God Loves Childlike Faith | Mark 10:13-16 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series)

We need the Holy Spirit. Amen, We need him.

He is the gift of God. When the disciples who lived

with Jesus, sat with Jesus, ate with Jesus, embraced Jesus,

witnessed Jesus, heard Jesus. After all of that intensive

exposure to the person of Jesus, the Son of God in flesh, the

Lord told him before he ascended into heaven, you need to wait.

You need to wait until the power of the Holy Spirit comes upon

you. Education is important.

Study is important. Gaining knowledge is important.

Experience is important. But none of that can substitute

the power of the Holy Spirit. And the true minister lives with

a consistent awareness that if it's not for the Holy Spirit, he

will not truly know fruit and effectiveness.

And his preaching and his witness and his service is that.

That's not just true for the preacher in that Upper Room.

It wasn't just preachers in there.

You had men and women in there who all needed the power of the

Holy Spirit. And so I say that to you in the

beginning of this time, so that we can seek His power together,

and ask that he would clothe us with His endowment and His

grace, so that this would not be an empty time.

It would not be a vain time, it would be a time of great power.

Lord, we ask you with all of our hearts, forsaking any confidence

in anything else. We believe in the Holy Spirit,

and we ask that the Holy Spirit would not be grieved, and he

would not shrink from this place or this moment.

We ask that He would be pleased to move freely and Lord.

We ask that the Holy Spirit would help us see Jesus Christ

and to glorify and honor Him. Lord, we relinquish any trust

and eloquence, personality, charisma, any schemes of man,

and we just ask for the pure raw power of God.

This is our longing. And thank you for a place that

believes that you can do amazing things through the word preached

and heard. We submit this time to you

asking that we would never be the same as a result of our time

in Jesus name. Amen.

Mark chapter 10, verse 13 to 16. Mark chapter 10, verse 13 to 16.

Mark 10:13–16 Mark 10:13–16

Apart from the singing, one of my favorite sounds is the sounds

that I'm hearing right now. Pages being flipped.

Mark 10, verse 13, Let's read together.

Mark 10:13

And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them.

And the disciples rebuke them. And when Jesus saw it, he was

indignant and said to them, Let the children come to me, do not

hinder them, for the such belongs the Kingdom of God.

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of

God like a child shall not enter it.

And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands

on them. It is no coincidence that the

Holy Spirit turns our attention to Jesus ministering to

children, following his strong teaching about marriage and

divorce. We are all aware that the

severing of a union between a man and a woman has a great

price, and the greatest damage occurs to those who are the

offspring of a man and a woman who have come together in that

covenant. And one of the harms that come

from this painful separation, at least in the life of a children,

is that many of them tend to convince themselves that they

are somehow the cause of their father and mother walking away

from each other. The psychological confusion and

destruction that comes from the unfortunate situation of divorce

is just one of the many testimonies of the devastation

of it and the reason why God absolutely abhors it.

Now, we don't know the condition of the homes of these children

who have come to Jesus, but its placement here is quite

encouraging in the backdrop of what Jesus is taught about.

And here's what you can take from this encounter.

There's many things to learn from this, but when you look at

where it's positioned, how it follows, what we just learned

last week about the severity of this separation known as

divorce, Jesus is the most dependable and reliable source

of love. Jesus is the most dependable,

reliable source of love. Your father is prone to

disappoint you. And maybe for you in this place,

some of you in this place, he already has.

In a very significant way. It's possible for a mother to

withhold the affection and the attention that a child needs.

But when you look to Jesus here, you have to understand that his

care for you and that his love for you is unswerving.

It is absolutely certain. You may be wondering why I'm

saying that to a room that's mainly comprised of adults.

Because you would be amazed to know that even parents today and

grandparents today are still walking with a limp because of a

wound that they received from somebody who was supposed to

nurture and build them. The bruise of betrayal, the

sense of distrust that has come from that traumatic experience,

and now it's projected on other things.

