Matt. 18:1-20
Facebook live: Seeing Jesus through the eyes of faith!
18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
Some years ago, after I finished one of our Sunday services, I was standing in the Narthex greeting the people by the door as they came out of church. It was a time of joy and laughter; hugs and handshakes as was the norm for that time. As I stood there, little four-year-old Atarra Rich walked out, looked at me, waved and said, “Hi Jesus!”
It’s funny. I laughed as did those who heard it. But in reality Atarra didn’t see me – as Russ, or even Pastor Tkac.
In the robe and stole she saw the one called to be Christ’s under shepherd, here at Peace.
She saw Jesus and heard his word proclaimed, not in my person but in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ.
Though she might have not heard and understood all that was proclaimed. God, by the working of his Spirit as one baptized and marked as God’s redeemed, she recognized Jesus by faith.
Today in our lesson we learn of this faith, and that to be true Disciples of Christ one must first:
Be childlike in faith and love!
18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Last week we talked about being a disciple of Jesus and picking up our cross to follow Him. The bearing of one’s cross can, in this life lead to death, or as Jesus said:
“… whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
But, the disciples start talking among themselves wondering who, among them, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
The work of Satan and their own sinful pride were at work in them.
Though they had been discussing this privately, Jesus knew what had been going on as he in the gospel of St. Mark asks them specifically, in chapter 9:
“What were you discussing on the way?” Mark 9:33b
So, Jesus, as has been his way, teaches again the disciples an important lesson. He calls a little child to himself so as to illustrate the point in a very tangible way.
St. Mark goes on to say that Jesus took the child in His arms [Mark 9:36] and we could understand the Lord’s comfort, to this little one, as he places the child in their midst saying:
“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
To this we need as well to be reminded to be childlike in faith and love!
Because, sinful pride can become arrogance.
During the Civil War, Union general John Sedgwick at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, was inspecting his troops, urging his men to leave a ditch in which they lay in order to cover from the Confederate snipers hidden 800 to 1000 yards away.
According to Martin T. McMahon, Brevet Major-General, he and General Sedgwick were walking along the line when General Sedgwick noticed a soldier dodging a near-passing bullet, and said to him:
"What? Men dodging this way for single bullets? What will you do when they open fire along the whole line? I am ashamed of you. I'm ashamed of you, dodging that way. They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance."
Seconds later he fell forward with a bullet hole below his left eye.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitworth_Sharpshooters
How also our own sinful pride can drop us once again to the dirt and sin, back into our own filthy rags from which we have been washed clean, by the righteous blood of the Lamb.
Pride can cause us to look at who we are in the Kingdom, and what status we hold, or to even look at others and be ashamed with our own prideful arrogance.
Jesus says that:
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,
Those who trust Christ with simple faith have Jesus and receive all that Jesus has promised.
Martin Luther writes:
Consider Christ himself, how he draws little children to him, how urgently in Matthew 18 he commends them to us and praises the angles who wait upon them, in order to show us how great a service it is when we train the young properly.
LW Vol. 45 pg. 372
Martin Luther writes:
Consider Christ himself, how he draws little children to him, how urgently in Matthew 18 he commends them to us and praises the angles who wait upon them, in order to show us how great a service it is when we train the young properly.
LW Vol. 45 pg. 372
As we consider our regular worship, school, and all that our normal life is, we also need to get back to the good and holy work God has given us to do,
To, train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. Prov. 22:6
The responsibility even from the time of infancy calls parents of those who have been brought to faith in baptism, to not let these little ones who believe in me to fall - back into the sinfulness they were born into - before being called to faith in Jesus Christ by the working and power of the Holy Spirit.
You have a Godly calling as a parent to raise your child in the faith, especially if they are baptized, and to make sure that they are brought to God’s house for worship, where Christ gives his gifts of word and sacrament.
Also, the good work done by many in Sunday school and VBS helps all of these little ones, by God’s Holy Spirit, to see Jesus and to stay connected to him.
We all have in Christ, a Godly calling to keep children connected to Jesus and his word.
So why do so many parents and their children who have been baptized or confirmed, fail to do this and not remain connected to the church and Christ?
It’s work!
Children fight against it!
It is not fun like the world offers.
When I worked in the piano business I attended a piano teachers forum. One question was asked about parents who find it difficult to get their children to practice.
One teacher replied:
“If you don’t make them brush their teeth, they won’t do that either.”
The devil, the world and our sinful nature rebel against that which is good in God’s economy.
Piano lessons, travel teams, theatre and other programs are good in the life of children but they can get to these unless parents take them and much the same for church. If parents don’t come to church, children can’t and won’t and both suffer the loss of the gifts Christ gives in his word and through his sacraments, here.
12 What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? 13 And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14 So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
Friends,
Parenting is hard, but the reward great in God’s mercy and forgiveness for we who have been brought to the knowledge of the truth. Christ has promised to be where his church gathers.
Let us come and receive all that he has promised in humility and joy!
So that, he will bring forth, by faith, those who believe in him so they too can confess as the church confesses in Jesus,
“You are the Christ the Son of the Living God!”
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
To, train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. Prov. 22:6
The responsibility even from the time of infancy calls parents of those who have been brought to faith in baptism, to not let these little ones who believe in me to fall - back into the sinfulness they were born into - before being called to faith in Jesus Christ by the working and power of the Holy Spirit.
You have a Godly calling as a parent to raise your child in the faith, especially if they are baptized, and to make sure that they are brought to God’s house for worship, where Christ gives his gifts of word and sacrament.
Also, the good work done by many in Sunday school and VBS helps all of these little ones, by God’s Holy Spirit, to see Jesus and to stay connected to him.
We all have in Christ, a Godly calling to keep children connected to Jesus and his word.
So why do so many parents and their children who have been baptized or confirmed, fail to do this and not remain connected to the church and Christ?
It’s work!
Children fight against it!
It is not fun like the world offers.
When I worked in the piano business I attended a piano teachers forum. One question was asked about parents who find it difficult to get their children to practice.
One teacher replied:
“If you don’t make them brush their teeth, they won’t do that either.”
The devil, the world and our sinful nature rebel against that which is good in God’s economy.
Piano lessons, travel teams, theatre and other programs are good in the life of children but they can get to these unless parents take them and much the same for church. If parents don’t come to church, children can’t and won’t and both suffer the loss of the gifts Christ gives in his word and through his sacraments, here.
12 What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? 13 And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14 So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
Friends,
Parenting is hard, but the reward great in God’s mercy and forgiveness for we who have been brought to the knowledge of the truth. Christ has promised to be where his church gathers.
Let us come and receive all that he has promised in humility and joy!
So that, he will bring forth, by faith, those who believe in him so they too can confess as the church confesses in Jesus,
“You are the Christ the Son of the Living God!”
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
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