← Back to sermon library

well good evening welcome back to the union service and the only announcement is the one that has been announced for last couple weeks that you all have the opportunity and privilege to serve this coming Saturday so if you're all able to make it whether it's for one hour two hours we'll start here at about 8:30 9 o'clock 8 9 o'clock but we've got to advertise 9 o'clock and just do a church a church clean that once a year clean up around the church here a couple of projects but nothing too major this year so that's this coming Saturday we'll send an email out mid mid week just to give us a mental a mental reminder well if you turn your Bibles please to Psalm 1 113 Psalm 113 as a cult worship Psalm 113 the majesty and contention of God praise the Lord praise o servants of the Lord praise the name of the Lord blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore from the rising of the Sun to its going down the Lord's name is to be praised the Lord is high above all nations his glory above the heavens who is like the Lord our God who dwells on high who humbles himself to behold the things that are in the heavens and in the earth he raises the poor out of the dust and lifts the needy out of the ash heap that he may seat him with Prince's with the princes of his people he grants the barren woman a home like a joyful mother of children praise the Lord a man will please turn with me in your hymn books and your hymnals to do him number 238 238 I'll ask you Stan please I'm sorry that's my mistaken it's 23 B it looks like a 238 but it's 23 B Thank You Lucas my apologies [Music] [Music] be seated well let's go to God in prayer and ask His blessing upon our meeting time here tonight our gracious and our loving Heavenly Father me come into your holy presence this evening through your son the Lord Jesus Christ thank you Lord that is our privilege to come into your house yet once again for a second time this Lord's Day thank you we praise you Father we get to traffic and the things of eternal worth twice on the Lord's Day you've given to us the freedom and the privilege of being able to gather here together as the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ thank you Father that we have like fellow brethren of one mind to desire to beat meet here together and to hear your word Lord we praise you and we give you our grateful thanks for the fact that we have access into your throne room through your son the Lord Jesus Christ thank you Father that you have pitied us that you have removed our sins as far as these is from the West how grateful we are Father for the fact that you took pity upon us as we were born in sin and born not having interested in the things of God yet father you you caused us to - to - to look upon the Lord Jesus Christ you gave to us that gift that great gift of faith to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and to look to the look to Christ for our salvation Lord we are truly grateful this night for such a savior as the person of your son the Lord Jesus Christ thank you that he left his throne in heaven to come to this earth - to take upon himself manhood that he would live and live a perfect life a life who was lived that was lived under the law and and came came through without any sin in him so that when he died he died as a perfect sacrifice without a blemish for our sins how grateful we are father for such a person such a savior as the Lord Jesus Christ as we gathered this evening father - to sing our praises - to pray our praises to you - to hear the word of God opened up father how we pray that all these things will be done for your honor and for your glory that no man would receive praise or glory here this evening but rather all the praise would be sure it would be would be directed heavenward towards Father Son and Holy Spirit how grateful you are father you have not left us to ourselves you've given us your word you've given us the spirit Oh God to take this word and to apply it to each person's heart this evening we pray Lord that you would be pleased by your gracious Holy Spirit to to penetrate each one of our hearts and cause us to to take in the Word of God this night and that Lord you'd be pleased to - to help it to find its mark in each one of our hearts they'll beyond to edification for those who are believers that would be made and molded and shaped after the image of your son the Lord Jesus Christ and for any unsaved here this evening father how we pray that you would be pleased to take and penetrate those stony cold hearts and and remove those cold stony hearts and give fleshly hearts we do pray that there would be that there would be that that new birth even here this night and we know father salvation is of you and it is you that it is you to you that we pray for such a thing such such wonderful events that someone would come to a knowledge of the Savior Lord how we pray praise you this night for the fact that we are an assembly an assembled church here in Chilliwack we thank you the privilege is ours to be able to gather together to be unmolested by those outside in and to be able to meet and and not be harassed and not fear the threat Lord we pray before your blessing upon those who govern over us that you would be pleased to cause them to to govern with a sense that they have been given that that responsibility by God on high and they will be held accountable for that for that privilege and for that responsibility how we pray for all you who are believers that you would study their hand cause them to be a voice for righteousness in this land and we do pray Lord that you would be pleased to to to cause cause us to be mindful of fact that it is youth that we gave you our grateful thanks and praise for the for the privileges ours to to gather together and in this manner father we pray for those who who live in other countries where there is much persecution of Christians where people do live under threat where there is genuine fear and threat on the part of the Church of Christ Lord how we praise you that that the Lord Jesus Christ is is as head of the church and you are building your church and even in some of these difficult situations difficult countries father you are building your church that you would put a hedge of protection around those who are your children caused them to be bold in the faith bold with the gospel in those difficult circumstances and situations and we do pray Lord that you would be pleased to protect and cause cause the gospel to go forward and we do pray for those who have suffered that you would be pleased to minister healing we pray that you would be pleased to to minister comfort to those who have lost their who are losing loved ones or in they have been injured how we pray Lord that you would be pleased to continue to cause your church on this in this lore world to be that church militant that we would continue to to march forward and March onward and we do pray for our brethren who suffered unlike ourselves and how we pray Lord that you would be that you would cause us to to have one eye upon our eternal home we pray Lord that this would cause us to live holy lives we'd we recognize Lord that that that we do need that that sense of that Holy Spirit with us each and every day that we would that we would consider that we live we live for for eternity