- Long Days in the Land
Exodus 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
The NT says this is the first commandment with a promise. It is conditional promise: if you honor your parents your days will be long in the land. The first fulfillment of the promise is literally about a long life in the Land of Promise, the land flowing with milk and honey. Ephesians 6:3 adds, “that it may go well with you.” “Living long” means living well. You will have a good life; a good life fills the days and years and makes life “long,”
The land is the kingdom of God, which is in the hearts of believers. Not only will we live long but also we will live forever, No matter whether one’s life is long or short in earth years the life will be good, happy, and lived well. If the kingdom of God, heaven itself, is in the heart by faith in Christ life will surely be much better than a short, temporal, physical life without God and without God’s heaven inside. In the Bible life on earth is described as being short and full of trouble. That’s life for every born sinner. But the Bible also gives us another life, a good life that never ends. The spiritual life of God goes on forever and is always great.
The principle of this conditional promise is true for all people. The child that learns to honor and obey his/her parents will grow up to have a good life. The only significant command meant for children is simple: honor parents. The people that honor and respect their fathers develop character, believe God more easily, and generally have a good life on earth. Those who honor their mothers will learn love and trust in people, and life goes better. Stable, secure, well-adjusted, productive and happy adults have most likely had a happy and disciplined childhood. We can’t measure this cause and effect, but we can believe God’s promise.
This is a burden for children, but it is actually more of a burden for parents, for it is up the parents to make sure that their children are obedient and respectful. All fathers and mothers are sinners raising sinners, but the Lord has come to love, forgive and train sinners. Parents need to pray for help to be wise and loving, and pray for their children to be polite and respectful. The more work and prayer that parents put into parenting and loving and disciplining the better lives families will live. We have God’s promise that good results will come. For a “long” life learn to obey and to teach to obey.