Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. (Philippians 2:6)
“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
“You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.
“Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:7–12 NLT)
Jesus did not come to Earth thinking of himself as better than the rest of us. Of course, being that he is fully God and fully man, he is better than all of us. However, he did not walk around basking in his divinity or rubbing it in our faces; in fact, he often worked to keep that facet of himself unrevealed for as long as he could. In Matthew 8, Jesus instructs a man he heals of leprosy to tell no one how he was healed. In Mark 8, after Peter professes his belief that Jesus is the Messiah, the disciples are told not to tell anyone. A chapter later, as Peter, James, and John are following Jesus down the mountain after his transfiguration, he repeats that command: “he told them not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead” (Mark 9:9).
Even as he was illustrating the power of the Spirit manifest in his life through teachings, active love through embracing even those rejected by the most religious, and miracles beyond what even Elijah and Elisha could boast, Jesus appears to be adamant that his humanity be at the center of attention rather than his divinity.
Yet, how easily could Jesus have put his power and majesty on display, answering for all time any questions about the source of his miracles and who exactly he is.
There is a scene in J. R. R. Tolkien’s first volume of The Lord of the Rings wherein Frodo, the one who bears the “One Ring to rule them all,” and his companion, Sam, are with Galadriel, the queen of the elves of Lothlórien. Near the end of their exchange, Frodo, seeing the goodness of this elven queen, offers to give her the One Ring, to free himself from the burden of carrying it and the nigh impossible task before him of destroying it to keep it out of the hands of evil Sauron. She responds by saying, “In place of a Dark Lord you will set up a Queen. And I shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the Morning and Night! Fair as the Sea and the Sun and the Snow upon the Mountain! Dreadful as the Storm and the Lighting! Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love me and despair!”
Ultimately, she rejects Frodo’s offer, choosing the better path for herself, her people, and Middle Earth, even if it ultimately means the end of elves in the world.
Both Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings and Jesus in the Gospels are illustrations of restraint: people with great power given the chance to wield that power over others for their own good but who, instead, choose another path, one of sacrifice.
When Jesus instructs his followers to “do to others whatever you would like them to do to you,” it is a command to show love and respect and humility. It is a call to think of the needs of others through a lens that centers their wants and needs rather than centering our desires or perspective.
It is a command to be humble and sacrificial in our actions, even when – or maybe even especially when – we wield power over others.
May we be like Jesus today, tomorrow, and all our days, choosing the path of humility over that of power.
Michael Benson is the communications director for the North American Baptist Conference.