Success Is… Growing in Depth over Volume

We live in a world obsessed with influence. Even as we try to influence social media followers with our views and lifestyle advice, we’re unwittingly being influenced by big tech companies and their agendas to keep us online for as long as possible. We generally understand that material wealth isn’t the marker of success (too many old, sad, rich people prove this). These days, success is synonymous with presenting a life others want. To be seen as a success is to publicly chase, consume, and curate as many unique experiences as possible during your short time on earth. Politicians play the influence game, too, manipulating people into voting for them whether or not they have the character to lead.

Sadly, the church isn’t immune from the dangers of the influencer culture, as churchgoers take their cues from Christian leaders seeking influencer status. There’s a world of difference between the quiet analogies Jesus used to describe His followers’ influence in the world and the loud, self-congratulatory nature of an influencer’s public presence in society. We get to choose which we allow to influence us.

The volume of our lives doesn’t equal the depth of our discipleship. Jesus made this clear when He talked about tiny mustard seeds quietly growing unnoticed and yeast you’d never know was there. The kingdom of heaven is like a tiny mustard seed that eventually becomes an enormous tree able to offer shade and shelter. It’s like a minuscule amount of yeast that causes everything around it to rise. I can’t imagine yeast or mustard seeds trending on social media. Deliberately unshowy, easily missable, but quietly transformative: that’s how Jesus described the Kingdom of God. Paul tells us Jesus made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant (Philippians 2:7). Despite having every reason to laud it over others, He modelled a downward trajectory of surrender. He wasn’t desperate to be seen. He wasn’t into self-promotion. He was a humble, non-anxious presence.

The heading at the beginning of John 8 usually reads, Woman caught in adultery. Really, it should read, Religious leaders caught with stones in their hands. The Pharisees, dragging the woman before Jesus, try to force Him into sharing their outrage. But instead, He deescalates and reframes the whole situation. He doesn’t condone her actions; He calls her out of sin and into a new life. He doesn’t condemn her either. Jesus could’ve chased power and relevance by siding with the Pharisees. Instead, He chose empathy with the outcast. His compassion silenced the noise of religious knowledge. His kindness influenced the outcome.

Jesus is always more interested in your heart's motivation than your outward behaviour. In the same vein, people don’t care how much you know if they don’t know how much you care. The world doesn’t need more successful-looking people airing loud opinions. Followers of Jesus know that being kind – even when it makes us unseen or unsuccessful – may be the greatest influence we can have.