Tuesday 21 Dec 2021

December 21: Matthew 19:13-15

Key Verse: Matthew 19:14
Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’

Devotion:
I love this passage because of how much it reminds me of my childhood. I grew up in a time when people used to say things like “children should be seen and not heard!” Yes, people did use to say things like that, and it wasn’t that long ago. Of course I objected to that saying back then, and I still do now; after having children of my own and allowing them to have a voice, I do believe children should be able to speak out of turn – and given the right teaching, they can learn when it is appropriate to say things, not by being denied, but by being encouraged at the right time.

God does not scold us for every little thing we do wrong, instead He allows us to come forward and learn. He does this by positive teaching too. The more we get to see how much God cares for us and how much He is able to support us, the more willing we are to come forward at the right time and gain from His teaching.

He does not want to have ‘slave children’ but rather to have children who are willing to come to Him at any time and feel comfortable about doing so. He also wants us to know we can get support from Him at all times; sometimes we can gain from doing things ourselves whilst other times we need to stop and ask for help. As long as we are willing to listen, we will learn what is the right approach to make.

The disciples immediately went on the offensive and tried to prevent the children from approaching Jesus – but he wanted them and the disciples to know He was there for us all. Jesus wanted to show the disciples His love extended beyond the harsh teaching of the adults and into a realm where they could learn more by getting involved. God is encouraging us to get involved more too!

Points to Ponder:
Do you encourage people or discourage them?

Will you try to encourage people to know God more intimately?