Great to Good: How Following Jesus Reshapes Our Ambitions

by Jae Hoon Lee

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.

192 pages, Paperback

Published July 23, 2024

About the author

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 co-chair 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.

Reviews

[Jillian B]

Let me first say that I was thrilled to see a Christian nonfiction book translated from Korean. I’d love to see more translated Christian works in general, since English-speaking, Western countries definitely don’t comprise the majority of the Christian world. And there’s a lot to love about this book! It provided an interesting peek into life in Korea, and spotlighted some Korean heroes of the faith who I hadn’t heard about from the Western media. The best parts of the book lovingly challenge Christians to do more to help the poor and oppressed.

This book is laid out as a series of devotional-like essays, each calling on the church to turn away from seeking acclaim and toward the truth of Jesus. The author makes it a specific point to distinguish between unchanging truths and cultural values, and emphasizes that decisions should be based on the former. That’s why it’s so perplexing that he goes on to speak about his opinions on specific cultural talking points - like prayer in schools and abortion legislation - as though they belong in the unchanging truth category. These are issues with a lot of nuance about which faithful Christians can honestly disagree, and it doesn’t make sense to represent certain stances on them as unquestionably good or bad. This made me look at the theological content of this book with a more skeptical eye (although much of it was in fact quite good!) While I’m unable to recommend this particular book, I’m definitely eager to see more translated works from pastors in different parts of the world — especially Asia and Africa!

[Michelle Kidwell]

Great to Good
How Following Jesus Reshapes Our Ambitions
by Jae Hoon Lee
Pub DateJul 23 2024
InterVarsity Press |IVP
Christian| Nonfiction \(Adult\)| Religion & Spirituality



I am reviewing a copy of Great to Good through Intervarsity Press and Netgalley:


In Great to Good we are reminded of the importance of not measuring greatness by world standards. We often make the assumption 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 reminds us of the importance of not pursuing the worldly ideas of greatness, but to instead have followers cultivate character of goodness, not to aspire to positions of power. The faithful Christian life is one that seeks to become good.


I give Great to Good four out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

[Aaron]

Does God want us to be great or good? In Great to Good, Jae Hoon Lee compellingly shows how following Jesus reshapes our ambitions.


Reset and Recalibrate

Lee helps us understand that Christians should not strive for greatness in the eyes of the world, but rather focus on being good in terms of our faith, which is to be lived out through our actions. As followers of Christ, we are called to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth, to do good deeds, and to embody Christ’s love in tangible ways.

The book is divided into 50 short chapters, each one powerful, thought-provoking, and encouraging. I can easily imagine this book being used as a daily devotional to reset and recalibrate the heart, guiding readers toward humility and a deeper alignment with Christ.


Tearing and Mending

One of Lee’s greatest strengths is his ability to paint vivid word pictures. He illustrates complex spiritual truths with remarkable clarity. The idea that God transforms us through a process of “tearing and mending” particularly struck me. Lee explains how the cross of Christ tears away the evil within us, and then, through God’s grace, sews us back together, restoring our relationship with Him. This “spiritual surgery” is a compelling way to understand how God works in our lives, and Lee does an excellent job helping readers grasp this profound spiritual reality.

What I found especially refreshing is how Lee unapologetically draws from his own experience and cultural background as a Korean. As the senior pastor of Onnuri Church, chair of The Gospel Coalition Korea, and co-chair of the host committee for the 2024 Lausanne Congress on World Evangelism in Seoul, Lee’s insights are shaped by his self-reflection on the Korean church. While the book is written for a global audience, Lee does not shy away from his identity or heritage, making his message all the more authentic and personal.


Good and Faithful

Though the truths Lee presents are timeless, he also writes prophetically about our current cultural moment. In Chapter 28, Lives Are More Important than Rights, Lee addresses the legal vacuum surrounding abortion in South Korea following a Constitutional Court ruling that declared the country’s restrictions on abortion unconstitutional. He challenges church leaders in South Korea, the United States, and around the world to lead their communities toward a culture that upholds the sanctity of life.

After reading this book, I am left with renewed courage and a clearer sense of calling. To live the Christian life is to forsake worldly pursuits and follow Christ wholeheartedly. My prayer is that I may one day hear the Savior say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”


I received a media copy of Great to Good and this is my honest review.

[Beejai Richardson]

First and foremost, I love to see the translated work of an excellent Korean Christian pastor and leader. Even when treading over familiar ground, as this book does, church leaders and theologians from other parts of the world will approach God's truth from a different cultural and sociological perspective. They can often expose blind spots in our own Western Christian worldviews. We need more works like this, not only from Korea but from China, Africa, Latin America, and those other places where the church is growing to be translated into English.

in Great to Good, Pastor Jae Hoon Lee writes a series of short chapters that skirt the line between devotional and essay. The overriding theme that runs through all of them is that we, the church, should not necessarily strive for a worldly perspective of "greatness" but rather for integrity and "goodness."

Some quotes:
The difference between an event and a movement is sacrifice.

Only when we are willing to lay down our lives for the sake of our neighbors will we see a holy movement in the world.

In the New Testament, the term Christian appears merely three times, whereas the word disciple appears 269 times. Christian is not our self-designated name; it is a name bestowed on those who live as disciples of Christ.

No matter how much or how rapidly culture changes, the church is designed to prevail. Yet with each culture shift, it is painfully obvious that the church has become an institution rather than a movement. The distinction lies in the fact that institutions preserve culture while movements create culture. Many times those who attempt to preserve a dissipating culture will also join in its ignoble demise.

Truth cannot be divided into public and private sectors. Truth must be accepted in all areas and recognized as authoritative in any domain.

God does not tell us in advance about future events because if we knew our successes, we would become lazy, and conversely, if we knew our failures, we would become disappointed and despondent.

[Jan]

Jae Hoon Lee is the senior pastor at Onnuri church and chair of the Gospel Coalition Korea, and lives in Seoul Korea, with his wife and two children. This appears to be translated from Korean, and sometimes is a little awkward, but streps away our ambitious American self-glorification and asks us to live humble live of goodness and love. The book is composed of 50 short 3 page chapters encouraging us in our walk with Jesus. He writes simply, clearly and soundly, almost in a denotational style. His vision of global discipleship should reach all nations. It is separated into 5 parts with 10 chapters, his themes are
1. In search of a good Christian
2. A good leader build Christ’s church
3. Choose faith, even when it’s painful
4. Deny yourself and take up your cross
5. Live out your good life
It is so good to read a book that is so basic and it can enrich us and show us we don’t have to have long chapters with lots of footnotes just to spread God’s global message.

[Jeannine]

Great to Good: How Following Jesus Reshapes Our Ambitions by, Jae Hoon Lee

The premise of this book is a wonderful upside-down principle. As Christians rather than working on going from good to great with an intense focus on ourselves as a popular leadership book espouses we learn that God’s own should focus on letting go of Great in a self-focused wad and learn to do and be good as Jesus defines it. I found the Korean perspective and the opportunity to hear from a very different voice to be quite refreshing and enlightening. I definitely recommend this

#GreattoGood #NetGalley.