And it's carried into marriages, their own marriages.

What they've seen in their mother and father now is

bleeding into other areas of life and even David.

David was a full grown warrior when he wrote the Psalms.

And yet through the inspiration of the Spirit, he alludes to the

pain that can come from disappointment, from somebody

like a father or a mother. What did he say in Psalm 27,

Psalms 27:10

verse 10? For my father and mother have

what they've forsaken me. This is a man who's gone to war.

This is a man who had battle scars.

This is a man who has faced giants, and yet he can attest to

the severity of what it is like when a father or mother walks

away, fails, does not live up to the standard that to which they

were called. But David doesn't write that

Psalm as just an expression of sorrow or woe, because in the

same breath he gives the solution, he gives hope.

For my father and mother they have yes, walked away.

But the Lord will take me in, the Lord will take me in.

And that's what David yes, by the Spirit, yes, God speaking

through David is saying about the Lord.

But the Lord himself says something to us in a text like

this. And Isaiah 4915, where he asked

the rhetorical question, can a woman forget her nursing child?

Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no

compassion on the son of her womb?

Then he says, yeah, even these may forget.

It's possible. It's possible even for a mother,

for the baby that she's carried in her womb for nine months, to

be negligent, to be selfish, to care about self, even at the

expense of the well-being of that baby.

Even these may forget, but it goes on to say, but the Lord

will not forget you, The Lord will not forget you.

You know what I take from this? Especially when you think about

David's words. David is not speaking

theoretically about his relationship with the Lord.

When David says, yeah, my father, my mother, it's possible

for them in my life and in your life to walk away, to walk away

from each other, in essence, to walk away from you.

And the same thing that you should expect from a mother or

father, personalized affection and attention from both of them.

He parallels what was missing from them.

And he says, well, what I was missing in them I found in the

Lord meaning when you rehearse about the love of God, the

personal love he has for you, it's actually experiential.

The love of a father and a mother is not theoretical.

It's not just an idea. It's felt, it's known, it's

tangible, it's observable, it's tasted.

And he's saying what I'm missing from them, I got from the Lord.

That tells me that Christ is experienced.

Not just learned, not just taught.

There's something that is actually impressed on your life

as you walk with Him. We believe that we walk with

him, He walks with us, and he transfers and deposits his love

in our lives. And it's real.

It's not just preaching points. It's not just lovely melodies.

It's real. It's sticks.

It transforms. And there's something about the

Lord Jesus that these parents or relatives, we're not told

explicitly that they were parents, but you're assuming

that they are. There's something about the

person of Jesus Christ that was clearly perceived for them to

feel confident enough to bring them to the Lord and say, would

you bless my child, would you touch my baby?

And so they approached the Lord in this way.

And you know, many crowds have come to Jesus.

Many groups of people have approached Lord.

We've seen many episodes of that.

And most of the time, they had what questionable motives?

But there's something about this group of people at this juncture

that is quite exemplary. We should praise these parents

for what they're doing here as they bring their babies to the

Lord. You know why?

It's because they believe something.

This is an act of faith. You know what?

They believed that their children were not too young to

receive a blessing from Christ. They believe that the Lord has a

heart for the young and is willing to honor the faith of

those who are responsible for their children to be blessed by

him. And the Lord honor that faith.

How young were these children? I think they were teenagers.

Think they were young adults. No.

Go back to verse 16. What do you see?

And he took them in his arms. They were young enough to be

held in his arms. Infants to toddlers.

And the scene here of Jesus scooping up these children.

You know, if you're a minister, you should be relatable.

If you're a minister, you should be approachable.

If you're a minister, you shouldn't be sour and scary.

Here's Jesus that children can feel safe in his arms, and it

reminds me of this verse that's often not referred to when it

comes to the discussion of children in the Word of God.

I want you to see it with your own eyes in Acts 7, verse 20.

Acts 7:20

Look what Stephen says about God concerning one particular baby.

