Sis Melinda Song
The Star recently reported that there were two people conferring scores of dubious state Datukship titles. One of them is the self-proclaimed Sultan of Malacca, “Tuanku” Raja Noor Jan Shah Raja Tuah.
In the same report someone was offered various titles to choose from including Datuk Seri, Datuk and even a Doctorate from unknown sources and people are willing to pay up to RM100,000 for such fake titles.
The Malaysian Chronicle also reported that there are two Ministers with two ‘dodgy’ degrees each from institutions that are degree mills.
The world is obsessed with titles and ranks. Datuk? Datuk Seri? Tun Datuk Seri Dr? Rev. Datuk Seri Dr? But my husband’s datukship is the best. It is the one money cannot buy.
Even in the Christian circle there are people claiming to be prophets and even apostles.
Greatness for some people is a matter of dollars and cents, for others it a matter of position. Some equate greatness with fame. In our modern world, we also have people who are famous for being famous!
Social critic and Christian writer Os Guiness talks about the celebrity syndrome in American culture:
“Today the media offers a shortcut to fame – instantly fabricated famousness with no need for the sweat, cost, and dedication of true greatness. The result is not the hero but the celebrity, the person famously described as ‘well-known for being well-known.’” - Os Guiness, The Call: Finding the Central Purpose of Your Life
From the world’s perspective, greatness is determined by power, prestige position and possessions. Greatness often leads to pride.
Many of us have heard of Muhammad Ali's boast that in the boxing ring he could "float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee". He knew how to brag in an attempt to psyche out his opponents. But on one particular flight, he says in his book, The Soul of a Butterfly, that the flight attendant asked him to put his seat belt on. He said to her, "Superman don't need no seat belt". She smiled at him and said, "Superman don't need no plane, either."
There are many people who have become rich, famous, powerful, or ‘successful,’ but have not achieved greatness. Today let us have a look at a familiar passage where Jesus defines and shows the way to greatness. Let us turn to Matthew 18:1-4.
Matthew 18:1-4 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Since this is an unintentional follow-up to Pastor Gideon’s sermon on True Success, I have entitled it “True Greatness.”
By comparing with Mark 9:33-37 and Luke 9:46-48 we know that Jesus and his disciples were on their way to Capernaum. Along the way, a "dispute" arose among the disciples as to who was the greatest (Luke 9:46).
Why were the disciples arguing about who would be the greatest?
In the first place the disciples still thought of the kingdom as an earthly one where people would occupy positions of power and prestige in the kingdom.
Secondly, a few days before this, Jesus had honoured three of his disciples. He gave Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven (Mt 16:19) after Peter’s confession of faith. But then He also said Peter, “Get thee behind me, Satan.” Peter, James, & John had been taken to the top of a mountain to witness Jesus' transfiguration (Mt 17:1-3) and they were very secretive as to what happened up on the mountain.
Thirdly, position was an issue that is of utmost importance in status-conscious Mediterranean antiquity.
All of this led to their arguing amongst themselves as to who the greatest would be. And it didn’t stop there. Even on the night before Jesus' crucifixion, they were arguing about the same issue.
It is very easy for us to be disgusted with the disciples for asking the question. How could they ask a question like this? How could they be so obvious about their desires for greatness? But then we should ask ourselves: Are we really in any position to judge the disciples just because we are better at being less obvious? After all, which one of us has never desired greatness for ourselves?
The appetite for glory and greatness seems to be inbred in us. Everyone wants to be a "somebody" whom others admire rather than a "nobody.” We have all wished in our hearts to be greater than the one sitting next to us in the – and yes, even to be the greatest.
This is a perennial issue for us as believers. So the disciples have really just done us the favour by asking the question for us: “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Jesus knew what was on their mind and so, when they had arrived at their destination, He asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?" The disciples, conscious that Jesus is aware of their dispute, are at first embarrassed into silence, but they eventually decided to ask Him to decide it for them.
