Human worth tends to be measured by what people think of you. Your self worth is often linked to power within relationships. The higher up you are within the power structure, the more worth you are in people’s eyes. The more power are at the top and the least power -the bottom.
46 Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.”
- The hunger for self-worth and greatness
In Luke 9:46, an argument started among the disciples in Luke 9:46. They argued about greatness. Argument = thoughts as it starts with a thought. That’s why its important to be careful about your thoughts. Everyone wants to be great. Worth is felt deep in our soul. Psalm 8:5 Reminds us that God has made us a little lower than angels and crowned us with glory and honor. Psalm 57:8 “Awake my soul (glory-Hebrew word) You and I are in the quest for glory and we will never feel good enough. Because we struggle with self worth, we need to be in control due to inner insecurities. But we can’t control our life.
The pyramid of power: The higher you go, the more you struggle with power. A example of struggle with power: Cain and Abel. Cain means spear and Abel means breathe. Cain refers to be strong, and, in the story, he wants to be better. However, God is pleased with Abel.
Luke 9:49-50
49 Now John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”
50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against [a]us is on [b]our side.”
In this passage, it reveals the human heart “I matter if I am stronger or larger”.
A Samaritan Village Rejects the Savior
51 Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, 52 and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. 53 But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. 54 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, [c]just as Elijah did?”55 But He turned and rebuked them, [d]and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 [e]For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village
Do you prefer to be Lamb led by a lion or lion led by a lamb?
Revelation 7:17 “For the lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd;he will lead them to springs of living water.” And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. “
Jesus has a different measure of greatness.
Luke 9:47-48.
47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.”
- If you want to be great, you must be the least.
Matthew 18:3-4 “And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
If you go to a network session, will you network with a little boy? But what if he is your boy’s son? You may think very differently! I don’t blame you as it is a common struggle for many people as most people wants to climb up the pyramid of power.
- Anyone who wants to be first you must the last.
Mark 9:35 “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
Matthew 20:25-28
25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. 26 Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. 27 And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Matthew 23:5,11-12
Everything they do is done for people to see: 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
So where does my worth come from? My worth comes from who I serve. Don’t serve the church. Always serve God through the church. Always remember: Don’t serve yourself. Serve God, Serve others. Worth is based on kingdom of God’s values. Jesus was looking for hearts of love and most people are looking for seeds of power.
The difference between the kingdom of Babylon (Nebuchadnezzar) and Kingdom of Jesus:
Babylon is great in men’s sight, depend on itself, Word is supreme, make yourself great, conquer by strength, long gone….
The kingdom of Jesus is great in God’s sight (Luke 1:15), depend on God (Psalm 62:7), God’s word is supreme (Matthew 5:19), God makes you great (1 Cor 15:27-28), crucified in weakness (2 Cor 13:4), still growing. (Luke 13:9)
I always find that King Nebuchadnezzar has a troubled life as he had troubled dreams. You will never understand the person you admire may have a troubled life. Can greatness really come from weakness?
There is movie called “Angels with dirty faces”. There were two guys who grew up in troubled backgrounds, but they went on to go on different paths. One became a criminal and the other became a priest. Many people admired the criminal because he was cool. However, he was arrested and was about to be punished with the electric chair. (Death sentence). When he was about to die, the priest asked a favor from him to be frightened and screaming before his death. The criminal refused as he wanted to be strong and prideful. The priest told him that only if he gives up his glory, then he will save the kids that admired him. The kids will not take the same path as he did. In the end, the criminal agreed.
Jesus gave up his His glory as well. Revelation 5:6-9,12 says that:
And they sang a new song, saying:
And I looked, [c]and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9 And they sang a new song, saying:
“You are worthy to take the scroll,
And to open its seals;
For You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
10 And have made [a]us kings[b] and priests to our God;
And [c]we shall reign on the earth.”
11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice:
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
To receive power and riches and wisdom,
And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”
See that the elder mentioned that “Lion of Judah” and what John saw was actually a “Lamb”. What a wonderful truth. In revelation, “Lamb” was mentioned throughout. If we give up our glory, we can save some people and God’s power can flow through us.
In 2 Corinthians 13:4 “For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, but we shall live with Him by the power of God toward you.”
Christ was crucified in His weakness but rose in God’s power. When we are weak and rely on God, we will also live by God’s power too. Greatness comes from weakness. We want to be like Jesus.