Authority

The Lord Jesus Christ was the ultimate keeper of the eighth commandment: “Thou shalt not steal” (Exodus 20:13). He came into this world to give, not to take. Leaving the glories of Heaven, Jesus willingly entered our world of sin and suffering. He took nothing from this world; yet, He gave everything to redeem it. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (II Corinthians 8:9).

The emaciated monk wept bitterly, kneeling on the floor of his cell at the monastery. Try as he might, he could not break the chains of impurity and sin in his life. The pious monk had renounced the world. He had tried unsuccessfully to flee all temptation. He had taken the Augustinian vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. In his search for absolution, the man had left a promising legal career and had given away all of his worldly belongings. He had come to the monastery to find peace and seclusion from the world. However, even there away from all evil, he had discovered to his horror that his own heart was full of sin. Masses, candles, beads, fasting, penance, and even painful flagellations (beatings) could not drive lust, pride, and sin from his heart.

We want our children to continue on in the faith. This outcome does not happen by accident. It is necessary to have a loving relationship with our children in order to influence them for the Lord.

An example of a man who started wisely in life but took a tragic detour into the path of pleasure and vanity is King Solomon. Thankfully, he repented of his sins before his life was over and recorded his experiences so that future generations might learn from them. His success and failure in life rose and fell in direct proportion to how well he honored the instruction given to him by his father and mother.

Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, shared some practical truths drawn from his many years of experience. How can we in daily life give to our parents the honor that is due to them?

Timothy is the only individual with two inspired epistles addressed specifically to him. Yet his own family life was far from ideal. How did this son with a believing mother and unbelieving father keep the fifth commandment?

Obedience from the heart requires a great deal of humility. Sometimes we must set aside our own opinions and personal preferences in order to honor our parents. But isn’t this the key to every successful relationship? Doesn’t a husband have to lay aside personal preferences to honor his wife? Doesn’t a wife often make sacrifices for her husband? Doesn’t a good parent set aside pleasures and hobbies to spend time with his children? Learning to honor our parents will yield blessings in every relationship. More importantly, our obedience in this matter of the fifth commandment is “well pleasing unto the Lord.”

To send a young boy alone on such a journey seemed foolish, but Rochunga's father had prepared him well for his journey. Mountains would be climbed, rivers would be crossed, and wild beasts would need to be avoided. But Rochunga was not afraid. He knew that his father would be praying for him on this mountain.

If ever a child was born who had the right to claim superiority to His parents, it was Jesus. He was the perfect Son of God, and yet He was placed into the home of a carpenter and his wife. In this human family, we find that Perfection submitted to imperfection, and the Son of God became the Son of Man.

In the last verse of the Old Testament, God gives us a remarkable hope for the blessing of family restoration under the Messiah. Malachi announces: “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Malachi 4:6). How interesting and very fitting that the last words of the Old Testament dovetail perfectly with the first words of the New Testament!

In the Old Testament, the word fool is actually a translation of five different Hebrew words that reflect subtle differences in types of fools. Sadly, the English translation makes it more difficult to identify the characteristics of five types of fools, but with a careful search of Scripture these differences can be distinguished.

Understanding how to honor the role God has given parents, church leaders, government and other authorities, and learning how to respond when those above me violate God’s will

Our attitude toward our parents is closely linked with our attitude toward God. According to Leviticus 19:32, a connection is suggested between honoring elders and fearing God. This special relationship between parent and child is one that God has ordained. For this reason, our attitude toward our parents, whether or not they would be considered aged, is closely related to our attitude toward God Who gave our parents to us.

Many men find great satisfaction in their work. It is natural and healthy for a man to find satisfaction in the success of his vocational achievements. Nehemiah in the Old […]

There are some Christians who by their upbringing are led into the fear of the Lord, even before they come to faith. This is a very great blessing: parents can give a child no greater blessing than to bring him up in the fear of the Lord. When those who are thus brought up are brought to faith, they have a great advantage: they are, as it were, prepared to walk in the joy of the Lord.

Moses asked the Lord a significant question in Exodus 3:13: “Behold, when I... shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?” Moses was asking for the source of his authority. The answer Moses received was simple yet profound: “I AM THAT I AM” (Exodus 3:14).

Have you ever wondered why many of the Ten Commandments sound so negative? Of the ten commands given, eight of them begin with the words “Thou shalt not.” This supposed negativity of the Law is actually a mark of profound gracious liberty. When we are commanded “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain,” there is a gracious liberty granted to use God’s name in every other lawful way.

Obedience is freedom to be creative under the protection of divinely appointed authorities. All legitimate authority comes from God. He is the One Who sets up rulers and takes them down.

Because the centurion was under the authority of the emperor, he had the emperor’s authority over those under him. The centurion realized that God’s Kingdom was also structured with a chain of command—the man realized that because Jesus was under God’s authority, He had God’s authority over the spiritual realm.

From His encounter with Satan, Christ reveals how the first commandment can be applied in our own lives, quoting Deuteronomy 6:13: “Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”