What's Worth it? Week 2: Not "being special"

Trying to be special is not worth it.

“Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content. History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. Sometimes people say, “Here is something new!” But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly new.” -Ecclesiastes 1: 8-10

A survey asked 3000 aged 8 to 12 which of five professions they wanted to be when they grew up. The #1 pick for the American kids was to be a YouTube vlogger.

And American adults lament that kids these days are too entitled.

Meanwhile, Australian researchers have found that vulnerable narcissists are more likely to develop eating disorders. Their high focus on receiving validation from others, when coupled with social isolation that prevents them from receiving it, exacerbates the situation.

Exceptionalism is the idea that the uniqueness of our problems excuses our bad behaviors. Entitlement is the idea that we deserve things we haven’t earned – that we’re “better than that.” In either case, we have a skewed perception how we compare with others. Both perspectives can be equally destructive in their desire to escape mediocrity.

People in the Bible dealt with this question, too.

In 2 Kings 5, Naaman suffered from a skin disease, and traveled to Israel to be healed. When Elisha told him via messenger to wash in the less-than-pristine Jordan River, Naaman was offended. Surely I deserve better treatment than this! I’m a VIP – shouldn’t he have come to see me himself?!? He was entitled.

In Matthew 27:3-5, we see Judas dealing with the repercussions of his actions. He despaired at having betrayed the Son of God – the Messiah – and didn’t think he could ever recover.

If you had to compare yourself to everyone else on Earth, where on this bell curve would you put yourself in your relationship with God? Are you better, worse, or just like everyone else?

In physics, there’s a concept called “superposition” – the idea that a particle can be in two places at once. (If you’ve never heard of it, here’s a four-minute, animated video.

Perhaps the healthiest way to look at ourselves is to have our own “superposition” with three simultaneous understandings:

1. I’m awesome.
   • Matt 3:5 I will inherit earth
   • Rom 8:31 God is for me
   • Is 51:12 God comforts me
   • Ps 34:17-20 The Lord delivers me
   • Luke 12:6-7 I am worth more than many sparrows
   • Ps 23:6 I’ll dwell in the house of the Lord forever
2. I’m the worst.
   • 1 Cor 15:9 Paul felt he was the least of the apostles
   • Ephesians 3:8 Later, he said he was the least of all the Lord’s people
   • 1 Tim 1:15-16 Then, he said he was the worst of all sinners. Paul may have been wrong, but this understanding helped him appreciate God’s grace.
3. I am just like everyone else in that regard.
   • 2 Cor 5:15 Christ died for all
   • Acts 2:39 the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off

So what should we do with this realization? Peter’s a good example. Like Judas, Peter suffered from guilt as well. True to Jesus’ prediction, he denied being one of his followers three times. But in John 20-21, we see that instead of suicide, he kept moving forward. He turned his guilt into his motivation.

We should take pride in receiving God’s favor. We should realize that we’ve done nothing to deserve it. And we should have great empathy with others as a result.

Questions for discussion:

1. Was Paul really the worst of all sinners? Why would he think that?
2. Could Judas have been forgiven? What if he had waited three days?
3. In what ways do we show exceptionalism/entitlement in our lives? In our church?