Thinking of Others First

We live in a world, or a country, where most people think of themselves in almost every situation before thinking of others first. Well, that’s a natural instinct which we were all born with and, in Christian circles, it’s called the sin nature. We are all born with a natural instinct to sin. People really get upset at that fact and will be easily offended by it. But it’s a fact. Think about this; I don’t believe any parent had to teach their child to say no or mine! They didn’t have to teach the child to be selfish (in most cases). They didn’t have to teach the child to be rebellious or to hate or act out. No, no parent had to teach their children any of these. They all come as a package deal as a part of the sin nature. We are all born with it and the only remedy is salvation through Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross for our sin, he paid the debt which was required by God the Father to cover that sin. When we acknowledge what Jesus did for us on that cross and ask for His forgiveness, He covers us with His righteousness.

When God sees us, He sees Jesus. Without Jesus’ righteousness, we could never stand before God because He would see us as the sinners we are and sin cannot stand in the presence of God. So, since we have such a tremendous and wonderful gift, salvation, why do we sometimes act as if we had never been saved by Jesus? The simple answer is, we still have the sin nature within us and sometimes we allow it to come to the surface and have its way. But we also have the Holy Spirit within us and He will overcome our sin nature when we allow Him to rule in our life. Ephesians chapter 5 and verses 15-20 tell us to be filled with the Spirit and refrain from sinful activities.

When we allow the Holy Spirit, or God, to rule in our lives and we have accepted His Lordship in our lives, we will then be living to please Him and the sin nature will be buried deep. Galatians 5:16-26 draws a comparison between living according to the sin nature and the Holy Spirit. It details the different activities between the two. People shake their heads and wonder how or why a person would brutally murder another. The answer is an easy one; it is the sin nature they were born with that enables them to commit such horrendous crimes. Now, the world will pass this off to mental health issues, the environment the person grew up in or bad parenting in general. These can be contributors, but it all goes back to the root cause and that is the sin nature. That’s where it all began.

But what about Christians? Can a Christian be selfish or inconsiderate? The answer is yes. When we, as Christians, fail to allow God to be Lord of our lives, we allow elements of the sin nature to take over. A Christian is a person who has been saved, their faith is in Jesus and they have the Holy Spirit within them (the Holy Spirit resides within every person at the time they are saved). But, when they fail to accept God’s lordship over their lives, it’s similar to a crack in the armor. The sin nature doesn’t need much of a crack to creep back in. I’m concentrating on this element of the sin nature because it is so prevalent in our society today. It’s all about me. Me, me, me! People are consumed with themselves and don’t have time for others (not all but I’m making my point).

A man shared with me how he was loading some lumber in his trailer which was hooked to the rear of his truck at a home improvement store. At one point, he lost his balance while stepping over the hitch between the truck and the trailer and fell and broke his leg. He said he was lying there in pain while people actually stepped over him on their way to their vehicles in the parking lot. His phone was inside the truck. He couldn’t even get anyone to get it for him. They just continued to step over him as if he was part of the equipment. Finally, someone stopped to help. That’s total and extreme selfishness. How many people stepped over him before someone was concerned enough to help? What were they thinking? I have good idea they were more concerned with themselves and where they were going next.

When a Christian is more concerned with themselves than with their Christian brother or sister in need, it is the sin nature rearing its ugly head. James drives home this point.

 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?   JAS 5:14-16

The works you do for Jesus after you are saved shows your true faith. The verses above can relate to one of those stepping over this man if they were a Christian. It would have been like them saying, “Gee, I sure hope you can get some help for that.” Paul talks about considering others before yourself in Romans 14 and again in 1 Corinthians 8-10. In both passages he reminds us to think about the other person first. You might have the right to do something or eat something or drink something but how does it affect your Christian brother or sister. I always relate it to the former alcoholic who is saved but might still struggle with that addiction. You want to go into a local club or bar because they have the best burgers in town. You’re not thinking about the booze but your Christian friend is. How could that affect his or her faith? Or what if you actually did consume a beer because you can and you don’t struggle with an addiction? How does that affect the new Christian? Do they get the impression it’s okay to drink alcohol even though they struggle with it? There are numerous scenarios which can occur but all are based on the self-centeredness of the inconsiderate Christian. It’s not a sin to go into a bar. It’s not a sin to drink a beer but this self-centered Christian just had to have that burger in that bar with his favorite beer. He/she never stopped to consider what effect it could have on the less matured or newer Christian. They could have just as easily went to Inn-N-Out Burger.

Paul and James presented these situations in a very easy way to understand, But the ultimate example is Jesus. He didn’t have to leave His throne in heaven to come as a man who suffered tremendously and died in our place to pay the price for our sin so we don’t have to suffer for eternity in hell. That’s putting it bluntly. And I need to be reminded of this just as much as anyone. Jesus put us ahead of Himself when He put Himself on the cross. I think there are many Christians who don’t realize how much Jesus suffered and the blood He lost before He was nailed to the cross. And He didn’t have to, but He did it for us and because of the love He has for us.

Allow the Holy Spirit to have control of your Christian life and put away the sin of selfishness. And put others first. Follow the example Jesus gave us. He thought of us first while knowing the pain He would suffer as a result.   

Bill Petite