Worthy of Honour
Seniors Appreciation Day
A. Background & Comments:
• we have already spent time this morning bringing glory & honour to Jesus Christ, as well as recognizing people who have brought encouragement & hope to our lives.
• In the NT the pre-dominant use of the word honour is, quite naturally, with reference to Jesus Christ. Our primary allegiance & giving of honour is always toward the Christ, our Savior and Lord. This reality also makes some uncomfortable to display honour toward “fellow travelers” on the Christian path. Some confuse “giving honour” with “playing favorites”. (See James 5 for a picture of this negative behavior.)
• This uncomfortable feeling need not be: the NT includes a number of injunctions & encouragements to honour people in life, especially those who live & example Jesus Christ to us. The Apostle Paul said, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honour one another above yourselves.” (Romans 12:10)
• Today, we look into the life of one of the least well known characters in the NT for a picture of what in the Christian life isworthy of honour. Epaphroditus, a relatively young man similar to Timothy, is the example we look to for insight.
B. Main Thought & Key Verses: Phil. 2:29, 30:
- This passage of Scripture helps us understand what makes any person truly worthy of honour in this life.
- “Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.”
C. Key Question:
- What are the characteristics that the Apostle Paul notes as noble & good, worthy of recognition & honour?
The Bible indicates that giving honour to one another is a normal New Testament manner of living the Christian life. This specific passage notes that…
I. Honour: Based on a Life of Meeting Legitimate Needs (vs. 25)
“But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs.”
A. This largely unknown character Epaphroditus is recognized by the Apostle Paul as a person who met his personal needs after being sent to him by the Philippians. (We know that Paul was at least partially blind and older.) In reading this passage we have no sense that Epaphroditus is self-seeking but that he is interested in the service of Paul’s real needs.
B. The lives that are worthy of recognizing & counting as important are those that at least attempt to meet the real needsof others. Please note: this type of lifestyle is about as counter-cultural as it gets. We live in a culture that pre-dominantly says, “Get all you can & meet your own whims & desires before being concerned about others… if at all.”
II. Honour: Based on a Life of Passion for People (vs. 26)
“For he (Epaphroditus) longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.”
A. Secondly, this largely unknown character Epaphroditus is recognized by the Apostle Paul as a person who had apassion for the people of God, a deep longing for the church at Philipi. This statement is an excellent picture of God’s passion & love for us, as well as a picture of how we are to view & appreciate each other in this body called “the church”.
B. While it is not fashionable, nor trendy, we should not forget to be passionate about each other, honouring each other, recognizing that we share the greatest of privilege in Christ. In the Christian experience we measure passion for Christ’s church by being people who…
- encourage each other;
- pick each other up when down & hopeless;
- defend each other when torn down by detractors;
- gently correct each other with respect;
- return each other the truth of the Bible;
- weep with each other when we part…
III. Honour: Based on a Life Lived for Christ’s Priorities & Work (vs. 27-30)
“Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.”
A. Thirdly, this largely unknown character Epaphroditus is recognized by the Apostle Paul as a person who lived life with Christ, his priorities & his work at the centre of his being. In fact this was so much the case that his life was almost expended in service to Christ & his people!
B. We risk becoming ungrateful & unfocused in our Christian life when we do not stop to thank those whose lives have been focused on Christ’s priorities & work. The work of the Christian church is the reason Christ lived, the reason Christdied, the reason Christ was resurrected, the reason he returned to heaven & the reason he will come again. Now, do you have anything more important to honour than that?
Implications for Life
A. To those seniors here today, I say on behalf of the rest of us who are not there with you yet: Thank You! If it were not for you we would not be here today, enjoying the good things that God has for his people called “Bethel”. We gladly honour you today because you have – collectively – lived lives worthy of honour & recognition and we are grateful for you!
B. We will all give our lives to honouring causes, movements & people who we believe have contributed to our lives. I ask you to take a good look at whom you are honouring with your life. Furthermore, understand that you are surrounded – today – by the saints with whom you will share eternity! I will choose…