and so we pray that you would cause us each day to live in light of the fact that that this is not our eternal home that we are living for something far greater and that is our eternal home and and how we pray that you would be pleased to make us a holy people Father for you are a holy God and we pray that you would be pleased to once again forgive us of all of our sins and cleanse us afresh in that precious blood of your son the Lord Jesus Christ it's in his name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymnals to the next hymn which is 381 381 and I'll ask you to stand [Music] amen you may be seated and please turn with me in your Bibles to Malachi the last chapter the Old Testament Malachi chapter 3 Malachi chapter 3 we have here in the very beginning John the Baptist being prophesied being foretold coming in the first verse and the Lord Jesus Christ being prophesied in the in the in the end of the the first verse as well and truly what a great way to finish out the the Old Testament the book of Malachi but with the the promised messenger the one of the forerunner of the Lord Jesus Christ and of course Christ Himself being prophesied of here in the third chapter so we'll reach after 3 behold I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple even the messenger of the Covenant in whom you delight behold he is coming says the Lord of hosts but who can endure the day of his coming and who can stand when he appears for he is like a refiners fire and like Wanderers so he will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver he will purify the sons of Levi and purge them as gold and silver that they may offer to the Lord and offering in righteousness then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord as in the days of old as in former years and it will come near to oh and and I will come near you for judgment I will be a swift witness against sorcerer's against adulterers against perjures against those who exploit wage earners and widowed widows and orphans and against those who turn and an alien turn away an alien because they do not fear me says the Lord of Hosts for I am the Lord I do not change therefore you are not consumed o sons of Jacob yet from the days of your father's you have gone away from my ordinances and have not kept them return to me and I will return to you says the Lord of hosts but you said in what way shall we return will a man Rob God yet you have robbed me but you say in what way have we robbed you in tithes and means you are cursed with a curse for you have robbed me even this whole nation bring all the tithes into the storehouse --is that there may be food in my house and tribe and try me now in this says the Lord of Hosts if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it and I will rebuke the Devourer for your sakes so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field says the Lord of Hosts and all nations will call you blessed for you will be a delightful land says the Lord of hosts your words have been harsh against me says the Lord yet you say what have we spoken against you you have said it is useless to serve God what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance and that we have walked as mourners before the Lord of hosts so now we call the proud blessed for those who do wickedness are raised up they even tempt God and go free then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another and the Lord listened and heard them so a book of remembrance was written before him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on his name they shall be mine says the Lord of hosts on the day that I make them my jewels and I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve him Amen let's pray our gracious and our loving Heavenly Father once again father we are grateful for the blessing of knowing the words of Scripture of knowing that in Genesis that Savior was promised and throughout the rest of the Bible various at various stages more and more light was given so that so that we could see that that coming Lord Jesus Christ and even here in the Old Testament we see here that that's and at the end of the Old Testament that that promised that Savior the Lord Jesus Christ who was about to to enter into this world to take on that human form that father you you gave to us that that promise of a savior so long ago and you were faithful to that to that promise all throughout scripture and and now here in the New Testament looking back so that great event of that that Savior the Lord Jesus Christ that Messiah who would come and take away our sins and and ultimately give to us his righteousness how we praise you Father for that righteousness that is ours we know that we are born in sin we are full of unrighteousness we are full of sin yet father you've you've imputed to us that perfect righteousness of your son the Lord Jesus Christ how grateful we are that you have done such a wonderful wonderful act is giving us our salvation you cut that you would call us your your precious jewels here in this chapter we praise you for that great great love that you would have upon us and how we pray Lloyd that we would return to you that a love as well love for the things of God a love for the word of God a love for the the Lord's Day I love for everything that we enjoy as New Testament believers and how we pray Lord your blessing to be upon the word of guys that's preached in a few minutes we pray that you would be pleased too to hedge our pastor in and cause the words of truth to be spoken from this pulpit and again we pray it your Holy Spirit would keep him here in the pulpit and keep us as a congregation to to continue to entrust it be entrusted to you and to your care and to your protection and and and to your word how we pray these things which really be multiplied in our lives and that we would put on the Lord Jesus Christ and be made and molded an image after the image of your son the Lord Jesus Christ it's and his precious name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to the last hymn which is 46 C 40 60 I'll ask you Sam [Music] well please turn with me in your Bibles to Deuteronomy chapter 5 Deuteronomy chapter 5 this morning we looked at instructions to young mothers specifically instructions to older women generally tonight we're going to review the fifth commandment I know I've preached on it many times it's one that does bear repetition as it affects every one of us and it affects all areas of our lives I want to begin reading in Deuteronomy chapter five at verse one and Moses called all Israel and said to them hear o Israel the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today that you may learn them and be careful to observe them the Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb the Lord did not make this covenant with our fathers but with us those who are here today all of us who are alive the Lord talked with you face-to-face on the mountain from the midst of the fire I stood between the Lord and you at that time to declare to you the word of the Lord for you were afraid because of the fire and you did not go up the mountain he said I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt out of the house of bondage you shall have no other gods before me you shall not make for yourself a carved image any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth