“Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.” Ps. 49:20
We are here to think, to understand, and hopefully, to learn. The “honor” mentioned here is artificial and temporary. It is conferred in and for time, but not for eternity. The honor here is the one that is mounted on the wall in your office and received at the college commencement ceremony. People call you “doctor.” The honor here is the trail of abbreviations that follow your name as accolades to your accomplishments. They are jewelry that will be removed by the eternal mortician or angel that shall prepare you for the judgment.
As the nurse asks you to remove even your wedding band before you go into surgery along with any other artificial implements upon your person, so all “man-conferred” honors will be left behind when we leave this place.
The words “your honor” will be left behind when the judge goes to stand before the Judge of Judges. There will be no Reverends in the rapture. There will be no “your majesty” except God’s Majesty.
Psalm 49 describes how death will level the playing field and how death is a portal, and like Jesus’ eye of the needle, it will require us to squeeze through a another birth cannel with nothing but our nakedness. All riches, glory, and honor are left for others. The wise man will prepare his faith and his character for eternity. Life, said Jesus, is not in what we have (abundance of things), but in what we are. The title before or after our name may be what sinful men think of us, but the only thing of value on that great day is what God thinks of us. How much I made or did not make of this life will be measured by how much I made of Him. Oh, you didn’t think of Him today? Think again.
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