Jesus did not give them a name. He did not name Peter, John, Abraham, Moses, Elijah, or John the Baptist. He did not name anyone,
Jesus did not give the expected answers like, “the one who is most learned in the God’s Word;” “those who are most obedient to the Law;” “or “those who does the most charitable work or social service.”
Most surprising of all, Jesus did not rebuke them for their ambitious desire. Jesus does not condemn the desire to be great among the disciples, but rather gives this desire some needed correction and direction.
The fact Jesus honours the question with an answer, rather than a rebuke, indicates that Jesus is not altogether unconcerned about greatness. In fact, He talks about greatness quite often in the gospels, and not only in response to his disciples' arguments.
He affirms their quest for greatness. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be great. In fact, all of us should seek excellence in what we do. There's something wrong with the person who doesn't want to be 'great' at every vocation in life that they have.
So, it's not the quest for 'greatness' that is the issue here. It is why you want greatness and how you go about it that matters. As He often did, the Lord challenged the motives of his followers rather than their desires.
Jesus then called a child to him, and said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
We may not realise it but Jesus’ use of a child as an object lesson and an example of the quality the disciples ought to possess in order to enter and achieve greatness in the kingdom was shocking to the disciples.
Our contemporary culture views children as precious and delightful creatures. Who is the most popular person in TOP? It’s not our Pastor. He has been dethroned by his son Jayden!
But let me also tell you a bit about my grandson Be warned! We are now entering Grandma’s Bragging Zone.
Whenever we go shopping, all the salesgirls will start talking to my grandson. All he needs to do is give a smile and he will win them over.
Speaking for myself, I have to admit that I have a bad case of the Doting Grandma Syndrome. I simply cannot have enough of my grandson! There seems to be a giant magnet attached to the little fella that generates a very strong pull on me. Even when I was watching Man of Steel I was reminded of grandson’s superman pose when I saw the man of steel take off to the skies.
But in Jesus’ time, there is no market for adorableness in children like there is today. It wasn’t until the 18th century that children were viewed as innocent and angelic.
And we have often heard it said, “Children are meant to be seen and not heard.”
That was my paternal grandfather’s attitude towards children. We‘re not supposed to talk at the dining table. Every meal was a solemn, sombre and silent affair. I was so scared of him that I cannot recall ever having a conversation with him or seeing him smile.
In Jesus’ day, it was worse. Children were not only not supposed to be heard, but they were not to be seen either.
In Roman and Greek culture childhood was considered an insignificant phase of life. Many children did not make it to adulthood. Infant mortality was about 30%, and another 30% were reportedly dead by age 9.
A Story about Children
I attended the 10th Brandfest two weeks ago and saw a very interesting video. It showed an Indian man walking on his hands. A little child looked at him in surprise and said, “Appa?” The rest of the video showed him walking on his hands through his village and across the countryside. There were times when his hands were so tired that he would stop and rest on his head. All the time he was smiling and his face shone with joy.
More and more people joined in the procession and passengers on a bus passing through also got off to see this strange phenomenon. The little procession finally reached a temple and a priest came out to welcome the man who dropped his legs and knelt down.
One of the passengers on the bus asked, “Why is he doing this?” And someone answered, “Today his son is five years old.”
Even today in the poorer parts of India, children seldom survive until the age five and this was a message from an NGO that helps provide medical aid and care to children in poor countries.
Unwanted infants, mostly girls, were routinely abandoned on roadsides and some professional beggars would collected these abandoned babies, crippled them, and then used their misery to create sympathy as they begged.
The Jews considered children a blessing from God but even then the status of the child under Jewish law is reflected in the common rabbinic triad "deaf and dumb, weak-minded, under age.” Women and children did not count as people because they were considered property. Thus they were not numbered in the episode of Jesus feeding the 5000.
