Success God’s Way (1)
By Babatunde Olugboji
This week, we’ll start a 2-part mini-series on “success,” which brings up a host of questions: What does it mean to be successful? How should we, as believers understand or define it? How should our understanding differ from that of the world? As believers, how do we ensure we define success in a way that our definition doesn’t ruin us?
In our world, success usually means money, status, influence, followers, comfort, or applause. And if we are not careful, we can bring that definition into our faith, and start measuring life by the same scoreboard the world uses. But Scripture asks a sharp question: Successful at what? Because you can be successful publicly and be bankrupt spiritually. You can gain a platform and lose your soul. You can climb financial ladders and still miss God.
Hear what Jesus said about this: What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:36). That means there is a kind of “success” that is actually failure in God’s eyes. This means we need to see success not as the culture defines it, but as Scripture describes it.
The first thing to note is that Biblical success starts with God, not goals. One of the clearest biblical definitions of success is found in God’s words to Joshua (Joshua 1:8). This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth… meditate on it day and night… then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” (NKJV). Have you considered what this means? There is success and there is ‘good success.’
When God was addressing Joshua, he didn’t start with goals, objectives, strategy, connections, weapons, or financial resources. He started with the Word and obedience. In Scripture, success is not first about achievement; it is about alignment. Biblical success is living according to God’s will. That’s why Psalm 1 opened by describing the “blessed” person: He delights in the law of the Lord… meditates day and night… and “whatever he does prospers.” (Psalms 1:1–3)
This kind of prosperity is not a blank check for luxury; it is fruitfulness, it’s stability, its’ God’s favor over a life rooted and built up in him. So, if your definition of success can exist without God, it is not biblical success. Biblical success is faithfulness, not fame. Scripture repeatedly celebrates people who were not famous but were faithful. Have you noticed that many of the people in the Hall of Faith were regular folks? Jesus’ standard at the end is not, “well done, thou famous servant,’ or ‘well done thou financially astute servant,” it is “well done, good and faithful servant.” (Matthew 25:21) In God’s eyes, faithfulness in secret is success, integrity when no one is watching is success, doing the will of God with a pure heart is success.
This is why some people will be shocked on the last day: that they did mighty works but missed relationship and obedience (Matthew 7:21–23). God is not impressed by spiritual performance without surrendered hearts because heaven’s applause is different from earth’s approval.
To be continued…
Have a great week
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