I’ve been reading a book by David DeSilva called “Honor, Patronage, Kinship, and Purity.” Friends. I highly recommend that you read this one. I have found it quite revealing and I seem to be reading the NT through new eyes. However, I was reading last night as he was talking about the family.
In the ancient world, the family worked closely together. They would often deal in a trade and produce an item or do some sort of service. They were tightly knit and defended each other. Sibling rivalry was frowned upon and the chastity of the daughters was to be protected at all costs. Husbands, while above their wives on the scale of hierarchy, were to love their wives and cherish them and honor them. Extended family members could often live under the same roof.
The more I read, the more I pondered how different our families today are. Our families don’t really work together. Our home is really just a place where we live often. Chastity honored today? What a joke. Go look at the checkout lines at the grocery store and see what’s going on. It is a wonder to get a female to the altar chaste.
I prayed last night as I was going to sleep and I prayed repentance. I was reminded of how Nehemiah and Daniel and other figures prayed for the nation of Israel when they’d blown it. I think there are times we need to pray on behalf of our nation as well. It shows us the gravity of our situation.
I have seen this commercial that shows how far we have fallen. I’ll leave the company unnamed, but it has the father talking to the kids who are lounging on couches and saying that he has good news. He’s switched to a new wireless plan so now the kids can text anyone anytime all they want. The kids say “But we do that already.” Then the Dad answers, “Yeah, but now we can afford for Mom to quit her second job.” The mother walks in then dressed as a taco and puts the keys on the counter and heads off. The kids sit on the couch reading their magazines indifferent.
That sickens me. It shows me how far we’ve fallen. First off, those kids need to be taught a lesson. There are some times I do favor corporal punishment and this would be one of them. If they are too old, some form of discipline. The kids needed to learn that first. The parents were just indulging them by getting a second job. The kids are learning a lesson there.
Secondly, if there was a situation where there needed to be extra money, it did not need to be from the Mom. That Dad needed to be out there doing the work. Unfortunately, our men don’t often know how to lead which can lead to them being dominated by their wives, a position that should not happen.
Of course, this also means that men don’t abuse leadership. There are more texts that speak of how the man is to live than of how the woman is to live, but the men are the leaders and they need to be out there acting like leaders. They are the ones who are to raise their children in the fear of the Lord and teach them to be disciples of Christ.
I pray for our nation. I really do. We have forgotten the way a family is supposed to be. I really hope we can return, because I do not think our nation can survive if we dismiss the family unit.
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