The parents would have seen the miracles that Jesus was doing; healing the sick, freeing the spiritually captive, opening the eyes of the blind, healing the ears of the deaf, teaching the truth with authority.
Parents love their children and they wanted Jesus to bless their children that they would grow healthy and strong and be given favour from God the Father.
The disciples, thinking the children were not worthy of Jesus’ time, were rebuking the parents.
When Jesus heard this he was upset with his disciples and said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these”.
Jesus had time for the children because he knew a secret - that no-one can enter the kingdom of heaven unless he or she lays down their own self-importance, their pride and humbles themselves before God like a child.
Little children fully trust and love their parents and unless we put our trust and love in God the Father we cannot enter his kingdom.
This takes a humility that does not come naturally in this world where we are constantly told that it is all about us, our needs, our wants, our happiness.
In the gospel of Matthew 18 the disciples asked Jesus, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”.
Jesus called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven”.
Believe in Jesus with the innocent trust of a child and enter God’s Kingdom forever.
~ Contributed by Ignite Life Church, Deniliquin on behalf of the Combined Churches of Deniliquin.
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