Honoring God: Our Duty and His Promise
Summary
In our journey of faith, the principle of honoring God stands as a cornerstone of our spiritual life. The scripture from 1 Samuel 2:30, "Them that honor me I will honor," serves as a profound reminder of the reciprocal relationship between our reverence for God and His blessings upon us. This principle is not only a duty but also a gracious promise from God. Our duty to honor God is rooted in the very nature of our relationship with Him as our Creator and Father. It is a natural obligation for every creature to honor its Creator, and for us, who are His chosen people, this duty is even more profound. God has done so much for us, from our creation to our redemption, and the least we can do is to honor Him with our lives.
Honoring God involves several aspects. Firstly, it means acknowledging His deity and worshiping Him in truth, avoiding any heresies that detract from His glory. Secondly, it involves obedience to His commandments, not picking and choosing which to follow but striving for complete obedience. Thirdly, it requires confessing our sins and acknowledging His justice, which glorifies God even in our shortcomings. Additionally, we honor God by submitting to His teachings, allowing the Bible to shape our beliefs rather than trying to fit it into our preconceived notions. Lastly, trusting God in all circumstances, whether in times of trouble or joy, is a powerful way to honor Him.
The promise that God will honor those who honor Him is evident in various aspects of life. In the church, ministers who seek to glorify God above all else will find their ministries blessed. In our families, prioritizing God's honor over worldly success will lead to His blessings upon our households. In society, living a life that honors God will earn respect and influence, even if initially met with ridicule. Ultimately, God's honor may not always be visible to others, but it is deeply felt in our own consciences and will be fully revealed in the life to come.
Key Takeaways:
- Honoring God as a Natural Duty: Our duty to honor God is inherent in our relationship with Him as our Creator and Father. This duty is magnified for those who are His chosen people, as we are overwhelmed with indebtedness to Him for His creation, redemption, and continual care. Our response should be to render all the honor we can to Him. [01:19]
- Obedience as a Form of Honor: True honor for God is demonstrated through obedience to His commandments. This involves not only following His laws but also weeping over our imperfections and striving for complete obedience. Picking and choosing which commandments to follow is not true honor. [07:46]
- Confession and Humility: Confessing our sins and acknowledging God's justice is a way to glorify Him. This humility, recognizing our unworthiness and God's holiness, honors Him and aligns us with His will. [09:55]
- Trusting God in All Circumstances: Trusting God, especially in times of trouble, is a profound way to honor Him. Faith in smooth waters is commendable, but faith in rough waters glorifies God even more. [15:00]
- Joy as an Expression of Honor: Experiencing and expressing joy in God, regardless of circumstances, is a way to honor Him. This joy is not based on worldly pleasures but on the assurance of our salvation and God's love for us. [17:51]
Youtube Chapters:
- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:15] - Introduction to Honor
- [01:19] - Duty to Honor God
- [02:30] - Honoring God as His Children
- [03:51] - Knowledge and Grace
- [05:02] - Confessing God's Deity
- [07:27] - Obedience and Dominion
- [09:55] - Confession of Sin
- [12:01] - Submitting to God's Teaching
- [14:29] - Trusting God in Trials
- [17:51] - Joy in Honoring God
- [20:12] - Gracious Reward for Honor
- [22:49] - Honoring God in Family
- [26:44] - Honor in Society
- [30:19] - God's Honor in Conscience
- [33:06] - Final Judgment and Honor
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide: Honoring God
Bible Reading:
- 1 Samuel 2:30: "Them that honor me I will honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed."
