Ephesians 6:4 (NET) Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but raise them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Ekele observed that he was so bitter against his dad that when he heard that his dad was so sick that he might die, he felt nothing. His relationship with his father was rocky from when he was a teenager. His father always provoked him to anger, but his father never knew the extent of the hurt his actions inflicted on his children. Because Ekele was now a husband and father, it was easier for him to understand why his father did the things he did. Ekele eventually brought himself to forgive his father.
One thing I’ve observed about God’s commandments to us is that they are not unnecessary. God never commands us to do the good things we would naturally do, nor does He command us not to do the evil things we would naturally not do. If God says to love your neighbor as yourself, it is because loving your neighbor is not the natural thing for the natural (Adamic) man; taking advantage of your neighbor seems more natural. But you will never see a commandment in scripture for parents to love their children, even though that is the perfect will of God. Loving your Children happens naturally, even for the Adamic man, so such a commandment is not necessary.
So when you see a commandment in scripture like the one we have in today’s Bible verse, it is because what you are told not to do will most naturally happen, if you’re not careful. Children are more conditioned to the loving care and affectionate temperament of their mothers, so if fathers are not careful, they would find that they almost naturally provoke their children to anger without even realizing the extent to which they are hurting their children. If you’re raising your children according to your feelings and native temperament as a male man, you will most likely provoke them to anger and resentment. But if you will raise them as God raises us, using the Lord’s standards and mirroring His temperament, you will succeed.
Go into today remembering that God’s commandments to us are not grievous, but they help us lead wise and productive lives that honor Him.
—Abraham Damilola Arigi
Bible in 1 Year: Nehemiah 5-9 (In Devotional Audio)
Credits: Bible (Bible Experience, Zondervan)
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