p. 16 | Greatness

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Dec 7, 1904

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 30, No. 48.

Greatness

Greatness.—Men measure greatness by power to sway, to command, to lead; by wealth, by fame, by learning, by scientific attainment, by mechanical ability. Some of these "great" men have been the greatest tyrants. Not so does God measure greatness. He measures for eternity as well as time. Character with Him is more than claim or coin. The world's great men may have a wide career, but it is exceeding brief. The man of character may seem to have a narrow career, but it is as long as eternity. Two multiplied by eternity is infinitely more than 10,000 multiplied by forty. All of the world's greatness, apart from God, is nothing, and will be reckoned a thing of naught. But "in the way of righteousness is life, and in the pathway thereof there is no death." The capability of enduring right is greater than to shine for a time as a meteor, and then go out into darkness. The poet truly has said of God, "That Thy greatness goodness is," and it truly follows that, in God's estimation the good alone are great.