Like Little Children

Mark 10:13-16

"And they began bringing children to Him, so that He might touch them; and the disciples rebuke them. But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and He said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belong to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God liker a child shall not enter it at all.” And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands upon them."


Observation:
Yesterday I was making a parallel between little children and certain people whose character is immature. Today I’m looking at little children in a different way. Jesus is asking us to receive His kingdom the same way that little children do. Once again, the Lord uses the illustration of children but with a different application. Yesterday was about becoming the last by embracing weak, dependant, and immature people. Today is about becoming like one of them in order to receive God’s kingdom.
Are we supposed to be immature and weak in order to receive God’s kingdom? Are we loosing the grasp of it the moment we become mature? Of course not! At this point we need to make the distinction between being childish and being childlike. Being childish is about immaturity, but being childlike is about innocence, and full of faith.


Application:
I cannot avoid thinking about my two sons when meditating on this passage. They are childish because they are toddlers, but they have certain characteristics that make them way better candidates to receive the Kingdom of God than me. They can forget their own mistakes in few seconds, but they never forget who their father is. They believe everything I tell them. Even though they try to be independent, they grab me hard when they get hurt or they feel scared. There is nothing like the way they express their love for me when I come home at the end of the day. They have no clue of the evil that is available. Life is simple for them because they know that I will be taking care of their needs. When I discipline them they cry but they want to hug me at the same time. They want to make sure that we can continue being best friends.
In order to be kingdom people we must be like little children. We must be innocent when it comes to evil things. We need to be free to express our feelings with honesty, not only towards God, but also towards others. We cannot be afraid of looking silly and over concerned about what people think about us. We need to trust in our Heavenly Father’s love that provides everything we need in all areas of our lives. We need to seek His face as if our breath would depend on it. We need to receive His correction and discipline with thanksgiving, always waiting for Him to wipe our tears. We must avoid anxiousness and embrace the simplicity of life that only peace with God can offer.
Our childish ways must be put off but we must never get rid of the child in us. We need o strive for growth and maturity but never compromising our simple devotion to God and our innocence towards life. Jesus encouraged us to be innocent as doves and cunning as foxes. We must find that childlike character and apply it in all our daily affairs in order to bring God’s kingdom in everything we do, say, and think.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please restore the little child in me and make me more dependant in your presence. Let me go back to the simple things of life that Your peace and love always offer. Forgive my anxious thoughts and my childish ways. Help me to get rid of them without throwing away my innocence and desire to express myself with honesty. Please teach me through my kids how am I supposed to be a child of yours. Give me insight and understanding in how to become more childlike in your presence and let me receive your kingdom in my life with arms wide open. AMEN!