Showing Honor Where Honor Is Due Series

We have been searching for ways that we can become better ambassadors for Jesus. Two weeks ago, we discussed patience.

Last week we discussed integrity.

We discovered the Greek word for integrity had five definite traits. Integrity meant to be true. Our words should hold true. Our yes should mean yes and our no should mean no. People should know that we are true to our word.

Integrity meant to be genuine. We are to have a genuine sense of compassion to those around us who are less fortunate. We are to lend a helping hand to the downtrodden.

Integrity meant to be trustworthy. We are to prove ourselves worthy of someone’s trust. We are not to gossip or share confidential secrets with others. We are to be a person that someone can turn too for advice or comfort with no fear of being exposed.

Integrity meant to be reliable. We are to be a person who brings a reliable message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are to prove it to be reliable based on how we live our lives.

Integrity meant to be valid. We cannot validate our own integrity. Those around us validate it. Those who witness our lives determine as to whether we are true, genuine, trustworthy, reliable people.

This week we will discover another trait of a good ambassador, honor.

Pastor Craig Groschel shared some tips a friend gave him when he was preparing to visit Korea. “When you’re meeting someone for the first time, it’s proper to bow, but just a little. Don’t make a big, deep bow; just tilt yourself so that your head is slightly lower that the other person’s head. This conveys respect. And when you shake hands, use your free hand to grab your elbow or your forearm as you shake. This gesture is considered very polite, so it’s a pretty easy way to show honor.”

“It’s also honoring to bring gifts. And when you offer your gift, you extend it with both hands, and the person receiving it accepts it with both hands.”

“In Korea, as in most places in the world, you have to be careful not to show the soles of your shoes. You must never rest your feet upon a desk or table. This is considered extremely rude.”

When the pastor asked his friend what advice he would give someone coming to the US he replied, “I wouldn’t tell them anything. Those things don’t really matter here.”

Our culture, for the most part, does not show honor as other nations do. Young people in other nations honor the wisdom of their elders. There is a sense of honor for their leaders and their governments. Maybe we don’t really understand what “honor” means.

The Greek word for honor is time (tee-MAY). It meant “to value, to respect, or to highly esteem.” It was usually associated with a way to assign value.

When my grandson Peyton was a baby, he had to wear a helmet to help his skull form a bit more. His parents were not very concerned about the every day wear and tear of the helmet. One day his grandmother painted the helmet to be a copy of the Carolina’s Panthers helmet. My son took him to the training camp for the Panthers and several players were more than pleased to sign it. (In fact, Steve Smith had his picture taken with him). Suddenly the helmet was assigned great value. More care was given to protect it from daily use. And as soon as it usefulness for my grandson was complete, it was placed in a place of honor due to its value.

The Bible tells us that there are people and things that we are to give a place of honor because of their great value. Today we will look at these valuable items and learn how we can be a people that shows honor where honor is due.

Deuteronomy 5:16 “Honor your father and mother, as the Lord your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”

We are to honor our parents. We are to recognize the great value that God has placed on our parents. Often as a child, we think our parents are being harsh and unreasonable until God does a wondrous work and makes that child a parent. There was an old curse that would be placed on each generation of the children in the Turner household. “I hope one day you grow up and have a child just like you.” It is a rather good curse.

Reality is that we feel some parents don’t deserve honor. Some parents have been abusive or neglectful and it affects our lives and spiritual well-being. That does not change the fact that God commanded that we honor our parents.