you shall not bow down to them nor serve them for I the Lord your God and the jealous God visiting the iniquity of the father's upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me but showing mercy to thousands to those who love me and keep my Commandments you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you six days you shall labor and do all your work the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God in it you shall do no work you nor your son nor your daughter nor your male servant nor female servant nor your ox nor your donkey nor any of your cattle nor your stranger who is within your gates that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you and remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day honor your father and your mother as the Lord your God has commanded you that your days may be long and that you that it may be well with you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you you shall not murder you shall not commit adultery you shall not steal you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor you shall not covet your neighbor's wife and you shall not desire your neighbor's house his field his male servant his female servant his ox his donkey or anything that is your neighbors these words the Lord spoke to all your assembly in the mountain from the midst of the fire the cloud and the thick darkness with a loud voice and he added no more and he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me Amen well let us pray our Father we thank you for the written word of God we thank you for your law and for your gospel we thank you for your graciousness and mercy to us in revealing these truths to us and showing us our own sin by that law showing us our need for the Redeemer and giving us that faith and repentance to close with Jesus Christ we bless you and we praise you for these spiritual blessings that you have poured out upon us and now Lord God as we look at this section of your word we pray for the Ministry of the Holy Spirit we pray that we would think properly and clearly concerning these things that father as we are able in our homes and our families together we would seek by your grace and for your glory to have well ordered families to have those things that are consistent with the revelation of God Almighty in the old and the New Testaments we asked he would bless all the parents here the grandparents give grace to each and every one and we do pray for our children for our young people first and foremost that they would know the joy of being found in the Lord Jesus Christ that they would be believers of the gospel of Christ that they would be washed in the blood of the Lamb saved by grace through faith Christ our Lord Father give them hearts of compliance toward their parents give them a desire to bring glory to you in that family sphere and may you just bless richly again forgive us for our sins and for our transgressions and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord amen well as we look at the Ten Commandments we notice that there are two tables of the law the first four commandments define our responsibility or our duty toward God and then the last six Commandments deal with our responsibility or our duty toward man and it is intriguing that the fifth commandment is really the first commandment of the second table and I think there's a close connection between the fifth and then those that follow and I would suggest that those who disregard the fifth those who have no regard whatsoever for the honor of their parents most likely will not be the most upright citizens in a society and murder and adultery and thievery and lies and covetous no covetousness will ensue not every instance not every time but those who have a problem with authority those who do not submit the way that God calls them to submit are typically the kinds of people that have trouble in this world the Lord God has instituted several Authority structures and I would submit that the fifth commandment does not only apply with reference to the family but as well to the Commonwealth or the civil society that we find ourselves in also with reference to the church and the workplace and we'll sort of look at that as we move through this particular commandment tonight in the first place I want to look at the statement of the command and look at the explanation the scope of it and then thirdly the sanction related to the breaking of the command and then finally look at the promise given there's a promise stated by God it's expanded in the New Testament but notice in Deuteronomy 5 at verse 16 honor your father and your mother as the Lord your God has commanded you that your days may be long and that it may be well with you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you that is a promise appended to the state the commandment if you do this then good things will happen again it's not formulaic there's other things other circumstances that may well be involved but as a general rule in God's moral universe when we do what God calls us to do more often than not blessings ensue and that's precisely what we find again this is repeated in the New Covenant or in the New Testament in Ephesians chapter 6 to Gentile children which highlights for us the continuity of the Ten Commandments Gentile children in Ephesus are subject to the Ten Commandments but instead of living long in the land they'll live long in the earth and so there is that bit of expansion under the New Covenant but nevertheless the same law appeals or applies rather to children in the New Covenant as it did as it did in the old but in the first place let's look at the explanation of the command the specific duty notice it says honor your father and mother and this word honor means to be ultimately heavy weighty burdensome or honored the connection between heaviness and honor ought to be obvious we don't treat our parents lightly rather we treat them with honor and with respect we realize the gravity of their authority and their rule over us and so these two concepts are very closely intermingle now in terms of the connotation in this particular passage it means to make honorable to honor them or to glorify them turn to Leviticus chapter 19 to see this fleshed out in a little bit more detail a passage that will have cause to refer to a couple of times this evening but notice in Leviticus chapter 19 at verse 3 it says every one of you shall notice Revere his mother and his father and interestingly mother comes first father and mother bear equal Authority with reference to the rearing of their children it's not the case that mother is to be disregarded because she's not the head of the household that is simply untrue and that is simply on incorrect the mother is to be revered along with the father as the authority structure over the parents now back to Deuteronomy chapter 5 there is a connect with God's covenant that we see in Chapter four at verse 40 you can turn to Deuteronomy chapter 4 and see verse 40 it says you shall therefore keep his statutes and his commandments which I command you today that it may go well with you and you and with your children after you and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time essentially what you have in the book of Deuteronomy are several addresses by Moses to the people of