They were powerless, without status, completely dependent on their parents and were expected to be obedient to their elders until they reached adulthood. They are very much like servants and in fact the word paidon can mean both child or servant.
In verse 4, Jesus made it clear that He had humility in mind when He used the example of a child. He is saying, ‘Be humble. If you want to become truly great in the eyes of God, be a zero like this child here. You have to descend to greatness!”’
Jesus went on to teach two important lessons on kingdom living. In fact, the whole of chapter 18 in the gospel of Matthew is Jesus’ teaching on living together as God’s community.
A. Humility is the way to enter the kingdom of heaven.
And he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (v. 3)
Jesus announced His revolutionary words with a solemn introductory formula, “I tell you the truth.” How many lies of the world have we believed in and lived our life by? That we have to put down others in order to advance? That wealth is the measure of success?
Jesus then continues saying, "Unless you change.” The picture is that of making a U-turn and facing the other way.
“And become like little children” who are cannot achieve anything on their own but are totally dependent on others.
“Never enter” This is a STRONG DOUBLE negative. It is very forcible and means, "never, no never under any circumstances." Those who persist in pride and self-sufficiency will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Humility is a key factor in one’s salvation. In the sermon on the mount Jesus said, " Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3)…'The poor in spirit' rightly describes a state of men lowly and reverent before God; humble, not proud; contrite, not rebellious" (A Commentary on the Gospel According to Matthew).
Quote: “Remember, the Lord Jesus is talking about conversion not reversion. Some people (mistakenly) think this verse means that you must revert back to your childhood in some unusual fashion or that you are to become juvenile in your actions in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. The Lord is not talking about going back to a former childhood, but rather of going on to a new life…The important thing emphasized in this verse is the new birth. You must become a little child in the sense that you must be born again. When you are born again, you start out spiritually as a child” (McGee, J. V., Thru the Bible Commentary).
This passage has often been taken out of context to teach believers that they must have childlike faith. Jesus spells out clearly that He is referring to humility when He uses the metaphor of becoming like a child. In fact the verses do not even use the word “faith.”
Ephesians 4:14-15 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves…Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.
1 Peter 2:2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.
1 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Humility is the way to enter the kingdom of heaven and…
B. Humility is the way to achieve greatness in the kingdom of heaven.
Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (v.4)
The Jews of Jesus' time were well known for drawing attention to their virtues and the Greek world despised humility. But Jesus taught that one did not have to strive to be the greatest, but the least. The nature of humility pictured is that of a powerless and dependent child.
It isn’t in our nature to take the low place and to humble ourselves but God’s people are called to humility and unconcern for social status.
1 Peter 5: 5-7 Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
a. Humility begins with submission
First of all, humility is submitting to God and His will. It’s saying, “God, I need You. God, I recognize You are greater than I am.”
The root of a submission problem is a pride issue. The proud try do it all themselves like they do not need God. They try to take care of things themselves, and they do not rely on God. But humility submits to God. Humility asks for God’s help.
Secondly, proud people cannot submit to others. They know it all, say it all and do it all.
They are not teachable. John Maxwell gave a list of ten questions that you should ask yourself to determine whether or not you are teachable:
1. Am I open to other people’s ideas?
2. Do I listen more than I talk?
3. Am I open to changing my opinion based on new information?
4. Do I readily admit when I am wrong?
5. Do I observe before acting on a situation?
6. Do I ask questions?
7. Am I willing to ask a question that will expose my ignorance?
8. Am I open to doing things in a way I haven’t done before?
9. Am I willing to ask for directions? See most men won’t do that.
10. Do I act defensive when criticized or do I listen openly for the truth?
Humility helps us to be teachable. There is always something we can learn from those who are older and from one another – even those younger than us. I would strongly encourage all of you to attend Bro. Koay’s bible class. I have studied the same lessons before in Bible School but he brings fresh and new revelations to the same topic.
