Walking with the Wise #394: Worthy of Honor

-->“Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness


will find life, righteousness, and honor.”
—Proverbs 21:21

As I write this, I am in India working with a wonderful evangelical ministry called Mission India. In one of the most unreached countries in the world, it is responsible for planting Bible training centers in 23 of the 28 Indian states, running a seminary and 22 mercy homes. We are here to serve the people, learn from them, encourage and partner with them in whatever way we possibly can.

As we walked around the campus of the ministry, I was struck by the simple, yet vibrant faith of those we met. Time and time again, they would come up to us, asking us if they could take our picture. We were greeted with great honor that quite frankly, I do not believe I am worthy of. It wasn’t until I came back to my room, opened up my computer, and read this verse. Then I understood. They were honoring us because we are servants of God. Now, I am sure that there was perhaps some novelty in it with us being white foreigners, but the deeper and much more noteworthy fact was that we are servants of the one true God, and they knew that. And they wanted to give us the honor due His servants.

When we dedicate our lives to pursuing the things of God, we will find life, righteousness, and honor. As Jesus said in Mark 10:29-31,

“’Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.’"

We may lose some of our natural family, but gain a spiritual family in greater ways than physical family. By following Christ, some are turned out from their homes, their parents may disown them, their brothers or sisters may turn from them. For example, some of the young men we spoke to today had converted to Christianity from Hinduism. Some of them had been beaten or disowned for the sake of the Gospel, but at Mission India, they found a home. They may have left an earthly family, but they received honor, righteousness and life with their spiritual family.

What are you pursuing? Are you pursuing that which the world values, and which leads to destruction? Or are you pursuing that which God values and which will lead to honor in this life, and even more so in the life to come? Pursue the Lord and make His kingdom your top priority, and then embrace the new life, honor, and righteousness that comes because of it. Amen.