“Because I said so!”
I wonder how many times I heard that dreaded phrase while I was growing up. When those words are accompanied by the piercing gaze of a stern parent, every wise child will immediately suspend his arguments, knowing full well that the discussion is over. If a daring child should be bold enough to question why, he will receive the absolute final response: “Because I’m the dad.”
Admit it—you have used this phrase before, or at least something like it. You did not intend it, of course, as a threat, although your child may be prompted to obey simply on account of your superior size. But as my children grow I am increasingly aware that I will not always garner their respect just because I am bigger than they are. Right now I can still take on all four of my children in a playful wrestling match on the living room floor and emerge the victor. I wouldn’t dare let on, though, that it is getting a little more difficult. If I am going to influence them to comply with my rules, I need something more than an imposing physical presence. I need authority.
Children have an innate ability to know who possesses real authority. They can easily tune out an older brother telling them to wash their hands for dinner, but when it is prefaced by “Daddy says” it is no longer an option. What Daddy says is the rule, regardless of how well accepted it is. Oh, there may be some disagreement and complaining, and possibly even some tears, but when Mommy or Daddy says it, everyone knows the final word has been spoken. We are the absolute authority in our home, a position that has been granted to us by God. We take this responsibility seriously because we want our children to have practice submitting to authority that they don’t always understand. They will be faced with a plethora of moral decisions in their lifetime and we want them to know that what God says is final. Too often we divorce God’s words from everyday life. God’s truth, however, should be intricately connected to the decisions we make every day.
Jesus declared to His Father, “Thy word is truth” (John 17:17). Not public opinion, not tradition. Let’s move from “Daddy says” to “God says.” That is where all argument ends.
This is my “Connections” article that ran in the Bremen Enquirer on April 4, 2013 under the heading “The Point at Which all Argument Must End.”