In Acts 7, verse 20 and this marvelous sermon that he gives

Acts 7:20

to the religious leaders, he makes mention of the person, the

birth, the destiny of Moses. And in Acts 720 we read at this

time Moses was born and he was beautiful in God's sight.

He was beautiful in God's sight and he was brought up for three

months in his father's house. What does it mean that he was

beautiful in God's sight? Was he a cute baby?

Maybe. Was the adorable?

Sure. But it's deeper than that.

Because notice he says at this time.

What time? Well, he says right before this,

reminding the history of the nation of Israel that they were

slaughtered, the Hebrew children, when they were under

captivity in Egypt, they were slaughtered.

There was a massacre of these Hebrew boys.

And in the backdrop of such a darkness and evil and vileness,

there was the birth of a baby Moses.

And that sight, I'm sure, was delightful to the Lord.

And not only was it delightful for the simple fact that this is

his gift into the world, this is an expression of his design and

his will. But this was an expression of a

faith, of a faith that came from Moses parents who were not

afraid of the King's edict. And so they said, you know what?

No matter what the king says, we're going to have a baby.

And so Moses comes on the scene, and I'm sure that this pleased

the Lord as well. And moreover, as you know about

Moses, there was a destiny connected to this baby, one that

would bring glory to the God of Israel and that would liberate

the people of God. All in all, you know what

Stephen is saying? Stephen is saying that we serve

a God who looks favorably upon children.

He looks upon a child like Moses as an example, and he does not

consider their existence, even at this stage of life, to be

unimportant. Insignificant.

No. Even though they're helpless and

vulnerable, it's a beautiful sight to God.

It's a beautiful thing. And this is not the only place

where Moses is called beautiful. So you're in Acts.

Go to Hebrews and look at Hebrews 11 verse 23.

Hebrews 11:23

Now we're being told about the faith of Moses's parents.

There's an interesting connection between Acts 720 and

Hebrews 11/23 and Hebrews 11/23. We're told by faith.

Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his

parents because they saw that the child was beautiful.

Hold on. Axe says that he was beautiful

in the sight of God. It's a beautiful sound, right?

We're told in Axe that it was a beautiful sight to God.

Now we come to Hebrews and we're told it was not just a beautiful

sight to God, it was a beautiful sight to the parents of Moses.

It's the same Greek word, by the way.

It's a very interesting word. Doesn't this excite you saying,

what do we make of this? Any parent sees their baby and

sees that it's beautiful, but it's a deeper thing, especially

when you connect with Acts. Here's what I take from this

Moses's parents saw Moses the same way God did.

They were in one mind with God. And the reason why this excites

me is because it shows that it's possible to perceive, it's

possible to interpret events and people the way God does.

You see what's beautiful, the way God sees it as beautiful.

You see what's ugly, the way God sees it, that's ugly.

And you say, well, that's a nice thought.

It's not a nice thought. It's necessary.

It's a necessary thought. You're saying, why?

Notice the wording of Hebrews 11/23 by faith.

Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his

parents. That's a death sentence.

You're you're going against the King's edict.

You're supposed to surrender those babies, and they're

supposed to be thrown into the Nile.

But they chose to secure this child and risk their lives for

this child. Why?

What's the connection? Because because they saw that

the child was beautiful again, Not just because it was an

adorable baby. Because they saw something

deeper than that. They saw what God saw.

When you see as God sees, it will determine so much.

The way you decide, the way you move, the way you react, the way

you engage, the way you do, anything you see as God sees.

Because that's how they did it. They saw as God saw, and that's

what made their decision to risk their lives and faith.

If you see your wife the way God sees your wife, your marriage

would be different. If you see your husband the way

your God sees your husband, your marriage will look different.

If you see this church the way God sees this church and the

church at large, your attitude towards the church will be

different. If you see money the way God

sees money, your attitude towards money will be different.

Any aspect of life, any facet of life.

If you just see it the way God sees it, you will know ultimate

blessing from it, because God is perfect.

