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Proverbs 30:11-14. Honor Your Parents

Honor Your Parents

Pastor’s blog Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF 6-23-12

Proverbs 30:11-14
Key verse 30:11

“There are those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers;”

In this parable we find see an indicator of the wicked. Look at verses 11-14, “There are those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers; 12 those who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not cleansed of their filth; 13 those whose eyes are ever so haughty, whose glances are so disdainful; 14 those whose teeth are swords and whose jaws are set with knives to devour the poor from the earth and the needy from among mankind.” The indicator is cursing their fathers and not blessing their mothers. The Bible tells us that we must honor our fathers and mothers. Exodus 20:12 reads, “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” It does not mean that we should honor them only if they are good parents and only do everything right. We must honor them simply because they are our fathers and mothers. Many people will not agree with this, but that is what the Bible says and there is some wisdom in that. We can still honor our parents, even if they are in prison, even if they are in rehab, even if they are living dysfunctional lives.

Maybe there are legitimate reasons to curse our parents. Maybe they have done something so heinous and brought that response on them. But most of the time, the reason we want to curse our parents is because we get self centered, thinking that we have not been provided for. It becomes all about us. That is why we read in verses 15-16, “15 “The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!’ they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’: 16 the grave, the barren womb, land, which is never satisfied with water, and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’”

But we must realize that they are only human with their own unique “sin” problems. They need love and understanding too. Maybe God has brought you into their lives in order for you to be shepherds for them. Think about Jesus who unconditionally honored us, even when we were wallowing in the depths of our sins. Think about Christians who have tried to obey Jesus to honor us, even when there was no reason to do so. Think about the parents who fed and clothes and changed your diapers to get you where you are today. When we think about these things in terms of grace, then it is a lot easier to honor our parents.

There are consequences for not honoring our parents. Verse 17 reads, “The eye that mocks a father, that scorns an aged mother, will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley, will be eaten by the vultures.” I have seen it many times. Those who have unsolved issues with their parents, seem to have unsolved issues with other people in their past. They need to learn how to forgive and move on and if it is the will of God, be shepherds for those whom have been brought into their lives. If they don’t, then their lack of forgiveness will eat away at them like tooth decay.

There are ways to respond. We try to respond like Jesus, the ultimate forgiver. But look at verses 18-20, “There are three things that are too amazing for me, four that I do not understand: 19 the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a young woman. 20 “This is the way of an adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’” An eagle is noble and soars on high seeing the big picture. We can do this. A snake is careful, always on alert and sees the rock, not as an obstacle but as a source of shelter and heat. Our bad relationships with our parents can be the same way. Like the snake we must be weary of spiritual attackers, like bitterness. The ship on the high seas is also noble. It rides the high waves to get somewhere. May we ride the waves of our stormy relationships with our parents with noble hearts. The man with a young woman is very forgiving. We can learn a lesson from the adulterous woman and realize that we are not perfect either. We may even be doing the same sins that we judge our parents for. We must get rid of our self righteousness and forgive those closest to us.




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