Giving Up Our Rights
Lately I've noticed that people of our generation are very concerned about our rights and what we are entitled to, usually without recognizing the other person/people involved. We want what we believe we deserve. (Maybe it's not just my generation, but as a college student, those are the people I interact with.)
I see this take many forms in our daily lives.
"She has no right to get angry with me about my dirty dishes. It's my house, too."
"Why is this old man driving so slow? I'm going to be late for work."
"I should get the last say in the argument. After all, she's wrong."
"I'm not going to go meet people. If they want to get to know me, they can seek me out."
"So what if I sass my parents? They shouldn't treat me like a kid."
"My professor better give me an A...I mean, I showed up to class. Those paper grades were unfair."
"My boss is such a jerk. So-and-so wears shorts to work, so why can't I?"
These are just a few examples. It seems like so many of us think that the world revolves around us. We believe that we are entitled to getting what we want, when we want, and how we want it. We are our own love, our own lord, our own savior. We are the center of our universe.
I've found three reasons why this is an inaccurate way to look at the world and our lives.
1) We are not the only ones who exist in the world; even if we were, we really aren't that great.
Why do we find ourselves thinking that we are better than everyone around us? Are we really that self-centered? Philippians 2:3-4 says to in humility, consider others better than yourself. We are called to serve others and to consider their needs. We are no better than anyone else. We are told to love our neighbors and pray for our enemies. (Yes, even the guy who cuts you off on the interstate.) 1st Corinthians 1:5 says that, "Love does not insist on its own way." Too often we behave as if no one else matters, when in reality, we are called to love.
Paul touched on this point in Philippians 3. He goes through a long list of things that the world would see as credited to his righteousness. When it came to reasons for having confidence in himself, Paul had a million. But even the great apostle said, "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ." Paul understood that nothing he did was comparable to Christ, and he turned from serving himself to serving others for God's glory.
2) We are called to give up our rights.
In John 13, Jesus washed the disciples feet. This was one of the most humbling things He could've done to serve them. If Jesus, who actually had the right to be served, gave that up, why do we insist that others serve us? In Mark 8:34-36, Jesus says, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?" Now, most of us would agree that we have the right to life. But I believe Jesus challenges this when He tells us to "lose our lives". Any gain in this world that I get because I have the "right" to it cannot compare to what I gain when I follow Christ. Even in the act of giving up our lives, we give up our rights, because we do this not for our own sake, but for Christ's. Jesus had the right to not go to the cross, but He went anyway for the sake of sinners. Why would I be allowed to hold on tightly to my rights?
3) We don't want what we are actually entitled to.
Finally, we can explore what we really are entitled to - death. Romans 3:22-23 says, "For there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 6:23 is just as intense when it says, "The wages of sin is death." So all of us have sinned and all of us deserve death. I really don't think that's a prize we're jumping to claim. Luckily, Christ came to redeem us, and He is the only one with rights -- the right to all glory, honor, and praise.
So, the next time we think about how someone owes us, it might do well to reflect on what we deserve and how Christ redeemed us from that. Maybe then we will be quicker to forgive and let go of what we think is rightfully ours.
(Thanks to my pastor and roommates for the insight.)
I see this take many forms in our daily lives.
"She has no right to get angry with me about my dirty dishes. It's my house, too."
"Why is this old man driving so slow? I'm going to be late for work."
"I should get the last say in the argument. After all, she's wrong."
"I'm not going to go meet people. If they want to get to know me, they can seek me out."
"So what if I sass my parents? They shouldn't treat me like a kid."
"My professor better give me an A...I mean, I showed up to class. Those paper grades were unfair."
"My boss is such a jerk. So-and-so wears shorts to work, so why can't I?"
These are just a few examples. It seems like so many of us think that the world revolves around us. We believe that we are entitled to getting what we want, when we want, and how we want it. We are our own love, our own lord, our own savior. We are the center of our universe.
I've found three reasons why this is an inaccurate way to look at the world and our lives.
1) We are not the only ones who exist in the world; even if we were, we really aren't that great.
Why do we find ourselves thinking that we are better than everyone around us? Are we really that self-centered? Philippians 2:3-4 says to in humility, consider others better than yourself. We are called to serve others and to consider their needs. We are no better than anyone else. We are told to love our neighbors and pray for our enemies. (Yes, even the guy who cuts you off on the interstate.) 1st Corinthians 1:5 says that, "Love does not insist on its own way." Too often we behave as if no one else matters, when in reality, we are called to love.
Paul touched on this point in Philippians 3. He goes through a long list of things that the world would see as credited to his righteousness. When it came to reasons for having confidence in himself, Paul had a million. But even the great apostle said, "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ." Paul understood that nothing he did was comparable to Christ, and he turned from serving himself to serving others for God's glory.
2) We are called to give up our rights.
In John 13, Jesus washed the disciples feet. This was one of the most humbling things He could've done to serve them. If Jesus, who actually had the right to be served, gave that up, why do we insist that others serve us? In Mark 8:34-36, Jesus says, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?" Now, most of us would agree that we have the right to life. But I believe Jesus challenges this when He tells us to "lose our lives". Any gain in this world that I get because I have the "right" to it cannot compare to what I gain when I follow Christ. Even in the act of giving up our lives, we give up our rights, because we do this not for our own sake, but for Christ's. Jesus had the right to not go to the cross, but He went anyway for the sake of sinners. Why would I be allowed to hold on tightly to my rights?
3) We don't want what we are actually entitled to.
Finally, we can explore what we really are entitled to - death. Romans 3:22-23 says, "For there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 6:23 is just as intense when it says, "The wages of sin is death." So all of us have sinned and all of us deserve death. I really don't think that's a prize we're jumping to claim. Luckily, Christ came to redeem us, and He is the only one with rights -- the right to all glory, honor, and praise.
So, the next time we think about how someone owes us, it might do well to reflect on what we deserve and how Christ redeemed us from that. Maybe then we will be quicker to forgive and let go of what we think is rightfully ours.
(Thanks to my pastor and roommates for the insight.)
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