Observation Questions:
1. According to 1 Samuel 2:30, what is the promise given to those who honor God? How does this promise relate to the consequences for those who despise Him? [01:03]
2. In the sermon, what are some specific ways mentioned that we can honor God in our daily lives? [04:47]
3. How does the sermon describe the relationship between obedience to God's commandments and honoring Him? [07:46]
4. What role does confession of sin play in honoring God, according to the sermon? [09:55]
Interpretation Questions:
1. How does the concept of honoring God as a natural duty challenge or affirm your understanding of your relationship with Him? [02:30]
2. The sermon emphasizes complete obedience to God's commandments. What might be some challenges believers face in striving for this level of obedience? [08:18]
3. In what ways does trusting God in difficult circumstances serve as a profound expression of honor towards Him? [15:00]
4. How does the sermon suggest that joy, even in difficult times, can be an expression of honoring God? [17:51]
Application Questions:
1. Reflect on your daily life: Are there areas where you might be picking and choosing which of God's commandments to follow? How can you strive for more complete obedience? [08:18]
2. Consider a recent challenge or trial you faced. How did you respond in terms of trusting God? What might you do differently next time to honor Him more fully? [15:00]
3. Think about your prayer life. How often do you confess your sins and acknowledge God's justice? What steps can you take to make this a more regular practice? [09:55]
4. Joy is highlighted as a way to honor God. What are some practical ways you can cultivate joy in your life, regardless of your circumstances? [17:51]
5. In your family or household, how can you prioritize honoring God over worldly success? What changes might you need to make to align more closely with this principle? [22:49]
6. Reflect on your interactions in society. How can you live in a way that honors God and earns respect, even if initially met with ridicule? [27:38]
7. Identify one specific area in your life where you feel God is calling you to honor Him more. What is one tangible step you can take this week to respond to that call? [31:28]
Devotional
Day 1: Honoring God as Our Creator and Father
Honoring God is a fundamental duty that arises from our relationship with Him as our Creator and Father. This duty is especially significant for those who are His chosen people, as we owe Him for our creation, redemption, and ongoing care. Our response should be to render all the honor we can to Him. This involves acknowledging His sovereignty, worshiping Him in truth, and living a life that reflects His glory. By doing so, we fulfill our natural obligation to honor the One who has given us life and sustains us. [01:19]
"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well." (Psalm 139:13-14, ESV)
Reflection: In what specific ways can you honor God today as your Creator and Father, acknowledging His role in your life and expressing gratitude for His continual care?
Day 2: Obedience as a True Form of Honor
True honor for God is demonstrated through obedience to His commandments. This involves not only following His laws but also weeping over our imperfections and striving for complete obedience. Picking and choosing which commandments to follow is not true honor. Instead, we are called to submit fully to God's will, recognizing that His commandments are given for our good and His glory. By striving for complete obedience, we show our reverence for God and our desire to live in accordance with His will. [07:46]
"And Samuel said, 'Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.'" (1 Samuel 15:22, ESV)
Reflection: Is there a specific commandment or teaching of God that you find challenging to obey? How can you take a step towards full obedience in that area today?
Day 3: Confession and Humility as Acts of Honor
Confessing our sins and acknowledging God's justice is a way to glorify Him. This humility, recognizing our unworthiness and God's holiness, honors Him and aligns us with His will. By confessing our sins, we acknowledge our need for God's grace and mercy, and we demonstrate our trust in His justice and righteousness. This act of humility not only honors God but also brings us into a deeper relationship with Him, as we rely on His forgiveness and guidance. [09:55]
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9, ESV)
Reflection: What sin or shortcoming do you need to confess to God today? How can acknowledging His justice and holiness help you grow in humility and honor Him more fully?
Day 4: Trusting God in All Circumstances
Trusting God, especially in times of trouble, is a profound way to honor Him. Faith in smooth waters is commendable, but faith in rough waters glorifies God even more. By trusting God in all circumstances, we demonstrate our belief in His sovereignty and goodness, even when we cannot see the outcome. This trust is a powerful testimony to others and a way to honor God by showing that we rely on Him completely, regardless of our circumstances. [15:00]
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV)
Reflection: What current challenge or difficulty are you facing where you need to trust God more fully? How can you actively choose to trust Him in this situation today?
Day 5: Joy as an Expression of Honor
Experiencing and expressing joy in God, regardless of circumstances, is a way to honor Him. This joy is not based on worldly pleasures but on the assurance of our salvation and God's love for us. By finding joy in our relationship with God, we honor Him by showing that our ultimate satisfaction and fulfillment come from Him alone. This joy is a powerful witness to others and a reminder of the hope and peace that come from knowing and loving God. [17:51]
"Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation." (Habakkuk 3:17-18, ESV)
Reflection: How can you cultivate a deeper sense of joy in your relationship with God today, regardless of your current circumstances? What specific actions can you take to express this joy and honor Him?
