Respect: Valuing one another highly, treating one another as important, and honoring one another with our words and actions.
(Romans 12:10, 1 Peter 2;17)
Several times this week, and I am writing this on Wednesday, I have heard men say that they want to find real peace. They want to not live in turmoil, at least internally, and want to know with assurance that they are accepted by God. It wouldn’t hurt a thing if they also felt accepted and respected by other people – people they respect and rank pretty high on their list of people with whom they want to have a relationship. It is nice to be respected by the Walmart checkout counter lady or the kid in the drive through at Dairy Queen, but being respected and being at peace with a spouse, a child, a boss, a friend, a sibling, or a parent would mean much more to us personally. Don’t you think?
I (Dave) chose this particular relational need because I need to study it more deeply and come to a better understanding of what RESPECT IS and what it is NOT. I know that many believe this relational need for RESPECT is most closely associated with men, but I believe that isn’t necessarily true.
Let’s go right to the source of RESPECT. God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, tells us to “fear Him” and that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”. (Proverbs 1:7) The “fear of the Lord” ranks very high on God’s list of attitudes and actions we are to display toward Him. (Here are some more verses: Proverbs 2:5; Psalms 34:11; Proverbs 15:16; Proverbs 19:23; Proverbs 22:4) I know that is a bit more than we usually suggest you read, but to “get” the bigger impact of RESPECT, just check them out to see what value God places on it. In other words, God has great RESPECT for the relational need of RESPECT. He created us with it.
Simply put (if possible), RESPECT is a big part of the “fear of the Lord”. I respect Him. I value His Word(s). I submit to His leadership. I respect His position as Creator, Sustainer of Life, Jesus’ Father, and our Heavenly Father. Though you may not have this kind of reverential respect for your own father; God, our Father, is worthy of it…all the time….in every way. He loves us and actually values our lives and has created us in an awesome, miraculous way. Now, He wants us to return the love, respect, and awe with which He created us.
We may more readily RESPECT wealthy people, popular people, intelligent people; but how much more RESPECT is deserved by the creator of all wealth, the Father of the most known person in all time, and the one whose intelligence is the source of all intelligence. This same awesome God loves you and me unconditionally, loves us enough to discipline us as His children with both mercy and truth simultaneously, and has our past, present, and future in His sovereign will, and He does all that all the time as part of His nature.
Three Sources of Light – John 8:12 ; John 12:35-36; Psalm 119:105; Matthew 5:14-16
Does God deserve to be respected? Do you RESPECT Him? How do/could you show it? What reasons do we have for not RESPECTING Him? How are they working for us?
Are the verses above enough to RESPECT God in the future, to reveal RESPECT / The Fear of the Lord? So let’s Do the Book. See what you think about these qualities listed to help us identify and to give RESPECT:
What RESPECT looks like:
- Grant authority appropriate to responsibility.
- Freedom to do the job your way.
- Listening without interrupting.
- Checking with you before making plans that affect you.
- Use appropriate tone of voice.
- Apologizing when I wrong you.
What RESPECT sounds like:
- I’d like to hear your ideas.
- What do you prefer?
- I was wrong. Will you forgive me?
Can you see how showing RESPECT to other people and showing RESPECT/Fear of the Lord to our Father reveal similar motives and actions? After you’ve considered the connection to RESPECT and the Fear of the Lord, talk with a friend (inside or outside the family) about how you know God respects/values you and how that is different compared to how you RESPECT or Fear the Lord. By the way, the Check-Out person at Walmart or wherever needs respect too. Doesn’t she/he? So, too, waiters/waitresses; custodial staff, bosses, employees, children, parents, and __________. It isn’t that hard, unless we are not really respectful of those who serve us or are not living in the “fear of the Lord”.
As with most relational principles “worth their salt”*, the relational need for RESPECT involves not only an action but also an attitude. We see the action and feel the motive behind the action, don’t we?
* For those of you under 40, “worth its salt” is an expression meaning that something has real value, and in this case RESPECT is worth taking the time to understand or give it your attention. The phrase has its origins probably in the Roman practice of paying the soldier’s salary in salt or coupons to trade for salt. Salt, salary, “sal” is Latin for salt. OK, I Googled it.