Be like the children

Matthew 19:14-15 (The Message) - One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus intervened: “Let the children alone, don’t prevent them from coming to me. God’s kingdom is made up of people like these.” After laying hands on them, he left.

Jesus was always full of surprises. In the passage for today, he tells the disciples that the Kingdom of God is made of people like children. Children? This was far from the expectations of the disciples. Most Jews thought of the Kingdom of God as the kingdom which the Messiah would come and establish, uprooting all of the evil people and oppressors of Israel. Yet, here Jesus tells them the Kingdom belongs to those like children.

Let’s think about how children behave to see why Jesus said this. Children are dependent. They need their parents' support. They don’t necessarily understand how their parents take care of them or why they do certain things. There is a level of trust that children give their parents.

Jesus wants us to be like the children. Jesus wants us to trust Him like a child trusts their parents. We come to Jesus, not knowing how He loves us, or why He does certain things. We have faith that we can depend on Him, as the child depends on the parent.

Easier said than done. With the complications of life, it may feel like it makes no sense to trust in Jesus for the everyday struggles that seem so far removed from Him. Coming to Jesus as a child requires that we accept His love, without having the details.

How do you approach Jesus? Spend some time in prayer with Christ today and ask Him to reveal where in your life you might begin to approach Jesus as a child.