Quotes
"God is certain sooner or later to recompense men according to the rule of infallible Justice and and if it be so among Saints it is equally so among Sinners if we could really know the secret history of any man's life we should be able to understand his career better than we now do there is many a life of which we have had to say to the Lord thy way is in the sea and thy path in the Great Waters and thy footsteps are not known yet if we had known more about the man it would have been all plain enough if we had seen the sin that was hidden from human eyes we should have understood the sorrow that was evident to all that will suffice with regard to the general principle that is enunciated in our text if we honor God he will honor us and if we despise him we shall be lightly esteemed ourselves." [00:21:55]
"It is the natural duty of every creature to honor its creator and with such a glorious and blessed God as Jehovah is it certainly must be encumber upon all who have any understanding of his existence to Tender honor and homage unto him such as his personal Grandeur such as the Perfection of his character such as his Almighty power and such are the obligations under which we are placed to him as our creator that altogether apart from spiritual things it is undoubtedly the duty of every creature to honor God but what shall I say beloved of those of us who are the Lord's chosen people do I need to prove that we should honor our God he is our father and he said long ago if then I be a father where is mine honor ordinary children are bidden to honor their father and mother then how much more should the children of God honor their father who is in heaven." [00:18:08]
"First I think that we are to honor God by confessing his deity in all our prayers and praises and indeed at all times May none of us ever fall into the various heresies which some have held concerning the persons of the Blessed Trinity in unity of all errors these most closely touch the very vitals of true faith I suppose if any man looks long into the doctrine of the Trinity he will will be like one who gazthyer and refuseth to believe until he doth comprehend it then he will be blinded most assuredly how can thou oh man hold the sea in the hollow of thy hand and how can thou see God's face and yet live does thou Marvel that thy mind staggers under the load that thou do try to put upon it and that thy reason begins to real we cannot comprehend God but we can honor the father by worshiping him and honor the son by adoring him and honor the Holy Spirit by paying homage and reverence and Glory unto him and never countenancing in our spirit any error which would detract from the glory of father son or Holy Spirit for if we do we shall not obtain the blessing promised in our text them that honor me I will honor." [00:50:02]
"It is no use for you to say I honor God and yet continue to live contrary to his law if we do honor him we shall seek to obey his Commandments and though by reason of infirmity we shall fall short of the perfection of obedience we shall honor the Lord by weeping over our imperfections we shall not quarrel with the requirements of God's commands but we shall ask the Holy Spirit to help us to be conformed to them that man does not honor God who goes picking and choosing among the Divine precepts attending to one but not to another he is not honoring God who does not render obedience to his will is in all things the social duties that app pertain to the Heth and home the duties that are associated with the Church of God and the duties which concern the common life of ourselves and others it is never right to offer to God a sacrifice stained with the blood of a duty and it is by endeavoring to be obedient to the Lord in all respects that our desire to honor him is to be proved." [00:07:42]
"I believe that God is greatly glorified by a man man who is overwhelmed with a sense of his guilt when he comes and bears his bosom to the Divine inspection acknowledging all his offenses grieving over them and as it were laying his head upon the block and saying Lord if thou Dost execute me if thou Dost let the acts of thy Justice fall upon me to my utter destruction I dare not complain for I deserve it all therefore dear friends submit yourselves to the sentence of God acknowledge how just it would be if he were to execute it upon you for so you shall find favor at his hands I do not know what else a poor convinced sinner can do that can be more acceptable to God with the one exception of his coming to believe fully in Christ so guilty one glorify God by making confession of thy guilt thou has broken his holy law own thine offense in having broken it pay respect to the commands of God by confessing that thou oughtest to have kept them admit the heinousness of the sin by which thou has violated the will of God for in so doing thou Willl be honoring the Lord." [00:09:47]
"Further we can honor the Lord by submitting to his teaching a great many people go to the Bible to find texts in it to endorse a system of divinity which they have already embraced that is not honoring God the right course is to get your system of divinity out of the Bible under the unerring teaching of the Holy Spirit spirit this is the book that is to teach us we are not to try to square it to our scheme but we are to make our scheme if we have one embrace all that is here revealed so far as we can ascertain it young man I can speak from experience when I say that nothing will give you greater Peace of Mind than taking the word of God as your only guide from the very beginning of your Christian Life it is commonly said that the Bible and the Bible alone is the religion of Protestants but I scarcely know of any sect of Protestants with one exception of which that is true there is something that all the others believe which cannot be found in the Bible and they have some other book or tradition tacked on at the end of the Bible sit down my friend and study the book without note or comment comment asking the Holy Spirit to teach thee what it means and whatever it means do thou believe it thou will not discover all that it means there will be mistakes in thee as in thy fellow Christians but do thou follow the truth as far as thou can see it wherever it may lead thee even if following it shall cause thee to stand quite alone for in so doing thou will be honoring it and it will honor thee." [00:12:01]