Israel remember that God had promised to give Israel tenure in the land of Canaan and then the people of Israel grumbled against God they wind against God so God wiped them out for those of you reading using the robert murray McShane calendar you've seen that in your reading today that instance were they grumbled and God sent those fiery serpents to bite a whole host of that they were judged they were punished and that first generation did not enter into the land so here on the plains of Moab it is the second generation and so Moses takes this opportunity to prepare them to enter into the land and he does so by a series of exhortations and he repeats for them the law the Decalogue that which was given at Sinai in Exodus chapter 20 so this is the second generation these are the people that are entering into the land and when we read here in Deuteronomy 4:40 we see the purpose of God with reference to life in the land for Israel you shall therefore keep his statutes and his commandments which I command you today that it may go well with you and with your children after you and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time in other words this is a recipe for life in the land this is a recipe for life under God's covenant allured ur this is the way they were supposed to conduct themselves they were supposed to be obedient when commentator Craig II says the close parallel between these words the fifth commandment and Deuteronomy 4:40 indicates that the basic issue involved in the commandment was the continuity of the Covenant he goes on to say parents were responsible to teach their children concerning the Covenant and by so doing both children and parents would prosper in the land and see the fulfillment of the covenant promise of God but to teach effectively there must be a receptive audience in other words it's difficult to teach people that are not paying attention it's difficult to teach people that aren't honoring the teacher it's difficult to teach people that aren't respecting the teacher and so this is one of the purposes for the fifth commandment is to lay upon these children the burden and the responsibility of taking seriously the law of God as it comes through parental authority he goes on to say if children did not honor their parents and were rebellious and self-centered they would not be able to learn about the Covenant relationship with God which had been so central to the lives of their parents and as a consequence of dishonouring their parents they would not prosper in the promised land for they would not know intimately the Lord of the Covenant promise and so this is instituted for that stability and so that the instruction concerning Yahweh could be passed down from generation to generation Christopher Wright says just as the fourth commandment does not merely describe a cultic taboo day but governed Israel social and economic life as a whole society under God so here the fifth commandment forms part of the structure and fabric of Israel's covenant relation with God and is not merely a recipe for happy families there was a lot riding on the fifth commandment again not just simply a recipe for a happy family not just a recipe for well-adjusted children but for possession and tenure in the land that Yahweh had covenant and to give to that the old covenant was conditional the old covenant commanded and if one didn't respond favorably or obediently then there were sanctions attached to it and in the case of Israel that grand sanction was expulsion ultimately from the land because they didn't do these things they didn't honor their parents they didn't revere mother and father in fact this is cited in the prophet Ezekiel in chapter 22 at verses 7 and 15 as one of the causes among many of the reason why Israel went into exile you see this emphasis on obedience to parents referenced in the New Testament at several instances in what are called vise lists in Romans chapter one in first Timothy chapter one in second Timothy where it describes sort of the last days 2nd Timothy chapter 3 you see that disobedience to parents is mentioned in those particulars as well it's not an innocuous thing it is not a harmless thing it is not a low-level item it is something absolutely crucial for any Society of persons so with reference to the explanation of the command we ought to observe the other references look at Exodus 21 Exodus chapter 21 just to flesh this commandment out and to see how it appears oftentimes in Scripture excuse me Exodus 21 15 he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death verse 17 and he heard a huge IRS's his father or his mother shall surely be put to death now again I think that shocks moderns it shocks our delicate sensitivities we think horror of Horrors how in the world could ever a God ever command such a thing like this well I think there's a biblical or a rationale in terms of if children won't receive parental authority if they will reject parental instruction they're probably not going to do well with other forms of authority and with other types of instruction in society as a whole Leviticus 19 verse 3 I've already referred to that we can appeal to it once again every one of you shall Revere his father and his father and then he get in chapter 20 that verse 9 in the Book of Leviticus for every one 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 now in the book of Proverbs it is emphasized many many times I just want to look at a few of the salient ones notice in proverbs at 1520 proverbs chapter 15 at verse 20 a wise son makes a father bless but a foolish man despises his mother proverbs 17 in 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 proverbs 19 verse 26 he who mistreats his father and chases away his mother is a son who causes shame and brings reproach and then traverse 30 at verse 17 proverbs 30 at verse 17 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 now turn over to the New Testament the New Testament amplifies or rather reiterates this commandment again in the context of a Gentile church there are those out there that teach that the Ten Commandments are not abiding for the Gentile church that's simply incorrect it's simply untrue because the Apostle Paul tells us that the Ten Commandments are abiding to the Gentile Gentile and Jewish church the people of God the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are subject to the ten commandments not nine of them not eight of them not seven of them not the ones that we like not the ones that we prefer not only the ones that are repeated in the New Testament but the entirety of the Ten Commandments how do we know that because it reflects who God is there is a trans covenantal utility to the Decalogue or to the Ten Commandments that means wherever men are whether Jew or Gentile whatever age they live in whether older New Covenant they are subject to the abiding law of God in toto all 10 commandments including the fourth commandment even the Sabbath but here specifically in Ephesians chapter 6 at verse 1 Paul says 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 and you fathers do not provoke your children to wrath but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord now I read verse 4 there because I think the fifth commandment not only includes the responsibility of inferior --zz but it also includes the