Ep.1293: Am I Playing the Social Status Game?
Understanding and rooting out the compulsive need for social status and position
CHAPTERS
Theme Scripture: Matthew 20:27-28
It is a natural human response to want to be recognized for who we are and for what we contribute. This is easy to observe. Just look at a small child who does something to be helpful or obedient. When their parent recognizes and praises their behavior, their face beams with delight! While it is positive and nurturing to praise growth and maturity, we also need to be wary. As with anything else that provokes goodness in our sinful world, the simplicity of building another up can be misrepresented and funneled into the ever-growing competition for status among our peers. Now it’s no longer about building up, it is all about establishing our place in the pecking order and fighting our way to be higher up on that ladder. This is NOT a new phenomenon as the Bible has MUCH to say about avoiding it!
Social status is about recognition
It is about being someone who stands out in a crowd. It’s about being seen through a different filter than everyone else. It’s about people looking up to you and following your perspective on issues and subjects that are important to them. The higher your status in the eyes of others, the more powerful and far-reaching your influence becomes. Strong influence means you have the capacity to change other’s perspectives, and that leads to bending social agendas towards your preferred direction. No wonder we fight over our social status rankings! Power and influence go to those at the top!
Influence
Let’s settle this whole social status thing once and for all because it all boils down to influence. He or she with the greatest influence is he or she with the greatest standing. So, who would that be? It is Jesus! Why? Social status and influence are inevitably determined through the eyes of the beholder. Whose eyes are most important to be in front of? Is it the eyes of this or that generation? No! Simply stated, status and influence are established in the eyes of God. He is the Creator of all things, the Originator of all life and the Designer of humanity’s destiny. In God’s eyes, Jesus is THE greatest influencer that the world has ever seen or will ever see. Jesus changed the destiny of every man woman and child who ever lived, and there is no greater influence.
This being the case, what do we do with social media and the status seeking that surrounds us daily? Check out our August 7, 2023 podcast, “Am I Playing the Social Status Game?” for some insight. We talk about being influencers, but not being status seekers. We talk about using the social media environment to represent, to truly represent what a Christian should be standing for. Having influence is a good and necessary aspect of being a disciple of Jesus and he taught us how to do it! Don’t miss this opportunity to understand the world of influencers and how we can use our influence to bring glory to God!!
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