“Pick a Scripture Card, Any Card”
April 30, 2023
Many months ago, I began a blog series on Proverbs in which I wrote about one Proverb a week. It should have taken me 31 weeks; however, some milestones and holidays deserved a blog space and that extended the series to close to 40 weeks.
Today I am starting a new series of blogs, entitled, “Pick a Scripture Card, Any Card,” in which I will randomly choose from a stack of Scripture cards – cards I like to place in letters or greeting cards that I send to others. The pick of the week this week is Romans 12:10, “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”
What does it mean to out one another, especially in the area of showing honor?
Outdo: to do more or be better than someone else:
He always tries to outdo his teammates.
The word ‘outdo’ makes complete sense in the context of competition. From professional sports and Olympic events to pie eating contests and corn hole tournaments, competition is in the DNA of humans. People enjoy the thrill of competing against others toward the goal of winning.
However, did you know Scripture also taps into our competitive gene? In Romans 12:9-21, the Apostle Paul lists several behaviors that mark a true Christian. Included within this list is, “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor” (Romans 12: 10, ESV). We are commanded to outdo one another in the Christian sport of honoring one another above ourselves.
What does it mean to show honor and to whom should we show it? Honor means to demonstrate high respect or great esteem for someone. By honoring another we are saying you see immense value in them.
The Bible clearly says we are to honor everyone (1 Peter 2:17) and not just those we “feel” deserve to be honored. We are also told to honor those in authority (Romans 13:1-7), even if we disagree with their politics. Others we are specifically commanded to honor in Scripture include the elderly (Leviticus 19:32), our church leaders (1 Timothy 5:17) and God (Psalm 22:23).
We demonstrate honor by placing others above ourselves, by showing others that we care and that they are important to us. Unlike most competitions, the victory in the Christian sport of outdoing one another in showing honor comes when we lift others up, and see others placed on the winner’s platform.
Hopefully, this week we will pick the Scripture card of outdoing one another in showing honor!