Description Ten commandments break down into 2 main sections. Commandments 1-4 address directly how to love God. V3 is the ‘headline’ commandment for this section; 5-10 teach us to love our neighbour as ourselves, v12 is the ‘headline’ commandment for the 2nd section. Is honouring our father and mother that important? It is to God! The punishment prescribed for rebelliousness to parents in OT Israel was summary execution – which shows us how seriously God takes this matter. Five questions: What? How? When? Why? Who? What are parents for? All people exist to ‘know God and to glorify him for ever’. We learn many aspects of that from our relationship with our parents. Parents (or substitutes) shape children. God chose this arrangement because he knows we find it hard to love a God that we cannot see. By loving our father and mother we learn to love God. Parents provide. God provides. Parents teach us ‘I am not the centre of the universe’. We learn that we can’t decide for ourselves how we should live, as parents teach us to distinguish between right and wrong. We learn forgiveness in the home. What do parents want for their children? They will do almost anything for their children’s happiness. God puts himself out for his children. He made the ultimate sacrifice. How should we honour our parents? In our hearts. In our words. In our actions. When should we honour our parents? In their old age. In their death. In their sinfulness. Why should we honour our parents? …that your days may be long in the land. This is not an individual promise, but to the whole people. If the Israelites honoured their parents, they would stay in the land. If not, he would take the land away from them. This is a picture to us of heaven being ours forever. This commandment puts all of us on the same level – none of us obeys it as we should. Which leads to our last question: Who can teach us to honour our parents? Jesus kept this command perfectly. Luke 2:51 …and was subject to them. On the cross, arranging for his mother to be cared for. He took the death penalty that we deserve for not honouring our parents. Forgiveness is available from him – and the renewal of broken relationships. Let this commandment drive you to Jesus as your Saviour and your teacher.