"…Jesus re-defines what many people understand as “greatness” or, in modern-day terms, “success.” The measure of greatness, according to Him, is service; the extent to which one serves; gives of oneself." (Sr. Dr. Vassa Larin)
“The measure of greatness is not position, power, or prestige. It is service…Our care for others is the measure of our greatness.” (Foundation Study Bible, Matthew 20:26-27, Life Application Study Bible, Luke 9:48)
“The Bible teaches us that we were created for God; that is, we were created to relate to Him and to serve Him. Everything that we are and everything that we have has been given to us to reflect His greatness through our lives and to make us useful in the lives of others." (Thomas Jones)
“When we acknowledge God’s greatness in our lives, our hearts are humbled and we are reminded of who He is and His great love for us." (Dennis and Barbara Rainey)
“True greatness is found in simple surrender to God’s plan for our lives." (Jim Cymbala)
“One unsettling word hangs over all those earth-things that give our lives some sense of greatness: temporary. No friendship, no championship, no scholarship, no relationship, no ownership, no fellowship can fully satisfy our God-given hunger for something that will be great forever." (Ron Hutchcraft)
“When we pray it is far more important to pray with a sense of the greatness of God than with a sense of the greatness of the problem." (Gordon S. Jackson)
“Evidence of God’s greatness surrounds us, but...we can choose to ignore it and go our own way.” (Life Application Study Bible, 1 Kings 20:13)
“The greatness of God rouses fear within us, but His goodness encourages us not to be afraid of Him." (A. W. Tozer)
“Anyone who reads the New Testament seriously is almost always surprised to learn how often Christ saw life differently than we do. One example of that is to be found in Christ's teaching regarding greatness. In the ways of the world, greatness is defined by how many serve you; in the life of Christ, however, the opposite is true. He measured greatness and success by the number He served, and reminded us that in the Kingdom of God, it was upon the servant, and not the ruler, that greatness was conferred.” (Rev. Andrew Demotses)
“Service is characteristic of true greatness. The model is Christ’s incarnate life and death: the perfect man is the perfect servant…We can attain true greatness if we are willing to be a servant to all through Christ by serving Him in others.” (Orthodox Study Bible, Joy Corey)
“As sinfully and culturally defined, pursuing greatness looks like this: Individuals motivated by self-interest, self-indulgence, and a false sense of self-sufficiency pursue selfish ambition for the purpose of self-glorification. Contrast that with the pursuit of true greatness as biblically defined: Serving others for the glory of God. This is the genuine expression of humility; this is true greatness as the Savior defined it." (C. J. Mahaney)
“We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed." (Brother Lawrence)
“…deeds of love and kindness, whether great in the eyes of the world or unnoticed, are all important to God and represent each one of us doing our part.” (Sacramental Living)