Hello. I have a question, but I dont know who to ask, so I am asking you. God asks of us to be obedient to our parents, and to be submissive. But what if your father is an abuser, and you really suffer by his side.. should you leave and never return, or should you accept the way he treats you and be obedient to God? ( respect and obey your parents)
Thank you for your question. It is one many have asked over the years. An the answer is found in God's Word. Exodus 20:12 states, "Honor thy father and mother..."
We have supposed this means we are to respect and obey them but we should take care when we alter the meaning of the words in the Bible.
If one was to respect the ungodly actions of another then you would not be honoring their name. Respecting dishonorable actions dishonors you and the person. Furthermore, if a greedy banker was to give out loans for homes that he knew the borrower could not pay and he ordered you to help him to this because you worked foe him then you would be acting outside of God's will by oppressing the poor and obeying him would dishonor you and him.
The only way a person can honor another is to hold them to God's Word and honor them as they live in accordance to it. This means that if a parent is abusing their child then the honorable thing is to seek corrective action, whether or not this comes in the form of rebuke, correction, instruction, or seeking justice through the church or law depends on the situation and the people involved. However the situation is addressed, it is important to understand that wrong behaviors and actions must be corrected if said person can be honorable.
Having said this, it is important to remember that in addressing the situation dishonor is not given unto the person acting dishonorable. We must speak the truth in love and follow through to see justice is found for the innocent involved, but seeing that none are without sin and all have been created in the image of God, let us act accordingly and show respect and love as we seek to ensure the needed corrective measures are taken to keep children safe.