Childlike Faith

May 22, 2016 Background Scripture: Luke 18:15 – 17; Mark 10:13 – 16 Lesson Passage: Luke 18:15 – 17; Mark 10:16 As we mature in life, we often develop a different way of viewing the world that is not always healthy for us. As children, we knew how to live within the moment and not be preoccupied with worries about the future. We were daydreamers and it seems that our imaginations sometimes worked overtime as we thought about all of the “what ifs” even if they were not always realistic—What if we could fly? We were not afraid to allow our emotions to carry us to the extreme. We cried and laughed loudly. When adults—or grownups as we knew them then—said something to us, we believed them. We trusted adults around us who we knew. In fact, we even gave some strangers the benefit of doubt based on their physical appearance. We were not skeptics or pessimists. We believed that things were going to work out the right way and we would be happy in the end. Being happy was always on our agenda as children. We expected life to be fun and we looked forward to experiencing good things and good times. As a child, I did not know any children who expected to grow old and become a grouch or sourpuss. Many of us thought we would grow up to be heroes and heroines. If we felt that anything was lacking in an adult, we purposed in our minds to not allow that to be our case when we were grown. These may be some of the reasons we feel young again when we are around a group of young people. Young people don’t have the life experiences to judge critically. They are still experiencing new things in life and adding those experiences to their awareness and knowledge. Much of their passion for life is driven by curiosity. Jesus was a local phenomenon during his ministry and this attracted many people to him. His miracles were widely known and many tried to avail themselves of a miracle when they were in his presence. Some were parents who brought their young children to him to be blessed by him. Jesus’ disciples rebuked the people and attempted to keep them from bringing the children to Jesus. Jesus reacted by rebuking the disciples for their actions. Jesus pointed towards the attitude of the little children as the type that is desirous of all who would enter the kingdom of God. The text of our lesson tells us about the actions of the parents, the disciples, and of Jesus. The text does not tell us about the children’s actions or thoughts but Jesus’ reaction suggests that there was anticipation in the children of meeting and receiving a blessing from him. Maybe when their parents told them what they would do that day, the children developed an anticipation of the results. Jesus responded about the need for the children to be brought to him. He went on to talk about how receptive the children are to the kingdom and that everyone needed to have this same disposition. Although some unpleasant experiences in life may cause us to feel down, we should learn to bounce back in anticipation of what God is going to do in our lives because of the teachings of Jesus. And even more than his teachings, Jesus’ actions have provided great opportunities for us to enter and experience the kingdom of God even in this life. As children of God, we should exhibit childlike faith. Robert C. Hudson April 27, 2016