“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider
equality
with God
something to be grasped,” Philippians 2:6 (NIV)
I worked
with a lady who had earned a doctorate in education and could have insisted
that she be called ‘Doctor’ but she introduced herself with her first name. She
had been in education before she took the job at the library. Her advanced
degree studies were in reading education. If you didn’t see her name tag, you
didn’t know she possessed three earned degrees. She knew her job, did it well,
and was likable as a person.
We see
people who wish to be treated as regular, in spite of their advancements. Some
pastors answer to their title; some seem comfortable being called by their
first name. A friend once told me that pastors were people who had
a calling from God but were just like us in all other ways. I had a counselor
who possessed a PhD who told me to call him by his given name. I felt
comfortable with him. He put on no airs.
In walking
through our world, we want to appear genuine to those we meet. We try to do
this in ways that don’t burden those we are trying to get to know. Coming from
a background that is difficult for me to talk about, I prefer not to tell all
my deep feelings about things in my past. But I try to be pleasant and
understanding of other people’s situations.
As children
of God, we are not exempt from the travails of this life. We should always try
to realize that we are no different than the next person we meet on the street,
in the stores, or at the doctor’s office.
In the late
1960s there was a television comedian who had a one line thought that seemed to
bring a lot of laughs. He’d look into the camera and say, “What you see is
what you get.” As I reflect on his words, I realize this
phrase of his sums up the idea of authenticity in a way that makes it clear
that we are to be transparent before all we meet.