The Danger of Comparison

Cover Article

by Michael Jones · Week of August 23, 2026

There is a thief that never picks a lock or breaks a window, yet robs us of something precious all the same. It is the habit of comparison, the sideways glance at someone else’s gifts, progress, and blessings, that drains the color from the very life God has painted for us. We scroll through a curated gallery of other people’s highlights on social media, and a quiet voice whispers, “You are not enough.” But that voice does not belong to the Shepherd. Paul warned the Galatian churches against this trap: “Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load” (Galatians 6:4–5). The apostle does not tell us to stop examining our lives; he tells us to find satisfaction in our own walk with God, not in how we measure against someone else’s. And to the Corinthians he added this observation: “We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (2 Corinthians 10:12). The measuring stick we build from other people’s achievements is crooked from the start.

Peter learned this lesson on the shore of Galilee. Jesus had just restored him after his three denials, laying out the costly road of shepherding ahead (John 21:15–19). Peter’s calling was clear, his forgiveness complete, his future in the hands of the risen Lord. Yet the moment he spotted John walking behind them, the old reflex kicked in: “Lord, what about him?” (John 21:21). Jesus’ answer cuts through every comparison we will ever make: “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me” (John 21:22). John’s assignment is not your assignment. John’s timeline is not your timeline. The only path that should occupy your attention is the one laid at your feet. Comparison was not simply a mistake for Peter; it was a distraction from the very voice of the risen Christ.

Here is the truth we need to press deep into our hearts: you were not created to be someone else. God “prepared good works in advance” for you to walk in (Ephesians 2:10), not the good works He prepared for your neighbor or the person whose life looks so polished online. He shaped you with specific gifts, specific limitations, and specific relationships so that His power might be displayed in your particular story. Paul discovered this when he pleaded three times for relief from his thorn in the flesh. The Lord’s answer was stunning: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). When we spend our energy comparing our Chapter 3 to someone else’s Chapter 12, we miss the grace God is writing into the very page we are living today. The psalmist understood: “Lord, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I do not involve myself in great matters or in things too difficult for me. Instead, I have calmed and quieted my soul” (Psalm 131:1–2). There is a deep, steady peace that comes from accepting the portion God has assigned and trusting it is exactly right.

The antidote to comparison is not complacency; we are still called to “press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). But that pressing happens when we fix our eyes on Jesus, “the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2), not when we glance sideways at our brother or sister. Perhaps you are not the one called to stand before crowds; perhaps you are the one called to sit at a hospital bedside, to raise children in a home where the peace of Christ is evident, to speak a quiet word that keeps a struggling soul in the fight. These callings are not less. They are the very works God prepared for you before the foundation of the world. So I encourage you this week: take inventory of your own growth. Where has God stretched your faith? Where have you been faithful when faithfulness cost you something? Let those questions replace the exhausting project of comparison. “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). He knows you. He called you. He is shaping you for a purpose that is uniquely yours. That is enough. That is more than enough. It is everything. - MJ

Other congregations are welcome to reprint this. It may be reproduced in another congregation’s bulletin or newsletter without asking permission. An acknowledgement of Orange View Church of Christ is appreciated but not required.

Bible Questions & Answers

Should Christians celebrate Halloween?

This is a question many sincere believers wrestle with as October approaches and decorations fill stores and neighborhoods. Some feel strongly that Halloween’s roots in pagan ritual mean Christians should have no part in it. Others regard it as a thoroughly secularized autumn tradition (children in costumes collecting candy) and see nothing inherently sinful about participating. Both perspectives come from genuine faith, and that is important to acknowledge at the outset. The question before us is not whether one group is “more spiritual” than another, but how Scripture guides us when faithful believers reach different conclusions on matters not explicitly commanded or forbidden in the New Testament.

Paul addressed precisely this kind of disagreement in his letter to the Romans. Believers in Rome were divided over which days to regard as special and which foods were permissible. Rather than siding with one party, Paul set out a governing principle: “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind” (Romans 14:5). The Greek word translated “fully convinced” is plērophoreisthō, which carries the sense of being borne along to full assurance. Paul is not endorsing casual indifference; he is calling each believer to examine the matter before God until conscience is settled. He adds a second layer: “Whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves” (Romans 14:22). The principle is clear: personal convictions on disputable matters are to be held with integrity before the Lord, not wielded as weapons against brothers and sisters who land differently. Paul also wrote to the Corinthians, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Whatever decision we reach about Halloween, the orientation of our heart toward God’s glory is the decisive factor.

That said, there is a scriptural boundary that no amount of cultural softening can erase. Paul commanded the Ephesian church, “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:11). The Old Testament is equally direct: “There shall not be found among you anyone who…practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord” (Deuteronomy 18:10–12, NKJV). Halloween’s historical lineage traces back to the Celtic festival of Samhain, which was bound up with beliefs about spirits and the boundary between the living and the dead. While most modern trick-or-treating has little conscious connection to those origins, certain expressions of the holiday, fascination with the occult, glorification of death and horror, dabbling in anything that flirts with sorcery or spiritism, remain flatly incompatible with the faith. The principle is not obscure: wherever an activity draws us toward the darkness God has told us to flee, it is no longer a matter of Christian liberty. It is a matter of obedience.

So where does this leave us practically? If your conscience is convicted against any participation in Halloween, follow that conviction with full assurance and without apology, but extend grace to those who see it differently. “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall” (Romans 14:4). If your conscience permits you to let your children dress up and collect candy, do so thoughtfully: choose costumes and activities that reflect the light rather than the darkness, talk with your children about why certain themes are off-limits for a child of God, and use the evening as a genuine opportunity to be present among your neighbors. Some families have found creative alternatives, harvest festivals, trunk-or-treat events, that preserve the fun of community and autumn celebration without the trappings that trouble their conscience. Whatever path you choose, hold fast to the twin rails of Romans 14: be fully convinced in your own mind, and do not pass judgment on a brother or sister who has reached a different conclusion before the same Lord. “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). In all things, let us pursue what leads to peace and mutual edification (Romans 14:19). - MJ