To prepare for this study, please read the Women in Christ commentary Mary the Mother of Jesus.
 

Part I. The Example of Mary the mother of Jesus

1. Luke 2:41-45 Why do you think Mary and Joseph didn’t notice Jesus’ absence right away?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

2. Luke 2:46-47 What was Jesus doing for the three days his parents were searching for him? What similarities, if any, do you see to typical adolescent behavior and development?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

3. Luke 2:48 How did Mary handle this situation? Describe her approach? Is her approach an effective one to use in building communication between a parent and a teenager? Why do you think so?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

4. Luke 2:49-50 Do you think the boy Jesus was aware, based on his reply, that he had caused such a stir? Why do you think Jesus assumed his parents knew where he was? If your child had done something similar, how would you have reacted? What parental action would be appropriate?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

5. Luke 2:51-52 How did Jesus respond to his parents as he matured into adulthood? In what physical and character traits did Jesus develop? In what ways would Mary and Joseph have been active in encouraging that growth? What can parents do to encourage this development in their own children?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

6. John 2:1-3 What problem did Mary bring to Jesus? How did she present it?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

7. John 2:4-8 How did Jesus respond? What impression do you get of the unspoken communication between the mother and grown son?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

8. Mark 3:20-22, 31-35 Matthew 12:46-49; Luke 8:19-21; On this occasion, Mary tries to interfere in the work Jesus is doing. What do you think her motive was? What was Jesus’ reaction? What can parents of grown children learn from this situation? What lesson can grown children apply to their relationship with their parents?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

9. John 19:26-27 What aspects of good relationships do you see  in this interaction between Jesus and his mother Mary?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Part II Honor Your Father And Your Mother

1. Ephesians 6:1-3; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16; Genesis 2:24 Explain in your own words what honor toward parents is. How does the honor a minor child gives his parents differ from the honor an adult child gives?  Why would honoring parents promote long, healthy lives for individuals and society as a whole?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

2. Ephesians 6:4; I Timothy 4:11-12, 15-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9 How can parents teach and encourage their children to honor them in obedience to God’s word?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

3. Mark 7:8-13 What is one way Jesus applied the fifth commandment to adult children? 
[Editor’s Note: The death penalty was given to the nation to administer, not the individual citizen. The death penalty was forbidden unless there were two or three eyewitnesses. This penalty would have applied to adult children who were accountable for their actions, not minor children.]
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

4. Proverbs 1:8; 6:20 What is another way children, minor or adult, can honor their parents?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Part III Now We Are The Children Of God

1. Matthew 6:9; Romans 8:13-17; Galatians 4:6-7 Why is it a privilege to be children of God?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

2. I John 3:1-3 How is the parent-child relationship like the Christian relationship with God?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

3. I John 5:1-5 What does God expect of his children?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

4. II Peter 1:3-11; John 14:15-21 I Corinthians 2:9-16 Compare the way a child learns from parents to the way a Christian learns from God.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

5. Jeremiah 35:1-19 What lesson does God expect us to learn through obedience to the fifth commandment?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

6. Matthew 22:36-40; Deuteronomy 6:1-9 How is the fifth commandment related to the greatest commandment?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

7. Psalm 128; Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 3:11-12; Hebrews 12:5-13 What can we learn from a godly parent/child relationship that can help us understand our relationship to God? How can we honor God as our heavenly Parent?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

8. Ephesians 6:3; Romans 8:28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16 What promise does God make for obedience to the fifth commandment? Do you think this promise has an application beyond the parent/child relationship? If so, why?