Who is Smarter?

Who is smarter? Albert Einstein? Or your neighborhood auto mechanic?

A lot of people would answer Einstein. But if Einstein’s car broke down on the side of the road, his ability to untangle physics’ greatest mysteries would be useless. In that moment, what he’d need is an understanding of the inner workings of the combustion engine.

Intelligence is relative to our circumstances. So is athletic ability. J.J. Watt, the former pro football player and Defensive Player of the Year, was a stellar athlete. At the height of his career, he was six foot five and 290 pounds of muscle. On the football field, his strength and speed made him a dominant force. But when J.J. steps onto a golf course, his strength and speed are useless.

Wisdom is relative to our circumstances, too. A successful businessperson may help you invest your money but have no answers when it comes to saving your marriage or rescuing a wayward child.

All of which illustrates an important point: A person’s worth cannot be measured according to who has more of something and who has less … because sooner or later we all come up empty. No attribute of humanity is distributed equally. Not intelligence. Not athletic ability. Not money, beauty, or musical talent. No one has it all.

That’s why every human life is beautiful, sacred, and on level ground at the foot of the cross. From the moment we’re conceived until the day we die, each of us has worth and dignity that can’t be measured and that no one can take away from us.