responsibility of Superior's and I'm gonna explain that in just a moment but then over at Colossians chapter 3 which is very parallel to Ephesians 6 you see this reiterated once again Colossians chapter 3 at verse 20 children obey your parents in all things for this is well pleasing to the Lord fathers do not provoke your children lest they become discouraged when we look at these particular passages in the New Testament the word obey means precisely what it says it means precisely what it says kids you're supposed to obey your parents now whenever we talk about inferiors and superiors and submission and obedience we always must make the necessary qualification if a superior tells an inferior to sin that is a time when the inferior may lawfully not obey remember in Acts chapter 5 at verse 29 the disciples were prohibited by the Sanhedrin from preaching the gospel and they said we must obey God rather than men so if a parent instructs a child to sin the child may lawfully not obey that particular command but in anything not commanded as sin the children the child is bound to obey their fathers and mothers there's no wiggle room here there's no not if you feel like it there's no qualification that they'll be pi if you actually do what your that's not the case you need to obey you need to submit you need to be subordinate to the authority that God has placed over you you must Revere for a mother and father ask God commands now with reference to the to the New Testament sort of passages it means to honor or reverence that it means to have a right attitude toward them and to express gratitude for them I mentioned this morning if one time of year is the only time of the year that you thank your mother for all that she does you need to pant and you need to reorient your life and you need to readjust the way that you function and maneuver as well you need to provide for their material needs in their old age look at Matthew 15 for just a moment Matthew 15 two passages here that I want to look at in terms of this responsibility for children adult children to provide for their parents and their older age and I'm not just saying this as one who's getting closer to old age and I want my kids to all hear this sermon and put away some doremi for me but if they want to that's good often thought my son would be my retirement program you know send them out to get good jobs and make lots of money and have a basement suite for at least their dear mother I'll go live under a bridge somewhere but notice what we find in Matthew 15 there is a disparity a debate between Jesus and the religious leaders look at verse 1 chapter 15 then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus saying why do you disciples transgress the tradition of the elders for they do not wash their hands when they eat bread he answered and said to them why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition now notice that Jesus and invokes here the fifth commandment if Jesus assumes the abiding validity of the Ten Commandments you see that throughout his ministry you see that in his in his being in his DNA it is in his humanity you see that that commitment to the law of God he is challenging them he's challenging the religious authorities and he says why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition for God commanded saying honour your father and your mother and he who cursed his father and mother let him be put to death intriguingly that he also cites the sanction involved he not only cites the prohibition or the the requirement of the command that you honor your father and your mother but he also cites the penal sanction attached to the violation of the command when he says he who curse his father or mother let him be put to death verse 5 but you say whoever says to his father or mother whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God then he need not honor his father or mother thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition now without getting too far afield essentially what Christ is doing is he and dot is indicted them for a custom that had arisen among these religious leaders to bypass care for their parents money that should have gone to their parents they designated as Corbin which meant dedicated to the Lord so it has the guise of piety it looked really holy we're going to dedicate this to the Lord not to you mom and dad now there are passages that certainly highlight God comes before parents that's not what's happening here this is not tithing this is not the the duty or the obligation to give to God of your firstfruits but rather it is in addition to that and so in order to look pious to look holy but to ultimately serve themselves they would dedicate this Corbin to the far to God's house and not give it to their own parents now I don't need to remind you that these religious leaders made their living off of what was dedicated in terms of Corbin it was an indirect way of putting money back into their own pockets but it looked so pious and it looked so holy and it looks so godly he says you've been validated the very commandment of God by this Corbin practice that is actually a means by which you slight your parents you don't honor them you don't give to that you don't care for them but rather you indirectly make the money find its way back into your own pocket so Jesus assumes the validity of the fifth commandment and utilizes it to highlight that these persons were in violation of it and then turn over the first Timothy chapter 5 first Timothy chapter 5 we looked at that a little bit this morning but in 1st Timothy chapter 5 it is intriguing Paul they're dealing like he does in Titus 2 with the various people groups in the context of a local church in 1st Timothy 5 3 notice what he says honor widows who are really widows the honor there doesn't mean to esteem them or to speak well of them or to give them a special parking spot it means to give them money it means to cough up it means to take dough from the church and give it to them so that they can buy food so that they can maintain their sustenance so that they can live and thrive and move and have their being when Paul deals with elders in first Timothy 5:17 when he says honor elders who rule well or double honor to rule elders who rule well it doesn't mean parking spots it doesn't mean you know gold plated sort of signs on their doors it means money it means pay them and in first Timothy 5 3 he says honor widows who aren't really widows but if any widow has children or grandchildren let them first learn to show piety at home and to repay their parents for this is good and acceptable before God you see the church is not the first obligation in terms of the church's obligation is at first with reference to caring for widows its family its children and grandchildren what's the assumption that adult children that adult grandchildren are going to esteem Revere respect honor and love their parents enough to have a basement suite to make sure that their parents continue to eat to make sure that their their widowed mother or grandmother doesn't have to eat cat food in order to eke out a life you see the church has a responsibility after the family and so this commandment doesn't cease when you leave your house rather you're always supposed to give this to your parents now in terms of the scope of the command