Articles
Reversing Comparisons and Biases
A family friend once served with a valet company when he was younger back in the 1970s or 80s. At one party he was hired to work for, people drove up in some of the fanciest cars he had ever seen, and the people coming out of them were dressed to match. Throughout the night he would sometimes get a tip of a quarter or a dollar, and that was if he was tipped anything at all. Then a busted up and disheveled car drove up. When the car door opened a man wearing less fancy clothes than the others that night walked up and handed him a $50 bill along with the car keys. Would you have been as blown away by the generosity of that man, especially after seeing his appearance? All of us can become distracted from God when we develop preconceived notions and seek to compare ourselves to others.
2 Corinthians 13:3-5 tells us as God’s children, “Since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God. Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” In the early Corinthian church, people were comparing early preachers. They were placing their value as preachers and as Christians on how eloquently they spoke or who was considered better. Christ humbled himself by taking the form of a man, committing acts of service, and being obedient to the point of death. However, these acts that made Him appear weak to mankind displayed His Godly power. By examining our own obedience and relationship with God, we can be one with Christ and gain His strength of faith.
` Regarding righteous deeds and comparisons, Paul also wrote in 2 Corinthians 10:10-12, “For they say, ‘His letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of no account.’ Let such a person understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present. Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding.” Value is not given by deeds, but it is given by God. Every person is created in His likeness and is equally precious to Him. Thus, there is no need to compare and we should do our best to quell the biases that get created in us by the world that seeks to drive and expand those comparisons based on worldly differences. Romans 14:12 reads, “So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.” Due to this, let us not become distracted by others but focus on our own relationship with God. This is because when we stand before Him, do we want to explain that we focused on comparisons, differences, and worldly ideals, or lived dedicated to our love for Jesus Christ and displaying His example?
