At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
—Matthew 18:1-4
Many of us know of the event in the Bible when Jesus explains to Peter how Satan desires to “sift him as wheat.” In the recount of this story, Jesus then says to Peter, “But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” It’s funny because Peter was about to deny Jesus three times, and all Jesus bothered to say in response was, “When you are converted, strengthen the others.” I’d been thinking earlier about this idea of what Jesus could have meant by saying Peter would be “converted.” Can you think of any events in your life that may have caused “conversions” of any kind (in the way you think or perceive the world)? There might have even been some events in our lives that changed us forever.
In Peter’s case there was one major difference between the man he was before and after denying Jesus. Before he denied Jesus, Peter could have bragged about his ambition, his zeal, his faithfulness, and his valor. He could have easily claimed that the reason he was so blessed was because of his own merits and his own strengths; how loyally and faithfully he had been walking. But the man who Peter was after he denied Jesus became a totally different man. This new man was someone who knew it was only by the grace of God he qualified to be anything; much less to serve as an encourager to the rest of his peers. This was the picture of Peter’s conversion.
Coincidentally, our reference verses above highlight another time Jesus speaks to his disciples about conversion. During this event, he tells them, “be converted, and become as little children.” When we think about little children, the younger a child is, the less they depend on their own labor in order to be blessed. This is a great thing because Jesus says above, “Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Its as though, in God’s economy, the the more one can ‘blindly’ believe in who they are because of God, the greater their status is elevated.
The idea of being “the greatest” is often something many are vying for. Such was the case for Jesus’ disciples, which was why they were having a conversation about which of them would become the best. Jesus’ advice to them during that conversation remains the same to us in this blog today: It is not our work that will qualify us for greatness, but our greatness that qualifies us to work. And what makes us great? It’s our trust that God has orchestrated the plans and purposes for our lives. All we have to do is know God, believe God, and walk with God—know your purpose, believe your purpose, and walk in your purpose. The more we recognize it is who God is (not who we are) that makes us great, the more we continue tapping in to greatness of our very own.
Lots of Love, XO
