The kingdom of God is populated by children because that is who we all are. We are just getting started in our spiritual journey.
Read: Mark 10:13-34
Do you remember what it was like to be a kid? Sometimes I have this longing to go back to my childhood and relive simpler times. Other days I feel like I’ve never actually grown up and still have a lot of maturing to do.
I was teaching this passage about little children to a group of kids at our Church. As an illustration, I asked them if they had ever been on a rollercoaster. I held out my hand and pretended to be the ride operator, measuring the kids to see if they were tall enough. I had them all walk under it one by one. They weren't.
I compared this to what the disciples were doing when they prevented the children from seeing Jesus. Acting as Jesus’ bodyguards, they wouldn’t let the children get close to Him.
I then jumped ahead to the next story. It describes a man who was too proud to follow Jesus. In other words, he was too tall. The disciples, watching how Jesus welcomed the children and sent away the rich man, were astonished. If a rich man cannot enter the kingdom of God, then who can be saved? Would they be rewarded for following Christ?
Treasures in Heaven
There is something unique about these stories that is told in all three of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke). The “Little Children” and the “Rich Young Ruler” are always tied together. In fact, the question of what makes the children remarkable in the kingdom of God is only fully understood when we compare it to what this young man lacked.
We might consider Jesus’ words to this young man as a bit harsh, but Mark gives us a unique perspective on the encounter, “And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said…” Jesus recognized the problem with this young man. He was self assured and well established. His treasures and pride prevented him from receiving the blessings of the Kingdom of God. Jesus had compassion on him when He told him to sell all that he had and give it to the poor.
This man was likely a Pharisee. He was sophisticated and well educated. Yet for as intelligent as he must have been, he certainly didn’t understand the economics of kingdom treasures. Having established his own kingdom on earth, he wasn’t willing to give it up for the kingdom of God. Later, Jesus tells the disciples that the treasures in heaven are a hundredfold better than the treasures on earth. This guy really missed out.
In this context, the children chose Jesus. They didn’t overthink it. They weren’t even considering what they might have to give up. The disciples also chose to follow Jesus, which required sacrifice. Although they didn’t fully understand the kingdom that Jesus was describing, they were still welcomed in. The uniting principle is that neither the children nor the disciples were able to comprehend what following Jesus meant, but they were doing it anyway. That is what made all the difference.
You Must Be Born Again
Jesus said, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.”
Throughout Scripture, we are invited to come to God with childlike faith. In fact, when another Pharisee came questioning Jesus in the Gospel of John, Jesus told him that he had to be born again. Nicodemus responded, “How can a man be born when he is old” (John 3:4). Herein lies the problem. We spend the majority of our lives building up treasures on earth, establishing our self-worth. Then Jesus tells us we have to start over. When we come to Jesus, we are not only given a clean slate from our sins, but all of our progress is wiped away as well.
The new birth is the starting point for every believer. That means that we cannot bring anything from ourselves to our own salvation. Like Nicodemus, we have to start from square one. The kingdom of God is populated by children because that is who we all are. We are just getting started in our spiritual journey. Compared to Jesus, our elder brother, we have a long way to go before we reach maturity.
The disciples didn’t get it right away. In fact, they were pretty childish throughout their three years with Jesus. It’s easy to look at this passage and miss this point. Jesus is not suggesting that we should all act like children. He’s saying that we literally have to become children. We have to be born again.
Who Can Be Saved?
Jesus went on to say, “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
That is a pretty strong statement. Jesus further establishes just how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God by describing it like getting a camel to go through the eye of a needle. The disciples understood this to be an impossible task. “Then who can be saved?” they asked. Jesus said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
Nicodeumus asked a similar question, “Can (a man) enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born” (John 3:4)? This is not something that we can do for ourselves. We can’t go back to our childhood and start over again. The solution will not come from a counseling session where we discover our childhood hurt and resolve it so that we can move forward. No. We have to be born again and this is a work that only God can do.
We all start at the same point, dead in our tresspasses and sins. Then we are made alive in Christ and adopted as children of God. Our sanctification is a slow and messy process, just like raising children, changing diapers and wiping noses. But He who began this good work in us will complete it (Philippians 1:6).
The disciples would eventually grow into mature Christians, but it would take some time. They started off as children, born again, just learning what it meant to walk like Jesus. Fortunately, like the children, they were safe in the hands of Christ. He would see them through to the end.
The First Will Be Last
After teaching this lesson to the children, I put my hand about a foot above the floor to demonstrate the principle that there is no standard of righteousness that we must meet in order to be saved. I then asked if any of the kids were able to measure up to the now much lower standard.
To my surprise, all of the kids dropped to the ground and tried to fit under my hand. In that instance, I realized another quality that the rich young ruler did not possess. He was not willing to lower himself and be humbled. He considered himself too tall to enter Jesus’ kingdom. He wasn’t going to grovel on the floor like the children.
Jesus, Himself, came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). He’s not only the one who saves us from our sins, He’s also the one who models maturity for us. He humbled Himself and left His throne in heaven to come down into His own creation to seek and save the lost. He loved His enemies, served the poor, healed the sick, welcomed the children, and washed the disciples’ feet. Ultimately, He died on the cross and His death paid the penalty for the sins of the world. He rose from the grave and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God, preparing a place for us until we come into our glorified bodies.
In the meantime, let’s enjoy being children of God (Ephesians 5:1). Let’s seek to grow up into mature adulthood in the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13). Let’s be filled with the Spirit and encourage one another with songs, hymns, and spiritual songs (Ephesians 5:19).