“People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place
his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus
called the children to him and said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and
do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I
tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child
will never enter it.’” (Luke 18:15-17)
Some parents wanted their children to be blessed by the Lord
Jesus but the disciples saw this they rebuked them not to do so. When Jesus saw
that, he was indignant (Mark 10:14). There must a great significance in the
children’s virtue regarding the kingdom of heaven. Otherwise, our Lord Jesus
would not have been indignant. Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let
the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God
belongs to such as these.” He stresses further, “Truly I tell you, anyone who
will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
What does he man by it? We all know that children are not
always pleasant and delightful. They are selfish and rudely irresponsible and
demand their parents relentlessly, draining all the energy. Jesus doesn’t mean
that kind of childish characters. There are invaluable qualities in children.
They are honesty without pretense and unending learning heart. They are honest
and straight in asking question what they do not know. They always make the
point in asking questions without making ambiguous terms or gestures which all
the adults do. They don’t have any pretense or facades to get to the point about
what they really wanted to know. As I am not a native tongue, at times I make
out that I am understanding though I don’t, especially very short phrases,
mostly humors. But children don’t pretend to know something if not knowing or
understanding. A question most parents might have encountered by their children
may be this: “Dad, why don’t we have sun at night when we needed the most?” The
question is simple but difficult to answer.
The quality of honesty and straightness fits to the kingdom
of God. In the previous parable, the parable of the Pharisee and the tax
collector, Jesus said the latter went home justified by God because he was
honest and straight with God. The Pharisee made his case before God how much he
was credited by his own righteousness through the regular fasting and giving a
tithe. But he didn’t know how to be honest and straight with God who sees and
knows the heart of man. His mind and heart were blinded and darkened by losing
the quality of being like children to present the truthfulness and reality of
himself. He didn’t search what he was and why he was not with the light of God
but with that of man. These kind of people never fit to the kingdom of God, nor
enter it.
Another quality of children is learning heart and mind.
Children absorb knowledge like sponge. They don’t doubt to what have been told
to their ears but receive into their hearts. No wonder children can pick up
many languages without much struggling which the adults have in learning just
one foreign language. Their curiosity of learning overflows and easily exhausts
the parents in answering their imaginative and curious questions all day long.
They see what the adults don’t see. They see stars in the sand and are
fascinated by the wonders of nature and body. They are flexible and bendable in
absorbing the knowledge of the universe and humanity. The Pharisee had a fixed
idea on humanity, considering and even condemning the outcasts like robbers,
evildoers, adulterers, and tax collectors. Because of prejudice and
stubbornness in heart and mind, he was darkened and blinded not to see the
truth and reality of humanity. Robbers can be changed and so can evildoers, adulterers,
and tax collectors be justified by God when they learn the truth that they are
the helplessly lost and wretched sinners before him. These kind of proud people
are bounded by the bigoted thought that they are right and others wrong.
Prophet Isiah cried out to the stiff-necked people in prophetic words.
“Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth! For the Lord has
spoken: ‘I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against
me. The ox knows its master, the donkey its owner’s manger, but Israel does not
know, my people do not understand.” (Isiah 1:2-3)
If they continue to practice the unqualified characters of
dishonesty, crookedness, bigotry, prejudice, not listening to the words of
truth, they will never enter the kingdom of God for it is given to those who
receive the kingdom like a little child. God opposes the proud and the stubborn
with their own righteousness but shows favors to the humble clothed with the
righteousness of Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus warns that such a people will
never enter the kingdom of God. By the way, what's the kingdom of God? It is
not a remote some place in heaven where the believers go after this earthly
life. It is true that the believers in Christ Jesus will enter the kingdom of
heaven in full scale after this life is over but that's not all.
The kingdom of God is rather invisible and yet more real and
true. For example, although we don't see the earth is rotating around the sun
and spinning itself with the tremendous speed we believe it is true. Although
we don't see nor feel oxygen in the air, we believe that this invisible
substance is taken by breathing every second day and night and essential to
sustain life. We see the shadow and believe that there must be the real
substance of it. So, in fact, what we see and feel is not all but the
reflection of the invisible substance. What's the real substance? Apostle Paul
reveals an amazing truth how all the things in the universe are working and
functioning in harmony and order without fail so faithfully and so many years
and years.
"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the
firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in
heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers
or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is
before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians
1:15-17)
The invisible supreme being who is holding all things together is Jesus Christ the Lord who created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities. All things have been created through him and for him and without him nothing was made that has been made. So, the kingdom of God is the invisible, real, and true kingdom where God the Lord of all is ruling and reigning now and forevermore. Then, what’s meaning of entering into the kingdom of God? It means to get to the point of understanding on the truth and reality because otherwise everything remains in the realm of visibility and feeling which is only part of it. That is called by the Scriptures “Locked in darkness and confusion.” Jesus came into the world to open the eyes of the blind to see the true kingdom of God. Prophet Isaiah prophesied what would the Messiah do when he came into the world in the marvelous poetic words.
