Why don't you turn with me to two openings, if you would.

1 Samuel, the second chapter again, and 2 Timothy the 2nd chapter.

1 Samuel 2, 2nd Timothy 2.

In 1st Samuel 2, down in the 30th verse, the Lord made a wonderful statement that is blessed and at the same time sobering.

1 Samuel 2.30, he said, them that honor me, I will honor.

They that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

Them that honor me, God says, I will honor.

Those that despise me, they'll be lightly esteemed.

And really, that's a in-scripture definition of the word despise.

Oftentimes you'll see the Lord says something and the next phrase resets it

in a way that might click with you better than the first way.

And in the Bible, so many times when he's talking about the word despise,

he actually is not talking about that you just can't stand it or disgusted with it.

It just means that you don't find it valuable.

You lightly esteem it.

And I think with Christians, you know, now with sinners and people outside the covenant, you have people that absolutely despise God's men and women. They despise the

preaching and teaching. I mean, they detest it. They abhor it, and we know that's despising.

But here is something that we as Christians need to be aware of.

The man of God in this previous several verses had told Eli that he had honored his sons above God.

And I don't think Eli was consciously making an effort to do that.

I don't think he meant to do that.

But he wound up doing that in the eyes of God.

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