Sermon for September 8th, 2013

Mark 12:28-31

28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31The second is this, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’

Deuteronomy5:15-16

15Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day. 16 Honour your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Ten Laws, One Love: Honor Your Father and Mother

Raise your hand if you have a bellybutton. If you have a bellybutton, then the fifth commandment is for you. If you have a bellybutton, (and you should look at it every now and then to remind yourself of this) that's a pretty good indication that once upon a time you were literally connected to a parent. (I'm guessing it was your mother). You were connected by an umbilical cord to a parent and your very life depended on that connection. When you were born, the cord was cut but that connection, that lifeline still continued in many ways. Your parents fed you, dressed you, sheltered you, taught you how to walk, talk, read, write, sing, dance, how to appreciate Star Wars movies and write computer programs in BASIC. Ok, so maybe those last two were just my parents, but still--your parents gave you life, and were the first ones to show you how to live it. Not everyone has children...but everyone has, or at some point has had, parents. And so the fifth commandment is an important one for all of us.

Before we jump into it, however, we are now halfway through the commandments; halfway through our sermon series on Ten Laws, One Love: Understanding God's commandments through the light of God's love. Just to review, we've talked about how the Ten Commandments--despite what we call them in English--were never intended to be "commandments" or laws. In Hebrew they are the "Ten Words" or ten sayings. The ten commandments are not about rules--they are about relationships. The first three express God's ideal for our relationship with him, and the next seven express God's ideal for our relationships with each other. Jesus summarizes them by saying "Love God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself."

So we can divide all the commandments in this way--those about how we related to God, and those about how we relate to each other. But there's another way to divide the commandments too. Actually, there are as many ways to divide the commandments as there are preachers in the world, but here's a way I divide them: Positive Commandments and Negative Commandments. Most of the commandments are negative (don't do this), but a few of them are positive (do this). And here's my theory: The positive commandments come first, and are the most important ones, from which all the negative commandments flow. So for the commandments that teach us how to relate to God, the first one is: "I am the Lord your God, you shall have no other gods before me." For us as protestants, that one seems like it has a negative built into it, but remember the Jewish people separate that into two commandments, and lump "no other gods" together with "no idols." So their first commandment is "I am the Lord your God." But wait, you say, that's not a commandment! Of course not, they're the ten words, the ten sayings, remember? So "I am the Lord your God" is the first commandment and if we take it seriously, then it logically follows that we would have no other gods, not make idols, and not take God's name lightly.

No on the other side--the commandments that teach us how to relate to each other--we also begin with two positive commandments, from which all the others, the negative commandments, flow: Honor the Sabbath (your restfulness) and Honor your parents. And if we really, really focused on just these two things--making sure everyone had adequate rest from work and stress, and asking ourselves in every situation "would what I'm about to do bring honor or shame to my parents?"--If we did those two things, I believe there would be no killing, no stealing, no adultery, no lying, and no coveting.

Taken in this light, the fifth commandment is supremely important: We all have parents, and all the remaining commandments are built upon this one.

What constitutes "honour?" One must provide them with food and drink and clothing. One should bring them home and take them out, and provide them with all their needs cheerfully. — Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 143:7

-Dividing the commandments: Positive commandments (2) vs. negative commandments (8) --

Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said that to honor your father and mother is "the most difficult" of all the commandments (Techuma, Ekev 2). There is no limit to the honor that is due them, and often obedience to this commandment is taxing.

-Gender equality: Honor due to parents is equal, no greater weight given to one over other. Leviticus 19:3 puts mom first, dad second.

-Parent/child relationship is how we learn to relate to other people. It's where relationships begin. Honor everyone.

-Intended for adults.

-Stages of "dishonoring" parents: Child=confront/defy. Adolescent=Rebel. Young Adult=dismiss/ignore. (Mark Twain, amazed at how much his father learned in such a short period of time). Mature Adults=neglect.

-Parents: Be the kind of parents your children can honor.

-What is "honor?" Not a monolithic, universally agreed upon thing. There are many ways to show honor, and they are different in each culture, community. So in order to understand HOW to honor someone, you need to know them. You need to have a RELATIONSHIP.

-Family as mini-model and microcosm for the church, world, relationships, community, Christianity (husband-wife, parent-child)

Proverbs 6:20-22 20 My child, keep your father’s commandment, and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. 21 Bind them upon your heart always; tie them around your neck. 22 When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you.

Proverbs 23:22-25 22 Listen to your father who begot you, and do not despise your mother when she is old. 23 Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding. 24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who begets a wise son will be glad in him. 25 Let your father and mother be glad; let her who bore you rejoice.

Not about RULES, about RELATIONSHIPS 1)The Ten Commandments are a gift; God's Word among us; a representation of who God is, to help us discover who we are and who we can become. 2)The Ten Commandments are a treaty, a covenant between God and God's people 3)The Ten Commandments are a call to turn away from the Empires and powers of the day and follow God into an unknown future, a new kind of Kingdom, a new kind of life.