The Hoary Head is a Crown of Glory Prov. 16 :31  CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

The hoary head is a crown of glory to him under one condition – he must be in the way of righteousness.

His gray head suggests wisdom – to give younger men – there is so much to learn from those who have experienced so much more than we have.

Laurie Hunter said about his successful partners “I always did what they wanted to do” – this certainly indicated that he was a good enough judge of character to choose good partners and to trust them to make good decisions – about tennis he said, “Keep it in the green” – about friends he said, “It doesn’t cost a nickel to be nice” – when he lost his wife to tragedy he said, “No regrets and no complaints.”

Uncle Smithy said concerning a relative who was in trouble with dope, “We’ll stand at the bottom of the stairs and catch him when he falls.”

These men are crowned with glory for their wisdom because we still hold them in such high regard.

But if he is not in the way of righteousness then his gray head is a trap not a crown – 1 Ki 13.

His gray head suggests maturity – Titus 2:2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.

They are the backbone of a church – people say the youth are our future and there is a certain amount of truth to that but without the aged men they have no example to follow of men who have gone through the trials of life and survived still serving the Lord – they are crowned with glory because they educate us about our Biblical heritage and our life in Christ.

But if he is an old drunk or an old reprobate or intemperate or lacking in faith, charity and patience, then his gray head is just a sad reminder of the coming toll of sin – he’s crowned with shame.

His gray head suggests fruitfulness – Prov 17:6 Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.

It is a crown of glory for a man to have children – to raise them in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord – to train them in the way that they should go – and then to watch them marry and have children of their own – I was just looking at a picture of Lizzie and Skeeter in the water at north beach and thinking, those days are gone, they are only memories – but we will get to relive those days when they marry and have children.

The relationship between children and grandfathers is a unique one – Some sons ask their dads “How come you didn’t raise us the same way you are raising our children?” – One of the main things I remember from my grandfather is the need to maintain a good sense of humor – it will always stick with me – and another thing is to be a man of integrity.

If he is in the way of righteousness his descendants are more likely to be saved; if he is an old reprobate they are more likely to be a bad lot.

His gray head suggests beauty – Prov 20:29 The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the grey head.

When a man is young, it is great to see his strength and vitality – to see him compete as an athlete or as a man who with his strength can do great labor – but when he is older, his natural strength is going to fail in the normal course (Caleb was an exception) – and does that mean he is finished? – NO – instead of glorying in his natural strength, men glory in their gray head – notice so many portraits are of men after they have grayed – there is a look of accomplishment and stature that young men just don’t have.

Truthfully you don’t think of an old man as a beautiful man when compared to the beauty of his daughter or granddaughter – but there is beauty there – it is the beauty of his demeanor capped by his gray head – it instills in young men confidence, authority, the aspiration for success, a sense of stability, the desire for the accumulation of knowledge, it’s like you can go to him for counsel and be sure that when he has spoken to you, he has given you exactly what you need to solve your problem or concerns.

Of course all of this depends upon him being in the way of righteousness – a gray headed man who is not in the way of righteousness can be nothing more than an old cantankerous fool and nothing about his gray head is beautiful – children at one funeral were glad the old fool had finally died.

Conclusion: Do you want to be crowned with glory by those younger?  Then live in the way of righteousness – if you are not yet in the way of righteousness, then get saved and in the Bible and get in the way of righteousness, it is never too late – and if you are a young man, give respect and honor to the gray head and crown him with the glory due him for his wisdom, maturity, fruitfulness [particularly if he is your relative], and beauty.