Big Idea

Our innate drive to achieve glory and greatness are good and are met in Christ.  

Definitions

Glory – the state of being considered praiseworthy by other people.

Greatness – to be thought of as having reached the pinnacle of one’s capacity.

Key Passages

“The glory [beauty/splendor] of the young is their strength, the splendor of the aged is the grey head.”  Proverbs 20:29

“To eat honey unto excess is not good, but to search out difficult things [weighty matters] is glorious.”  Proverbs 25:27

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  Philippians 2:5–11 (ESV)

“You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 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 10:42–45 (ESV)

Main Points

The primary revelation of Christian faith is the person of Christ. So our concepts should generally be shaped by our understanding of Jesus.  So while we can know from the Old Testament and general observation that human beings tend to seek glory and greatness, it’s crucial that we enlarge our understanding of these with the example and message of Christ.   

Christ redefines the greatness of humanity, not by one’s position or birth, but by one’s measure of service to others.  

Have you made yourself the sort of person who puts service to others ahead of yourself?  In order to do great acts of service for others one must be ready to do them.
How do we prepare ourselves to be good servants?  Here are a few thoughts:

• Practice serving others in small things.  Start out small by helping someone on their homework, reading to a sibling, cleaning your teachers classroom after class, etc.
• Find God-glorifying things that take you to the limit of your capabilities and do them!

To perfect yourself in the Christian sense you must examine yourself (physically, socially, spiritually, and intellectually) and challenge yourself (physically, socially, spiritually, and intellectually).

Mindset Shift:  Instead of thinking that school is something you wear on your back each day like a backpack loaded with books, think of school as something you aim to pick up and carry as far as you possibly can without stopping.  

In summary, what makes you truly great is the service that you do for others, which truly establishes your greatness in the kingdom of God.