My son, keep your father’s command, and do not forsake the law of your mother. Bind them continually upon your heart; tie them around your neck. When you roam, they will lead you; when you sleep, they will keep you; and when you awake, they will speak with you. For the commandment is a lamp, and the law a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of life[.] Proverbs 6: 20-23, NKJV.
Dear God, thank You so much for not leaving us to wander in darkness. Thank You for the light of Your Word. in the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
How wonderful it is when children have parents who are willing to reprove them in love, when necessary. I consider a reproof given in love – discipline. The same reproof given in anger, to cause pain, I consider punishment. And they are not the same. Some may not agree with me on this, but I believe that there is a world of difference between discipline and punishment. The former, rightly administered is intended to produce positive change. The latter usually creates feelings of resentment, and resistance to the lessons being taught.
In our Scripture for today, I believe the wise man is speaking about discipline. As parents we usually want the very best for our children. We have trod the path that they are now treading, and we are familiar with the many of the pitfalls along the way. We may even have fallen into some of these pitfalls. We wish to spare our children the pain. So we take the time to speak to them of the dangers and how to avoid them.
Children, it is a good idea to listen to your parents, especially, if they love the LORD, and are counselling you according to the principles in His Word. I believe that the wise man was referring to families where the father was the priest of the home and where mother loved the LORD, and the children were being brought up in the “nurture and admonition of the LORD” (not very long ago we dedicated a devotional or two, to this two-fold method of training our children – love and firmness). Sad to say, not many homes today fit this description.
But this counsel is still good for youth living in families in the twenty first century, even when many of these families are led by single parents: Listen to your elders who love the LORD and are counselling you according to His will for your life. Keeping these counsels visible is of utmost importance. The saying “out of sight, out of mind” too often seems to be the problem, when it comes to obedience. Some young people, who were brought up in good homes, and were taught principles of ethics, and morals, and virtue, after leaving the security of home, tend to “depart” if only for a time, from these principles. Sad to say, some never return to them, fully. Is it because parents failed to do their part well? Not always. Peer pressure is very real, and very powerful.
The wise man’s advice to the youth is, “Bind them continually upon your heart; tie them around your neck.” Let this be your daily walk; not one day “yes,” and the following day, “no.” If they are around your neck, you cannot miss them. They will be before you, constantly! Obedience must be continuous to be effective! Practice these teachings until they form a habit. And habits are not easily broken:
HABIT
If you take away the “H” you still have “a bit.”
Remove the “B” and you still have “it.”
But if you take the “I” out of it,
That is the only way to destroy your habit.
Therefore, if you really want to bind God’s teachings around your heart, make it a habit to be obedient!
We will continue with the second half of our text tomorrow.