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Adult Ministry
Values Based Family Leadership

Ephesians 6:1-4 calls children to obey parents and fathers to take care not to exasperate the children. The context includes Ephesians 5:21 which challenges Christians to submit to each other in the Lord.

In Paul’s day, the father ruled the home like a boss or lord. His word was law! Paul was trying to help fathers take it easy on their kids. In Jesus’ teaching, it was inappropriate to “lord it over” the children. A new respect was appropriate for Christ’s followers.

Barbara Colorosso, noted family trainer and author says “The day and age of telling kids what to do is over.” That’s an extreme, but does mean that the nature of family has changed since the 1st century.

Today, a biblical model for families sees father and mother working together as peers guiding their children. They would follow mutually established relationship values such as:

respectfulness communication active listening, especially by parents demonstrations of love

They would conduct their family life along a whole range of values in a wide variety of areas:

morality ethical life Christian conduct physical development neighbourliness. . .

The list is virtually endless. The key is to help the children – and family as a whole – exist and function together along mutually known norms and values: “this is the way it’s done in our home; these are the standards we will live by.” In such a home husband and wife are equally responsible for the direction of the home.

Exerpts from a sermon delivered on Mother’s Day at Westwood Community Church in Winnipeg.

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Last modified October 31, 2000.

Ideabank is a quarterly newsletter published by the Board of Christian Education Ministries, a board of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches.

© 2000 Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches.
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