January 27
Matthew 18:1-20
Greatness in our culture is often marked by celebrity status. The number of likes you get or how many people retweet your thoughts becomes a signal of greatness. Jesus’ view is very different. He brings a young child in front of his disciples and proclaims this is where true greatness lies. Jesus’ metric of greatness is radically different than the world. He assigns greatness to the humility of a child: if you want to be great, you must humble yourself. True greatness is in making others great, not in elevating yourself. The specific ways that Jesus-like greatness is revealed is in not looking down on others, confronting sin in us and others, and being willing to forgive. How well are you walking in that type of greatness?
Jesus perfectly lived out this greatness in the way he responded to people. He was always willing to forgive—so much so that he cried, “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34) to those who were actively murdering and mocking him as he was dying on the cross. This path of humility is immensely difficult, but it is one of the markers of a renewed spirit in Christ. Let us learn to humble ourselves as Christ did when the King of the Universe put on flesh and was born in a stable for our good.
Father God, help me to walk in humility. As I stand before you in prayer, I recognize your greatness and my insufficiency over every aspect of my life. Amen.
How can you take a step towards Jesus’ definition of greatness?
Greatness in our culture is often marked by celebrity status. The number of likes you get or how many people retweet your thoughts becomes a signal of greatness. Jesus’ view is very different. He brings a young child in front of his disciples and proclaims this is where true greatness lies. Jesus’ metric of greatness is radically different than the world. He assigns greatness to the humility of a child: if you want to be great, you must humble yourself. True greatness is in making others great, not in elevating yourself. The specific ways that Jesus-like greatness is revealed is in not looking down on others, confronting sin in us and others, and being willing to forgive. How well are you walking in that type of greatness?
Jesus perfectly lived out this greatness in the way he responded to people. He was always willing to forgive—so much so that he cried, “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34) to those who were actively murdering and mocking him as he was dying on the cross. This path of humility is immensely difficult, but it is one of the markers of a renewed spirit in Christ. Let us learn to humble ourselves as Christ did when the King of the Universe put on flesh and was born in a stable for our good.
Father God, help me to walk in humility. As I stand before you in prayer, I recognize your greatness and my insufficiency over every aspect of my life. Amen.
How can you take a step towards Jesus’ definition of greatness?
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