Greatness


Luke 9:43b-50
43bAnd all were astonished at the majesty of God. But while they were all marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44“Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying. 46An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. 47But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side 48and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.” 49John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” 50But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”

Jesus predicts His upcoming Passion again but it falls on confused ears. God keeps the disciples from understanding what Jesus has said to them. In the midst of this confusion the disciples get into an argument about “who is the greatest” in Jesus’ Kingdom. I really doubt if Jesus ever rolled His eyes, but that would have done it for me. I would have rolled my eyes and looked heavenward for strength.

Jesus, being the consummate teacher, uses an object lesson. He brings a child forward and explains that anyone who serves someone as simple as a child is fulfilling God’s will in the Kingdom. At that time children were considered on equal standing with slaves. Jesus helps the disciples understand that greatness is not measured in human standards but instead on the basis of weakness. We learn a great deal of Jesus’ teaching on this topic in Matthew 18, which corroborates Jesus’ words here.

Matthew 18:1–6
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

If you explore the entirety of Matthew 18 you will find that whoever is experiencing weakness is in that moment is “the greatest”. That is the person to whom we turn our attention. As the events and tides of life shift, each of us can experience that time in our own lives. We may fall prey to sickness or difficult circumstances. In that moment, we become the greatest and it behooves the rest of the community to gather around with help and support. This is a complete shift in the concept of “greatness” for most of us. But as per usual, Jesus redefines the way we are to behave so that our actions fit into the standards of God and His will for His Kingdom.

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