Having Two Legs

Growing a Royal Culture: The Children of Nobility: Ephesians 6:1-4

Introduction
Weeks and years can and should be spent studying the area of the covenant household, the Christian family, and today we are condensing even more the relationship between parents and children. But if Paul can condense his teaching into four verses; it is permissible to condense our consideration to one sermon. Paul’s instructions are essentially two-fold. First to children and then to fathers: Children honor; fathers do not provoke. This is your royal callings; you are nobility as you take up these duties in faith.

To Children of the Covenant:
Paul begins by exhorting children to obey. For support he cites Deuteronomy five, where Moses has re-given the law and given a promise with it. The original publishing of the Decalogue in Exodus 20 gives essentially the same information. But Deuteronomy makes it clear that there are two distinct but closely connected promises that are attached to the command to bestow honor upon parents. The promises are long life and a good life in the land. Notice that Paul equates honor and obedience. Children, descendents, posterity, etc. are to obey by honoring and honor by obeying. We know from Scripture and other historical evidence that first born sons received a double portion of their father’s inheritance because that “honor” would later become support for their parents (cf. Mk. 7:11-13). This establishes the principle that honor is always required but it can and does look differently throughout a lifetime. Children must grow up understanding this; and parents must not put obstacles in the way of children fulfilling this calling. And Paul says that this obedience is “right/just/righteous”.

The second promise is a good life in the land that God is giving us. This promise is empty if you do not believe that we are being given this land or if you don’t think the land is worth inheriting. But “[life] going well with you in the land” is directly related to eschatology, your expectations of what the world is going to come to look like over the next centuries and millennia. And this entails cultivating a “contempt for the cool”. “Cool” is evasive, fading, and ignorant. Of course nothing is wrong with looking nice, but it is stupid to think that the latest fashion fads are any different than they have ever been. Covenant children should grow up with a healthy cynicism for trends and fads, especially ones that claim the opposite of what they are: “unique”, “different”, “rebel”. Covenant children must grow up despising this kind of double speak.

Covenant Children, we are being given this land. That is why we gather here for worship. That is why we celebrate the Eucharist; that is you were baptized. We truly believe that we are being brought through another great Exodus in Jesus Christ. Come with us in faith into the land. Do not wish to go back to Egypt; do not fall in the wilderness from unbelief. Come with us into the land; fight with us; do not be cowards; do not envy the godless.

To Parents:
Paul exhorts fathers in particular here not because mothers do not have an important role to play in the raising of faithful children but because fathers are held responsible for their families. This means that fathers must recognize this responsibility. This does not mean that fathers are held liable for the guilt of their children’s sin, but it does mean that father’s are held responsible for it (Ez. 18:20, Ex. 34:6-7). The father will not be punished for the sins of his son, but the fact that a son is carried away in sin is the father’s fault. This is terrifying, but this is God’s way and it is his intent for this to be a blessing. This means that fathers must be sin confessing warriors. You must confess your own sins and the sins of your household. You must do this not as nit-picking cranks, but as honest, faithful fathers and husbands following the example of faithful Job (cf. Job 1:5). If things are not going well in your home whether your child is six months or sixteen, get on your knees and do some soul searching confession.

Further, you are called to raise your children up not provoking them or making them angry, but in the nurture/culture/lifestyle and instruction/warning/admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4). This means that you must raise your children up in the spoken and unspoken ways of the faith. You must show them and tell them. Proverbs 22:6 says that training of a child stays with him even when he is old. The proverb is intentionally ambiguous referring both to the specific “instruction” and the “way”. But the point is that there is a “way of life” and a “way of the mouth” that make up the training, and those will stick for better or worse. These two ways must also include both positive and negative direction; this is just logical and biblical coherence. Choosing one thing is a simultaneous rejection of everything else. This is always implicit and must be made explicit for children.

Application & Conclusion
Finally, I exhort you parents, but particularly fathers to imitate God the Father in delighting in your children (e.g. Mk. 1:11, 9:7). This means that you must imitate the Father by saying this out loud. This is not an invitation to pride or boasting (let him who boasts, boast in the Lord). But this means respecting your children and having grateful hearts to God out loud. It is not thankfulness and respect to only having thankful/respectful feelings in your bellies. Have those, but you must say and act accordingly. Delight in your children; do not be blind to their weaknesses, but determine to see God’s blessing in their lives and praise them loudly. If you don’t, then you are not delighting in them and you are blaspheming the Triune God.

In our text, the word Paul uses for “bring up” or “raise” primarily means to “feed” or “nourish” (e.g. Eph. 5:29, Rev. 12:6). Are you feeding your children with the nurture and admonition of the Lord or are you starving them? Are you feeding them or are you stuffing it down their throats? Is the Christian life being presented as a feast or famine? A banqueting table full of joy or barren land with grumbling and harping? Covenant children, much has been said to your parents, but you must recall that you are called to be royalty, nobility. Regardless of how your parents are doing or will do, your royal calling is joyful obedience in the Lord. The Christian faith is a call to inherit the land, to take possession of vineyards and cities, spoils of our King. Therefore all of you forgive as you have been forgiven, confess your sins, turn from them, and come join the feast.

