Do We As Christians Really “Honor” One Another?
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin Articles
In Romans 12:10 KJV, the Apostle Paul states the following regarding Christians, “Be kindly affectionate one to another with brotherly love, in honor preferring one another.”
The term, “honor” (Strong’s 5092) in the above verse, means “to reverence, respect, esteem.” The term “preferring” (Strong’s 4285) means “to go before, to lead, to set an example.” These two terms give us the idea of Christians taking the lead in esteeming and expressing respect for their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
This writer sometimes wonders if we as Christians, really “honor” one another by preferring one another, or had we rather associate ourselves with someone who is of the world? Will we really be thrilled to associate ourselves with fellow Christians in heaven for eternity? Sometimes, I wonder, because I see evidence all around me that this is not the case.
For example, many weekdays go by when this writer hear absolutely nothing from fellow Christians, either by email or telephone. No words of encouragement; no asking about my well-being; no communication of any kind (and to think that we have all of these digital communication devices at our disposal!). Then, if you telephone a fellow Christian, just to have someone to talk to and encourage, some act as if you have interrupted an important part of their day. They are sending a subliminal message, “Don’t bother me — I have something more important to do with my time!”
I see Christians who miss assembling themselves with fellow Christians because they had rather entertain worldly friends who are visiting them. What message does this send to our non-Christian friends who are visiting us when we miss the assembly of the saints? Does it not tell them that we prioritize our service to them “above” our service to God? (Matthew 10:37; Luke 14:26; cf. Matthew 6:33). Have we thought of the importance of inviting them to the worship service with us? Even more importantly, what message does this send to our fellow Christians when we purposely miss the assembly? (Hebrews 10:24-25).
Why is the church not growing as it did from 1940-1960? One of the reasons, is because many times, we put people of the world before the people of God.
Brethren, in our daily Christian walk, we need to seriously ponder and think about the above thoughts regarding our “honoring“ and “preferring” those of like faith, because if the Lord finds us faithful (Revelation 2:10), we’ll be spending an eternity with them.