"I
tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little
children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. - Matthew 18:3
When the disciples tried to
discourage the children from taking up Jesus’ time, He firmly reprimanded them
with the words, "Let
the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to
those who are like these children." How
can adults become like little children in order to get into the Kingdom of Heaven?
To answer this question,
take a good look at the characteristics of children. They understand that they
are totally dependent. They live in simplicity and are naive and trusting. They
are morally uncontaminated by the world. They are transparent and ingenuous in
character. They have not yet learned to practice disloyalty or to hold a double
standard. They have no taste for sinful behavior. They laugh readily and are
easily entertained. They wear no “masks” and are not embarrassed by their
spontaneity and sincerity. They are rarely anxious and they ask many questions
of everybody and anybody who will give them a moment of their time.
To continue, children have
no prejudice or hostility toward anyone that is different from them. They are
frank, sincere, unassuming and unsuspicious. They are impulsive and
free-spirited. They confide easily and have no secrets. They have no resources
of their own with which to defend, care for or provide for themselves. They
totally trust in their parents to be there when they wake up in the morning and
to tuck them into bed at night. Their hearts so closely resemble that of an
authentic Christian. They have unlimited love, hope, trust and faith.
Therefore, to resemble a
child, we must come to Christ in simple humility, mirroring all of these
characteristics.
A childlike mind is open to being taught
by God and to be led into all truth by His Spirit (John
16:13). Through the sanctifying process, we grow more and more
every day like a child who is totally dependent upon our Heavenly Father. In the same manner that a parent enjoys feeding,
cuddling, providing for and protecting their child, our loving Father spoils
His beloved children, who give themselves entirely and only to Him with trust
in His loving kindness.
When Jesus speaks of
childlikeness, He is not referring to our spiritual maturity. God actually
wants us to lay aside our childish carnality and to grow into mature Saints (1
Corinthians 3:1). He does not want us
dependent upon the milk of the Word forever, but to grow up to eat solid
spiritual food (1 Corinthians 3:2).
Paul chastised the Corinthians for their immaturity throughout his letters to
them. God desires for us to have confidence to approach His throne in our time
of need (Hebrews 4:16); however,
we are to derive our confidence from Him, not from our own abilities.
We have arrived at the point of childlikeness, when we come to the place
in life where we are totally dependent
upon Christ living within us. He adopts us into His family as His children, and
we are then coheirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). God’s grace abounds in us at our weakest moments and
makes us strong (2 Corinthians 12:10).
Paul learned this attitude when he petitioned God to heal him of his infirmity.
God told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you; My power is made perfect in
weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). As
we surrender our life to Christ and rely totally upon Him, God will make us
great in His Kingdom (Matthew 18:4).
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, give us the
heart of a little child, trusting and true. Help us to walk in sincerity
without any guile. Teach us to totally depend upon the guidance of Your Holy
Spirit throughout our day. Help us to walk in unity and to prefer one another
with compassion and grace as we walk in Your peace. Thank You for providing for
our daily needs as we seek first Your Kingdom (Matthew 6:33).
Thought for the Day:
Meekness keeps us from depending upon our human abilities, and makes us realize our need to live with childlike dependence upon God.
Meekness keeps us from depending upon our human abilities, and makes us realize our need to live with childlike dependence upon God.