And that includes the way you and I see children, because

Jesus saw children far more differently than the disciples.

Did you come back to Mark 10, And what do you read?

We read in verse 13. And they were bringing children

to him, that he might touch them.

And the disciples rebuke them, rebuke the parents.

So here you have these toddlers and these babies approaching the

Lord. And these disciples saw them as

an interruption. They saw them as a hindrance.

And we're not told for the unnecessary rebuke why this

happened, but we can assume we can guess that they had.

They had a good reason for it. At least they thought so.

Their intention was pure. They wanted to protect their

Lord. They realized that their Lord

was already invested in so much diseases and demon possessed

souls and sermons. And so they saw these children

coming as as just an unnecessary time of ministry.

This is not priority. And so they began to shoo the

parents away. And you can imagine what they

said. Look, the Master is very busy.

He has so much on his plate. We're running a short amount of

time here. And as much as your children are

adorable, they're beautiful, but they're not.

They're not the most important thing at this time.

And so just please walk away. There's there's not enough time

for this, this whole ordeal. Oh, how they were wrong.

You know, I read this. I mean, these are the disciples

of Jesus. Like, these are the closest

representatives. These are the ones who are

supposed to be trained to be apostles and lay the foundation

of the doctrine of the church. And you know what you and I take

from this little incident here? It's very, it's very encouraging

because you're going to encourage, you're going to

encounter this at one point or another.

Often times, the disciples of Christ don't represent Christ

faithfully. And you see this exemplified

over and over again in the Gospels, right?

The disciples who represent Christ, they didn't do it so

accurately and faithfully at times.

Why is that shown to us over and over again?

I think one of the reasons to prepare you to also know

disappointment from those who represent Christ, and for it not

to cause your heart to disregard the person of Jesus Christ.

How many today are not in church because they've been hurt by the

church? They're not obeying the Lord

because of the failure of those who claim to know the Lord.

OK, You have the disciples here who shunned away parents to

receive blessing from Jesus. Did they turn their backs on

Jesus? And.

But more than that, more than just looking at the disciples

and saying, yeah, I know some Christians like that.

Yeah, yeah, Let's look to our own selves and let's look at

this and use this as an example to say, Lord, I don't want to do

this. It's easy to look at Other

Christians say, yeah, I know some Christians who are like

that. Yeah, Lord, I look at these

disciples, and they had good motives.

They were trying to protect you, guard you, keep you.

And they were wrong. They missed the mark.

And I found myself thinking this, thought, reading this over

and over. Lord, I don't want to rebuke

what you receive. And I don't want to accept what

you reject. I want to be as closely and

nearly to your thinking as possible.

Please help me. I don't want to miss it like

these disciples missed it. And you know how you and I can

be assured that we have the mind of Christ.

You renew that mind of yours with the word of God, and you

allow this word to conform you and change you and challenge you

and mold you so that you can see as Christ sees.

And people get into legalism and people get into lawlessness

because of that very failure to not make this the supreme filter

of their lives and the determiner of their decisions

and convictions. And here are these disciples who

have who have turned away people that Christ wanted to come to

him. And just look how different the

thinking of Christ is in comparison to his own.

Look at verse 14. But when Jesus saw it, so Jesus

saw the disciples pushing these parents, these mothers and

fathers and uncles away. When Jesus saw it, he was

indignant. That is a very, very strong

word. It's the same word that was used

of the Pharisees. When they saw and heard the the

sounds of the children in the temple receiving Jesus with

Hosannas, they were very much displeased.

It's the same word. And listen to this.

This is the strongest word attributed to Jesus and how he

felt about his disciples and all the Gospels.

The strongest emotion which tells me how much this means to

the Lord. This is a very important thing

to Christ. For him to feel this way, to to

have that righteous anger toward his own followers concerning

children, says something about how he feels about children.

It's the only place in the Gospels where such strong

emotion from Jesus was directed towards his followers.

And here's the mind of Christ concerning these babies.

They are not insignificant to him at all.

