James 2 v 2-4 “Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
I am very fond of someone who was once the struggling underdog. With a mountain of debt and impossibility ahead of him, many turned their noses up at him. Instead of using their power to show mercy they turned away. It’s always easier to pretend you don’t know or haven’t seen the one who is in a messy predicament; or the one who is poor, ugly, less educated or socially awkward. Don’t gasp in surprise at me, you know it’s true. It’s much easier to flock towards people who are just like us or ‘better.’
Only thing is, much as we do this to others, there are those on the pecking ladder who are probably looking down on us. We can find ourselves judged or criticized even if we haven’t done or meant any harm. It’s heavy living under such judgement and even heavier when you are the one dishing out sentences for others, though you might not feel the ugly weight at the time. I was at a rugby match the other day and the referee seemed to be making one wrong call after another – against the team we were supporting. I kept wondering if he actually was refereeing badly or if we would have seen things differently had we been supporting the opposing team. There is always someone to point a finger at; always someone we can judge if that is the way we choose to live. In and of ourselves, pure objective calls and opinions are not easy to hold, for that we need God’s help. He is the only one fit to judge; although saying that, even Jesus said “I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.” (John 12 v 47)
Our positions in life are precarious. Prefects and bosses and leaders in any capacity should not lord it over others. At school we used to muse over the commonly held thought that the A streamers would probably work for the B streamers one day and that the bully would get beaten by the bullied. We used to imagine what it would be like in a decade’s time when we weren’t so bound by our schooling system and who was ‘failing’ and who wasn’t. I am reminded of Aesop’s Fable about the lion and the mouse. The lion allows the mouse to go free one day and then some time later, the lion is trapped and the same mouse rescues him. “One good turn deserves another.” Our size is not so important; the way we treat others is of utmost significance.
Matthew 23 v 12 – “For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
As often happens in a good story, the tables have turned and miracles have occurred and our underdog is now a main man. He remembers who believed in him and treated him kindly when he had nothing to give. Where he was at the mercy, he now has the ability to show mercy. Where he might now be using his status to his advantage, I see a man with the most generous heart and not an ounce of revenge. He would give the shirt off his back and often does. He told me recently that things are really good right now for him because the people who work for him sing as they come to work; he says he hears them before he sees them. I love the thought that singing fills the air when leaders place high value on those ‘beneath’ them. It sounds wonderfully right.
Romans 12 – Honour one another above yourselves…Live in harmony with one another…Be willing to associate with people of low position…As far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
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