We have all seen the bumper sticker: “He who dies with the most toys wins.” It’s a cynical statement about our materialistic culture. But there’s another layer of insight there concerning competition. Down to one’s dying day, life is all about comparison and competition.
The apostle Paul wrote that it is not wise to engage in such activity. The subject came up in Corinth when false teachers and apostles boasted about their accomplishments (2 Corinthians 10). Paul refused to be drawn into such a fruitless debate.
When people who were all on the same plain – dead in trespasses and sin, redeemed only by the grace of God – began to boast about their greatness, Paul chose to focus on two things: carrying out his apostolic mission and focusing on the greatness of Christ. Paul loved to boast, but only about Christ and never about himself (2 Corinthians 10:17-18).
If you are ever tempted to feel large or small based on comparisons with others, shift your focus to Christ and boast in Him.
Reverence and boasting cannot be found in the same heart. A. W. Tozer [Paraphrased]