Some ask, “What if the parent asks the child to do things that are improper like participate in immoral behavior?” Paul adds a qualifier to the child as he did to the wife. The child might not want to obey, but God calls the child to obey his parents. Adam and Eve listened to the suggestion of one that was not in authority and cost them dearly.Įphesians 6:1 commands the child to obey. He does not question what his superiors say but follows directions. The Greek word for ‘obedience’, on the other hand, is a common word meaning to obey, literally meaning ‘to listen to.’ If one listens to a person, then he obeys them. The word is not essentially different than the word used here ‘to obey.’ The Greek word for ‘subjection’ has a sense of following the directions of the one in the post over himself. The word ‘subjection’ focuses on the placing one’s will under another in authority over him. “And He (Jesus) went down with them, and came to Nazareth and He continued in subjection to them and His mother treasured all these things in her heart” (Luke 2:51). Notice His humble subjection to His parents did not stop when He got to 12, the age of Jewish manhood but continued on. We think of all the great things Jesus did and taught but forgot that His obedience allowed the Spirit of God to greatly fill Him.
Jesus is the best picture of this for us. Being filled with the Spirit is not freedom to do what one wants but living a life of obedience. They are often very difficult, but you can be sure if you are one of God’s children, these, we will call them oppressive, situations become the very crucible in which a strong faith and purity is formed. Is it not true that a youngster often is convinced that a better and greater life is associated with their own opinions and choices? Does not the youth often feel that their parents stifle the ability for the young one to grow? I do not believe that these circumstances are always easy. Even if you find yourself in such a position, you should be fully aware that the Spirit of God is desiring to fill you and reveal His glorious work right in those situations.īeing filled with the Spirit enables one to live in a way that pleases God despite the pressures and oppressiveness one might find in daily life. We must conclude that one’s position has nothing to do with the filling of the Spirit and all the abuse associated with such positions. He goes on and points out that wives, children and slaves all have this responsibility. The fourth means by which a person can be filled with the Spirit is through submitting to those that God has put in authority over us. The apostle speaks about this filling of the Spirit in a far different way.
They have lots of spiritual experiences to share about and speak how God is working in and through their lives. We typically think that the Spirit-filled person has this tremendous ability to know and serve God.
Christians are told there that they should be filled with the Spirit of God. The word ‘obey’ should remind us that this section, though part of chapter 6, is really an extension of a previous section starting in 5:21 which itself is a section staring in Ephesians 5:18. Honor your father and mother ” (Ephesians 6:1-2a). “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
0 kommentar(er)
