Who's the Greatest?

Muhammad Ali said, “I am the greatest… I said that before I even knew I was.”

Then there’s the never-ending debate on whether Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods is the all time greatest Golf Player, or if it’s Mick Jagger or the guy on the “Massive Mouth” video on YouTube that sports the greatest mouth to stuff smores into! We even have a book that is dedicated to recording and publishing the greatest at everything, The Guinness Book of World Records.

Man has something to say about this subject, and that’s all debatable and subjective; but, what’s more important is to hear what the Bible says about this question.

Jesus was asked by His disciples in Matthew 18, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Then Jesus called a little child to Him set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

There are two conditions Jesus gave to the disciples in answering their question: 1) Conversion and 2) Become as a little child; in other words, you need to turn from your sins and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, AND, by faith, with all humility, live your life surrendered to God (which would be a natural desire if true repentance took place).

James quoted from the Old Testament, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

The greatest is the person that has the proper, humble perspective of self in light of a great and awesome God.

The question is not who is the greatest on earth; rather, the important question to answer is Who is the Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven and the Bible emphatically answers that the greatest in God’s eyes is the person that has been humbled before Christ and born of the Spirit…