“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 be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.
And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger; but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.
And, masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.” (Eph 6: 1-9)
Isn’t it fascinating to consider that all the folks whom Paul intended to hear this letter would be together in the room? Kids and their fathers, slaves and their owners all mingled on the benches, learning together.
Sometimes we shove the children out to some play-facility, forgetting the inference that here they are included in God’s covenant (and that therefore, the sermon should be comprehensible to them!).
And the thought of slaves and owners together must have spelt social revolution! Even thought the New Testament didn’t “preach” against slavery as such, it undermined the caste system and undervaluing of human life that made such a system possible. “In Christ there is neither slave nor free…”
And what did they hear? They heard a word about submission to authority. It’s a key word, because in a moment Paul is going to show how to stand against demonic “authorities” (Read from v10) and the only way you can do that is by realising who you are and where you stand in yourself. Remember the centurion who said to Jesus, “I too am a man under authority“? He recognised that about Jesus, that Jesus knew who he was before God, and was therefore able to deal with the fake, usurped authority represented by demons and by sickness.
In the same way, Paul claims kinship with the slaves. “I too am a slave -a slave of Christ… He’s my Master” And the children: “I too am a child of God, under his discipline. He’s my Father…”
“Obedience” is not a popular word these days. Nor “duty” and “obligation.” But even if the idea of “submission” sticks in our throats, the concept is very real to us, and very straightforward. Despite chafing, we submit to all kinds of authorities: not just the police, or the Tax people, but experts in every field.
It always amuses me when a film star is asked his opinion on some moral and political issue, as if their celebrity somehow awarded them insight and wisdom.
So Paul begins with children obeying their parents, and moves to slaves obeying their masters. As children are under the parents and slaves are under the master, obedience is required. Yet, the parents who are over the children in the masters over the slaves, are given admonitions and requirements of proper conduct, for they too are under authority, the authority of God. That’s the point.
And though the children are to obey their parents in all that is godly and honourable to God, fathers are not to misuse their authority. Don’t “exasperate” your children. That means: “Don’t suck the spirit out of them.”
That’s what fake, usurped authority does. It controls and dominates and bullies.
But because of our fear of the excess, we have missed the value of the ordinary. For it is within the boundaries of normal “lordship” and submission, that children can grow and develop.
Here’s a few pointers from a CARM piece on this:
“God wants you children to obey your parents because your parents are wiser and more experienced than you and because God wants you to be raised in a godly way. If you children are rebellious in the home, you will probably be rebellious in society. If you do not learn that there are consistent rights and wrongs in the home, then you will not value the laws of society. If you learned to be disobedient and disrespectful to your parents, and you will be disobedient and disrespectful and society. Often, the results of such unruly and unwise behaviour leads to jail, or financial problems, marital problems, and other difficulties. It is under the parents where children learn respect, honour, trustworthiness, and develop their work ethic. It is in under the parents where children are supposed to be trained to become members of society. It is in under the parents where children learn that there is an authority over them, their parents, and that this authority reflects the ultimate authority of God’s over us all.”
It’s the same in the discussion about slaves and their masters. Paul says that “according to the flesh” both the slave and a master are subject to another Master, God. Therefore, the fear and trembling that is mentioned is not aimed at the master on earth, but the one in heaven. This means that those who are employees, are to work hard even when the employer is not watching. We are in the service of God and as Christians we represent God in our work.
No more twenty minute bathroom breaks or stealing boxes of envelopes.
We see that Paul directs us to understand that there is an authority in the world, namely, God. In our service at our jobs, in our ministries, and in our families, we are to “work as unto the Lord.” Furthermore, we are to have an attitude of willing submissiveness because this submission is a reflection of the submission of Jesus to the Father.
And now the stage is set. I can see how authority works in ordinary human life, so it’s time to widen the perspective and consider how authority works in the spiritual realm.
Dr Ken Baker 