A key point to note about pride is that this sin was not any specific action, but a deep-seated attitude that motivated the behavior. Even the most virtuous-looking behavior, such as sharing the gospel, going to church or helping the poor, turns into sin if it is motivated by a desire for praise, admiration and power.
b. Instead of pride, we are to clothe ourselves with humility. Humble ourselves.
Calvin said, "Nothing but the knowledge of God can produce humility in us."
Humility is realizing how great God is, how little we are and having sense enough to recognize the difference.
The essence of humility is recognizing that everything that we are and all that we have comes from God. Humility is always exalting God and others above ourselves.
“To clothe” has the imagery of putting on an apron. An apron signifies you are getting ready to serve and to get dirty in service.
Matthew 23:11-12 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
When Bro. Tommy became a candidate for Board member he was introduced to the Hokkien congregation as “the one who throws the rubbish” (at the Big Party). He humbled himself to serve and God has exalted him.
C. H. Spurgeon said, "I believe that every Christian man has the choice between being humble or being humbled." We have to humble ourselves if we don’t want to be humbled by God.
There are two ways to be humble. Number one, you can fall on the Christ the Rock and break yourself or number two, the rock of Christ can fall on you and break you!
God will give you the opportunity to humble yourself, and He always does. But if you won’t do it, God surely will and you do not want God to do it.
Remember how proud and arrogant King Nebuchadnezzar was before God, even though he had been warned in a dream to humble himself? He didn’t, of course. Therefore, God sent him into the wilderness for seven years to live like an animal. In Daniel 4:37, he says, "I learned a great lesson. I learned that all those who walk in pride He is able to make humble."
c. God opposes the proud
Prov. 18:16 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
God is working against the prideful; but He is doing it for our own good. He has to bring you low, because if he doesn’t, you will corrupt yourself. A modern day example is Chuck Colson. He was President Nixon’s hatchet man and was convicted. He later became a Christian and served the Lord in various ministries.
In the center of pride is the same thing as in the center of sin; I. Pride is self-idolatry. Pride seeks to dethrone God and enthrone itself. That was what happened to Satan. And it was the same problem at the garden of Eden. Adam and Eve wanted to be like God.
God says to Isaiah, "my glory I will not give to another" (Isaiah 48:11). God hates pride because the proud man sets himself up in opposition to God and attempts to steal the glory that God alone deserves.
d. Humility brings God’s grace into your life that leads to greatness at the right time.
Grace is favour, blessings, and God’s power coming into your situation to do for you what you cannot do for yourself.
Matthew 23:11-12, states "and whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbled himself shall be exalted". The person who is not willing to humble himself as Jesus "humbled Himself" (Philippians 2:8) will have no place in Jesus' kingdom.
In Philippians 2:3-11, Paul wrote
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
How Christ-like are you? Possibly the greatest mark of spirituality; the greatest evidence of spiritual growth is humility.
WARNING: The problem with humility is that the minute you think you have achieved it you’ve lost it!
Illustration 1:
A certain man was given a pin by his church for being the most humble man in the church. Well, the following Sunday he proudly wore his humble pin to church to remind everyone of how humble he was. He was so proud that he wanted to display it openly to others. As a result, the church rightly decided to take away his pin from him. The point of the story? Humility is like this. As soon as we think we are humble, we are not; as soon as we think we have it, we have lost.
Illustration 2:
There was man who had listed 13 character traits in his life that he really felt he needed to work on. He started with pride. After working on his pride for a month we moved on to the next sin that he felt he needed to deal with. And he did this for one month for each of his character traits that he chose to work on. On the 13th month he came to the issue of humility. After a month of working on humility he became very proud of himself having conquered each of these traits only to realize that he must now start back over with the issue of pride.
