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THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER VOLUME 4, NUMBER 27, JULY 4, 2004 JUST THINKING ABOUT THE FAMILY PART 7 In Matthew 15:1-6, we read, “Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But He answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honor thy father and mother: and, he that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, it is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.” The main point of this passage was to show that the system of tradition, consisting of the comments of the elders upon the written Law of Moses and bound upon the people with equal force as the “Law” itself, was a false system. They had actually set aside the law of God in favor of their traditions in many instances, and for this Jesus strongly condemned them. However, I want to notice the example that Jesus used to illustrate the contradiction between their “traditions” and the law of God. The law was very clear. Exodus 20:12 said to “honor thy father and mother.” Exodus 21:17 said “he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.” There was a great deal involved in the command to “honor thy father and mother.” It included such things as assisting aged parents when they could not meet all of their needs themselves such as food, clothing, shelter, and such like. Surely it also included emotional needs as well; love and comfort in the sometimes extremely trying and difficult latter years. By their traditions the scribes and Pharisees had managed to sidestep a major portion of their responsibilities. They said, “Whosoever shall say to his father or mother, it is a gift, by whatsoever thou might be profited by me.” In a parallel account, Mark 7:11, it is put this way, “But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, it is corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.” The idea was that by claiming that his property or goods had been solemnly set apart by a formal vow to the sacred use of the service of God, or Corban, he could not use his property in the support of his parents. He could, however, use it in support of himself. Hence, they violated God’s law. My purpose in referring to this exchange between the Lord and the scribes and Pharisees is to emphasize our responsibility to our parents as they grow older. I truly believe that God has placed the primary responsibility for aged parents upon the shoulders of their children – not the government and not the church. In 1 Timothy 5;8, we find, “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” Who better to fulfill this responsibility than those who have been nurtured, loved and cared for by the ones who now need help in their old age? It is always a joy to see families present at services that consist of as many as four generations and to watch the grandchildren and great grandchildren interact with their grandparents and great grandparents. What a blessing it is to the children to benefit from the love and the wisdom of their grandma and grandpa, or great grandma or great grandpa. At the same time, one needs only to look at the eyes of those older folks to see how much they benefit from the children. No aged parent should ever want for the necessities of life when they have children who are able to supply them, and no adult should ever live in abundance while their mother and father cannot make ends meet and struggle in poverty. No aged person should ever waste away in a nursing home with no visitors while they have family alive. No aged person should ever have to feel forgotten or worthless as long as their children or grandchildren walk this earth. Very early in this series about the family, we mentioned Ephesians 5:21, “Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” I truly believe that understanding this verse and applying it in our families is the key to success. If every member of a family is always willing to take the needs and the feelings of the others into consideration even above their own, because that is what God wants, that family will be successful and happy. Greg Litmer
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