So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:26-29
I was praying about the concept of “privilege” this morning. As a white, middle-class, male in America I live with a high level of privilege that is hard for me to notice. Let’s call “privilege” an “unearned advantage.” Some advantages I have in life I have worked hard to attain while others were given to me at birth through no doing of my own. And if I have been born with an “unearned advantage” through no doing of my own, it means others have been born with an “unearned disadvantage” through no doing of their own.
Being born into a middle-class family wasn’t something I chose. I was given that gift at birth because of my parents and grandparents. The advantages they gathered in their life (both earned and unearned) were passed down to me. So being born into a middle-class family means I started life with a certain amount of privilege. Maybe it was less privilege than being born into a wealthy family, but it was still an unearned advantage.
I believe there are multiple forms of privilege and they are all on a continuum. Privilege is not an on/off switch. We all fall on the spectrum of privilege somewhere. And all privilege (whether it was earned or unearned) comes with responsibility.
Men have had a certain level of “unearned advantage” over women in our culture historically. White people have had an “unearned advantage” over other races in our culture. People not born into poverty have had an “unearned advantage” over those who were born into poverty. Able-bodied people have had an “unearned advantage” over those who are not able-bodied. And the list of possible unearned advantages goes on and on.
The conversation gets confusing when you start comparing who has more privilege, so it’s probably best not to go there. Does a poor Asian man have more privilege than a middle-class Indian woman? Which variable of privilege wins out? This is why it doesn’t seem helpful to have that conversation.
It’s better just to focus on whatever unearned advantages we may have personally and whether we are responsibility using that advantage. Are we aware of it? Are we abusing it? Are we using it selfishly? Are we being responsible with it? Are we using it to help others?
Yet, as I was praying this morning about privilege, the Lord reminded me of my greatest privilege. He reminded me that my greatest “unearned advantage” is my relationship with Him. No matter what is happening in my life or in the world, I get to wake up and spend time with the Creator of the Universe every morning. I get to speak to God and listen as He speaks to me. I get to experience His love. I get to receive His peace. I get to read His word. I have the security of knowing He is my protector and provider. This privilege is not only available to me, but to people all over the world–men and women of every race and socio-economic status. This unearned advantage is available to all!
To be the son or daughter of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords is an enormous privilege. And, like many other privileges, it was unearned. Jesus is the one who paid the price for me. I have the unearned advantage of having the Holy Spirit dwell inside me. Resurrection power dwells within me! God’s Spirit is united to mine! Is there any greater unearned advantage?
And, like other unearned advantages, it means someone else had to deal with an unearned disadvantage. Jesus, though completely free from sin, paid the ultimate price for me. My unearned advantage of the Spirit was provided by His unearned disadvantage. Yet, it wasn’t something forced upon Him. It was something He willingly surrendered to.
The other glaring difference here is that this unearned advantage, this privilege of having an intimate relationship with the Lord, is available for everyone. No one can change their race or the family into which they were born, but we can choose to receive Jesus into our lives as Lord and Savior. We can choose to surrender our lives to Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit.
Many Christians, though, aren’t taking advantage of their greatest advantage. We have this incredible privilege of having an interactive, intimate relationship with the God of all Creation. We have this incredible unearned advantage of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, the resurrection power of God flowing through us. We get to be confident that He hears our voice, and we get to hear His. But what are we doing with this unearned advantage? Are we aware of it? Are we using it for the sake of His Kingdom and for the sake of others?
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
Romans 8:9-11
Fire and Light 