The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matthew 23:11-12 (NIV)
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” Mark 9:35 (NIV)
To be sure, God’s economy is upside down from the world’s – die to live; give to get as well as get to give; humbled to be exalted; first is last and last, first; deny rather than placate and indulge self – you get the idea. God’s ways are not the world’s ways to say the least. Indeed, Scripture tells us we are not to love the world’s ways. We are to guard against its overly abundant cares and lusts. God gives us earthly pleasures and goods, fame and fortune to enjoy, share, and influence for good - not to idolize, hoard and fret over. There is a great difference. When we love the gifts more than the Giver it is idolatry and demonstrates a disdain towards Him and heaven. This is why the apostle Paul tells us to fix our hearts and minds on things above – not on earthly things. And the writer of Hebrews adding we are to fix our eyes on Jesus. Where is our main focus? It matters.
Greatness in God’s eyes is not determined by our status or our toys or the “jingle” in our pockets rather it is determined by our service and selflessness. It is not determined by making much of ourselves but by making much of the Master – all through His power for His glory. Flesh cannot muster eternal works up – they are all done through the Holy Spirit’s power indwelling every true believer in Christ. The Bible tells us whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did. And the only way this is accomplished is through the Holy Spirit’s power. Examine the Master’s life when He walked this dusty earth. Paul tells us he began and ended in humility and He being God. How much more so are we to do likewise as His heirs of mercy?
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NIV)