Fifth of the Ten Words

Continuing our summer series on the Ten Commandments and heading into the "second table" concerning "loving our neighbors" properly, we carefully consider the fifth commandment. This Sunday we do a deep dive into Exodus 20:12. While the commandment is specifically about honoring our parents, the wider application of its moral principle (with Scriptural support) spans our relationships within the family, in the  church, and with all our neighbors.  While we certainly center the commandment on the "foundational context for human relationship," we extend the commandment to understand that because God makes promises with respect to his blessings, we should honor those with whom God has placed us.  We will again consider what this means we should do, and what we should not do in obeying this principle.  In short: 1) we preserve the honor of all those where God has placed them; 2) we do not neglect the duties of where God has placed us. And, in the end, we remember: "no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God" (2 Corinthians 1:20, NIV).