Turn Like Children
Matthew 18:1-4 ESV
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
What is it about children
that Jesus used them as an example to us as to what we must be like if we want
to enter the kingdom of heaven?
For the past two weeks I have
been taking care of my 2-year-old granddaughter so that my daughter and her
husband and my husband can work on getting my daughter’s (and her husband’s)
house finished, so that they can move into it soon. So, I have very recent
experience in what a little child is like, at least this little 2-year-old, and
she is precious.
Little ones, like my
granddaughter, are very trusting, believing, and under good circumstances, are
usually fearless. At least, she is! They will jump into your arms without
thought that you might not catch them. They believe you will. They will pray
for anything and everything, totally trusting their prayers will be answered. If
you tell them something, they believe you, unless, of course, you have trained
them to not believe you, because you are a teaser.
So, for us to enter into the
kingdom of heaven, we must have faith like that of a little child, which trusts
God, believes what he says, and jumps into his arms, putting our lives totally
in his hands, letting him catch us and hold us.
And, this is what the word “faith”
actually means, too, for it means that we are persuaded by God as to his
righteousness and holiness, and as to his will for our lives. And, if persuaded
(convinced), then we submit to him and to his will for our lives, and we turn
away from our sins, and we put our lives in his hands and we follow him in
obedience and go wherever it is he leads us. We believe what he tells us and we
act on that faith by doing what he says.
In His Name
Matthew 18:5 ESV (cf. Matt.
25:31-46)
“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me…
At this point, Jesus is no
longer speaking literally just of little children, but of those who have come
to him with the faith of a little child, and who have truly trusted in him to
be Lord and Savior of their lives, turning from sin, and turning to walk in his
love and in obedience to his commands.
For any of us to receive
(accept, welcome) anything or anyone in the name of Jesus, we have to also have
faith in Jesus Christ, for his name represents who he is - his divine character
and will. So, this would be according to the will of God. Only by the grace of
God, according to his will, are we able to fully embrace another follower of
Christ, because only by the mind of Christ are we able to truly connect
spiritually with another believer in Jesus Christ.
But, this goes even further
than this. If we are in Christ Jesus, by this child-like faith in Him, which
believes what he says, and which follows him in obedience, then we are part of
the body of Christ, and we are his representatives.
Thus, if we are representing him
in this world, and we are sharing his gospel of salvation, then how others
treat us is how they also are treating Jesus. If they reject us, who are
following him, then they are rejecting him. But, if they accept us, who are
following him, then they are accepting him, too.
But, this is not just about
people of the world coming to faith in Jesus Christ. This is about those who
profess the name of Jesus and how they treat others who also profess the name
of Jesus.
If we reject (dismiss,
cast-off) those who are truly following Christ with child-like faith, as is evidenced
by their lifestyles, according to the teachings of scripture, then we, too, are
rejecting Jesus. But, if we receive those who, with child-like faith, are truly
following Christ with their lives, then we are accepting Jesus and the work
that he is doing now in this world of ours.
Woe to the Tempter
Matthew 18:5-7 ESV
“… but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes!
This is a solemn warning to
those who would attempt to lead a follower of Christ into sin. But, this is not
about just tempting others to sin, but it is literally about laying a trap for
them, putting a stumbling block in their way, on purpose, with the hope that
they will fall, because they want them to fall. And, there are people who do
this, and they are not all those who make no profession of faith in Christ,
either, but they are numbered among those who profess faith in Christ, who are
part of the gatherings of the body of Christ.
And, the thing of it is, this
is not always so obvious. In fact, it usually isn’t, for traps are usually
hidden, otherwise they would not be traps. There are many people, even within
the gatherings of the church, who are clever enchanters, winsome, and manipulative
individuals who are able very subtly to talk believers in Christ into sinning
against God. And, they utilize many of the tactics Satan uses to convince
Christians to not obey, or else they convince them that they don’t have to obey
Christ.