They are worthy to be ministered to with spiritual emphasis and

great priority. Look at these precious words

again. But when Jesus saw it, he was

indignant and said to them, Let the children come to me.

Let them come to me. Now why would the Lord say this

if he did not believe that there was the ability for blessing to

be transferred from him to these children?

Why would he say something like this?

Unless blessing would occur when children are exposed to the

reality of Christ, let the children come to me.

Something can happen to these children as they come to me.

And one might say, well, yeah, that's obvious because this is

the physical Christ on earth. This is a special segment of

human history. And so no wonder there was a

unique access to God in the flesh.

No wonder they would be blessed. But the Bible is very much in

favor of the possibility that they can still be blessed today

as they are exposed to the reality of the person and truth

of Jesus Christ. You know, one of my favorite

examples of this is in a text that doesn't really directly

teach that, but it infers that and and it's a text that deals

with actually marriage and divorce.

And so when you go there, you'll see it.

I'm sure you'll see it now. And 1st Corinthians 7.

Very important teaching about marriage.

Very important teaching about divorce.

And tucked in, there is an instruction to believers who've

been saved in their marriage, and their spouse is an

unbeliever. What is a believer supposed to

do if they've come to Christ in their marriage and the

unbelieving spouse refuses to accept Christ?

You know what Paul tells that unbelieving spouse stay in your

marriage because the temptation. The temptation would have been,

well, there's no compatibility here.

This is a challenge here, This is difficult here.

And it's even possible for the Corinthians to have heard from

other Christians that if you as a Christian, remain married to

this unbelieving spouse, you're going to be defiled.

You're going to be contaminated. And so Paul is hearing this

right. Corinthians is a response to

many questions and inquiries, and he's giving answers to these

things. And one of the things he says is

if you are an unbelieving spouse and you're married to somebody

who is a believer, rather, if you're a believer married to

unbelieving spouse, stay put. Now, if they want to leave

because of your faith, then be at peace.

But as long as they're willing to remain with you, stay.

And what's his motive? What's his reason?

Verse 14 of Chapter 7 For the unbelieving husband is made holy

because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy

because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be

unclean, but as it is, they are holy.

You need to stay. Why?

Because your husband, your wife would be made holy and even your

children, they would be made holy.

Holy in what sense? Not in a salvific sense.

Paul's not saying that if you are a wife who is a believer

that your salvation is transferred automatically to

your husband just by mere association.

He's talking about a sanctifying holiness.

He's talking about an influence and a protection that would come

from your presence. You being in close proximity.

You living your day-to-day in one same household offers

something, some spiritual blessing to those who are

associated with you. That's what he's speaking about.

There's something to be projected or something that

would radiate from your life as a believer who's walking with

the Lord. There's a supply and a shield of

grace that would be removed if you were to willfully walk away

from that unbelieving home. And so it says something about

the power of your walk with the Lord, that others are directly

and indirectly blessed by it, somehow blessed by it.

And notice how Paul includes children as recipients of the

blessing of a believer's presence, meaning children are

capable of collecting the spiritual benefits of a parent

of a relative who is walking with God.

And even if it's just one doesn't have to be both.

Let that inspire you. For you who are struggling for

you, who are wrestling because you don't have a father who

loves the Lord for your daughter, for your son,

understand that Paul doesn't speak about both parents being

believers, Just one. Just one can make that spouse

holy, can make the children holy.

The wisdom that you walk in because you're a Christian, the

grace that you walk in, the counsel that you offer, the

prayers that you pray, the inspiration of your walk with

God will not be void of impact. Paul saying there is impact,

there is some effect, there is some reward to be known for the

person who does not believe the God that you believe.

And though salvation is not assured, the proximity of a St.

can even lead to salvation. In what sense?

We'll think about it from the child's perspective, as they see

the life of a believing mother and an unbelieving father, or

vice versa. And over time, as they they're

able to register and understand things, reactions, actions.

