In order to understand what is meant by ‘success’ in Christian terms, however, we need to have a Biblical definition of success, an understanding of who can succeed and some idea of how to be successful, for the world’s understanding of success is very different to God’s.
What is success?
Jesus is our ultimate example of success, for we know that He received God’s approval. (Matt 3:17) However, in the eyes of the world, Jesus does not seem successful: He lived for only 33 years and died an ignominious death, which does not feature in any ‘How to succeed’ manuals we may read! The key to understanding success is found in John 17:4. Success for the Christian is defined as bringing glory to God. We can’t simply look at outward actions, but must look at the motivation of the heart. 1 Cor 3:10-13 examines some of the motives for our actions, defining those which are not spiritual as ‘wood, hay and stubble’ and those which are pure as ‘silver and gold.’ The fire of God will burn up everything which is not pure, so we need to be sure that all our actions are motivated by a desire to glorify God. Luke 12:16-20 reminds us that success as defined by the world (wealth, prosperity, a life of ease) is not considered success by God (who called the man a fool.)
Who can succeed?
The good news is that everyone in God can succeed! The only qualification we need for success is a personal knowledge of God. Success comes as we depend on God in childlike faith and delight in His word. Col 2:6 reminds us that we have to continue in Christ as we started out: by faith, depending on God’s grace and help. 1 John 5:4 reminds us that everyone born of God overcomes the world, so we can be confident that we will succeed if we are rooted in God. Josh 1:8 reminds us also of the importance of meditating daily on God’s word, allowing it to feed and nurture us so that we are firmly planted in God. (Ps 1:1-3)
Success also comes to those who are determined not to quit. Abraham Lincoln is a good example of someone who overcame adversity and was not defeated by failure. Despite personal heartache, business failure and rejection, he persevered to become the president of the United States at the age of 52. Perseverance is needed if we are to succeed.
How can we be successful?
We become successful by:
- prayerfully seeking God for His specific plan in our lives
- having a vision for what God wants us to do
- committing ourselves 100% to that vision (which will always involve moving out in faith beyond our comfort zone!)
- asking God to set us free from anything that holds us back. (see Heb 12:1) Sin is the obvious thing that entangles us and holds us back, but the weights that can hinder us are not always necessarily sinful. Regrets, past rejections, shame, fear and lack of confidence can all hold us back.
- committing ourselves to the principle of servanthood, for true greatness comes as we serve God. Matt 20:20-21 reminds us that the way up in God is to start at the bottom! Matt 20:26 reminds us that if we want to be great, we have to become the servant of all, a principle Jesus embodied. (Phil 2:5-9) Every part of the body is required for us to succeed, so we need to seek God for how we can serve Him in our local church and community. Jesus was a success in heaven, on earth and under the earth, because He came to serve and not to be served.If we are to thrive and not merely survive and be faithfully productive and fruitful in 2015, we must learn the spirit of servanthood.