Lessons from children
Mat. 19:13-15; Mk. 10:13-16; Lk. 18:15-17
Jesus was busy visiting places and teaching about the kingdom of God. A lot of people followed Him. His disciples were also with Him. Meanwhile, some people brought some children to Jesus so that He might touch them and pray for them. But the disciples sternly told them not to do so. But Jesus, compassionate as He always is, told the children to draw near Him.
These thoughts come to mind:
- When someone becomes more and more popular, he becomes more distant from the poor and the helpless. But God’s greatness and glory lies in His association with the insignificant. Even when the disciples did not want the children near Him, Jesus welcomed them. Jesus does not reject us because we are sinners or poor. He does not welcome us because we are rich or powerful. Jesus welcomes us and calls us to come to Him just as we are.
- Children have strong faith. Jesus said, “Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it” (Lk. 18:17). What this means is to have faith like a child. The more we depend on our own wisdom, the farther we tend to drift away from the kingdom of God.
- To the disciples, stopping the children from a seemingly unimportant meeting with Jesus may have been a natural reaction. They may have thought, “The teacher must be tired. Let us not let the children disturb Him.” But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them” (Lk. 18:16). How easy would it be to be a stumbling block for others on their way to meeting the LORD. We may be an avid follower of Christ. But let this incident help us to remember that even a good disciple can stand in the way of others in their spiritual development.
