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FatherSpiritSon.com Article #37 - Measuring Up
There seems to be a very real cost associated with comparing oneself to their peers, yet it also seems to be a very intrinsic aspect of society as a whole. When I attend a class at any level, chances are at some point I will be measuring myself up to the performance of others in that class. This is reasonable in a classroom environment because we are faced with a real need to figure out how our performance has compared to that of our peers. It is reasonable to gauge if we did well in a class and excelled, or if we did poorly and could really use some improvement. This can be helpful to us in order to understand in which areas we are strong academically. It can also serve to identify our weaker subjects that we might need to put more focus on in order to do well.
As with many other topics of this nature, there doesn't seem to be an answer that satisfies every plausible scenario. So we need to react accordingly and treat each situation that comes about with its' own individual respect based on the circumstances at hand. In our personal relationships' with Jesus Christ, we should not be caught up in comparing our performance with that of others (not even other believers in some cases I would argue.) There are several reasons for this assessment, and the reasons do have some Biblical basis. For one thing, if we compare ourselves to other brothers and sisters in Christ, we could fall into the trap of judging them in a manner that may not be appropriate. For example, we could observe that they have fallen short in areas of sinfulness that we excel at resisting and wonder how they could call themselves Christians. It takes real spiritual maturity to embrace that we aren't all prone to the same sinful dispositions, and some of us will be strong in areas where others are weak. Instead of judging them harshly on where they fall short, we should think about the other areas where we are the ones who struggle. (V*1) 2 Corinthians 10:12 states: "For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise." (KJV). I believe this verse serves to warn us about another kind of comparison that could be dangerous, but it is all closely tied together. The first portion of the verse, seems to warn us against comparing ourselves to people who boast about themselves. I must admit that sometimes I may be susceptible to this trap and I tend to mistakenly commend myself on occasion. This should not be mistaken with having pride in your work, or doing a good job at something and being proud of what you've done. I think these are two very distinctive situations that should not be confused. It may be a thin line from one to the other, but I think that this is pointed more towards verbal self-praise rather than a more quiet, reserved admiration of a job well done. The verse goes on to specify that those who compare themselves among each other are not wise. I think one of the reasons for this might be due to the circumstantial nature of measuring oneself with others, and the shortcomings that we have in doing so. None of us holds full understanding of our very own situations, let alone the full scope of everyone else's situations. Only God can gauge our success and only He can really measure what we've done on a perfect level. We may feel as though we are doing a better job than someone who has an entirely different set of circumstances in their lives to deal with. Furthermore the person may excel at other areas, where we have no clue what to do in. This is essentially comparing apples to oranges, because there is not one other person out there on this earth that is identical to us. Even twins have very distinct personalities, and apart from physique, are in many cases two very different people.
Another danger that may come about from comparing ourselves to others is the trap of becoming complacent. We might take a look at where we are at in our performance at work, or in a classroom environment, and think to ourselves "It might not be perfect, but I am in better shape than 75% of the others here." This logic if taken to heart could lead us to stop growing, and instead lead us to choose to just stay ahead of the majority of the others. We might have amazing potential to do much better work, but instead we're focusing on what others do or do not do instead of improving. This can cost us a lot of time that we could use to grow further in our craft, or even worse it could lead us to become complacent to the point where our peers surpass us and we fall behind the "status quo". As children of God I think we're called to do more than just enough to get by, God wants us to excel and we need to remember that even our work is reflective of God. Let's try our best to do good work and avoid comparing ourselves too intently with our peers in this regard, so that the work we do honors God. Someone a long time ago put it this way: "Do the work in a way that you put your name on it." If you think of it that way, everything you say, do, and produce has your signature on it. Mediocre work shouldn't be our goal, and it's certainly not something I would want to put my name on. I want to put my name on work that goes above and beyond the call of duty, not just enough to squeeze by.
(V*2) Galatians 6:1 reads: "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted." (KJV).We should not think too much on the failures or successes of others, if our brothers and sisters in Christ fail to do something integral to the faith we should help them to be restored in a spirit of meekness. Not out of pride that we ourselves have not fallen short in such a way, but in a way that empathizes with their individual circumstances and builds them up rather than tears them down.
(V*3) In Galatians 6:4 we are told: "But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone and not in another." (KJV). At the end of the day we only have to answer to God. Ultimately He is the one that decides our judgment and He is the one who we are accountable to. This doesn't mean we shouldn't consider anyone's advice, that we should ignore our parents, or that we are above the laws of the land. On the contrary all these things should be carefully considered and would likely also be part of Gods' judgment of us. God makes it very clear throughout His word that the way we treat others is of high importance, and apart from that we would be foolish not to consider the advice of those that hold our best interests' at heart. (V*4). (See Proverbs 15:21-23).
(V*5) In Galatians 6:7 it goes on to say "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." (KJV) this verse it makes it clear that as individuals what we reap we will also sow. We have been blessed with our own gifts, talents, and resources to use as God inspires us and as we freely decide to employ. Let's try to make them count; let's use our short time here on earth to its' fullest extent because we do not know how long we have. Don't focus too much on what your fellow believers have or have not done, apart from giving them heart felt counsel on special instances and helping them in times of need, we should tend to make sure our own actions are in line with scripture before we are even able to help them. (V*6) (See Matthew 7:3-5). Let's make sure that we are not hypocritical and correct our own faults before we move on to try to help our brothers/sisters in Christ to correct theirs. Our example is important, so they will see through the chatter and know whether or not you yourself live up to the standards that you are preaching to them.
Many times what I write on this site I try to make clear that I have not mastered it by any means myself. We all have many areas that could use vast improvement, and I know there are things that I have candidly written in this site where I fall short. There are also a few areas where I sincerely believe I excel in light of scripture, but I do believe that those are few and far in between in comparison to the areas where I could really use improvement on. I want you as readers/visitors of our site to know that I learn a lot from Gods' word when I do my writings. If they come out well, it is by the grace of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit more often than my own logical prowess. Often when I write about something I do not come into it being armed with a vast library of knowledge on the matter. I need to do some prayerful consideration, introspection, research, and reading of scripture in order to attempt to grasp the material at hand. Jim and I try our best to keep this site as error free as possible, but we encourage you to notify us of any misinterpretations of scripture or potential errors across our website.
Lastly, I want to pray that God will lead us to do more to improve our own spiritual journey with him, rather than criticize our brothers and sisters for their faults and shortcomings. If we need to correct or reproof someone, let's strive to do it lovingly out of good intention rather than showing them that they are wrong. Thank you for taking time to read this article, as always our e-mail is open for discussion (fatherspiritsonmail@yahoo.com) and you can follow Jim Sager @JamesSager or myself @FatherSpiritSon on Twitter to dialogue about this or any other materials on our website. We hope God blesses you richly and equips you with all you need to focus on His standards for you rather than the standards that we think are appropriate for ourselves.
Biblical References (not embedded in the text):
V*4 - "21 Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly. 22 Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counselors they are established. 23 A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!" Proverbs 15:21-23 (KJV)
V*6 - "3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." Matthew 7:3-5 (KJV)
-Victor Nunez