M. R. De Haan used to say, “Humility is something we should constantly pray for, yet never thank God that we have.”
Quote: The highest glory of the creature is in being only a vessel, to receive and enjoy and show forth the glory of God. It can do this only as it is willing to be nothing in itself, that God may be all. Water always fills first the lowest places. The lower, the emptier a man lies before God, the speedier and the fuller will be the inflow of the divine glory. (Andrew Murray)
We have to descend to greatness. As we decrease, He increases in our lives.
1 Cor. 1:26-31 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
There is hope for all of us. God can take a life that didn’t have much – that wasn’t considered to be anything and when he touches that life with his anointing, with his spirit, with his power, with his glory, He can turn that life into something that’s magnificent and beautiful, and all the glory goes to God.
e. Humility leads to perfect peace because you know He cares for you
Humility is perfect quietness of heart. It is for me to have no trouble; never to be fretted or vexed or irritated or sore or disappointed. It is to expect nothing, to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me and when I am blamed or despised. It is to have a blessed home in the Lord where I can go in and shut the door and kneel to my Father in secret and be at peace as in a deep sea of calmness when all around is trouble. It is the fruit of the Lord Jesus Christ's redemptive work on Calvary's cross, manifested in those of His own who are definitely subject to the Holy Spirit. - Andrew Murray.
CONCLUSION
Every Christ-follower should be in pursuit of greatness. Not fame, money, power, or success, but greatness. There is nothing wrong with these things. It’s not a sin to make money, it’s not a sin to have a title, it’s not a sin to be in authority. Sometimes, though not always, these are the after-effects of greatness achieved, but they are never the goal.
We are not to achieve greatness in a worldly way. Os Guinness gave an example of the mayor of his city who often says to young people who are considering running for public office: “We don’t run for public office to be something, we run for public office to do something—and that something is to serve our communities well.”
Whether you are a mother or a mayor, a minister of the gospel, a mechanic or a marketing executive, if you are a Christ-follower, you should be in pursuit of greatness. The greatness award goes to the person who is good at serving others.
So let us all be in pursuit of greatness by doing all that you do to serve others.
Jesus taught His disciples many lessons on humility such as in Matthew 20:20-28 where he told his disciples, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
But the most striking lesson is found in John 13:1-16. Nearing the end of His life on earth, to illustrate the humility they needed to have, He stooped and washed their feet. Since He was their master, He could have demanded such an action of them but instead He performed this lowly task on them.
“We look for the big things to do – Jesus took a towel and washed the disciples feet.” ~Os Guiness, The Call: Finding the Central Purpose of Your Life
This is true greatness.
Today’s message is for all of us, including me. We must have that same humility today. God still resists the proud and only gives grace to the humble. We must think less about ourselves but more about the greatness of God, be less self-centred and more God-centred, be willing to serve the Lord and minister to the needs of others instead of wanting to be served.
As those disciples long ago were told to follow the example of Jesus, we must pattern our attitude and actions after it today. He humbled Himself in coming to earth, taking on the form of man and becoming the servant of all.
Jesus who said, “I am gentle and humble in heart” (Matthew 11:28). Do we have a heart like that of our Master? May we be those who are willing to submit to the will of God in all things. It is only then that we will be considered great in the kingdom of heaven and great in the eyes of God.
Let us pursue greatness as Jesus defines it – through humility. The only applause that counts is when we hear our Lord Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
For those who do not yet know Jesus as Lord and Saviour, maybe you are trying to save yourself, you cannot. Humility is making yourself low before someone else. That someone else should be the Almighty God. You must be willing to turn and give your life to God through his son, Jesus Christ. The kingdom of heaven is not about you being great but it is about you bowing before the one is who great, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let me tell you the truth: One day every knee will bow. We are not talking about whether you will be humble before God. We’re just talking about when you will humble yourselves and how. God will humble all that do not humble themselves. If you will not fall flat on your face before God, he will put you flat on your back — but one way or the other, you’re going down.
Today I ask you to humble yourself and come like a child to receive this wonderful gift of eternal life that God has prepared for all those who would believe.
