Have You Ever Said, “Just Who Do You Think You Are?”
MANY Britons were shocked not so long ago when the diaries of the late Lord Reith, founder of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), were published. “I have brilliance, intellect and all sorts of things like that,” he wrote, “. . . Loathing the common people, I will rarely admit greatness in others.”
Do you too find yourself ‘rarely admitting greatness in others’? It is an easy omission. In Lord Reith’s extreme case, his jaded view of others often led to bitterness and frustration for him. For example, he wrote of his chagrin at being brought to the level of the “common people” when Churchill removed him from the British Cabinet. He complained that his successor took his former government car, leaving him to queue up for the bus like anyone else. “I had a great struggle with myself,” he said. “Tears flooded my eyes several times.”
Fortunately, most people do not carry their view of others to such extremes. But, even so, is not pompousness and self-importance common among people you know or deal with? Many persons consider aggressiveness and assertiveness to be the only way to “get ahead.” A popular current book titled “Winning Through Intimidation” promotes the idea that the way to advance in business is to intimidate others—bully, bluff, maneuver and manipulate them to one’s own advantage—in short, to consider them inferior to you.
Often such superior airs translate into words or actions that imply: “Why should I have to put up with your ignorance?” or “Just who do you think you are?” You may be thinking now of the times that you have faced this spirit in dealing with a pompous bureaucrat, an arrogant clerk or an overbearing husband—or wife.
The fact is that this frame of mind has prevailed among humans for ages. When the ancient Greek language was called upon to express new Christian thinking—“with lowliness of mind considering that the others are superior to you”—it was so foreign to most Greek expressions that the Bible writer had to coin a new word for “lowliness of mind.” (Phil. 2:3) One commentary notes that “the idea he wished to express was one which had hitherto found no place in Greek thought or language. It had been taken for granted that everyone ought to assert himself, and that no one but a fool or a coward would yield of his own accord to any rival.”—The Interpreter’s Bible.
But is it foolish or cowardly to ‘consider others superior to you’? Not at all. “It is easy to look down on others,” wrote the English Lord Peterborough; “to look down on ourselves is the difficulty.” Yes, feelings of self-importance come easily to most of us, but humility requires much more of a person, especially if he is gifted.
How easy it is to think, “I’ve worked hard to get where I am,” and to consider as inferior others who are not so successful. But if you had been born with limitations or handicaps, would you be where you are now? Where did you get the talent and initiative, or the training and knowledge that you have? The Bible asks some piercing questions on this: “Who makes you, my friend, so important? What do you possess that was not given you? If then you really received it all as a gift, why take the credit to yourself?”—1 Cor. 4:7, New English Bible (NE).
A person who considers others superior to himself is not necessarily a mere retiring follower. He may have the capacity to show much ability to direct. Of all the qualities a person in a position of responsibility may have, it is humility that will most endear him to those whom he guides or directs.
When some of Christ’s apostles were disputing over which one was the greatest, he quickly punctured their grand illusions by telling them what makes for true greatness. He noted that it is customary for those in authority to “lord it over” others. But “this must not happen with you,” he countered. “The greatest among you must behave as if he were the youngest, the leader as if he were the one who serves.”—Luke 22:25, 26, Jerusalem Bible (JB).
The wisdom of this principle becomes clear when you think back to the last time someone dealt with you as though you were inferior. Did you feel like cooperating with that person? Or did it cause resentment and irritation to well up—perhaps the reaction: “Just who do you think you are?” Remember this the next time you are tempted to follow that first impulse to put on airs before another who may not be as qualified as you are in your field. True, you may be superior in those matters, but are you superior in other things? He may excel you in matters of life that are far more important. So the Bible urges that a person not “exaggerate his real importance. Each of you must judge himself soberly.”—Rom. 12:3, JB.
With these principles in mind, why not take another look at others around you—this time ‘considering others to be superior’? Would relations with your family, friends, work associates or the public improve if you were to do so? Remember the sage advice of the apostle Paul: “Care as much about each other as about yourselves. Do not be haughty, but go about with humble folk. Do not keep thinking how wise you are.”—Rom. 12:16, NE.
A husband, for example, may supply the money to provide for a home. But his wife may be better at doing the purchasing of foodstuffs or other home needs. She may also excel in arranging the home and providing a larger portion of the warmth and tenderness children need. Certainly a husband should not feel that his authority is threatened if he acknowledges that his wife may be superior in these and perhaps other ways. It will no doubt help to increase her respect for him and solidify the love between them.
Even children can make a superior contribution. Their spontaneous and uninhibited way of expressing joy and affection, their little honest, unhypocritical observations about things may even teach “sophisticated” adults something.
Especially should Christians recognize that fellow believers all have certain qualities superior to their own. Some have more knowledge and discernment, others more zeal and enthusiasm, still others more warmth and sympathy. Who is to say that if God were to select the most favored from his own standpoint, it would not be someone we tend to look right over because of that person’s humble manner? That is why the Bible says: “All of you should wrap yourselves in the garment of humility towards each other, because God sets his face against the arrogant but favours the humble.”—1 Pet. 5:5, NE.