Devotion for 27 May 2011 Anno Domini (Eph 6:1-9)

Devotion for 27 May 2011 Anno Domini (Eph 6:1-9)
“1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: 8Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.9 And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.” (Eph 6:1-9)
The first Four of the Ten Commandments provide the parameters for our obedience and reverence to God. The last Five, our relationship and responsibilities in dealing with others. But the Fifth Commandment is a transition which typifies our responsibilities in both areas – God and man. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” This Fifth Commandment is serves the dual role of informing us of our duties to our earthly parents, but also those owed to our Heavenly Parent. We must honor our parents just as we honor God. And we must honor God as well as our Great Father. “Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” (Ex 20:12). Would we live long upon the land which the Lord has given us? Then honor our father and mother (in the Lord) for such obedience is in no way contrary to the life we should live as Christians, and will assure us of a long life of eternal duration with God the Father. No parent (in the Lord) will countenance a life of sin and debauchery. Such parents will always encourage in the faith and lead us into a meaningful and saving relationship with Christ.
The first three verses of our text relate the manner in which children should reverence the parents. The next verse deals with the duty of parents toward the children.
“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” How does one provoke a child to wrath? By harsh and unjust treatment, by exercising authority with disagreeable intransigence. To the contrary, fathers must assume the responsibility of pastor of his family to teach the Scriptures and live the Scriptures before his tiny flock in Godliness and love.
“Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ.” Labor at your employment with great care to do excellent work and as much of it as the hours of your daily schedule will afford. “An honest day’s wage for an honest day’s work” is the old adage, and it is quite pertinent today. If we daydream through our day, our work production will suffer in both quality and quantity. We do not always understand the reason for every commandment of Scripture, but we must obey nonetheless the Word of God. The same goes for our employer. It is not our lot to question why he demands certain tasks to be done. He is paying us a salary or wage in return for our obedient service to him. Christ died for our sins, and that amounts to a treasure in payment for which we can never labor or sacrifice enough. Our obedience to Christ should be motivated by our love for Him, not a feeling that we may be able to repay Him (for we shall not).
“Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.” The character of a faithful employee, or a faithful Christian, is revealed in how they behave and conduct themselves when no one is watching, or will know what good they have done. Menpleasers satisfy men by their pretentions to be what they are not. Hypocrites try to appear devout by their pretended acts of righteousness. When we labor as if the company or corporation belongs to us, we will certainly perform at the acceptable level. When we serve the Lord from a heart devoted to Him in love and compassion, we will not miss an opportunity to magnify His Name and Cause!
“With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.” All the labors of the Christian are centered in Christ. A sluggard does not ever reflect the Christian character in work. EVERYTHING is done unto the Lord by the Christian, whether paid or free of pay. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.” (Eccl 9:10)
“And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.” Master or servant, we all has the same Great Master who oversees our labors. The master must exercise patience and kindness in his dealings with his servants, much like Boaz with the workers of his field: “And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they answered him, The LORD bless thee. (Ruth 2:4). Such respect from the master will evoke the same from his subjects. Neither master nor servant owns a special consideration above the other from the Lord, for all are One in Christ Jesus.