A Healthy Dose of Fear
Children must first learn to have a healthy fear of their parents since mom and dad serve as the first authority children are commanded to honor (Fifth Commandment). From the outset of interaction with sons and daughters, parents need to be firm, consistent, and trustworthy, keeping their word, and following through with stated consequences. To do otherwise sets a bad precedent.
- Andrea G. Schwartz,
From The Kingdom Driven Family Blog:
The book of Proverbs teaches that wisdom begins with a fear of the Lord. Some want to soften this verse by saying it means that we should revere the Lord. And, indeed, we should. However, when we appreciate the power and demands of a holy God, we manifest the epitome of foolishness not to fear Him in the truest sense of the word. Depending on the Bible translation, Hebrews 10:31 uses words like dreadful, terrifying, awful, and fearful to describe falling into the hands of the living God.
This is lesson parents need to teach their children. However, children must first learn to have a healthy fear of their parents since mom and dad serve as the first authority children are commanded to honor (Fifth Commandment). From the outset of interaction with sons and daughters, parents need to be firm, consistent, and trustworthy, keeping their word, and following through with stated consequences. To do otherwise sets a detrimental precedent.
- Andrea G. Schwartz
Andrea Schwartz is Chalcedon’s family and Christian education advocate, and the author of eight books including: A House for God: Building a Kingdom-Driven Family, The Biblical Trustee Family: Understanding God’s Purpose for Your Household, Empowered: Developing Strong Women for Kingdom Service, Woman of the House: A Mother’s Role in Building a Christian Culture, and The Homeschool Life: Discovering God’s Way to Family-Based Education. She’s also the co-host of the Out of the Question podcast, the Chalcedon podcast, and has an active teaching schedule with women and high schooled students.. She can be reached at [email protected].