I use the language of superiors and inferior zand I realize that may be offensive in this modern politically correct climate the idea of a superior or an inferior Wow aren't we all equal well yeah we are all equal metaphysically we are all equal in terms of being we are all equal as we come from the hand of the Creator as creature but in terms of position in terms of state state office in terms of place of prestige there is difference among persons in a civil society and with reference to this I think the Westminster larger catechism defines it well it says who are meant by father and mother in the fifth commandment answer by father and mother in the fifth commandment are meant not only natural parents but all superiors in age and gifts and especially such as by God's ordinance are over us in place of authority whether in family church or Commonwealth so you see the commandment is not only for kids toward their parents all of us are under the obligation to keep the fifth commandment all of us find ourselves in a position where we are inferiors to a superior and we must honor and revere them and we must respect and obey them that's just life in God's world he doesn't make us islands unto ourselves he doesn't make us autonomous he doesn't make us independent but he puts us in and I'm gonna use the language of the modern church in a way that's overworked he puts us in community and in community there are certain moral obligations as we function one toward another there are superiors and there are inferiors and we need to embrace that now as you look at the plains of Moab in Deuteronomy chapter 5 or you look at Sinai and in Exodus chapter 20 the primary audience there was adults now certainly kids were present and certainly kids would hear from this but in terms of this fifth commandment it never terminated upon children's obedience to their parents it included that but it also included as we've seen the family it includes the workplace turn back to Ephesians chapter 6 Ephesians chapter 6 you have this superior and inferior relationship in the workplace again I hope none of you think superior means this guy's great and the inferior is not it just means those who have a higher position those who have superior superiority and age and gifts and possibly position place office things of that nature but notice in the workplace in Ephesians 6 at verse 5 bond servants be obedient to the those who are your masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling in sincerity of heart ask to Christ not with eyeservice as men pleasers but as bond servants of Christ doing the will of God from the heart with good will 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 slave or a slave or free and new masters do the same thing to them giving up threatening knowing that your own master also is in heaven and there is no partiality with that you see what Paul is doing he's doing something that is somewhat common in the Roman Empire it wasn't just the Christians that had these sort of family codes or these lists of ethical directives but Paul takes the commandment of God and he weaves that in and he says that this is how the structure in the Christian society ought to be in terms of the fifth commandment we've got for children to their parents we've got parents to their children we've got bond servants to their masters we've got masters to their bond servants you see this relationship of superior and inferior all of us find ourselves subject to someone else as well in the context of the local church the church officers the elder specifically are the overseers of the church Hebrews chapter 13 you can turn there Hebrews chapter 13 again the point isn't I want a new parking spot the point is is that in God's world in the various structures the various spheres in which we find ourselves there are rules there are operating procedures and it occurs to me that when parents dropped the ball in the home everybody else suffers you have to rear your children to understand that they'll always be subject to someone else they can either be compliant disciplined self-control and well behaved or they can be just the opposite and a nightmare to anyone who has to deal with that parents we must take seriously the imperative involved in the fifth commandment and enforce the reality that our children are to honor and they are to revere and they are to respect because they're going to grow up and be members of the body politic which we're going to see in just a moment they're going to be members in local churches they're going to be employer employees if you have not taught them how to work if you have not taught them to respect if you have not taught them how to get out of bed if you have not taught them how to show up if you have not taught them that they're going to be miserable employees to employers and as I've often said in this pulpit if our kids are reared to just show up on time and not steal from their employers and do a decent day's work they're going to be running the country before long because the bar has been so drastically lowered that people are awarded for just showing up consistently at work that should just be the way it is you shouldn't get presents or prizes or rewards for just showing up but that's the environment that we find ourselves in so parents if you take seriously the mandate with reference to the fifth commandment and you bring up your children the way that God says they're going to be CEOs they will be your retirement program speaking practically to be sure now notice with reference to the eldership in the context of the local church hebrews chapter 13 verse 7 remember those who rule over you who have spoken the Word of God of God to you whose faith follow considering the outcome of their conduct and then again in verse 17 obey those who rule over you and be submissive we know this is in the context of the church for they watch out for your souls as those who must give account it's not dealing in the civil realm civil magistrate doesn't care about your soul his job isn't have doesn't have anything to do with your soul but unfortunately this is being blurred as well we've got a government today that does want to look after the soul the government wants to be involved in every jot and tiddle of your life we ought to resist that on a on a theological base it's the church that is the Ministry of the agency that is tasked with the souls of men the civil state has as their particular purpose the punishment of evildoers in a civil society not the the maturation of the growth of people in the in the Grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ that's the job of the church so in Hebrews 13:17 obey those who rule over you and be submissive for they watch out for your souls as those who must give account let them do so with joy and not with grief for that would be unprofitable for you though it's trying to make their job a little bit more pleasant and you'll benefit as a result from that and then in terms of the Commonwealth or in terms of the civil society Romans 13 is the classic tax let every soul be subject verse 1 to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from God and the authorities that exist are appointed by God therefore whoever resists the Authority resists the ordinance of God and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves