The Labels Aren’t Helping

I really do want to be like Jesus and say, “I see you. And I bless you.”

The thing is, the labels aren’t helping.

When I categorize and label people, I stop seeing a person. Instead, I see a category…

Hipster

Hillbilly

Gay

Slut

Republican

Democrat

Trailer Trash

Snob

Uneducated

Academic

If I don’t like or agree with that category, it’s nearly impossible to bless the person behind the label I’ve attached to them.

When Jesus saw people and blessed them, he wasn’t blessing a label.

He was blessing a person.

Labels oversimplify. They don’t tell the entire story or the whole truth.

They cause us to look straight through people and judge them—as if we know everything about them because of the label.

Labels dehumanize. They make us miss the point…

People matter to God. A lot.

We’re all tempted to slap labels on people.

But the labels aren’t helping.

“The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. ” (1 Corinthians 12.13 MSG)

The next time you see a label or a category, not a person, let it be a red flag announcing: SOMETHING’S NOT RIGHT WITH ME.

In order to be like Jesus, we must see people—not labels.

SEE ALSO: “The Ugly Diss”