Amos 3:12-4:5
Psalms 12, 13, 14, 119:1-24
2 Peter 3:1-10
Matthew 21:23-32
Matthew 21:23-32
Matthew's passage spoke to me immediately as a parent, so I had to choose this one! The chief priests and elders questioned Jesus' authority while teaching in the temple. Unaware that Jesus was "God" on earth, they asked him why he was able to teach to the people. He used John's baptism as his answer - in question form - from where did John's authority come from? The answer of course was from God, but they could not answer. So as I read this, it spoke to me as a parent and a mother. When I would discipline Jackson, my son, as a child I would get the answer most parents get: WHY? And then what would come out of my mouth was "because I said so." My child was always questioning my answer and "my authority." Behind my reasoning was that I knew what was best for him, but since he was young and could not understand the WHY I would say "God gave me you as a gift and so I have the responsibility to take care of you and teach you!"
Our authority with our children comes directly from God to show them the light and the way of righteousness, just as John the Baptist and Jesus came to light our way and show us the way back to God through their teachings. We may not always know reasoning behind the WHY but we need to have the faith to accept it and know that it is leading us to the LIGHT at the end of the tunnel for all eternity.
Stephanie Hart