Title: Like a Child
Contents
like a little child
Matthew 18:1-6
As biblical scholar William Barclay said, "As we get older, we may not be moving closer to God, we may be moving further and further away." That is, it cannot be said that the age of faith and the quality of faith are the same. The heart you first believed in could be much purer. It is that the heart that believed in the Lord as purely as a child can be recognized before the Lord much more. However, as our years of faith get longer and our positions increase, our hearts lose their pure heart and become more and more complicated and come to think about things we shouldn't be thinking about. When I first believed in Jesus and started my church life, my heart was not so complicated. The head wasn't complicated either. I just liked the Lord and was very happy to worship before the Lord. The thrill of becoming a child of God has always been in us. However, as the years of faith grew longer, our hearts began to become more complicated. The head gets a little more complicated. From then on, our concern was 'Who is more important in the church? Who is more influential? Who is smarter?' will be placed on
"Whoever humbles himself like a little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." You said. Then, who is the great person the Lord is talking about?
1. Turn to pure faith
“Unless you turn and become like little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” Here, "turning around" does not mean a mere change of behavior, but a change of heart that is possible only through God's grace. That is, true repentance.
The first words that Jesus proclaimed at the beginning of his public ministry were, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). In other words, Jesus says, the first condition to enter the kingdom of heaven is to turn from sin and repent, and the way to repent is to return to the form of a child. When you were a child, you were relatively innocent, but as you become an adult, you commit various sins that deceive and harm others, so you must repent and become as innocent as a child. Therefore, to believe in Jesus is to return to the pure form. It is a return to the heart of a pure child.
When I first believed in Jesus, I was moved by the grace and love of the Lord for salvation and lived a pure life of gratitude and praise in all things. But now, many lusts darken our hearts, so that the things of the world are more visible than the Lord's, and our lusts are visible. As before, the pure passion and devotion have disappeared, and they are living their lives serving the Lord formally. Instead of being pure, they live with a degenerated heart, envying, resenting, and resenting each other, quarreling over who is higher and who is greater.
In the text, Jesus emphasized that unless we turn, we will never enter the kingdom of heaven. The expression ‘definitely’ is a strong will to never allow it. Jesus spoke of the qualifications of citizens of heaven when the disciples were interested in the question of who is the greatest in heaven. Just like what he said to Nicodemus, he tells us, 'You must turn and become innocent like little children and follow me.' Now, please turn to the pure faith like a child. This is possible only by God's grace.
2. Arm yourself with thorough humility
Through the text, Jesus taught his disciples who were arguing over “who is greater in heaven” that such pride is a sin that does not allow them to enter the kingdom of heaven, let alone become a great person in heaven. And setting the little child in the middle, He said, "Whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." It is not about how to enter the kingdom of heaven, but about the character of a citizen of heaven. He is saying that the humility of a child is the character of a citizen of heaven, and it is the character of the great people in heaven.
3. Receive in the name of the Lord
To the disciples who want to become great in heaven, Jesus says in verse 5, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me." If you want to become great in heaven, He tells you to welcome the weak in the name of the Lord. To welcome us in the name of the Lord is to treat us like Jesus. Here lies the secret of heaven.