What is true greatness from God's perspective???
In Christendom today where many measure the working of their faith and their success or greatness in life by the amount of wealth and influence they have been able to acquire; Especially in today's social media Age where many measure their accomplishments by 'Likes and Follows'; it became pertinent to shed some light on the matter...
So! Let me begin on this note:
Please take heed to not consider your assignment or achievement in God's kingdom insignificant just because another man's assignment or accomplishments seem greater and more significant as he is in the spotlight...
So, for instance, while John the Baptist's assignment was to prepare the way for and to reveal who was the true Christ, and he lived a brief and 'unpopular' life; Paul the Apostle was more in the spotlight even till this day, because his own assignment was to expand the Gospel and equip the whole Body of Christ (the Church) with the requisite knowledge about Christ and living the Christian life...
Another instance: Jesus selected 12 ordinary men as His first Disciples, but on some key occasions He would take only Peter, James, and John with Him; And then when it was time to select who should carry the deep revelations of Christianity, He did not pick from the 12 but rather chose Paul who not only did he not walk physically with Christ but was also a chief persecutor of Christians before his conversion...
So! Does the popularity of Paul the Apostle mean the work of John the Baptist was irrelevant??? And does Jesus selecting Peter, James, and John specially mean the other Disciples' jobs were not important???...
Never consider your task or work in God's kingdom insignificant just because you are not as popular or as influential as someone else... The fact is that God gives everyone just enough grace and tools (gifts, skills, abilities, experiences, audiences, and resources) that they need to accomplish their individual assignments...
Most times God chooses people He would use in a special or spectacular way simply by an act of His sovereignty and grace, not necessarily because they were the most qualified or the most perfect people available...
And as much as everyone loves wealth, power, and influence, and it is not bad or evil to desire greatness, but the fact is that not everyone is assigned to be in the spotlight, and not everyone is designed to be "great" in that sense of amassing very great wealth, influence, and prominence on Earth; even though God will always give it to as many whose assignment or nature of call requires it at any point in time...
Our greatest quest in life is not the pursuit of "greatness" but the pursuit of purpose... So, please do not lose focus nor look down on your own assignment because you are desiring and chasing after the tools God gave someone else for carrying out theirs... Know that your part is equally as important no matter how insignificant or undignified your portion may seem...
In the end, we do all we do for the glory of God, and God would reward Peter for carrying out Peter's assignment with Peter's tools, and likewise so Paul... It matters less whose assignment was greater or more popular, but rather who completed their assignments according to the proportion of grace given to them in relation to the size of their assigned work...
With God, 'the greater your work or more popular you are, the greater your reward' is not necessarily the case; rather it is 'the greater your faithfulness in doing your assigned work, the greater you become, and the greater your reward'...
God can also choose to increase your assignment and grace as you are faithful in carrying out your current tasks... We must however keep in mind also that the higher the potential of great rewards your assignment has, the stricter and greater the judgment you would equally face when your work is examined by God...
So, it is not about striving to become popular or seeking to become prominent. Our most important focus is not the quest for 'greatness' (power, influence, wealth), but rather discovering our own God-given assignment on Earth and the tools He has given us to accomplish it, then committing to do the work diligently and faithfully for God's glory, and completing it before departing the Earth - that is the true definition of greatness before God...
And I close with the below admonishment from the words of Paul the Apostle:
📖"For by the grace [of God] given to me I say to everyone of you not to think more highly of himself [and of his importance and ability] than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has apportioned to each a degree of faith [and a purpose designed for service]. For just as in one [physical] body we have many parts, and these parts do not all have the same function or special use, so we, who are many, are [nevertheless just] one body in Christ, and individually [we are] parts one of another [mutually dependent on each other]. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to use them accordingly..." Romans 12:3-6 (AMP)
📖"Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each responsible for our own conduct." Galatians 6:4-5 (NLT)
📖"But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward." 1 Corinthians 3:13-14 (NLT)
Thank you for reading! Please feel free to share! God bless you!
#JesusChristIsLORD #GODisStillinCharge
