I was raised and trained by parents from two different cultures. My father is a mixture of Scotch, Irish, English, and Cherokee. My grandfather was full-blood Cherokee.
The Cherokee people are particularly strong when it comes to raising children. It is traditional for Cherokees to teach their children what they know and how to behave - at home.
The European cultural tradition is to train children in everything you know, including your trade, your education and your values, before they are sent away for outside education.
Today, as a rule, honor is not being taught and passed down through the generations, from father to son. Many fathers don't realize that honor requires them to stay with their families and pass along important information to their children. The honor concept itself is not being passed on from parent to child. This is where this problem in our society began.
This is the reason Crenshaw Christian Center in Los Angeles is rapidly becoming one of the largest churches in the world. I would not be too surprised to see it become the largest. Fred Price, the pastor, is demanding every man and woman in his church teach biblical honor and the glory of God to their families.
The Bible says that we are to honor our father and our mother (Ex. 20:12; Eph. 6:1-3). It also requires parents to honor their children by bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).
God has shown me that many people in our society have a real problem with honor. I found out from the Lord that we have an honorless generation on our hands. White, black, brown, yellow, red. All of them are in the same situation. So many of them have no honor. No one has taught them. Their elders have not taught them. No one has lived it before them.
I want to show from God's Word some of the reasons why our prayers are not any more powerful than they are. One reason is because our lives are not honorable. Some of the most dishonorable things I have seen in the latter years of my life have come from Christians - Christian teachers and preachers.
Christians Should Set the Standard
We ought to be the world's greatest example of high integrity and the most honorable men and women on the face of God's earth. We must take the time to teach and display honor and integrity to our children; and, if necessary, start all over with them.
During the 1960s our society had a drop-out generation. At about the same time that many of our young people were dropping out, we quit having prayer in school. We took the Name of Jesus and the Bible out of our public school systems. Today there is no biblical instruction in public education.
If a teacher or administrator tries to tell a dishonest or disobedient student that he must be honorable, he may ask: "Why should I? Because you say to? Who are you to tell me how to live my life? My parents fight, lie and cheat - and you're telling me I ought to be honorable?
"You're saying I ought to work my fingers to the bone and learn all this junk you're trying to cram down my throat. What good will it do me to learn all this? I could work another ten years and still have nothing to show for it.
"By this time next Friday night I can make all kinds of money by selling drugs to other kids. Why should I care if they die? They aren't my kids. You're telling me I should be honorable? Why?"
Unless the adult can pick up a Bible and say "God says so," he can't answer those questions, and he has no right to try. Who are we to tell someone else's child that he ought to be honorable?
The group that dropped out in the 1960s has grown up and produced children of their own. Now we are in the third generation of honorless people.
Today many of the original drop-outs have haircuts, wear ties and suits, and some have even become teachers and leaders. Yet some are still doing drugs. Some still have little or no honor themselves even though they've cut their hair and cleaned up, and now they are influencing a new generation of young people.
It's time to go back to the source of honor. It's time to point out the fact that if you do unto others as you would have others do unto you - which is the honorable thing to do - then the honor that comes from God will uphold you.
Even if others mistreat and abuse you, God will support you. They cannot steal from you fast enough to harm you. God will provide for you because of His honor.
Eagle Mountain International Church, Inc.
aka: Kenneth Copeland Ministries