Grace, mercy and peace to you dear people of God. It is always a great blessing to be in God’s presence.
The theme of our reflection today is “True Greatness” or if you like “God’s standard of greatness.”
In the Gospel of today, Jesus was trying to explain to His disciples the suffering He was destined to undergo for our salvation. They couldn’t understand this and they were too afraid to ask. There are times we avoid knowing some things because such knowledge will trouble our peace.
Interestingly, while Jesus was instructing them about His fate, they were more preoccupied with the argument of which of them was the greatest. Jesus asked what they were arguing about and they couldn’t say it, too ashamed to acknowledge it. There are things we talk and think about that if we knew Jesus knew, we wouldn’t say or think them.
Thank goodness, Jesus stepped in on that matter, as such an argument would have been strong enough to break the apostolic college and create factions, to cause suspicion and mutual acrimony.
Jesus used the opportunity to teach them the true meaning of greatness according to divine standards.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to be great. In fact, God has created each of us for greatness. Ontologically, we are great. We are created in the image and likeness of God, we are adopted into the family of God and we are sons and daughters of God. God is our Father. We are called to a rich inheritance in heaven, greater than all the riches of the world. If this is not ontological greatness, I don’t know what else it is.
However, we are invited to live a life of true greatness, a life true to our nature. Often, we confuse greatness with being rich, being famous, controlling people, mesmerising people with our talents, academic success, intellectual prowess or great achievements in a chosen career. These are measures of greatness according to the standards of the world. This kind of greatness is ephemeral, fleeting and unreliable and it ends when dust returns to dust.
What then is true greatness according to divine standards?
I. A life of service to others:
True greatness is measured not according to how many people serve us but how many people we serve, how many people we support, how many people see us as a blessing, how many people whose lives we give meaning to and whose dreams we give hope to.
The concern of a truly great person is not what others can do for him/her but what he/she can do for others.
Great people always ask “What can I do to help? Or in what ways can I serve/ do more for others?” This is greatness. This is a spirit of service that God honours.
II. A life of trust.
A truly great person is one who faces everything and every day with trust in God. Such a person overcomes fear with faith. Abraham was considered a great man because he trusted God. Jesus talked about His death with great peace because, as the Son of God, He trusted in His Father and He entrusted His future to Him. Even the wicked in the First Reading of today acknowledged that God would not forsake His own. The more we trust God, the greater we are and the better our lives become.
III. A life of contentment:
A person who is always content is a great person. People who lack contentment in life are often very miserable and ungrateful. They are not grateful for what they have and who they are. They are always wanting more and they are always jealous of others and lacking peace. There is great peace in contentment. There is greatness in accepting and rejoicing in what we have and loving who we are without stressing about what others have that we do not have.
St. James, in the Second Reading, talks about the wisdom from above. Contentment is an unmistakable reflection of that.
IV. A life of self-control:
Worldly success brings people into the spotlight, but lack of character and self-control bring them to disgrace. A person without discipline and self-control is unable to attain or maintain greatness. Self-control in words, temper, desire, thoughts, passion for revenge, appetite and ambition is a necessary condition for genuine greatness.
V. Seeing greatness in others.
A great person sees good, positive things and greatness in others and is not threatened by them.
In a society where women and children were being marginalised and accorded less importance, Jesus identified greatness in children and showed them as examples to the disciples.
It takes a great person to identify greatness in others, even if it’s still just a seed or an embryo.
When many people see others, they see their weaknesses and faults. They see enemies, they see rivals, they see differences. They see all the negative things in others. A great person has eyes to see the greatness which is actually present in everyone.
Lord Jesus, thank you for making me great by creation and redemption in Christ. I humbly beseech you, help me to live the life of greatness that you have called me to live by my willingness to serve others, by trusting completely in you, by contentment, self-control and by seeing greatness in others, Amen.
Sermon preached by Fr. Emmanuel Baraka-Gukena Okami on September 22, 2024.