The desire for recognition is a central to our nature. The alienation that results from a lack of acknowledgement causes deep emotional hardship. God understands this about us, and He has done something about it. But He goes further than mere recognition. God honors us—He esteems His children.
Jesus made this apparent in His parable about the Wedding Feast: the guests were being honored simply by being invited. Yet nothing would have come of it without their reply: “Yes, I would love to be there!” Can you see why God would be pleased by such a response? At the same time, we can appreciate how grieved He is over those who wouldn’t bother to take the time to attend, or worse yet those who neglected to reply at all. The Bible puts it this way in First Samuel 2:30: “Those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed.”
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?