"Be it ever remembered that the greater our troubles the greater our weakness the greater our infirmities the greater is our opportunity of glorifying God by the aid of his holy spirit they that go down to the sea in ships that do business in Great Waters these see the works of the Lord and his wonders in the Deep they see much that landsmen never see and those who have deep experience of trial and trouble are the people who see most of the wonders of the Lord in the spiritual realm dear brother all seemed to go well with you until you trusted God but since you did so everything has seemed to go wrong with you can you trust him now Faith when we are in smooth water honors God but faith when we are in Rough Waters will glorify him far more it is easy to bless his name when the barn is full and the table is loaded but can you glorify him now that the homestead is burned down and the cboard is bare oh good woman you could glorify God when your husband was in vigorous health and your children were all round about you but now that he has been taken from from you and your children are following him consumption seizing upon them one after the other can you trust the Lord now and you my brother now that your leg is broken or your lungs begin to fail or the asthma comes upon you or old age is coming to you now that your circumstances are changing and that your friends like the swallows in autumn begin to forsake you can you rejoice in the Lord and glory in the god of your salvation now if you can do so it is now in your power to honor God in a very wondrous way it is glorious to be able to say with job though he slay me yet will I trust in him whatever happens to you never doubt the wisdom of God's working or the love of his heart but still rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him if you do this you will honor him and he will in due time honor you." [00:15:00]
"I do not mean by such joy as the worldling has in his corn and WI wine but by holy Joy how few Christians speak of God as their exceeding Joy I think we do meet with cheerful Christians nowadays more frequently than we used to do for we were at one time taught that the longer a man's face the greater was his grace we do not believe in any such notion as that yet to my mind we seldom if ever attain to the standard of joy which ought to be the abiding portion of a child of God the elect ought to be the happiest people Beneath The Sky look at a great furnace when there is a strong blast blowing upon it what intense heat there is there a Christian ought to be like that furnace glowing with intense Delight fervent love and overflowing Joy why should you not rejoice beloved your sins are forgiven given you you are an heir of Heaven you are it may be within a month or two or within a year or two of being at God's right hand to go no more out forever why should you not rejoice even now his Spirit dwelleth within you his heart burneth with love towards you and he rejoiceth over you why should you not rejoice if you did Rejoice more you you would honor the Lord more and he would honor you even as he has promised." [00:17:51]
"I believe that unless we with all our hearts honor God in our ministry he will never honor us my dear brother if you ever go in for anything else but glorifying God you will make a failure of it if you start with the idea of being a fine preacher one who is able to orate in rounded periods and Flowery sentences or if it is your great ambition to gain a good position among respectable people you will certainly come down with a crash and great will be your fall but if any young man truly called of God says to himself I will glorify God whether I live or die whether I am poor or whether I am prosperous whether I am the means of bringing many souls to Christ or am apparently a failure in my Ministry I will at least preach the truth and I will pray over it and I will agonize in prayer for The Souls of men my teaching shall not aim at glorifying philosophical opinions or displaying my own culture and my own powers of thought but I will above everything else honor God I will honor the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit I will preach nothing up but Christ and nothing down but sin I shall not seek to honor the denomination to which I belong but I will live and labor simply to honor God well my brother if that is your resolve then the Lord will honor you." [00:20:12]
"Poor Eliah have no doubt wish to have honor in his own house so he paid great difference to his Wicked Sons he knew that they were doing very very wrong but he spoke very gently to them just as some Christian people whom I know are doing in their own families their boys are living as badly as ever they can but they only say how sons are so high-spirited and so easily offended that we must only indirectly hint that they are doing wrong it would never do for us to pull them up sharply and say to them right straight out you are going headlong to hell and we implore you to stop for if you continue to act as you are now doing you will be ruined forever I and in many a house God is Not honored by family prayer and the boys and girls are taught to look after money as if that were the chief end of life you go in for business John and make money somehow and do not be too particular about about the means you employ in getting it and Mary that is a very nice young man an excellent Christian man too who is coming to see you but he will not do for a husband he has not enough money and that is the main thing to