First of all, let’s define “status.” According to the online Merriam-Webster Dictionary, status is: “position or rank in relation to others or relative rank in a hierarchy of prestige especially : high prestige.” Kind of wordy, but it does say what status is. First, let’s talk about it in relationship to others.
In today’s world of never having enough, people tend to equate their well-being, their status, if you will, with the number of material things that they have and the quality of those things. It’s good to have a nice house, but a big, nice house is better, for example. It’s great to have a nice car, but an expensive car with all of the newest bells and whistles is better. Status is elusive and changes quickly, depending on your social circumstances. I know this from experience because I grew up in a home that was considered upper middle class and my family was considered well-to-do. Not wealthy, but respected for all of the things we had, like a Cadillac in the driveway and a pool in the backyard. Then came the devastation of my family losing everything. There went their long-standing status in the community, in less time than it takes to read this blog post!
The second definition for status is rank or prestige. That is not so different from the first definition, but I think it also deals with how you see yourself in society. The lepers in the Bible were outcasts, so their status in society was the lowest of the low, yet they still called out to Jesus to be healed. They knew that they were unworthy, but they knew to whom they could appeal. India still has a caste system and the status that you are born into is one that you will have your entire life. While we in the U.S. gasp at such a concept as not being able to improve your status, we have the same general concept. A Rockefeller family member is automatically accorded more respect and gets the best tables at the best restaurants like it’s part of the benefits of having that name. The Smiths, however, are not treated so royally. In fact, the working class Americans generally remain in that working class for a lifetime. On the other hand, one of the great things about being in the U.S. is that one can work hard, get a better education and move from one “class” to another. Nevertheless, we are still a nation of “haves” and “have nots.” I am sure that we can all agree that some are privileged and some are impoverished and sometimes it is a case of birth family and circumstances, not choices.
Now, back to status and the real purpose of this post today. I used to be upper middle class. Now, I am lower middle class and not bothered by my drop in rank in society. That is because my status is not dependent on what the world says I am or thinks about me. I must confess that once I was into titles and status and wanted to succeed and be recognized as worthy of honor and respect. I earned some titles and awards as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. But nothing that I have ever won can compare to what I am now.
I am a DK, a Daughter of the King. I can rest fully secure in my Father’s love, knowing that will not change because He does not change. My position in the family of God is not dependent on anything I do but on all that Jesus already did. That gives me peace as well as rest from competition with others. God puts all of us on an even plane; we are all sinners saved by grace. The wealthy cannot buy their way into heaven and the poor cannot beg their way in. There is only one way, one door to get to spend eternity with God and that is through His Son Jesus. So, I have given up on the FFV (First Families of Virginia), the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) and OWC (Officers’ Wives’ Club). I have traded that illusory status for one that is everlasting, a a child of God and there I remain, in my little house in the big woods, driving an older car and not really caring that I don’t have all the things.
Death is a thief that takes all you have accumulated and gives it to someone else. Wealth doesn’t endure, but hope in a future with God does.
This verse says clearly what our priorities need to be and it is not in gathering things so that we look better to others. That is not to say that all people who have nice things are wicked, just that having nice things won’t get you out of death and into heaven.
This is a promise that we who confess Jesus as Lord can firmly grasp and count on. No matter how others view my status, God only sees whether I have been made clean by the blood of His Son and accepts me just the way I am.
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