Laying Down My Rights

For God is pleased with you when you do what you know is right and patiently endure unfair treatment. 1 Peter 2:19

I suffer from a "fairness complex". I think that things should be done fairly. It's the American way, isn't it? We're all about our "rights". We guard them, defend them, fight for them.... to the point that we will violate someone else's rights if we perceive they are getting in the way of our own rights.

It's the American way, certainly, but is it the Christian way? The truth is that it is not, and here's where my struggle comes in. For so long we have equated fairness with right-ness that we have begun to believe it: what is fair must be right. In truth, we subconsciously know that this line of thinking is incorrect. We all know that life is not fair. Most, if not all, of us have found ourselves in a situation where there was no "fair" solution. What was good for one was not good for others, or, (pardon my digression into Star Trek rhetoric) "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few - or the one." This cannot be said to be fair.

And so, I must come to terms with the fairness myth. The idea of fairness is a nice thing, but the reality is that it simply does not exist in many situations. But even when things can be done fairly, often they are not. And there is where I must put my faith into action.

I'm glad that it was Peter who was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write these words, because Peter is a guy I can relate to. Peter could not have come to these conclusions easily - or on his own. After all, Peter is the guy who stood up to defend Jesus at Gethsemane, cutting off the ear of the soldier who had come to arrest his friend and Lord. Peter had been all about fairness for much of his life. Now we see the Lord has shown him a better way.

So Peter instructs us to do what is right, even when we are treated unfairly. These instructions were specifically given to slaves, and more specifically to slaves with cruel masters. The instructions were further applied to women with ungodly husbands. Modern Christianity would stand to defend the rights of these slaves to their freedom, and the rights of these women to equity in marriage. Biblical Christianity looked upon this situation in a different light. This was an opportunity to live pleasing before God (1 Peter 2:19)... A chance to follow the example of Christ (1 Peter 2:21-24)... An opportunity to win souls not with words but by example (1 Peter 31-2).

And so the question I must ask myself is, "What do I value more?" Am I more concerned with fairness? Will I stubbornly hold onto my rights at the expense of someone else's soul? Or will I hear the words of the Lord through Peter, instructing me to quit worrying about what's fair, quit basing my actions on how someone else is treating me, and simply follow the example of Christ?

It's a hard one, to be sure, but it's... Just a thought....