be considered nowadays the worship of Mammon the golden calve prevails almost everywhere God commanded his ancient people not to offer their children children to Malo but it is done very often now many parents are offering their sons and daughters to Malo the maloc of fashion the maloc of wealth daughters are given to men without characters so long as they have a sufficient quantity of gold well now if the father or mother instead of falling into that sin says my chief concern for my dear boys and girls is that they should know the Lord I should be glad to see them succeeding in business or happily married to those who are in a good position but my great longing is that they may know Christ and be found in him for that is the main thing after all and I will not tolerate in my house anything that Christ would not look upon with approbation neither will I permit so far as my power can go anything that would grieve the spirit of God I believe that wherever parents thus seek the honor of God God will honor their families very wonderfully you will find almost everywhere that when a man gives everything up for God and does not look so much for the advancement of his own family as for the good of God's family as a whole the Lord says to him very much what Queen Elizabeth said to one of the London merchants of her day I want you to go to Hamburg to attend to some business of mine said the queen but your majesty said the merchant my own business will suffer in my absence no said the queen it will not for if you attend to my business I will attend to yours and the Lord says to us that if we honor him he will honor us and even in this present life he will give us a h hundredfold for anything we give up for for him and in the world to come life Everlasting May none of you dear friends ever be like Eli who had to mourn over the destruction of his sinful Sons but may you honor God in your families for then he will also honor you there who is so honored as the venerable Christian man who has his sons and his grandsons around him he is a king every inch of him though perhaps he never earned more than a day Laborer's wages as he lays his hands upon the heads of his children's children and implores his God to be their God also I seem to see a patriarch stand before me in a Grandeur which an emperor might envy God will honor you in your family if you honor him." [00:22:49]
"God has a way of honoring his people in the society around them you young man going into that warehouse and taking a clerkship with many others if you are consistent true to your colors and serve God Faithfully they will ridicule you very likely for a while but if you continue to be consistent they will soon respect you if you honor God God will honor you and you will find that in society it is the wise and safe method to keep the lord always before you some of you young men who have come up to London from the country are apt to think that as others do not go to a place of worship on the Sabbath you will not do as you did at home but I pray you to keep up your good Country custom for your employers and those who are about you will think far better of you if you do so and although this is by itself a low and ignoble motive yet it has its place among the higher reasons for attending the means of Grace if you honor God you will get honor in the eyes of those whose opinion is worthy of your regard again if we honor God he will honor Us in the wide wide world so far as our influence May reach look at that great crowd gathered in Smithfield who is that poor wretch standing in the middle many of those around him look upon him with the utmost scorn and derision they have chained him up to a stake and they are bringing dry for they're going to burn him to death who is that man people in the crowd cry out that he is a dreadful heretic who deserves to die but if you turn to Fox's book of Martyrs you will find his name recorded there amongst the noble Army who died as Heroes of the cross because he suffered for Christ God has honored him and at this present day who Among Us would not rather be the Martyr who was burned than the Cardinal who was the means of getting him burned who would not rather have been numbered amongst the faithful multitudes in The Valleys of pedmore whose names are all unknown than have been the Duke of seavoy or the king of France or the pope of Rome who conspired to together to put them to death and dear friends if God did not honor us before men at all it would not matter much for those who honor him he honors in their own consciences God can honor you even though nobody else sees that he does it in such a way that you will be more contented with that honor than if your name and fame were blazoned forth before the whole world the orator who addressed W audience and found that all his hearers went away with the exception of one man was quite content with his one auditor for that man was Plato and if in this world you should so act that you should have no approbation left except the approval of God manifested to your own conscience you might well be content I athanasius against the world was a grand thing for that staunch hero of the faith to be able to say but if God was with athanasius he might just as well have said I athanasius against 50,000 worlds for what is the whole universe in comparison with God if God be for us who can be against us honor God my dear young friend leaving the parental roof and coming to London I pray pray to honor God and even if you should not meet with the esteem which a good character ought to win for you from those by whom you are surrounded if you should come under a cloud if you should after all have to live a life of poverty and obscurity yet the fact that you have done what is right and that God Smiles upon you with approval and gives you peace of conscience and quiet confidence in your soul will be a sufficient reward for you." [00:26:44]
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