All these things that take place can eventually Paul's saying to

some sense, some sense inspire that child.

To say, I want the God of my mother, I want the Lord of my

father, and this situation is specific, but the principle can

be broadened. Children can acquire Christ

centered, spirit inspired blessing.

They can be recipients of it, they can absorb it, they can

register it, they can receive it, you know.

So what does that mean for you and I?

Very simple. Let us actively believe and

engage in faith to seek the touch of Christ for our little

ones. What you teach, what you model,

what you exemplify, what you posture your children to be

exposed to, can produce reward, can produce work.

Is it any? Think about it like Satan is

recruiting them as young as possible.

Why do you think? Because they're able.

They're able to be influenced. They're able to conform.

They're able to submit themselves to a system of

belief. One of my favorite examples of

this possibility or this inspiration about how children

can be exposed to the light through your life and mine

through your decision to be faithful enough to say, Lord, I

believe that my child as young as possible, just like these

believers here, or these people rather coming to the Lord Jesus

with their children. You can believe the same for

your own. I've mentioned this before, so

forgive me if I'm bringing it up again, but we can be stirred up

by way of reminder. There's the scene that never

fails to move me in the book of Acts.

It always stirs my heart. It's a scene where Paul comes

and visits a group of believers and they're convincing him

please don't go to Jerusalem because the Spirit revealed that

if he goes, he's going to get in trouble.

And Paul says, look, don't make this difficult for me.

I'm going. Paul was that kind of a leader.

He was, I set my face toward there, I'm going and they stop

fighting about it. And I said, fine, if you're

going to go, let's at least lead you to your final departure.

And so as they make way for Paul and his missionary team to

leave, you get this beautiful picture of this farewell.

In Acts 21. In Acts 21, verse 5, Luke near

Acts 21:5

rates, he says When our days there were ended, we departed

and went on our journey. And they all so the believers

that they met with, right? They all with wives.

And who children did they leave? The kids at home with wives and

children accompanied us until we were outside the city and

kneeling down on the beach. We prayed.

Can you imagine it? What these believers did as Paul

prepared to make way to Jerusalem is that they brought

their children with them. Was that intentional?

You better believe it. And here's what I believe that

moment did. These children were exposed to

their parents and other disciples, honoring a man of

God. These children witnessed the

unashamed public testifying of their faith.

Where were they? They were at a beach and they

knelt on that beach. They were not ashamed of their

God. They were not ashamed of their

Jesus. And here are these children

witnessing their parents Teach your children before you eat

when you go out for lunch. Today we're going to pray for

our food. Don't be ashamed.

They witness their parents unashamedly declaring their

faith in Christ. Not only that, they're learning.

Saying how are they learning? Or they're learning in the power

of prayer, are they not? They're seeing that you can

commit a person, you can commit a journey, you can commit the

future to God on behalf of somebody else.

So here are these children standing in the presence of

parents and relatives living out their faith.

Don't underestimate how important it is to expose your

children to these things, everything that was just said.

Jesus himself gives the qualifying reason for why these

children should not be hindered from coming to him.

And it's back in Mark chapter 10 and as an extension why they

Mark 10 · chapter mention

should not be neglected by us and cherished by us.

Instead, he says let the children come to me in verse 14.

Do not hinder them for to such. Here's the reason for to such

belongs the Kingdom of God. What does that mean?

But as such belongs the Kingdom of God.

Well, one can make the case that Jesus is saying that heaven is

filled with subjects who are children, meaning there's a

special grace that is laid upon the life of a child, a special

condition that's placed upon the lives of young ones.

What do you mean by that? Well, they have a special

reception in heaven if they were to die at a certain point in

their lives where they cannot comprehend the difference

between good and evil, where they can't make the distinction

between right and wrong. In a sense, Jesus is saying here

that for a child to have an early departure from the earth

will be seen as innocent and will be accepted into the arms

of God. And that truth has about

tremendous comfort for those who've experienced tragedy in

the loss of their babies or their toddlers or the little

ones. And that truth is not difficult

to see throughout the Bible. There are so many examples

throughout the scriptures that teach this concept that there is

a point of accountability and that there is a line that is

drawn in the life of a person where before that line, they are

not held accountable for their inability to choose or make the

difference or discern between right and wrong.

