Children Aren't Important
Our Next All-Church Bible Study Will Be All About Sex, Marriage, Divorce, etc.
Our final All-Church Bible Study for 2023 is Wednesday, 11/8, 6:30-8:00 PM, and it will be all about sex, marriage, divorce, remarriage, same-sex attraction, etc.
We’ll be looking at what Jesus has to say about these topics in Matthew 19.
Bring a friend! Going to be a great night.
Matthew 18:1-14
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
7 “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! 8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. 12 What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? 13 And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14 So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
This idea that children are sweet and innocent and valuable is a modern idea. In the ancient world, children were overlooked and unimportant. It is the influence of 2,000 years of Christian teaching that accounts for our culture's belief in the inherent value and importance of children. The reason this is important is because it is easy for us to misunderstand when Jesus talks about children. From today's scripture passage:
2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. [18:2-4]
The picture Jesus gives is not one of sweet sentimentality, but of humiliation: children were the unimportant, overlooked ones. They were the lowest of the low. So, to become like a child, then, is to become someone truly humble.
The next time you feel overlooked, ignored, or unimportant, remember: those who are overlooked, ignored, and unimportant are the people who are great in the Kingdom. A taste of humiliation can be used by God to prepare our character for the Kingdom. Also, that slight taste of humiliation is a gift from God, in that it enables us to share in the much greater humiliation of Christ.