I remember sitting in mass (Sunday Worship) next to my dad. We were in the hard benches with kneelers in front of us. During the homily (what we called the sermon), the priest started talking about this passage. When he got to the part that said "Honor your father," my dad would smile, elbow me, and say, "See, I told you. Listen to the priest. He knows." The priest continued through the passage as a part of his homily. When he said, "Fathers, do not exasperate your children," I would elbow my dad and say, "See! Listen to the priest. He knows what he's talking about." We would both smile and chuckle knowing we had "won" the discussion.
Paul's reference in Ephesians (above) was to a much earlier Scripture in Deuteronomy (below). In the Deuteronomy passage, the Israelites have been broken out of Egypt, gone to Mt. Sinai, checked out the promised land, refused to go in out of fear, and are sentenced to wander in the desert for 40 years until all the current adults will pass away. The next generation of Israelites (children) would take them into the promised land 40 years later.. The strange thing about their situation is that they had seen God's miraculous work. They saw the ten plagues. The walked through the Red Sea on dry land with water like walls on either side of them. They followed the pillar of fire & smoke. They drank water from the rock, ate manna from the desert floor and quail that came in the evening (only provided six days a week), They saw the glory of God up on the mountain top and were frightened by God's presence and voice. Yet, they did not trust God when they saw the size of the people in the promised land. They forgot the "size" of their God.
Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, "Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children." (Deuteronomy 4:9-10 NIV)
It was incredibly important that their children remember everything about God. It was important for them to remember the miracles, the provision, and the love that broke them out of Egypt. It was important for them to remember that God fought for them against Pharaoh's army so they were set free. It was important to remember that God will fight for them when it comes time to enter the promised land. There was no more important job for these parents than to teach their children to trust and obey God. The parents weren't going to be around to help them when they went into the promised land. Only God would be there.
The first passage we read, from Paul to the Ephesians, was not about blind trust of fathers even when they sin. It was about children trusting their fathers to bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. It was also about the Fathers remembering this responsibility. There is no more important job we are given than to teach our children how to walk together with God.
How about you? Were you brought up in the training and instruction of the Lord? Have you experience things going "well with you" when you follow God? Do you see your responsibility with any (future) children you may have? Do you see the relationship between teaching and obeying?
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