At that same hour the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who is greater in the kingdom of heaven?”
With this question the disciples reveal their still human way of thinking, in which greatness is measured by position, authority, or superiority, and they unconsciously project that notion onto the kingdom of heaven. Jesus, however, through this question is preparing to overturn their ideas at the root, showing that in God’s kingdom greatness is not determined by a high rank, but by humility, childlike trust, and self-giving. This episode reveals the course of the disciples’ spiritual growth and at the same time prepares the teaching that before God, great is the one who is small in his own eyes and relies entirely on God’s will.