Ethics Week 9 – Fifth Commandment – Live Long and Prosper

Ethics Week 9

The Fifth Commandment

Exodus 20:12 – 12

Dt 5:16 16

- Live Long and Prosper!

Moving into the second table – our duty toward each other

Perspectives on the Commandment

- Intro

Calvin: reference Obedience and Gratitude
Calvin fits our three aspects of ethics
- Existential – reverence
- Submission – Normative
- Gratitude – situational – specifically application to support

- Reverence (Existential Perspective)

Both sin and righteousness begin in the heart
- Lev 19:3 – fear
- Rom 13:7 -
- 1 Peter 2:18 Phobos – fear
Honor and fear often used ot describe our relationship with God
- Prov 3:9 -
- Heb 2:9 -
Demand for such reverence to parents because of our fear of God
Respect to others in thoughts words and actions
- I Kings 2:19 -
- I Tim 5:1 -
- Seriousness of cursing others – Ex 21:17
Balance between supreme honor and obedience due to God and the real but subordinate honor owed to parents
- Some use tradition to shirk this commandment – Matt 15:6:

- Submission (normative perspective)

Respect
- Listening to others without assuming we know more than them
- Disagree with reluctance and honor
Parents are teachers
- Deut 6:6-7
- Prov 1:10 -
- Prov 2:1
- Prov 3:1 -
Accepting the wisdom of parents tends to long life
- Prov 4:10 – 10
How do we show submission?
- Demeanor, listening,
- Hearing rebuke and correction
- Gentle exhortation
It is about honor, not just obedience!
- Faithful, submitting to their wisdom
This relationship exists in other places as well:
- Civil authorities
  - Rom 13:1 -
  - Titus 3:1 -
- Church officers
  - Phil 2:12 -
  - 2 Thess 3:14 -
  - Heb 13:17 -.
- Wives to husbands
  - I Peter 3:6
- Servants to masters
  - Col 3:22-25 -
  - I Pter 2:18-20 -
- Obedience to other humans is always limited
  - Acts 5:39 -
Still not biblical to use the Nuremberg defense
- Dan 3:6 -
- Acts 4:18-20

- Financial Support (Situational Perspective)

Honor – kavad in Hebrew
- Distinct sense of “render financial value”
- Roots often refer to wealth
  - Gen 13:2 – Abraham
  - Prov 13:18 -
  - Mal 1:6-7 -
  - I tim 5:17
Jesus applies against the Pharisees for refusing to support their parents for pious reasons
- Commandment – 1 Tim 5:4-8 -
As parents grow old honor becomes less about obedience and more a matter of respectful support
- When we cannot meet all needs then scripture tells us the church is supportive
- In this world health care and elder care is a complicated situation
Principles to apply to dealing with parents in old age
- No commandment for parents to live with us
  - Gen 2:24 – leave parents
  - As long as a parent is able to live independently, such separation is desirable – but we need more unified families
- When long term medical care is needed we should help provide it
  - Nursing homes are needed in many cases because of the advances in health care, longer lives
  - Help with wise decisions – not dump parents and forget them

Father and Mother

- WLC defines father and mother:

Natural parents, all superiors in age and gifts and those placed in authority over us
- Do you agree with this?
- Stretched out mind to see more such relationships beyond scripture
- Mutual submission – Ephesians 5:21 -

- Family metaphors in scripture

- The family is the fundamental sphers of authority from which all others are derived

New covenant community is a family
- Matt 12:48-50
- Rom 14:10 -
Proceeds to the authority of church. Community, and nation
Obedience to authority leads to covenant inheritance
- Col 3:23-24 -
All people deserve honor
- I Peter 2:17 -
- Romans 12:10
Men and women
- I Corinthians 7:2-4 -
Its all about servant leadership
- John 13:12-15 -
Government in all spheres in scripture rejects both egalitarianism and authoritarianism
- Authority is a blessing it is not demeaning

Live long and Prosper

- Keeping God’s commandments bring life

- Covenant Keeping

- Promises for this life and the life to come

Family, Church and state in the fifth commandment

- The Family

Began in Gen 1:27
- Gen 2:18-25 -
Proverbs 31
Gen 1:28 – role on earth
God calls families
- Acts 11:14 -.’
- Acts 16:15, 31 -
Educating children
- Deut 6:6-9 -
Discipline
- Prov 10:13 -
The family is God’s means of dominion and redemption
- Fill the earth
- Act in our community as ambassadors of Chris
Family is the basic unit of human society
- Other authorities are entrusted by the family with the role of protection, service, economy and community

- The church and state are extensions of the family

Problem of human government
- State is a problematic category ins scripture
- Scripture speaks of the family, people of God, nation of Israel and church
- State is used of governments that do not honor God
- Law was enforced by families and the covenant community
  - Genesis 9:6
  - Num 35:19,21 -
  - Deut 19:12
  - The family is three instrument of justice
Role of government
- Settling issues not resolvable on lower levels
  - Ex 18:26 -
- National army for p[protection
  - Gen 14
- Government becomes more elaborate with the growth of a nation but there was never a sharp line in Israel between family authority, the authority of prophets, priests and kings
  - Servants and ministers
    - Rom 13:4 –
Criticisms of government in scripture
- I Sam 8:10-18 -
Even in secular societies we should model biblical views of authority
- ! Corinthians 10:31
Civil disobedience
- Obey even corrupt authority
  - Rom 13:1-7 -
  - I Peter 2:13-17 -
- Limits:
  - Test-case law breaking in our society to overturn unjust laws
  - When ruler requires us to sin against God
  - Prosecution of leaders for violating the law
  - Abortion protests

Man and Woman under the fifth commandment

- Image of God : Gen 1:27

- Helper

- Church

- Society

No biblical prohibition against women in politics or leadership
- Prov 31 – in the gates