Letting Go of Earthly Greatness to Make Jesus Attractive

Summary

This article explores humanity’s deep desire for greatness and exposes the illusion of lasting earthly recognition. Even the most admired figures are flawed, making human glory unreliable. Instead of chasing greatness, believers are called to obey God, love others, and live trustworthy, virtuous lives. By turning attention away from self and toward Jesus, Christians make the teaching of God attractive to others.

Within the human soul is the desire to be great, to be on top of some earthly measure of success, superior to all others. We want to be normal, but we are not content with being ordinary.

The Universal Desire to Be Great

We want to be the greatest coach, truck driver, parent, football player, scientist, teacher, mechanic, or pastor. Even in the spiritual realm, we bleed pride.

“Cush was also the ancestor of Nimrod, who was the first heroic warrior on earth. Since he was the greatest hunter in the world, his name became proverbial. People would say, ‘This man is like Nimrod, the greatest hunter in the world’” (Genesis 10:8-9 NLT). Or in my dreams, this man is like Jack Selcher, the greatest fisherman in the world!

Chasing Recognition and Applause

It might be as mundane as making the best macaroni salad ever. Being the best at something would set us apart as special people worthy of recognition, applause, praise, love, and glory.

We imagine that people we will never meet will remember us after we have passed from this earth. But the truth is that the greatness itch is harder to scratch than inventing a practical fusion energy source.

The Illusion of Being the Best

We readily deceive ourselves. In a world of 8.2 billion people, the chances our macaroni salad or anything else about us is truly the greatest is vanishingly small. In the pursuit of great, we failed to do good.

Letting Go of Earthly Greatness

Letting go of earthly greatness, we are wise if we channel our energy into obeying the greatest commandment and fulfilling our purpose of loving God and people (Matthew 22:37-39).  What do people associate with our names? Probably, it is a mixed bag with some eggshells in what we see as solely world-class muffins.

Abraham Lincoln has always been my favorite President of the United States. He freed the slaves, preserved democracy, and held the Union together. His Gettysburg Address will be remembered forever in American history, even if you can’t recall all the words.

The Flaws of Even the Greatest People

Recently, I read And There Was Light by John Mecham and learned about some of the blemishes on his Presidential face. For example, I didn’t know he opposed Black citizenship and considered their race inferior.

Even the greatest among us have moral pimples and pockmarks. Our feet smell, and our breath and opinions sometimes stink! We aren’t worthy of others’ unqualified esteem.

Making the Teaching of God Attractive

So, if we give up our quest for earthly greatness, where do we turn for meaning? By being entirely trustworthy and good, we make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way (Titus 2:10 NLT).

Our job is to shine the spotlight on Jesus. Instead of trying to make ourselves beautiful in every possible way for earthly glory, we live virtuous lives, mostly free from the glory-virus, to make the teaching of God our Savior winsome to others.

They might say something like, “Jack was such a jerk years ago. He is still sometimes, but somehow, he is much better than he used to be. That religious stuff he is into could have made the difference. I admit, I am curious about it.” That is how we make the teaching of God our Savior attractive.

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