Hold Such Men In Esteem
Life Thoughts
Written by Tom Zurowski   
Tuesday, 01 January 2008 00:00
“Yet I consider it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus…. For indeed he was sick almost unto death….Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness, and hold such men in esteem; because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life…
(Philippians 2:25-30)
“Those who truly love Christ, and are heartily in interest on His kingdom, will think it very well worth their while to hazard their health and life to do Him service, and promote the edification of His church.”
(Matthew Henry)

“Hold such men in esteem.” These words of Paul cry aloud in our generation. My generation – your generation. They cry for such men and women listed in the book of Hebrews chapter eleven, men and women of whom the world was not worthy. These were people of integrity, holiness, faith, sacrifice, and consecration. These people were unpopular. Their message was not well received by most, yet well received by some. They were men and women who could be held in esteem in their day.

Today, a great cloud of witnesses who have gone on before us surround us. They cheer us on as we run our race. It’s our turn now. Generations have passed since the days of Paul and history records that in every generation there was a remnant of disciples who were willing to serve Jesus either by life or by death. People who the world did not esteem, yet they had the applause of heaven. Disciples like John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, Charles Finney, Jim Elliot, Oswald J. Smith, Leonard Ravenhill, Keith Green and Richard Wurmbrand just to name a few. Books record the commitment of these faithful saints. Like David, they served the will of God in their generation and then fell asleep.

These were not some sort of highbred Christian, they were simply normal. They only knew one way to serve their Lord and that was with every breath, every beat of their heart, and every drop of their blood. They served Him in their frailty, insecurity and inadequacy. Just like you and me, they had a choice to make.

A book may never be written about our lives, but let us live as faithful ones in our generation. May our names be added to the chronicles of history as men and women of whom the world was not worthy.

 

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