The invisible supreme being who is holding all things together is Jesus Christ the Lord who created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities. All things have been created through him and for him and without him nothing was made that has been made. So, the kingdom of God is the invisible, real, and true kingdom where God the Lord of all is ruling and reigning now and forevermore. Then, what’s meaning of entering into the kingdom of God? It means to get to the point of understanding on the truth and reality because otherwise everything remains in the realm of visibility and feeling which is only part of it. That is called by the Scriptures “Locked in darkness and confusion.” Jesus came into the world to open the eyes of the blind to see the true kingdom of God. Prophet Isaiah prophesied what would the Messiah do when he came into the world in the marvelous poetic words.
“A voice of one calling: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way
for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley
shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall
become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be
revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has
spoken.’” (Isaiah 40:3-5)
This is believed to be the ministry of John the Baptizer who
came and lived as the forerunner of Christ to prepare the way for the Lord by
baptizing the people in the Jordan River. This is exactly what our Lord Jesus
answered to the question of John the Baptizer who sent for him, asking “Are you
the one to come, or should we expect someone else?” (Luke 7:19) What’s Jesus’
answer?
“So he replied to the messengers, ‘Go back and report to
John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk,
those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and
the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble
on account of me.” (Luke 7:22-23)
In the Gospel of John Chapter 9, the Apostle records the
healing of the man born blind. It stirred quite a commotion among the religious
leaders because it was on the Sabbath Jesus healed. They were not interested in
the amazing healing of the poor man but in finding the fact to accuse Jesus
whom they thought he broke the law of Moses. They summoned the man and his parents
to scrutinize, hoping them to accuse Jesus as well. But their effort of
examining him was gone nowhere, so they condemned and excommunicated the man
who resisted to cooperate. Jesus found him and graciously and kindly spoked to
him and he worshiped Jesus (John 9:35-38). Then Jesus says these words to the
Pharisees and the scribes.
“Jesus said, ’For judgment I have come into this world, so
that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.’ Some Pharisees
who were with him heard him say this and asked, ‘What? Are we blind too?’ Jesus
said, ‘If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you
claim you can see, your guilt remains.’” (John 9:39-41)
That’s an example of not entering the kingdom of God. The
Pharisees and the scribes of the Law are the people who proudly say that they
know God and his commandments more than anyone else. They say they see and know
about God who is invisible and has promised to their forefathers to send the
Messiah. But it proves that they do not know nothing at all because they do not
recognize the Promised Messiah who has appeared to their own eyes with the
miracle of healing prophesied and fulfilled. Jesus says, “If you were blind,
you would not be guilty of sin, but now that you claim you can see, your guilt
remains.” Apostle John expounds this truth so aptly that if we confess our sins,
God is faithful and just and he will forgive us our sins and purify us from all
unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Further, he says, “If we claim we have not
sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1:10)
God cannot allow anyone to enter into the kingdom of heaven
unless they receive the kingdom like a little child. The kingdom of God is real
and true now and forever. For example, our Lord Jesus demonstrated during his
earthly life how he lived in the kingdom of heaven. How could he control
himself when he was falsely and untruthfully accused and charged though he was
sinless? How could he maintain peace and rest when he was tried and condemned
to death for blasphemy by the Sanhedrin? How could be bear the wrongful trial
before Pontius Pilate and the condemnation to crucifixion, the sacrilege, and
the culmination of being nailed on a cross? The Author of Hebrews tells us that
the Lord Jesus Christ endured the cross for the joy set before him (Hebrews 12:2).
Our Lord Jesus fully realized and knew that the sin of the world would be paid
to the fullest through his death. He was aware of the Father in the midst who
showed and told him everything what he ought to do.
“Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself;
he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does
the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes,
and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.”
(John 5:19-20)
Therefore, the way to enter into the kingdom of heaven is
Jesus Christ. To follow him, we must deny ourselves and take up our crosses
daily. The cross of Christ Jesus is the way to the kingdom of God. The cross of
Christ is offense to the proud (Galatians 5:11). Man in Adam has a great
trouble to accept the fact that he is lost miserably and helplessly. Man tries
harder and harder not to accept the fact that he is in desperate need. It is
impossible with man but all things are possible with God. Who could even guess
that Saul of Tarsus would be changed into a man of God, Apostle Paul? When we
receive the kingdom of God like a little child, we can live like Christ even
now and forevermore.
Prayer: Thank you Father for the gracious invitation to the
kingdom of heaven with one condition that we accept the fact we are lost and do
not see but we will be seeing and living in the kingdom of God in Jesus Christ
who opens our eyes to see it and enables us to enter into it. Thank you Lord
for being the way to the kingdom of God by giving your life on a cross in our
place. In Christ’s name. Amen.
August 12, 2016
© 2015-2016 David
Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.
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