Growing a Royal Culture: From Garden to Garden City: Titus 1:10-2:10

Introduction
We saw last week that the marriage covenant is an image of the covenant of Grace, the relationship Christ has with his Bride, the Church. Husbands are called to imitate the gracious reign and rule of Christ by bestowing gifts upon their wives to the end that they are presented as glorious and beautiful. This means that the people of God, throughout the ages are the bride of Christ being made glorious and beautiful. Looking back, we can see God’s work of preparing and adorning his bride.

House Guardians
Paul is writing to Titus who has been left by Paul on the island of Crete as pastor of pastors. His job was to appoint qualified elders in every city (1:5ff). Apparently things have been kind of bumpy for Titus. There are insubordinate people in the churches “subverting whole households”, lying, and using Jewish traditions to defile the people of God (1:10-16). Paul tells Titus here that he needs to start a long sermon series on the Christian household covering old men and women, young men and women, slaves and any other position in life he can think of (2:1-10ff). Our particular interest today is with Paul’s instructions regarding what older wives are to teach the younger wives, particularly with the duty of being “house guardians” (2:5). This is one word in Greek, a compound word with “house” and “ouros” which means guardian, keeper or warden. The word in other contexts can mean “boundary” or even the canal by which a ship would be launched into the sea. There are a couple of root verbs that this word comes from one which has to do with “seeing” and one that has to do with showing “care or concern”. Interestingly, it’s also related to a word for time from which we get the word “hour”.

The Garden Sanctuary
Eden was the first house that God prepared for His people. There are many lessons to learn from this first house for God’s bride. But one of the most significant is the idea of progress. Every day creation is pronounced good, but every day God comes back and does more. Therefore Christians must have this as their standard of excellence: from glory to glory, from good to good. Finally, God created humanity to be his bride, to continue the work that He began in the world: ruling, glorifying, filling, and guarding (1:26-28, 2:15). This is the task of all of humanity still, but by analogy it is the task of wives who image the bride of Christ (Eph. 5:24-27). Notice that the only other “creature” given the task of ruling are the sun, moon, and stars; we are enthroned in Christ in the heavenly places like the rulers of heaven. Wives, you are the heavenly ruler of your house.

The Tabernacle Sanctuary
This Garden House was lost through sin, and it is not until the tabernacle do we see God’s continued commitment to making a dwelling place for himself in the world with His people. This house images that original house having three spheres representing heaven, earth, and the seas (ie. Most Holy Place, Holy Place, and Courtyard). The furniture and decorations also mirror that original house having cherubim guarding the sanctuary, a stylized tree with the heavenly lights, a table with the produce of the ground, and a glorified humanity guarding and keeping the house (e.g. Aaron’s garments) (Num. 3:32). Notice two things about this house: there is continuity and there is glorification from the previous house. As God matures his people, their house matures. This principle is really the same as the progress we saw in the Creation week, but it applies to our homes too. Homes with young children will look and function differently than homes of grandparents. Secondly, the Tabernacle and the Mosaic/Levitical system were very concerned with distinctions. Clean and unclean, holy and profane, holy places and outside the camp were central to keeping God’s house pure and clean. Christian wives are free to organize their homes to suit their needs and gifts best (in consultation with their husbands), but the character of God shows us that His bride must learn this discipline. Homes that have no organization proclaim a disorganized Church, and declare a chaotic bride of Christ. If God’s people must approach him with discipline, orderliness and joy, why would we think that a Christian home would be different?

The Temple Sanctuary
Finally, we should notice that the Solomonic Temple is the pinnacle of the Old Covenant house motif. Again we see all of the elements of the Garden and the Tabernacle but with more glory and now more permanence. It is made of wood; it is in one place, and it is heavy, grounded. The word glory means “heavy”—one of the glories of the temple is its heaviness and stability. It is also glorious in its richness. Consider two things: the Temple is awe inspiring for the nations; it welcomes seekers from afar. The Christian home should be such a glory, not in a gaudy, competitive, or trendy way. It should be glorious for its stability, its discipline, the obvious care and labor put into it. And it should be welcoming to the world (ie. neighbors and friends), not a museum that everyone is afraid to touch, but a warm, welcoming home. Secondly, remember that God left the temple and it was destroyed. The house of God was glorious and beautiful, but for all of that, God’s people filled it with wickedness and God left. Christ called the Pharisees whitewashed tombs, and that wasn’t a compliment.

Application and Conclusion: Your Home
The two extremes are either to forget about the externals to the neglect of the internals or vice versa. The wedding ceremony is the metaphor for marriage. The wedding is both glorious and beautiful inside and out. There is no false dichotomy here.

But the last temptation is to take these points and start applying them to others. You are not the Holy Spirit; you are not the husband of other women. You, as a Christian wife, answer to your husband and ultimately to God himself. Use care with your words; these principles will look different, and different families will need to work on different things.

And do not despair or be overwhelmed with your task: Begin with giving thanks for what you have already been given. Romans says that the fundamental difference between unbelievers and Christians is thankful hearts. Cultivate gratitude this week as we celebrate, but cultivate a deep relentless thankfulness for your husband, your kids, your house, your furniture, your colors, your dishes: just keep going down the list and when you’re done, start over again. This is the most effective way of guarding your house.