Great to Good

Greatness is overrated. People tend to measure success by worldly standards. We assume that greatness comes from charisma, influence, and followers. But God cares more about our character than about what people around us think of our reputations. Pastor Jae Hoon Lee challenges us not to pursue greatness but to grow in goodness. Jesus called his followers to cultivate character of goodness, not to aspire to positions of power. The faithful Christian life is one that seeks to become good. These reflections and meditations on the good Christian life unpack what it means for the church to live in obedience and faith, to strip away ambitious self-glorification, and to instead live humble lives of goodness and love.

Jae Hoon Lee (DMin, Gordon-Conwell) is the senior pastor at Onnuri Church and chair of The Gospel Coalition Korea and Handong Global University. He also serves as the cochair of the host committee for L4, the 2024 Lausanne Congress on World Evangelism in Seoul. He is the author of My Country to God's Country, Grace Wins!, Thinking of Thinking, Heaven Opens Up on the Earth, and Authentic Gospel. He promotes justice, restoration, and societal well-being, embodying the gospel's transformative power in many ways in Korea. He lives in Seoul, Korea, with his wife and two children.