Many of these liars and
deceivers are even pastors in churches who are telling their congregations that
God does not require repentance or obedience or submission to his will for our
lives. They are giving people a false hope of salvation and free license to
continue in their sinful practices, hoping to keep them coming back to their “churches”
(businesses) for they are all about pleasing the customer base, not about
pleasing God.
So, we need much wisdom so
that we don’t fall prey to their traps.
Throw it Away!
Matthew 18:8-9 ESV
“And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
Regarding any sin in our own
lives, which might find its way back into our lives, we need to throw it off.
By the Spirit, we need to daily be putting to death the fruitless deeds of
darkness, dying daily to sin and self, and putting on the armor of God (See:
Rom. 8:1-17; Lu. 9:23-25; Eph. 6:10-20).
But, this isn’t just about
getting rid of sin in our lives, but this is about casting off anything which
leads us to sin. We have to cut sin off at the root or it will continue to find
its way back into our hearts.
So, how do we do this? Well,
we first off have to find what is leading us into sin. Sometimes we repeat the
same sins over and over again because of unforgiveness, bitterness, anger or
resentment built up in our hearts against others and against God, for that
matter. We may be angry with God because life has dealt us some hard blows, and
so, rather than trust the Lord with our circumstances, we run from them into
sinful practices. It is a form of rebellion against God and his sovereignty
over our lives.
So, in that case, we have to
repent of all bitterness, resentment and anger, and we must forgive God, who
has done us no wrong, and others who have wronged us or who we believe have
wronged us. Then, we need to trust the Lord with our lives, believe that he is
in control, and that he has our best interest in mind in all things, and that,
in all things, he is working out his purposes for our lives for our good.
Yet, there may also be
physical things in this world which are leading us to sin against God, which we
may have been unwilling to let go of, and as long as we continue to hold on to
them, we will continue the cycle of repeating the same sins over and over
again.
For example, so many people
these days are addicted to lust, particularly in the area of sexual sin. Some
of them have tried and tried to forsake their lust addictions, only to keep
failing. And, that is why a lot of folks are embracing the false grace gospel,
for it alleviates their guilt they feel, if they even feel guilt, for their
continued failures, because it promises them heaven guaranteed no matter how
they live their lives on this earth, and it gives them free license to continue
in their sin addictions.
Still, if we are truly in
Christ, by faith in him, and we fall into sin, he is our defense to God. We don’t
lose our salvation every time we sin, as some do teach. But, the sin does break
our fellowship with God, so we need to repent of it, and then keep walking in
the ways of the Lord. But, if it is sin we keep repeating, then we need to find
out the source, and cut out the source.
So, if the sin is lust
addiction, in particularly pornography, which is what so many people struggle
with these days, and the person struggling with this - which means he or she is
continually giving in to the sin - wants to truly be free of it, once and for
all, then they have to be willing to make the necessary cuts. Smart phones are
really bad for those with lust addiction, for they provide 24/7 private access
to porn from the convenience of their pockets with no to little accountability.
So, make the necessary cuts!
Bottom line here is that, if
we want victory over sin, we have to be willing to go the distance with God and
cut out of our lives what is leading us to sin against God, and then, if we are
willing, we can get victory over those sins. But, we have to cooperate with his
work of grace in our lives, or it won’t happen. We have to mean business with
sin. We can’t play with fire.
Shine Jesus Shine / Graham Kendrick
Jesus, Light of the world,
shine upon us
Set us free by the truth You
now bring us
Shine, Jesus, shine
Fill this land with the
Father's glory
Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our
hearts on fire
Flow, river, flow
Flood the nations with grace
and mercy
Send forth Your Word, Lord and
let there be light
Thursday, May 10, 2018, 7:45
a.m. – Thank you, Jesus, for this truth from Your Word. Bring it home to our
hearts, I pray in Jesus’ holy name. Amen!
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