God Is Not A Respecter of Persons
Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: (Acts 10:34)
We are told by many people that what God has done for one person, He will do for everyone. Why? Because He is not a respecter of persons. So, based on this almost sacred pillar of theology, the following has to be true:
God made David king over all Israel, therefore God is going to make you King over Israel, too. Hallelujah! Why? Because God is no respecter of persons. I thought my career was a dead end but now I know that I am going to be king over an entire country! Why? Because since God did it for one person, He has to do the exact same for me, too.
Really?
God told Isaiah to preach naked (Isa 20). Therefore, Pastor, God is going to make you preach naked, too! Why? Because God is not a respecter of persons.
Wait a minute. I'm not sure I want in on this.
God killed Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5). Therefore God is going to kill you, too. Why? Because God is no respecter of persons.
Something is wrong with the logic here.
I saw an article recently that tried to state that people tend to abuse poor persons financially, such as in business, but will tend to tip super generously when dealing with rich persons. Why? The average human tends to place more value on rich people than on poor people. This is showing an unhealthy respect for a man's person.
We have several instances of rebellion against Moses' leadership (Num 12 and 16). Apparently Moses was not a charismatic and dramatic figure at times. The scriptures say he was very humble (Num 12:3). Several people, who possibly were larger than life and with an abundance of personality, reasoned that Moses was a poor choice for the nation's leader. Even though Moses had demonstrated supernatural power on many occasions, these people rebelled at the idea of Moses being unique. The Lord took it personally and severely punished the challengers to Moses' authority, which was God's choice.
The following words of Moses reflect his attitude toward the people of Israel:
…would God that all the LORD’S people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them! (Num 11:29)
God chose the entire nation to be “unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.” (Ex 19:6) But God chose one man, Moses, to be the leader of this nation.
God is not a communist. He is not obligated to make every person's experience the same as every other person's. What does “respect of persons” mean?
God respects His own choices. He does not respect what men might think is significant. The treasurer of a church may be thrilled when he sees a visitor come to church whom he knows to be a wealthy businessman. A pastor may get weak-kneed when he sees a well-known congressman come into the church. The members of a church may ooh and aah when a professional sports player walks into the building. They may try to sneak a photo or boldly try for a selfie with them. Attenders may get giddy when a famous movie star should visit their meeting, They get all tingly.
God does not get tingly. That is what respect of persons means. God loves people but He does not respect their person; what they seem to have made themselves or what others make them out to be. If they are famous or wealthy, it does not move God's heart whatsoever. Our heart may skip a beat or even cause us to faint. God is not moved. He is only moved by His love for His created beings, famous or not.
James tells us not to show partiality. He tells us to be like God in not showing respect of persons (James 2:1-4). And by the way, we should not bash the rich either. They can't help it. So, we should aim to treat all people equally, the rich and poor, the famous and ordinary.
Sept 12, 2023