Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor (Proverbs 21: 21, ESV).
Golf is, among many other things, a game of honor. We honor its history—who doesn’t love a good Bobby Jones story? We honor its traditions—the one who makes a hole-in-one usually buys the beverages. We honor its players—when Jack shows up at the first tee, everybody claps. We honor the course—we do this every time we repair a divot. We honor the rules—every time we call penalties on ourselves, we display honor. At the conclusion of a match, honor is displayed when the winner and loser shake hands. The winner of the previous hole has the “honor” on the following tee. All these and more, point out that the game of golf is a game of honor.
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when our culture was pervasively a culture of honor. Even if unrecognized then or now, this mindset was largely due to our culture’s Christian heritage. That is, even those who did not profess faith in Christ were largely shaped by Christian norms. That culture, sadly, has been largely lost and forgotten.
Of course, there are counterexamples, but on the whole, Americans were once infused with a sense of honor toward God and their fellow man. When presidents concluded their speeches, they said things like, “May God bless you, and may God bless America.” Men opened doors for women as a display of respect. Our youth said, “yes sir” and “no ma’am.” These practices were inculcated at home, school, and church. Young people were expected to respect their elders. Young men and women went off to war to destroy evil. We honored them when they returned. We honored the authorities in our police forces and sheriffs’ departments. Examples could easily be multiplied.
This devotional is not intended to make us nostalgic for a bygone era. Whatever we do from here on out, recapturing the past is impossible. However, there are a great many things we, as followers of Christ, can do to see civility restored in our homes, in the public square, and in the cultural institutions that once defined America.
– – –
All these and more, done from a heart and mind permeated with a deep reverence for God, will go a long way to reintroducing Christ to a society confused by cultural amnesia.
– – –
Consider a few examples: Displaying honor, of course, begins in the privacy of our homes. Men who take their duties as dads and husbands as their chief priority is at the top of the list. Dads who prioritize a love for Christ and their families will invest America’s future with a strong and dignified citizenry. Teaching and training the next generation the honor of a good day’s work is paramount for the health of any civilization. Helping the next generation discover their God-given vocations is, indeed, honorable. Nurturing the next generation in a deep love for Christ’s bride, the Church, is essential for the health of any society. All these and more, done from a heart and mind permeated with a deep reverence for God, will go a long way to reintroducing Christ to a society confused by cultural amnesia.
In short, in our homes, schools, churches, and public institutions, we must reintroduce the reality of objective truth and values, all of which are found in Scripture, not to mentioned buried somewhere in our individual and collective consciences. If America is to survive her current identity crisis and recover her Christian heritage, she must return to a profound reverence for God and his commands.
For everything Scripture teaches about the Believer’s shared future in the “age to come,” it has as much to say, if not more, about how we conduct ourselves in “the present age.” How spouses relate to each other, how children relate to parents, how we steward our God-given resources, how we relate to civil authorities, how we conduct our relationships with others, how we relate to our enemies, how we manage our conversations (tongues), how we consume various beverages, how we serve the larger community, how we are to vote, how we are to sacrifice ourselves for the weaker ones—all these and many, many more come under the lordship of Christ!
Let’s commit ourselves to doing our part, even if unnoticed, toward reemphasizing the honor of God, the honor of our fellow man, and honor in the public square. After all, we are all called to be “salt and light” as well as “culture warriors.”
—
Dennis Darville
Copyright 2022 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at linksplayers.com.