From the Pulpit...

As he ministers, the Lord instructs His disciples not to treat children like a nuisance, but to bless them. More importantly, he takes the opportunity to remind his audience that it is child-like faith that is the distinguishing mark of heavenly citizens. Without that, you are a child of the devil.The Lord left that location and went on to another place to continue His ministry. But we are left with the question of how to apply this text. We intuitively understand that we must care deeply for young people. The church and its individuals must minister to little ones. The society at large and its laws must protect them from harms of all sorts. Yet today, we do not protect, but rather expose our young ones to dangerous and immoral ideas. We do not teach them religious instruction and thus by omission make many think that religion is irrelevant. Again, and more importantly, we are reminded that kingdom citizenry is not opened up to self-sufficient people. It is for those who are like children in their estimation of themselves.