Matthew 18:1-4
“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.“
Matthew 18:1-4 NIV
Our Lord’s teaching turned human nature’s desires upside down. While we all clamor for the top, Jesus says stoop low. You want to be great, serve. You want to be first, be last. You want to be the big lead dog, humble yourself, take the back row seat. Humility is God’s standard for greatness.
Without being syrupy or sappy, Jesus Words hit us like a cold slap in the face. "Unless you change," He insists, "you won't enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”Jesus isn't subtle. Jesus is not politically correct. Jesus is multi-cultural as long as all cultures surrender to His Kingdom rule and become a new culture, the culture of the humble. If we are honest, we spend most of our childhood trying to grow up too fast.
As I read these Scriptures I really began to think about what does it mean to become like a child?What qualities do children possess that adults do not?
The first one that came to my mind was trust. While I realize there may have been many more that our Savior was referring to, trust seemed real important to me. Little children trust the adults in their life completely. They have complete confidence that they will be fed, clothed, cared for if they get hurt and that their parent will be there whenever they are needed. How much simpler would our life be if we would give our Heavenly Father this same trust.
After all, can't we have complete confidence in Him? Can't we trust that He will supply our every need? What does this mean for us? I've said it before and I'll say it again, total dependence is a hard one for us in this world. But if we want to enter the Kingdom, we have to become as a child. One of those qualities, is total dependence on our Heavenly Father.
Trust that we will be fed, clothed, cared for and He will always be there when we need Him. Most of us want to know our life counts beyond the here and now. The closest followers wanted to know more than that, they wanted to be the greatest in His kingdom. Jesus constantly turns our ideas of power and influence upside down. Jesus tells us we must take the posture of children to enter God's kingdom, and that our humility will ultimately impact our influence.
In the Kingdom, there are no great men or women of God, just humble men and women whom God has chosen to use greatly. How do we know when we are humble? When God speaks, we tremble. God is looking for a man or woman who trembles at His Word. Such people will find the Spirit of God resting upon them, they will become a dwelling place for the Almighty. God asks for nothing but ourselves.
Take a few minutes to ask God to show you how to take the posture of a child as you follow Him!!!
Father, thank You for this day and Your amazing grace and mercy. Lord, open the floodgates of heaven and rain down your abundant blessings upon my friend and family today. Lord, help us to become as a child. Lord, help us to put all our trust in You. Lord, our pride gets in the way. We are as challenged today by the way of Your holding a child before us as your disciples were back then. Please teach us the difference between child-like and childish, and teach us anew what is most important in our lives. Lord, use us to be a light of Your love to all today.
Father, we love You. AmenLove ya, be a blessing!
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