Respect is Obedience to God

Obeying our mother and father ends when we enter adulthood, but showing them respect throughout their lives is a commandment from our heavenly Father.  Growing up, we were taught respect not only for our parents, but for other adults in our lives: aunts and uncles, grandparents, our teachers. All were to be respected when we were in their care. And we weren’t alone, all of the neighborhood children were for the most part respectful. “Mr. and Mrs.” were used when addressing the neighborhood parents.  In our home, dinner time was 5pm sharp.  Dad would stand on the front porch and whistle for us kids as mom was setting our table.  Whatever play we were engaged in, we stopped and hurried home before dinner got cold. One of our neighborhood mothers who had four young sons used a hand-clap to  signal for her children to hurry home. Street lights were a signal to be in your own backyard on summer evenings. Because we respected our parents, we obeyed their instructions.

Jesus showed respect to his mother even in His adult years on earth, and we are commanded by our heavenly Father to do the same towards our own parents.  It was at a grand wedding celebration that Jesus performed his first miracle, turning water into wine.  It came about because He respected his mother’s request for help. At first glance it appears that Jesus is telling his mother that He will not accommodate her request at the wedding banquet, but without another word exchanged between them, Mary goes to the servants and instructs them to follow Jesus’ direction. She was that certain of His respect toward her:

Two days later Jesus’ mother was a guest at a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee, and Jesus and his disciples were invited too. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, and Jesus’ mother came to him with the problem. “I can’t help you now,” he said. “It isn’t yet my time for miracles.”  But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you to.” John 2:1-5

Showing respect is right in God’s Eyes, an act of obedience to Him. While obedience to our parents ends with childhood,  respect must continue, even as Jesus showed respect to his earthly mother by doing what she asked of him that day. Because we love God, our parents can be sure of our respect towards them.