Greatness is Without

The slogan for the well-known boxing/fighting gear company Everlast is: “Greatness is Within.” That’s a pretty typical attitude in our culture, but what does it mean? Here are a couple of my attempts to reword it in hopes of a better understanding of what this is trying to convey: “You have everything you need inside of you,” “What defines you is the ability that you have to achieve…and you do have it, trust me,” “You are an awesome individual,” “You are better then everyone else, at least most everyone else,” and “You’ve got what it takes alone.”

Basically, you’ve got it goin’ on…purportedly. Now there is, in a very specific sense, some semblence of truth in that (aliteration, thank you high school English). You do, probably, have some gifts that are particular to you. But that’s about as far as I can take that idea. I would say, as the title reads, “Greatness is Without.” To counter what the culture says, what is important is not you. What matters is not your personal ablility to “greatness.” Basically, you are not great. You are fallen, and you may be able to see now (Acts 26:18), but you are not great. Therefore there is no greatness within. But, there is Greatness without. .