, you've got that children obey your parents and the Lord 
for, for this is right. There's a rightness to it, but 
there's an honoring, there's an esteem, there's a respect, 
there's a reverence. And I love the way Gil makes 
that observation with a thankfulness and a gratitude for favors received 
in the past. Again, it's just right. It's 
the way things ought to be. John Calvin, in his institute, 
said, those who abusively or stubbornly violate parental authority 
are monsters, not men. That's pretty hardcore. But again, imagine that kid in 
Walmart who doesn't get a Snickers bar and he starts hitting his 
mother. You're not supposed to hit your mother. That's just 
unthinkable in God's world, in God's creation. That is monstrous 
behavior. Animals don't hit their mother 
animals. They just don't. It's unthinkable. It's right for a baby cat to 
esteem its mother cat. And yet humans come along, and 
because of our depravity and our in-Adam-ness, we reject and 
resist parental authority. Well, kids, if that describes 
you to some degree tonight, then go to Jesus. Believe on the Lord 
Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. The killing aspect of 
the fifth commandment shows that when it comes time to obey, when 
it comes time to honor, you might likely come up short. So with 
that knowledge in your mind, flee to the Savior King, flee 
to the Lord Jesus Christ, look to him in faith, and you will 
receive forgiveness, and you will receive a righteousness 
that avails with God. And then once that happens, obey 
your parents in the Lord, for this is right, and honor your 
father and your mother. When you sin, because you probably 
will, confess it, forsake it, and you will find mercy. Well, 
let us close in a word of prayer. Our Father in heaven, we thank 
you for your word. We thank you for the consistency 
that we find between general and special revelation, and the 
consistency we find between old and new covenants. We thank you 
for your law. Help us to use it lawfully, and 
I pray very much for the children and the young people in our congregation. 
We thank you. We know that children are a gift 
given by you. And God, we pray that you'd help 
us as parents and grandparents to bring them up in the way that 
we're supposed to, and just give them hearts to hear the truth 
as it is in Jesus, to believe on Him in their early days, and 
may they indeed know the joy of the Lord as their strength. 
Bless our homes, bless our families, bless us as a local church, and 
be glorified in our midst, and we pray through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.