Jesus had
caused much bewilderment by His revolutionary teachings concerning marriage,
divorce and celibacy. Much of what He said have left great impact even in the
church today. What he said about children is no less staggering. We are all too
familiar with the adage that says, “Children are to be seen and not heard.” This
was the common notion in Jesus’ day too. Children have neither status nor
rights until their adulthood. But children matters and have much to teach us.
In these few
verses we are told that some children were brought to the Lord presumably by
their parents. They were brought to Jesus so that He could lay hand on them and
bless them. However, the disciples thought they were a major disruption. So
they rebuked them, and very likely the parents who brought them too. Like most
people, the disciples must have felt that the children were rowdy and too young
to understand the things of the Kingdom.
However, to
the Lord children are a welcoming sight. So He said to the disciples, “Let the children alone, and do not hinder them
from coming to Me; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Why did Jesus say so? Children are usually more sensitive to
the things of God than we adults are. They are trusting, sincere, honest, simple and dependent, and
they do not exaggerate about their achievements or importance. They are also so full of energy and adventures
and are constantly exploring. Unlike adults, children don’t disguise their
words. They do not try to camouflage what they say. They will describe things
as they see it without feeling embarrassed. No wonder the Lord says that the Kingdom
belongs to people such as these. Hence we read that Jesus laid hand on those
children who were brought to Him and blessed them.
The qualities of children are peerless in the
kingdom of God. Truly, they can provide markers for doing life in the Kingdom.
So Jesus debunked the assumption that children are irrelevant. Instead, He is
telling us to be more childlike – simple, honest, sincere, trusting and open to
adventure with Him. Are we?
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