for rulers are not a terror to good works but to evil do you want to be unafraid of the Authority do it as good and you will have praise from the same for he is God's minister to you for good but if you do evil be afraid for he does not bear the sword in vain for he is God's minister an Avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil therefore you must be subject not only because of wrath but also for conscience sake for because of this you also pay taxes for their gods ministers attending continually to this very thing render therefore to all their due taxes to whom taxes are due custom to whom custom fear to whom fear honour to whom honor to certainly the the duties of inferiors is set forth very loudly and clearly here be subject to the governing authority but it argue from the larger context of biblical revelation that superiors in terms of the civil state have a certain responsibility as well and though they are derelict in that we nevertheless need to keep up our end of the bargain so that is the scope of the command and then look at with or look with me at the sanction related to the command in the first place the rod and reproof how do parents enforce the fifth commandment the rod and reproof we see that in the book of Proverbs and by rod I mean corporal punishment now please don't post this on Facebook or on Twitter because I'll get hold off and be sent away by you know the pair of the powers that be because this is offensive today I would suggest that it's the lack of that that explains why we need metal detectors at schools to make sure kids don't shoot each other it's a travesty what we see today among young people it's a travesty that drug abuse that pregnancy that sexual promiscuity that all these things are rampant and rife trace it all back to the lack of the enforcement of parental authority now again mitigating circumstances there could be other factors to be sure but brethren when we lay down the rod we allowed the children to run roughshod now the Bible speaks a different tune the Bible tells us that we are to discipline our children we're not to beat them we're not to abuse them we're not to take joy in it we're not to hurt them or or or give them lasting pain and punishment and and and all those sorts of things but I cited a text this morning in proverbs 13 at verse 24 it says he who spares his rod hates his son but he who loves him disciplines him promptly proverbs chapter 19 verse 18 proverbs 19 verse 18 chasin your son while there is hope and do not set your heart on his destruction proverbs chapter 22 in verse 15 proverbs 22 verse 15 foolishness is bound up in the heart of the child the rod of Correction will drive it far from him proverbs 23:13 and 14 do not withhold occur withhold correction from a child for if you beat him with a rod he will not die you shall beat him with a rod and deliver his soul from hell again that doesn't mean about the head or in the chest or all over his body God made a particularly appropriate place for such things to take take place in terms of the the physiology involved in in Barriss brethren we have to take seriously the reality the fifth commandment is not up for debate it's not optional it's not something that well you know if you'd like to you can obey no we need to enforce this again not as chair tyrants not as dictators not as you know Mao or Stalin or Hitler or any of them in our homes but brethren we must ensure compliance with the commandment now a second sanction relative to the violation of the fifth commandment is seen in Deuteronomy 21 you can turn there we've already seen it in Exodus 21 we see it in Leviticus 20 but here in Deuteronomy 21 we see a particular example of it Deuteronomy 21 at verse 18 notice if a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother and who when they have chastened him will not heed them then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his City to the gate of his City and they shall say to the elders of his City this son of ours is stubborn and rebellious he will not obey our voice he is a glutton and a drunkard then all the men of his City shall stone him to death with stones so you shall put away the evil from among you and all Israel shall hear and fear now before you all say Oh Butler's gone off the reservation he thinks that disobedient kids should be executed just listen to what the text is teaching and just see how it underscores the gravity involved in the fifth commandment something that we oftentimes treat as optional when we wink at or when we neglect to or when we are too lazy to actually call our children out when they're disobedient to us God doesn't play that game God knows that if you don't get their hearts at a young age you're not gonna get their hearts now again grace mercy kindness blessing spirit those other mitigating circumstances can certainly involve themselves and and you can win on a two-year-old that won't eat his Peas it is a rebel adult son he is a drunkard and a glutton no two-year-old is a drunkard and a glutton as well this presupposes the exercise of parental discipline can't blame these parents you can't say oh they were terrible little we do that a lot oh look at how that kid turned out their parents must be terrible well notice what it says if a man is a stubborn and rebellious son and will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother and who when they have chastened him will not heed them this demonstrates as well the state's role with reference to capital punishment the parents bring the children to or the child to the elders of the city the civil government relative to that city this shows the seriousness of the fifth commandment and the honor that is due to parents and I would suggest that the case highlights something a bit more grave I think the fact that the boy or the young man is a glutton and a drunkard these are symptoms of a bigger problem he is a rebel he is insubordinate he didn't listen to Paul he didn't listen to Moses he didn't honor his parents he didn't revere his parents he didn't obey his parents but rather he has disobeyed them he has not revered them and he has not honored that symptoms of this is his pattern of drunkenness and his pattern of gluttony fat Craigie says that the latter words glutton and a drunken do not specify the crime but indicate by way of example the kind of life that has resulted from disobedience to parental authority the crime in other words is disobedience but the result of the crime is the dissolution of a proper style of life again drunkenness and gluttony are symptomatic of the bigger issue he is insubordinate to his parents he doesn't honor them he doesn't revere them he does not obey them now a man by the name of Vern Poythress who is not what is called a Fionna mist for those of you who know what that means you'll understand the reference for those of you who don't know what that means it's okay but Vern Poythress is not a the honest he wrote a book called the shadow of Christ in the law of Moses it's an explanation to some degree of Old Testament law and how it relates to Christ and the gospel it's a very helpful book it's a very good book but he says with reference to the the ex of the incorrigible son here he says the death penalty for wholesale violation of parental authority may seem harsh to modern sentiments but I would