Day 20: Compared to What
The Corinthians LOVED certain favorite teachers they followed: Apollos, Cephas, Paul, or the super-spiritual crowd who spouted: “I’m a follower of Jesus” (insert eye roll). Paul notes that each person helped—none more important than another.
Apparently we still need this lesson. Present-day Christians tout our favorite authors, celebrity preachers, and churches. We compare the “in” church to attend—where revival is happening or worship is explosive. We have a hard time admitting to ourselves that it’s just personality, style, or passion we gravitate to… even that Rev. So-and-So “speaks our language.”
Can we be honest for a moment? We’re raised learning to compare our growth to others’.
Many American houses have a time-tested tradition etched into the threshold of a door with ages and names of kids (by date) at their height. Think of how disappointed you felt as a kid at Disneyland when you weren’t quite tall enough to ride a certain ride.
We cannot afford to use others’ spiritual lives as our measuring stick because it will always lead to our settling for less. When God is measuring our growth, to Whom does He compare us? Compared to Jesus, we never arrive at perfection this side of heaven—which is a good thing!
Paul warns us: “We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (2 Corinthians 10:12, NIV).
So why do we do it? We tend to think others’ lives are easier than ours. If we do see an example on the news of someone who has suffered untold tragedy, we even compare ourselves to gain perspective. We surmise: “At least my life is not as bad as that….” Paul says our trials are “light and momentary troubles…achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17, NIV).
Today, if your outlook appears bleak by comparison, take heart: “…[O]ur present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18b, NIV)
Prayer:
Jesus, free me from comparison’s trap today, so that I can fix my eyes on You.
By Dr. Clint Bryan, College of Arts and Sciences