Today's Passage - Ephesians 6:1-3

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Ephesians 6:1-3   "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  Honor your father and mother - which is the first commandment with a promise - that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."   We often need to be submissive when don't really feel like it.  Paul really knew the weakness of human nature, so he taught the children to obey the parents in all things.  Obeying is not to follow blindly, but rather to respect.  Even though our opinions might differ from those of our parents, we still need to willingly accept them completely.  Lord Jesus visited the temple when he was 12.  His heart was drawn by God's word, so He stayed at the temple to learn God's word with the teachers of law.  His parents looked for Him for three days, and when His mother found him in the temple, she said "Son, why have you treated us like this?  Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."  Jesus told them: "Why were you searching for me? ...Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"  Jesus reminded Mary of His role as the Son of God, but in the meantime He didn't reject His mother, but actually returned to Nazareth with His parents, obeying the demand of His earthly parents.   While Jesus Christ was on earth, He demonstrated the example of obedience and respect for the will of his parents in all things He did.  We also need to respect our parents, especially in the small nucleus families of the modern time.  On the one hand, we need to leave our parents to be united with our spouses, and establish a new family that is independent from the authority of our parents; on the other hand, we need to respect our parents and do our best to make them happy.  Our children are watching closely - If you don't respect your parents now, when you become older your children won't respect you either.  When you respect your parents, your children will respect you, and thus you will feel happy and you will enjoy long life.   Although our parents may not understand our love and how we express it, we still need to learn to respect them.  The central message of this passage is: No matter what we do, we need to do it from our heart, like we are doing for the Lord and not for men.  "Doing it for the Lord" should be the momentum for our entire life.                                                                                   Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, I thank you because your life on earth has become our example for obedience.  May you pour down your love from the throne to all the parents and children, so that hearts of the fathers will turn back to the children, and hearts of the children will turn back the to parents.  May you spirit strengthen our hearts so that we may depend on you to live our daily life.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!