And then after being responsible for your actions and your

decisions. So here's some rapid fire

references. OK, so put on your seat belt.

Take out the pen #1 Deuteronomy 139 Deuteronomy 139, where the

Lord speaks to that generation who have not believed in God

concerning the promised land, and He assured them that your

little ones who do not know the difference between good and

evil, they will enter into it. Notice God did not hold the

little ones accountable for unbelief for the same mistake

that the parents made who clearly had the ability and the

understanding that this is right and this is wrong.

God is a just judge. Your children will not be held

accountable for this because they don't know the difference

between right and wrong. One of the most famous ones in

Second Samuel 12 verse 23 where dated, fasted and prayed for the

2 Samuel 12:23

life of that baby that he and Bathsheba had together and the

baby died. He gets up he washed himself.

He anoints himself and he sits at the the table and he feasts

and the the the people in his Kingdom were confused the

administrators and his service. How are you doing this?

And he could confidently say I will go to him, but he will not

return to me. I will see him again.

I can't have him back. I pray that I fasten he's not

coming back. But I know one day I'm going to

see him. And I mentioned this many times

in Bible study before. Notice that when his son Absalom

died, he was a full grown adult. He did not have the same

confidence, did he? What did he do?

Oh, Absalom. Absalom.

Oh, Absalom Absalom. I wish it was me.

Why would he react that way? Perhaps because David understood

that Absalom was not in the same place as the baby was.

Isaiah 7, verse 16. After that famous prophecy

Isaiah 7:16

concerning the virgin who would have a son, we're told.

We're told there about this child that there would be a time

before he would know the choice, the difference between the good

and the evil. So you have just three texts.

There you have Deuteronomy 139, Second Samuel 1223, Isaiah 716,

if you want another one, Ezekiel 16.

In that chapter, we're told about these children who are

sacrificed to Molech, who are suffering in the sizzling hands

of an idol. And God says they are my

children, they are my children, They belong to me.

So that's a comforting truth, is it not?

That's a comforting truth, but that's not the primary thing

that Jesus is communicating here.

That's that's not the main drive here of what he is saying by

saying for the such belongs the Kingdom of God.

What Jesus is alluding to here is that there are some features

of a child. There are characteristics that

are unique to a little one that should be and must be shared for

those who would inherit heaven, and some would say OK for the

such to such such like these belongs the Kingdom of God.

So maybe it's the innocence of a child.

Innocence. It's tough to make a conclusion

based on innocence. They're not always innocent, are

they? No.

And if there is any innocence, as you just heard, it's out of

ignorance. And that's not to say that

children are born morally neutral without a sin nature.

It's just that God has a grace for those who cannot formulate

or understand the difference between right and wrong.

Maybe it's purity, the purity of a child, Right?

It's it's about the cleanliness of their hearts and how they

they have more of a blank canvas.

And others who have walked in this world long enough and have

been splattered with sin and all these other things that have

corrupted the mind and polluted the soul.

It doesn't seem like that's what Jesus is stressing either,

because again, this is a certain kind of child he is referring

to. Again, in verse 16, he scooped

up these, these children in their arms.

So when you look at the context and when you look at the type of

children Jesus is referring to, the thing that makes the most

sense is that he is referring to helplessness, helplessness.

This sermon is really getting assistance from babies that I

don't know why. You're just hearing them over

and over, which I'm not disturbed.

I'm so happy that they're here. Helplessness as they're being

held by the arms of the Savior depended on him, needy of him.

A child can't feed himself, a child can't change himself, a

child can't provide for himself. A child simply lives empty

handed and totally dependent and Jesus says for the such belongs

the Kingdom. In the same way, a child can't

do a lot. If you want to enter into my

presence forever, you also have to be able to say I can't do it.

