Matthew 19:13-15
‘Then some children were brought to Him so that He would lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, “Leave the children alone, and do not forbid them to come to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” After laying His hands on them, He departed from there.’
I have come to love this passage. It’s because it reveals a part of God that I was unaware of. God loves children. My early view of God was much more judgmental. I felt a cloud of guilt and disapproval. This lasted years into my Christianity.
I saw God like a boss that was too busy with important matters who only talked with important people. Taking a break to play with children was unimaginable. The apostles thought similarly.
We don’t have any descriptions, but I would say that when Jesus gathered the children to lay hands on them He had a welcoming smile. Gaining this insight has given me great understanding about God. I now insert myself in the place of those children. Jesus is giving me a welcoming smile.
I used to be bound up with guilt and always felt a cloud a “You should’s 2 Corinthians 9:7 was the verse caused the damn to crack. “Each one must do just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” So much of what I was doing was under compulsion.
This became the new litmus test about things I would do for God. Did I want to do this? If not, then God might not be in it. It wasn’t quite that simple as sometimes it was God asking me to do something I would rather not do. However it was a great test. It transformed my faith. It’s as if the clouds of guilt parted and I could get a glimpse of warmth from God.
When Jesus called the children to Himself, He probably knelt down to their level. That’s a trait of God. He gets down to all our levels. Matthew 25:34-40 gives us some insight, “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You as a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of Mine, you did it for Me.’” God’s heart is with the lowly and hurting. My image of God being an important boss was way off. God feels the hurt and pain of all. We fall into that category. Therefore God feels all our pain. He is as close as the next prayer. Any of us could call out to Him and He will be right there.
He will comfort and heal. However, He is limited by His nature. He is perfect and holy and we are sinful. We need to admit our sin and accept the blood of Jesus to cleanse our guilt. This eliminates the gulf between God and man. Jesus comes to live in us. The Holy Spirit indwells us. They bring healing and love. We are adopted into His family. We become His children, literally. We fit ourselves into the story of Jesus blessing the children.
Lord, thank You that You love children. You step down and embrace them and us. Thank You that You’ve sent Jesus to saver and adopt us. Help us to walk with You as a child.