“There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differs from another in glory.” -1 Cor. 15:41
Far beneath the surface of the ocean where man is incapable of surviving a deeply mysterious creature hovers silently in the waters. Horrifying to human eyes, its face appears to be little more than a tentacled mass resembling human entrails. To the left and right of this mass a set of large circular eyes stare vacantly and expressionless into the darkness around it. These are the only visible aspects of its form – as the rest of its fleshy body remains stuffed into a bulcky shell that somehow fills itself with gas to regulate its depth. Although we may not be able to appreciate the nautilus on first glance, its shell itself represents an ancient Greek symbol for perfection. The design of the nautilus is a perfect hybrid of aesthetic form and function. The chambers of its shell are concentrically arranged in a logarithmic spiral with each chamber varying from the previous according to the parameters of an exact formula. These chambers allow the nautilus to alter its buoyancy and survive at a range of depth unlike any other creature, as if it were a living submarine. So prized is its shell for beauty that its very existence has been threatened by humans seeking after it.
Based on an initial comparison with other creatures the nautilus may be dismissed as a mistake – an error of God while experimenting with creation at the beginning. After all the nautilus has no external beauty like the lions of land or whales of the deep. The mistake that we make however is in the very act of comparing – as we were never meant to compare any of God’s creations. Instead God has tasked us with discovering the incomparable glory that each of His creations uniquely have. There is nothing in all of creation that can possibly compare to the nautilus – its beauty and mystery are unrivaled and untouched by any other creation. If the nautilus could worship, it would raise its tentacles to God declaring, “I will praise you; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are your works; and that my soul knows right well.” –Psalm 139:14
As humans our natural tendency is to compare ourselves with one another, and as the generations have passed our corporate identity always points to an ever changing generic ideal that we are all supposed to strive for. This is sad and unfortunate, because like the nautilus true greatness often remains undiscovered and hidden from the public eye. For those who believe in God as the creator, greatness and unfathomable beauty is all around us – in every soul, in every blade of grass, in every created thing just waiting to be discovered. It is impossible to discover that beauty when we have a narrow ideal of what beauty and greatness is. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians concerning this mindset saying, “…but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.” -2 Cor. 10:12
Like the nautilus, our self esteem should not be derived from comparisons among ourselves – but from the understanding that we are the matchless and unique creation of an amazing God. However we are not called to discover our own glory, but rather to discover the glory of those around us. King Solomon wrote in Proverbs 25:27, “It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search out their own glory is not glory.” God has not created us with mirrors to observe ourselves, but rather with eyes pointing outward to observe others. The moment we become consumed with ourselves is the moment we become dysfunctional and unable to serve others as God intended. We are to accept on faith that we are glorious as individuals – and let others praise us. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 27:2, “Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.”
God has designed us to be one body with infinitely varying members within it. There is no cause for envy or jealousy when we understand this truth – because we are all part of the same body! Paul wrote to the Corinthians concerning disputes over ‘who was the best preacher’ saying, “Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; And you are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.” -1 Cor. 3:22-23 Because we are all part of the same body, we can look at the gifts around and claim them as our own – all are yours. Instead of being threatened by those gifts, we ought to rejoice in them as if discovering a new feature of ourselves. The world can tell that we are Christians by our love for one another, and there is no greater command than this, that “nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” –Philippians 2:3
