Ephesians 6:1-3 commands children to obey their parents "because it is right." Here are ten reasons why it is "right" to obey.

1. It is right because it pleases the Lord.

You want God's blessing in everything you do. Imagine God is against you. Imagine God's displeasure upon you? Paul speaks to the Colossians that your honor and obedience is "pleasing to the Lord" (Col 3:20). God opposes the proud, but He gives grace to the humble (1 Pet. 5:5, James 4:6). The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men (Rom 1:18).

2. It is right because children need to learn it when they are young.

Pride makes children think that they should be in control. Here is the reality. Children are blind to their lack of wisdom and experience. Children don't see themselves the ways mature people see them. Ecclesiastes 10:3, gives a picture of what this looks like, "Even when a fool walks along the way, He lacks wisdom, and he shows everyone that he is a fool." Children are naturally deceived about themselves. Children want all the authority and responsibility of adults without having the maturity, the thinking process, and the financial ability to be on their own. They want the same authority as the parents, but they do not have the same wisdom and experience as parents.

3. It is right because rebellion is connected to the self-driven impulses that characterize evil – even demonic activity.

God calls it "divination" (1 Sam 15:22-24). "Rebellion" is like "divination." Divination, at its core, is rejecting God and going to another source. It is despising His ways. This independent spirit of arrogance is like idolatry. When God said, "to obey is better than sacrifice," He makes it clear that heartfelt obedience to God is better than going through the motions of sacrifice with a rebellious heart.

4. It is right because obedience is one way you love God.

We love God by obeying Him. Jesus says that if you love Him, you will keep His commands, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me" (John 14:23-24). Jesus asks religious people, "Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not what I say." (Lk. 6:46). We do not love God only in our mind and emotions. We love God by the who we obey and what we DO.

It is right because it shows that you are wise. When you scoff at your parents and refuse to obey them, you prove to everyone that you are not wise, "A scoffer does not love one who corrects him, nor will he go to the wise." (15:12). Solomon adds, "The ear that hears the rebukes of life will abide among the wise. He who disdains instruction despises his own soul. But he who heeds rebuke gets understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility." (Prov. 15:31-33).

We must never forget that even the Lord Jesus grew in wisdom. We also know that He submitted to his parents (Luke 2;51). They were like almost every parent. They were young. They were inexperienced. They did not have the seasoning of age. They were like all young parents.

5. It is right because God determined the authority He gave you – God rules

You should obey because you did not choose to be born. You did not choose your parents. God says to Jeremiah, "before I formed you in the womb, I knew you" (Jer. 1:5). In Psalm 139:13, David says, "You (God) formed me in my mother's womb." Your birthday, your family, your location, the laws, the customs of the people that surround you, the house you live in, and the job your dad has. All of these were chosen by God (Acts 17:26). This is an important first step to understand why you have parents.

The key to happiness is to know that God rules. The child who is dissatisfied with his parents will have the tendency to be dissatisfied with God's providences his whole life long. If you are unhappy or disappointed, offended, or even angry with your parents. Break that habit now before it is too late.

6. It is right because Parents are flawed

You should obey because your parents are imperfect. This is the way God planned it. He did not mean that you would have perfect parents as your authority. He never intended it. Let that sink in. God did NOT WANT you to have parents who did everything right.

Nobody ever had perfect parents, and neither are your parents perfect. God will not make them perfect in this life. It is not God's design to make your parents perfect in this life. When you were born or adopted, here is what happened. You were placed in a home with parents. God did it.

Keeping God's command for children to obey their parents is not dependent upon the character of the parents. As long as the command does not cause you to disobey the Lord, it must be responded to as if the Lord Himself spoke it.

Here is the problem: everyone ever born gets inexperienced parents. This is what every person on the planet gets – imperfect, amateur parents. It doesn't matter what kind of parent you have. God, through the apostle Paul, is speaking to you directly. Don't disobey because your parents fall short.

7. It is right because no one ever escapes authority

No matter what you do, you will be under the authority of some kind. You should obey your parents, because, for the rest of your life, every authority in your life will be like your parents. They have blind spots, sins, and even inexperience. They will demand that you do what you might not want to do. They will push you out of your comfort zone. They will disappoint you. Even though they shouldn't, they may speak harshly to you. They might make mistakes.

God gave you imperfect parents to prepare you for an imperfect world.

If you are not successful in obeying your Father and mother, you will find that you will keep meeting authorities who are like your parents. Even if you go 1000 miles away, they will pop up. They will have different names, but they will put you to the test again. The test is this: can you be happy in a world where all the authorities are flawed. Can you obey imperfect people in an imperfect world?

8. It is right because your training time at home is short

You should obey your parents because you only have a short time with your parents. This is a limited time of training. During that time, God has designed that you would learn honor and obedience. These two things are the key to God's blessing in your life. You must learn them. If you don't learn these things at home, you will do damage, and you will be damaged. It won't go well for you. When you are at home, the consequences are not so bad. After you leave home, the consequences of dishonor and disobedience are very severe.

9. It is right because there is a promise that it will go well with you.

Honor ensures success, "Honor your father and mother which is the first command with a promise, that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth" (Deut 5:16). When God says, it is "the first command with a promise," he is not saying that it is the first promise that appears in the Bible. There were promises mentioned before this one in the Bible. Rather, he is saying it is the most important command because of the promise. In other words, it is the most critical promise for a child's well-being, happiness, and success.

This simply means that obedience to your parents is right because it sets you up for success in every situation you will encounter, and in every institution, God has established.

There is something pivotal about honor and obedience in family life. The pivot point for success in children's lives hinges on honor and obedience. Here is the short of it: Family life affects everything and every relationship you encounter when you leave home.

10. The power of honor and obedience in every relationship

There are many relationships where honor is required for success. Honor creates a culture of love in the home. It eases tension and makes for a peaceful, well-ordered family.

This is why the Bible teaches that honor and obedience in the home is the foundation of all other relationships. We all know people who are hard on relationships. There are people who move from church to church, from job to job, and even from marriage to marriage. Why? Often, the root cause is an unsubmissive spirit of dishonor and rebellion that was never conquered in childhood.

The Puritans believed that the fifth commandment to honor Father and mother was the controlling principle for all relationships. They taught that the honor due parents is the heart and soul of all other relationships.