18th March 2025

18th March 2025


Pray (ACts)


Read (Exodus 20v12)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


If the first four commandments speak to our duty to God then the final six outline our duty to our neighbour. What is our duty to our neighbour? To love him as we love ourselves and to do to him what we want done to us. The commandments are so practical and if we are to respond to God with gratitude in our everyday lives then we would do well to consider commandments five through to ten.


The fifth commandment is, “Honor your father and your mother: that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.” At first glance the fifth commandment is straightforward - honour your parents, but the scope of the commandment is much greater than we might suspect. As we think about our parents we are also to consider everyone who has authority over us in society. These individuals might be members of our family, church officers or the policeman who pulls us over - we are required to honour God as we honour them.


I fully understand that for many this is a difficult prospect. Some of you reading these words have no regard for your father who walked out on your mum thirty years ago, others have an incredibly strained relationship with a mother who always treated you with coldness and still others think that all politicians are useless fools who should be sacked. These are all real attitudes and honouring those over us is no easy task.


Even so, we are declared guilty by our sin, set free by the Gospel and respond to the Lord with gratitude in our lives. Therefore we are to seek to honour those who are our superiors by way of their age, talents or position. Practically speaking this means that we are to seek to honour our parents even if they have failed us, if we stand before a judge then we are to speak honestly and respectfully and if our boss seems promoted above his ability he still deserves our respect.


The Gospel impacts every aspect of our lives and not least our relationships. Do you love the Lord? Then for the sake of Christ honour those who have authority over you.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q34 What is adoption? Adoption is an act of God’s free grace, whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the privileges, of the sons of God.
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