Respect Is Something that has largely gone out of style in our modern world. In many cases, it seems that disrespect is much more acceptable. There seems to be a plethora of good reasons not to respect people and institutions that were once highly regarded.
People used to respect the presidency, then there was Clinton. People used to respect their parents, but now many parents are so concerned with being their children’s friend, instead of a parent, that they lose respect, too. The elderly were once respected, but now they are regarded by many as slow and unable to keep up with the times. The family values that people once respected were slowly eroded by the government’s defense of “alternate” lifestyles. There doesn’t seem to be much in the world worthy of respect.
A challenge to us
Our challenge is not to allow this attitude of disrespect to affect our lives or our walk in the truth. It is imperative to our spiritual well being that we not only show proper respect to God, but also for those to whom He has commanded us to show respect. We are told by God to respect our elders and to respect our parents.
For the better part of my life I thought the reason we were told to respect our elders and parents was because they had much more life experience than we, therefore they could be a great help to us, and because they have our best interest at heart. Turns out that these are great reasons and life will be much easier if we can learn from our elders. In the end, however, the biggest reason for respecting our elders goes far beyond the practical day-to-day benefits.
Lesson of 10 commandments
In Exodus 20, God gives the ten commandments to the children of Israel. I’ll paraphrase the first four in order to show why it is important to respect our elders, especially our parents.
- You will not worship any other gods.
- Do not take the name of the Lord in vain.
- Remember the Sabbath and keep in holy.
- Respect (honor) your father and mother.
The first 3 commandments focus on God. They teach how to worship and show Him the proper reverence and respect. We should love, fear, respect and honor God enough that we would never insult the Creator by worshiping something we made. We should respect Him so much that the thought of using His holy name in any way even the slightest bit irreverently would not cross our mind. We should remember to take time out of our schedule on a regular basis to meditate on the things of God and to learn about Him.
In these three commandments we are told to, among other things, respect God. Immediately following is the commandment to respect our parents. God is showing us that in respecting our elders, whom we can see here on earth, we are learning the proper attitudes to have toward Him in our relationship with Him. If we cannot respect those who we can see, how will we be able to respect God whom we cannot see?
Elihu as an example of respect
So what does it mean to respect someone? There are many good examples in scripture. First let’s look at Elihu. Job’s three friends (plus Elihu) had all
come to comfort Job and to offer advice and counsel. We all know what happened. Job’s three friends were horribly off base and in the process of “counseling” Job, they pushed Job into defending a wrong position.
Imagine yourself in Elihu’s position. Three older brethren are all giving advice and counsel to another older brother who is having some real trials in his life. As you listen, you realize that the first brother is way off. Seeing that the next brother is going to speak, you remain quiet, because you are younger. You are sure that this brother will correct what has been said in error and give some solid scriptural advice. Again you are disappointed. Finally the third brother speaks. Again you allow him to speak, out of respect, and again you are disappointed. Finally you speak.
Would we have been as patient as Elihu? It would have been difficult for me. Elihu says in Job 32:6-7, “I am young in years, and you are old; that is why I was fearful, not daring to tell you what I know. I thought, ‘Age should speak; advanced years should teach wisdom.— So we see one way we can show respect is to listen to our elders and hear them out.
The example of Isaac
Another great example was that of Isaac. We are all familiar with the time when God commanded Abraham to offer Isaac. They traveled to the mountain that God had designated and began the trek up the mountain. Isaac noticed there was no lamb for a sacrifice. He also was most likely old enough to put up quite a fight. It would be nearly impossible to tie a struggling young man prostrate on an altar without severely injuring him in the process. There is no record of such a struggle. So, Isaac must have lain down willingly in accordance with his father’s wishes. From this example, we see another way in which we show respect is through obedience.
The example of our Lord
Abraham and Isaac were a wonderful type of the respect that Christ showed his Father by dying on the cross. Jesus respected his Father’s will so much that he allowed himself to be hanged on a cross. If Jesus had not respected God’s will, he could have tried to set up the kingdom then and there and rule as King, making all things right. Jesus could have thought that he knew better than his Father, but he did not allow himself to think this way. He respected his Father and did not think equality with God was a thing to be grasped. Jesus prayed that there might be another way, this was not the way he wanted to die, but he followed the will of his Father and not his own. So, we see in this the ultimate show of respect through obedience.
Let us resolve to not allow the world’s attitude of disrespect to creep into our lives. Let us listen to our elders and respect their wishes. Let us do these things, always keeping in mind that the end goal is to glorify God by obeying His commands, and to develop the humble and contrite spirit that is necessary for us to have in our relationship with our Heavenly Father.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One