New Reminders: Comparison

Teddy Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” The Week, 3/3/23, p.17.  Comparison is the act of seeing or acknowledging two or more people, objects, or situations and noting how the attributes of each are similar and how they differ. For example, the weather was much warmer yesterday than it is today.  That type of comparison is based on observable facts.

What I believe Teddy Roosevelt might have been talking about is the human tendency to compare ourselves or our situations with other people and making value judgements––better or worse, richer or poorer, fatter or slimmer, stronger or weaker, faster or slower and so on.  When we make such comparisons, we often find either that we or the other person or group has less or more of whatever we consider desirable. We either feel that we and our situations are more or less advantageous. That kind of comparison is often tainted by feelings and opinions. We might either feel envious or hold feelings of superiority. Making value comparisons can indeed rob us of our joy!

James 2:1-5 describes the kind of comparisons we should avoid: “My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ while you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there’ or, ‘Sit down at my feet,’ have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?”

This is not to say that we should never make comparisons. How else are we to know for whom to pray or to whom to show mercy. In the Bible, the dichotomy is set forth as using righteous rather than unrighteous judgements. In plain language, we need to think, speak and act out of love. Treating others fairly and without judgment is fulfilling the command to "love your neighbor as yourself" James 2:8. For Christians, Jesus is the primary model for this, as He set aside His own rights as the son of God to serve others. 

Scripture repeatedly states that God shows no partiality or favoritism. Believers are commanded not to pervert justice by favoring the rich or deferring to the great, nor should they be biased in favor of the poor. Jesus taught that the entire Law and the Prophets are summed up in the principle of treating others as you wish to be treated. (Matthew7:12) This standard challenges us to consider the needs and feelings of others before acting. “So Peter opened his mouth and said: ‘Truly I understand that God shows no partiality.” Acts 10:3, and neither should we.