Is it a sin to be great? Over the years, I’ve heard statements that imply it is. Some have said, “It’s not about me. It’s about God.” Or, “People need to see God, not me.” Yes, we should avoid self-promotion, but I wonder if believers in Jesus can take it too far?
To those who think it’s a sin to pursue greatness, have you ever considered that God promised greatness to men like Abraham and David? To Abraham He said, “I will make your name great” (Genesis 12:2 NIV). To David He said, “I will make your name as famous as anyone who has ever lived on the earth” (2 Samuel 7:9). Does it get any greater than that?
As I read these passages, it doesn’t seem that God considers achieving greatness in and of itself wrong. He was not concerned that their greatness would take away from His ultimate greatness. In fact, it’s just the opposite. All that we are comes from God. And when we seek to do great things to glorify Him, we are ultimately reflecting the Source of our greatness.
To those who would say, “It’s not about us. It’s about God,” I would ask, “Why isn’t it about us and God?” After all, God created us as His image bearers (Genesis 1:27). As human beings, we are designed to reveal and reflect His greatness and glory to a world that desperately needs to see more of Him.
We shouldn’t look to be honored like the hypocrites who craved to be noticed (Matthew 6:1), but we also don’t need to apologize for greatness when it’s noticed in us. It’s not about stroking our egos and becoming arrogant. It’s about acknowledging a shared partnership and purpose. It’s about celebrating the privilege of having God use our lives to advance His kingdom.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 2 Corinthians 4:1-18
More:
Notice why God promised to make Abraham great (Genesis 12:2).
Next:
How are you attempting to do great things for God? What’s the balance between pursuing excellence and greatness and leaving the outcome in His hands?
kewi on November 27, 2011 at 9:24 am
It is about God and me. It is about the fact that God loves me
legacy07 on November 27, 2011 at 12:10 pm
Thank you for this message, Mr. Olson!
I realized this year that I was afraid of greatness and therefore settled for mediocrity; one of the reasons being my skewed definition of “humility.”
In my head I thought being humble was not thinking that you were great at something; which really affected how I used my talents. Subconsciously, I thought that if I wasn’t great, then why bother trying to be? I had become mediocre.
And then I heard my pastor say in his message that God did not call His people to mediocrity, He called his people to GREATNESS. To achieve great things, not for our glory, but for His… I had to change my mindset.
Now I realize, humility is not about thinking I am not great, but knowing it’s Him who makes me great. Because every good thing (even my talents and my abilities) comes from Him.
Thank you for this reminder!
regina franklin on November 27, 2011 at 3:34 pm
Dear Jeff,
Thanks for the post–it’s an important topic, especially when it comes to the things we set our sights on and our hands to.
You’ve stated it well–“It’s about celebrating the privilege of having God use our lives to advance His kingdom” with the key word being “privilege.” Having worked with young people, including those in college, one of the things we’ve encountered is what we term “destiny dust.” As individuals (and especially young people seeking God’s direction for their lives), we can become so focused on the idea of God’s destiny for us being something that will gain attention and affirmation and in doing so we miss the moments of destiny we encounter every day. We all long to know our lives have purpose, but when we equate greatness with being known by many, we’ve missed the point.
However, when we remember that He is the One who has invited us into HIS story, we know that it is indeed a privilege when His greatness becomes evident in us. There are many talented people in the world today, but of greater impact are those whose giftings reveal the working of His kingdom.
bearpair on November 27, 2011 at 6:00 pm
Jeff, what you have written is good… possibly not the ideal topic for a brief post. This is one of those “watershed” concepts that, if not handled carefully by us (believers in Jesus Christ), can lead to self-aggrandizement.
I think the key is found in the verses cited re: the Abrahamic & Davidic covenants… namely, it is not about what people think about us, it is all about what God thinks about us. And, notice that He said that it would be Him that makes our “name” great.
I suspect that, as in so many areas of our lives, when people are tempted to praise us, if we fail to point the source of that praise back to it’s true Source, He will make “even the rocks to cry out”.
winn collier on December 1, 2011 at 10:07 pm
Sometimes it is about me, isn’t it?
daisymarygoldr on December 15, 2011 at 1:09 am
True, all that we are comes from God. But there is a distinction between the natural and spiritual. The mistake people often make in trying to do things for God is to equate their natural ability with the spiritual gifts.
When a gifted athlete, writer, singer or surgeon attempts to do great things for God’s glory, it may have significance in the natural realm but not necessarily produce supernatural results. Unlike spiritual giftedness that celebrates God’s grace in a sinner’s life to reveal Christ, natural talents reveal our strengths and express self.
Now—when God chooses to use our lives to advance His kingdom, He is the one who is doing the great things in and through our lives. We are merely vessels—empty, weak and small. He does it for His purposes, His power and for His praise.
This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves (2 Corinthians 4:7). God is molding and shaping us into His image to reflect His glory. It is in this context, the fragile clay pot says in true humility, “It’s not about me. It’s about God.”
Pursuit of excellence and greatness in God’s Kingdom is way different than how the world seeks it. If we want to be great, then we must become the least and humble ourselves like a child. We need to be faithful in the little things that God has called us to do—like Abraham. His life was marked with obedience, sacrifice, submission and surrender.
Want to be great in God’s kingdom? Then you should be able to drink from the bitter cup of Christ’s suffering. For, if we share His suffering, we shall also share in His glory. But even then, we will cast our crowns to lay prostrate at His feet.
Desiring to achieve greatness in the kingdom of God is good. Personally though I cannot ever bring myself to say I want to be great— not now—not in all of eternity. He must increase but I must decrease. God said He will make David great. And his response was “Who am I, O Lord God…May your name be magnified forever.”
Jeff Olson on December 15, 2011 at 11:52 am
Good comments…And yes…there must be a balance…without humility we run the danger of becoming proud and making it all about us.
At the same time, there is a danger in taking humility too far, where having such a low regard for ourselves becomes an excuse not to let our lights shine (Matthew 5:16).
It’s true that David humbly said, “Who am I, O Sovereign LORD”…but he didn’t walk away from and refuse to participate in God’s promise. David went on to say, “And now, LORD God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, so that your name will be great forever” (2 Samuel 7:25-26). In other words, “I’m in. Use me. Make my name great so that your name will be great.”
Christians need to guard against a false humility that says we have nothing to offer, which leads to doing little or nothing for God’s Kingdom. True humility realizes that whatever we have to offer is a gift from God and is willing to walk in that giftedness and offer it for the sake of others and for Him.