Word for Wednesday
Honour thy father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. Ephesians 6:2
Not everything you hear from a comedian is funny. In fact, some of what you will hear from comedian Bill Cosby is very serious and thought provoking. In his book Come On People, Cosby presents some grim statistics about black people in the United States. Cosby states, ‘In 1950, five out of every six black children were born into a two-parent home. Today, that number is less than two out of six.’ This means that more than 70 percent of black babies born in the U.S. are born to single mothers. Cosby adds, ‘In 1950, we still feared our parents and respected them.’ Cosby also points out in his book that in 1950, twice as many white men occupied prison cells as black men. Today, black men make up more than 44 percent of the prison population, even though blacks make up only 12 percent of the total population of the U.S. Amid all of these changes has come a drop in the relative life expectancy of black people: white men live on average six years longer than black men, and white women live four years longer than black women. Cosby’s book spells out the truth of the Word of God.
We know that not every child who honours his or her parents will live a long life. But according to the commandment (Exodus 20:12), only those children who do honour their parents have a right to expect long life. And that applies to adult children as well. But we live in a world that is becoming much more difficult for children to do so. Children are being raised in environments that do not make for the showing of respect. Because children are overindulged in all things, they grow up with a sense of entitlement, and strike out at any – including their parents – who withhold anything from them. Our modern society makes it difficult, and sometimes illegal, to discipline children appropriately. Children who are not appropriately disciplined will not learn respect. Because of the frequent breakup of marriages, and the elimination of marriages in many cases, children often grow up with a very vague idea of who their real parents are. A male parent role might often be filled by whoever their mother has a fancy for that week, and a female parent role may be filled by the father’s latest flame. Children cannot be expected to respect such fly-by-night parents. And with such a lack of respect for parents, there must also be a corresponding lack of honouring those parents.
We all know wonderful Christian homes in which the love, affection, and respect from parents and children alike stand in sharp contrast to the mess that the world is making of families. The devil’s runaway success in destroying the family unit is blocked by those families who honour the Word of God and by children who honour their parents. If we follow God’s pattern, we will see God’s blessing. -Jim MacIntosh