Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.
~Philippians 2:5-7 (NLT)
Ever feel like your individual rights are being trampled on? You have the right to be heard but your boss won’t listen to your ideas. You have the right to be respected, but the people around you treat you like you’re an idiot. You have the right to hang out with your friends but your spouse keeps getting angry about it. You have the right to some time alone but everyone keeps demanding your time. You have the right to buy a few things you want but your husband won’t let you. You have the right to watch the game but your wife’s bugging you to fix the garage door. You have the right to…fill in the blank.
Jesus gave up his rights. He laid them down for the sake of others. He knows how you feel. He knows what it feels like to be ignored, disrespected, bound, tired, spent, surrounded, hounded, and burned. He had the right to be free of those things, but even though he is God he gave up his rights. The result was earth-shattering.
How might our own world change if we stopped getting defensive about the annoying, selfish, demanding, draining and rude people who tread on our rights? What if we stopped being frustrated with them, laid down our rights and served them? Just a guess, but I’ll bet it might just be earth-shattering.
