Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
Of what is this Kingdom that Jesus constantly refers to made? Is it a kingdom of castles? Is it a kingdom of strength? The mighty in this world that we see, are they the rulers of the Kingdom of Heaven? Reminding us that the disciples were very much humans, we see them misunderstanding Jesus once again.
During His life, a lot was asked of Jesus. People asked Jesus for healing. People asked Jesus for wisdom. People asked Jesus to prove Himself. The Father asked Jesus to give up His life. We see in this passage a simple request: “Jesus, will you lay your hands on our children and pray.
The disciples’ response was to rebuke and refuse this request. Why? Jesus has more important things to do than waste time on children who should be seen but not heard. Jesus could not disagree more.
As if the disciples were not present when Jesus told them that to enter the Kingdom of Heaven they must be like children, they disregard those that symbolize the humility with which Jesus requires His followers to embody. Jesus takes His position further explaining that children are not to be kept away from Him because His Kingdom is made up of those like children.
The Kingdom of Heaven is made up of the lowly and the small. The Kingdom of Heaven is made up of those who are wholly dependent and dangerously trusting of God.
This we must remember. The disciples forgot, but don’t we as well? Our culture shouts at us and seeks to convince us that we must become greater. We must chase our dreams and build our empires. We must amass our wealth and grow our power. These messages may cause us to forget that obscurity and humility characterize the Kingdom that matters and the Kingdom that stands.
My own pride coupled with the ego-massaging messages of this world make humbling myself a constant need. Meanwhile, I fail to find balance, swinging to the other side of the spectrum of self-worth, feeling that I am worthless and nothing. Lord help me.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to remember that you are His child and as such have great worth. Perhaps God wants you to remember that you can trust Him and you can depend upon Him. Maybe God wants you to abandon the deception that you can successfully depend on and trust other things. Perhaps God wants you to welcome the “least of these” with the same prayerful hands that He does.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.
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*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 486–487, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt 19:13–15) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).