We Honor Purposely - Pastor Shawn Coley - 02/25/18
Romans 12:10
(This Is Us Series, Part Four)
This series is about Destination Church. The series sets the foundation for the future. We serve excellently in the church and in our lives. We carry ourselves with excellence and integrity. We love fiercely and carry ourselves in line with God.
You have to know about the God we serve. God is a rewarder. He wants you to have a relationship with Him. If you do things God’s way, it produces certain results. You have to diligently seek Him. You have to chase Him and love Him. Are you about Jesus or the stuff? Do you love Him only when you’re messed up?
God honors those who walk in the principle of honor. What you honor, you attract. If your marriage has no attraction, someone has lost honor of the commitment. Honor has many shapes, sizes, and forms. Honor opens doors that normally would remain shut. Honor is a concept that’s lost in Western minds. Individuals and self are honored more than honor itself.
Honor is hard to get when you are trained to honor yourself. This world has turned into things all about me. We’re no longer disciples....we’re consumers and customers. Society does things to attract customers. This is not a Christian principle.
The Greek word for honor is time (pronounced tee may) - means to look at something as precious. You are to honor people because they are made in the image of God. At Destination Church, honor purposely is a key principle. Honor is to have a high regard or respect. Disrespect is to view something or someone as common. If you’re not careful over time, disrespect sets in.
If you honor the “it” and not the person, dishonor sets in. Dishonor severs the favor of God on your life. It’s easy to honor those you love. It’s easy to honor those in certain positions. Can you show honor to those you disagree with? You have to honor the office and respect the person in the office even when you disagree. Instead of talking about that person, pray for them. Christians are more worried about political preferences than what God says about their lives. In the kingdom of God, there is no color...we’re all one.
When we connect as a body of believers, we show love of God even when we disagree. Honor isn’t about doing it when you feel like it. Philippians 2:1-5 says not to let anything be done in self ambition or deceit. Your mind has to be in Christ Jesus. This type of verse should be in your hearts and mind. True honor is a heart issue. Out of the abundance of your heart flows the issues of your life. Your issues flow out of you. There’s something in you that you have to deal with. Things that happen to you, the enemy uses to sow seeds in your heart. If it gets in your heart, you can’t honor. If you can’t walk away from an argument, if you always have to win, you have a heart issue. You have the “nobody is going to disrespect me” mentality but you have no problem disrespecting God.
What have you allowed to get in your life that brings dishonor? 1 Peter 2:17 shows it’s about honor, not agreement. At the end of the day, you represent the King. People are watching. You have to live above others ... it’s not about arrogance but about being faithful to God. When someone does you wrong, you have to deal with it and not leave it in you to poison you.
Luke 10 talks about the Good Samaritan. Often times, it’s the person you don’t think would help someone who actually helped the person. Honor births recognition. Honor recognizes gifts you don’t see. Honor causes your spiritual eyes to see what’s in someone.
1 Samuel 2:27-36 is the story of Eli and his sons. The sons used their position to fulfill lusts. Eli allowed this because of what he in third would receive. When we fail to discipline those entrusted to us, it leads to great dishonor. The word of God should hurt. The word of God should bring conviction. The word should not always be easy or feel good. The word corrects. If you’re never corrected in church, you’re in the wrong church. Any child that is not corrected is a fatherless child. A father or someone acting in a father role has to correct.
Proverbs 3:9 shows we must honor all people. You have to honor the Lord. The only way to walk in true honor is to honor the Lord over everything and everyone else.
Abraham believed for Isaac for a long time. Abraham honored God by having faith. Exodus 4 - Moses was almost killed by honoring his wife over the Lord. How many times must you stand in the way by trying to be God in someone’s life? God is the Lord of the harvest and you are the lord of the seed. When you honor God first, you follow His word no matter what is going on. Don’t be a peacekeeper instead of a peacemaker. Don’t overlook duties trying to keep peace. Blessed are the peacemakers. Sometimes you have to make it happen. Sometimes avoiding conflict is not the thing to do. You can’t keep acting like nothing’s happening. The only way to heal is to address something. A person who bring problems without a solution is a complainer. You must be a person who honors a God you don’t see over people you do see. Sometimes it takes being confrontational. Selfish interests are usually behind peacemakers. Peacekeepers want life to be comfortable for themselves. They dishonor the Lord by putting comfort ahead of His presence.
Matthew 10:34-38 - when you compromise God’s will to honor someone else, you are sinning against the Lord. When you honor people over God, people have become your idol. Every human is a worshipper and is worshipping something. Idolatry is not a problem...it is the problem. Every sin can be traced to idolatry. What are you placing ahead of God? Honor to God can be seen in obedience in His word. When you align yourself with God’s word and purpose, you align your life for great breakthrough.
The word says to honor others above self. When you honor others, God can bless you. You must honor on purpose. You have to make yourself honor sometimes. Dishonor sometimes comes natural. Disrespect sometimes is easier than respect. Challenge yourself this week to find the places in your life where dishonor exists. Honor flows up, out, and down. You have to honor and respect those you lead. You’re called to lead and not drive. You should be the best employee or the best supervisor. You should do things with integrity. Present your best even when it’s not easy. Learn to honor purposely and you will be blessed.