argue that it is not only just but realistic parental authority even if very imperfectly exercised takes place in the context of personal relationships and natural pressures in the direction of love parents have many advantages over the state if a person does not receive instruction from parents the chance of receiving instruction from the state's more impersonal discipline or nil the person who rebels in wholesale fashion against parents will also repel against the state and create general destruction and disorder until a limit eliminated it is mere sentimentality to refuse to come to grips with this reality again please don't go home and blog or Facebook Butler advocated the death penalty for the incorrigible sign I am simply reminding reminding you what scripture says and looking to underscore the seriousness and the gravity of the fifth commandment and that is seen as well as I said in the reason for the exile in Exodus 22 I'm sorry Ezekiel 22 you can turn there Ezekiel 22 I alluded to this earlier I want us to see it together this isn't the only sin that produced or brought on the Exile but it was certainly a sin in Ezekiel 22 at verse 7 in use they have made light a father and mother in your mitts they have oppress the stranger you see that they have made light of that in treat as Evie that in honor they made light of father and mother the same sort of language associated with the fifth commandment if in you they have made light fought a father and mother in your midst they have oppressed the stranger in you in you they have mistreated the fatherless and the widow verse 15 I will scatter you among the nations dispersed you throughout the countries and remove your filthiness completely from you you shall defile yourself from the sight of the nation's then you shall know that I am the Lord and then as I mentioned those appearances in the Vice lists in the New Testament romans chapter 1 romans chapter 1 again just to see the gravity of the offense as we bring this to a conclusion romans chapter 1 at verse 18 and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge God gave them over to a debased mind to do those things which are not fitting 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 disobedient to parents undiscerning untrustworthy unloving unforgiving unmerciful who knowing the righteous judgment of God that those who practice such things are deserving of death not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them first Timothy chapter one first Timothy chapter one again just see it's connection relative to the other violations of God's holy law first Timothy chapter one at verse eight but we know that the law is law is good if one uses it lawfully knowing this that the law is not made for a righteous person but for the lawless and insubordinate for the ungodly and for sinners for the unholy and profane for murderers of father's and murders of mothers for man Slayers for fornicators for sodomites for kidnappers for Liars for Bergers and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine according to the glorious gospel of the Blessed God which was committed to my trust I think Paul there is reflecting the ten commandments and he is showing the most severe form of the breaking of the particular commandment and he speaks of murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers and then second Timothy 3 verse 1 but know this that in the last days perilous times will come for men will be lovers of themselves lovers of money boasters proud blasphemers disobedient to parents unthankful unholy unloving unforgiving slanderers without self-control brutal despisers of good traitors headstrong haughty lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of god having a form of godliness but denying its power and from such people turn away often thought that this is sort of well to Roman's one the Romans 1 deals with those in the world these persons have a profession of faith they say they are godly they have a form of godliness but they deny its power you see the the repetitive nature of the insistence by God on adherence to the fifth commandment should overwhelmingly convince us now it should only be once but it should overwhelmingly convince us of the seriousness of it and our responsibility as parents and grandparents to enforce the fifth commandment quickly in terms of the promise given the Old Testament statement that your name days may be long and that it may be well with you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you that covenantal connection and Deuteronomy 4:40 tenure in the land would be blessed it'd be great and be wonderful provided that persons obeyed the stipulations involved in the Covenant but in Ephesians chapter 6 Gentile children are told that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth well brethren I hope that we will indeed appreciate the seriousness and the gravity of the command that we will embrace the command and we by God's grace will enforce that command in our homes too hopefully under God's blessing produce children that are a blessing children are a blessing from God they are a gift given by God but brethren they don't become a blessing unattended you have to shape you have to mold you have to teach you have to admonish you have to instruct you have to discipline you have to reprove now as was this morning so is the evening we have looked a lot at the law and I would submit in by way of conclusion that as inferiors we have all broken that law and as superiors we have all broken that law and the answer to a broken law is a merciful Savior the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is the way of salvation kids it's not simply honoring your father's and your mother's that is going to get you into heaven it is belief on the gospel of our Lord Jesus the reality that God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that that we might become the righteousness of God in him so honor respect Revere obey to be sure but hopefully that flows out of hearts that have been redeemed and conquered by the blood of the Lamb will let us close in a word of Prayer father we thank you for your word we thank you for your commandments and we thank you that even though we broke those Commandments you have sent a savior you sent a champion and you sent a redeemer in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ that one who in the fullness of the times was sent by the father he was born of a woman he was born under the law in order to redeem those who were under the law thank you for so great a salvation thank you for your great mercy thank you for the gospel and thank you Lord God that as we have come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior we have this desire to do what he calls us to do and I pray for all the parents in this local church that they would be faithful relative to the fifth commandment as superiors over their children but father you would bless our little ones that you would bless our young people she would get a hold of their hearts in their youth and that she would cause them to know the joy of being in Jesus Christ we ask now that you would go with us watch over us in this week help us to bring glory and honor and praise unto you and we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord amen we'll close with a brief time of meditation you