FCA ResourcesDevotional
Last is First
Ready
“They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, because on the way they had been arguing with one another about who was the greatest. Sitting down, he called the Twelve and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be last and servant of all.” – Mark 9:33-35
Set
No matter what we do, we all strive for greatness. Whether your goals lie on or off the field, we all try to be considered the best at what we do.
When we look at our role models in our sports, we picked them because we thought they were the greatest at whatever they do. Everyone strives for greatness; even the disciples who followed Jesus had this exact argument amongst themselves.
Jesus had 12 disciples, each with their own skills and talents. Since following Jesus, they had grown in their faith and started preaching and performing miracles alongside the Savior. As the crowds grew and the demand for Jesus increased, the disciples began to wonder which one of them was the greatest of Jesus’ disciples. When Jesus saw them arguing over this topic, He knew it grew out of their pride and fleshly desires to be known as the greatest disciple. He knew it wasn’t a desire to be great to elevate Christ but to see which one would be elevated to a higher status in the eyes of the world.
Jesus wisely replayed that whoever wants to be the greatest, whoever wants to be considered first, must be last and, when last, choose to serve others. This is not how the world views the life of the greatest person. In our world, the greatest gets everything first, is ahead of all, and doesn’t have to think of the needs of anyone other than themselves. Jesus turns that idea on its head and says the greatest person will act and live like they are last. They will put the needs of others before their own, serving all, even the lowest of people.
In the words of C.S. Lewis, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” To be the greatest, we should practice thinking less of ourselves and more of others.
Go
- Do you get hurt when you are treated/picked last?
- What is it that you want to be the greatest in?
Overtime
“God, You are the greatest among all; no one else or no other thing can surpass You. Help us to think less about our status in this world and only about how we can advance Your Kingdom. May our pride decrease and our heart for Your people increase. Amen.”
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