Have you ever thought that you might be wasting your life because you are not accomplishing anything seemingly great? Have you ever wondered if anything you ever did mattered in the eternal sense? Do you look at great men of God like Luther, Edwards, Calvin, Owen, Henry and Piper and wonder if you will ever have an impact like they did and still do? Do you long to do something great for God so that you may leave a legacy to your children? Are you mesmerized by large and grand ministries or movements and wish that you could do something equally important?
The verse above should be comforting to you if this is the case - at least if you are willing to be foolish in the eyes of the world, weak, low and despised.
"But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be a slave of all." Mark 10:43-44
God is great, people are not. God works through empty vessels that have no greatness in themselves, other than the greatness of humility to be nothing and do nothing of their own ambition. Consider that Jesus told James and John that if they wanted to be great they had to become the lowest of all - they had to consider others more significant than themselves (Philippians 2:3). Paul continues in Philippians to show that Jesus displayed the utmost humility by considering the good of others before His own, became obedient even to death on a cross and therefore God has highly exalted Him.
We must not think like the world. God doesn't exalt great people, He humbles them. God exalts humble people and they will not be exalted in this life-time, but in the one to come so that no one has any room for boasting in their humility.
- Jesus didn't come to be great - He came to become nothing.
- Jesus didn't come to rule or be served - He came to serve.
"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:45
- Jesus didn't draw people by being great, eloquent, or through any particular gifting - the Father drew people to Jesus because God was pleased to work through that which is nothing and that which is weak, low and despised.
"...he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." Isaiah 53:3
"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him." John 6:44
- God doesn't reveal His greatness through great people - He reveals His greatness through the humble and downcast; through those who are nothing.
"He must increase but I must decrease." John 3:30
This last verse from the gospel of John is particularly telling. John the Baptist doesn't just say that Jesus must increase. He also says that he himself must decrease. If Jesus is to be revealed as great it is not enough for us to expound upon His greatness. We must decrease and become nothing. Then and only then will God work great things through us. And it will be God doing them, not us, so that He alone is glorified and we have no room for boasting about anything we have done.
If you want to be great and do great things for God, be like Jesus and become nothing. Then you will see that there is nothing you can do for God - but He can do great things through you.
Blessings!
2 comments:
What a great quote!!
"If you want to be great and do great things for God, be like Jesus and become nothing. Then you will see that there is nothing you can do for God - but He can do great things through you."
Very encouraging blog! Thank you!
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