The Greatest People in Your Church

In Matthew 18:1-5, Jesus turns the world upside down his disciples. They had been arguing who among them would be counted the greatest in God’s kingdom and likely hoped Jesus would give an answer that would support their respective opinions. Instead, Jesus pulls an insignificant little kid into the circle and said anyone who would become like this little child would be the greatest in God’s kingdom.

Do you have difficulty believing this? I’m sure those first disciples struggled with this notion. I don’t need to tell you that this standard defies the World’s measures of greatness – you are intuitively familiar with what it takes be great in this world. The greater surprise is that this definition of greatness even defies the common measure found in most of our churches. As an article from Christianity Today recently reminded me - the church, especially as it is found in America, is obsessed with celebrity. Christians flock around skilled preachers, theologians, and music artists, their adoration indicating that these are surely our highest examples of Christian greatness. It’s no wonder then that those entering pastoral ministry aspire to this standard – that they will be great if they become famous and gain such a following.

On the flipside, all you who volunteer your time in serving the church in your small ways are left feeling utterly insignificant in comparison. However devoted you maybe, your work is mostly unnoticed outside of the core group of your local church. You yourself would say these well-known brothers and sisters are surely greater than you in God’s Kingdom.

But popular opinion, and even your own opinion, count for nothing when set against Christ’s judgment. God no doubt loves our famous siblings and uses them for good work, but his standard of greatness is not set by their accomplishments. If you want to see greatness, find the man or woman in your church who faithfully serves without calling attention to him or herself. These are the great people in God’s Kingdom.  

They are our role-models because they are walking in the humility of Jesus. You and I should aspire to be like them. Christ has freed us from chasing fanfare and delivered us from sinking into low feelings because of our worldly insignificance. We no longer live our lives by the measures of the World. We set our course by God’s Kingdom and pursue the greatness found therein. We don’t understand the Kingdom until we embrace this as the only measure of ultimate significance. If we reject it, we reject the Kingdom.

Meditate on this question: “How can I start pursuing greatness by the standards of God’s Kingdom?”

Rev. Tom Loghry

Tom Loghry is the senior pastor of Rockland Community Church in North, Scituate, RI. He is a graduate of the Berkshire Institute for Christian Studies, Toccoa Falls College (B.S. Pastoral Ministry), and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (M.A. Theology). He is continuing his graduate studies in the area of “Ethics & Society” at GCTS.

Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.