I continue to learn what it means to “value others above” myself (Philippians 2:3) and to live with Paul’s attitude of showing honor to all and choosing especially to “associate with people of low position” (Romans 12:16). It’s interesting to know how it automatically feels to meet someone the culture values as important or famous as opposed to how you feel when you meet a child or an unknown worker in a store. God reiterated the point to me this morning as I read Psalm 62:9 and what it means to consider people of high rank, degree, or social standing verses the “low estate” of others. We’re told that, when weighed together, they are nothing at all. God does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11), and we’re told to avoid it in James 2.
I’ve been thinking about this and what we allow to impress us. What impresses us shows us what we value, and it reveals our hearts. How convicting! I think about the scribes and the pharisees and Jesus’ warning and sharp rebuke: Jesus says, “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others” (Matthew 23:5-7).
So I think about becoming a person who cares less and less about what you wear, where you sit, who knows you, and what you’ve done.