I can't do it for myself. I need it to be given to me.

I need this to be a gift. I need this to be extended to me

by God's mercy. That's what Jesus is saying.

And this would be a blow to those Pharisees who lived and

taught this work based salvation.

Jesus saying if you want citizenship in my world for all

of eternity, you need to see yourself as helpless just like

this child. And he builds on that does he

not? He builds on end in verse 15.

Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God

like a child shall not enter it. So he says to such belongs the

King. Now, he says, you got to receive

it like a child. How does a child receive things?

Our nieces and nephew from Canada were here a couple

weekends ago. And because we're not going to

see them for Christmas, we got them gifts early.

And on the final night they were here before the Sunday service

and before they left after the service, we had a chance to open

up those gifts. And when the uncles extended

those gifts to the nieces, especially, you know what didn't

happen? They didn't open the gifts and

say, well this is fantastic ammo, I appreciate it.

Thank you for the thoughtfulness of this gift.

But you know, I've realized in the past few months I've been

saving up for this gift, the very same toy, and I plan to

purchase this gift for myself. I realized that there is a self

satisfaction that comes from earning something for yourself.

So I appreciate the gift, but this year it's on me.

One that would be extremely strange and probably

frightening. You know, they didn't negotiate

with us, you know, Thank you so much.

I'll pay for half of it. Or, you know, I'll pay you back

eventually. Kids don't do that.

They don't talk like that. You know what happened?

With silent smiles, lit up faces, extended arms, and simple

acceptance. They received, they received.

That's how Jesus wants you to receive his salvation.

He doesn't want you to give terms.

He doesn't want you to try to earn it or earn it in part.

Receive it like a child. So Jesus, don't reject these

children. You know why?

Disciples? Because they are the ideal

illustration of what it means to belong to me and how to respond

to my gospel. And if a child, in his neediness

and his helplessness and his humility and simplicity, is an

example of how we are to receive Christ, and perhaps verse 16 is

an illustration of how Christ responds to the one who extends

childlike trust. Look at verse 16.

And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands

on them. Do you know what's waiting for

you as you simply give him childlike faith?

Embrace, embrace. This is not a contract.

It's not a legal thing. As much as our salvation

includes legal procedure, Jesus, he does more than just touch

these children. He picks them up and he embraces

them and he blesses them. If you were to receive Christ

today, there is an embrace from the Son of God waiting for you.

That's what he's after. That's what he loves more than

anything else. Not your performance, not your

professionalism, spiritually speaking, not the depth of your

knowledge. You just simply saying I need

you. I need you.

I can't do it on my own. I can't save myself.

I failed over and over again. I keep getting myself messy.

I'm thirsty. I'm hungry.

Please receive me. I've heard many gospel

presentations in my life. I'm sure you have as well.

Maybe you have heard this. Maybe you haven't.

I personally can't recall a time where I've heard a gospel

invitation that included receive Jesus like a child, receive him

like a child, come wobbling to him, stuffy.

Maybe not understanding much in life, but understanding like

what a child should understand for their mother or father.

Mom feeds me. Dad protects me.

No hesitation going to them as a reflex, realizing that you can't

do it without them. Do you believe that about Jesus

Christ? Does that offend you?

Good. This gospel is offensive.

Surely I must do something. It's as ridiculous as my niece

telling me all that I just told you earlier and receiving a

gift. Just come.

Just receive it. Submit yourself, crucify your

pride, nail yourself righteousness, die to yourself

and come to Christ like a child. And he said what?

That's not it. The words of Jesus so shrink,

would you today, but he's after more than anything else, is a

heart that realizes I can't do it on my own.

I need you. Well, we thank you that as we

prepare to eat at this table, you have reminded us of our

helpless state and the love that you have for us.

And we pray that our hearts would be prepared to partake of

this wonderful ordinance that displays the beauty of the

gospel in Jesus name. Amen.