The innocent ones … yeah, right!
We read the story of Jesus and the children in Matthew 19:13-15. It says, “Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.’ And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.” You can also read this in Mark 10:13-16 and Luke 18:15-17. It’s a beautiful story. Mothers had brought their children to Jesus to have Him put His hands on them, and the disciples, thinking that Jesus was too busy, sent them away. Jesus then spoke up telling them not to turn them away, further stating that we all must become as little children in order to enter His kingdom. He then proceeded to lay His hands on them and Mark tells us that He even took them up in His arms as He blessed them.
We have a tendency, when reading about this incident, to think of the children as loving, perfect little angels NOT! Most children, in reality are snottynosed, germ- infested mischievous imps. Now before you throw your hands up in the air and get all defensive on me, take a moment and think back to when you were a child. Remember all those things that were going through your head? “Stay out of those cookies” she said, “I’ll show her,” as you pulled a kitchen chair over and balanced with one foot on the counter trying to defiantly reach the cookie jar. Are you remembering now?
Our own children, as much as we loved them growing up, required frequent discipline, and you know it. How many nights did you just want to scream and tear your hair out because little junior wouldn’t stop crying? You had to get up at 1 AM and walk him around until he fell asleep and now it’s 2:30 and you have to be at work at 6. Uh-huh; innocent you say?
They could be a handful and sometimes you wanted to wring their necks - But they could also be good as gold. How precious the moments when they would climb up in your lap and ask, “could you read me a story Daddy?” Of course, you could and would. There were many beautiful moments too, right?
Children can be a handful and extremely mischievous at times, but they can also bring a satisfaction that makes it all disappear in a moment’s notice.
When it comes to their belief and trust in what you say, it is simply a matter-of-fact. Whatever you tell them is truth and the gospel as far as they are concerned. More often than not, they don’t require proof and they don’t run for their phone to fact check you. If Mom or Dad says it is so, then, as far as they are concerned it is so, end of sentence, end of story.
That’s what Jesus was talking about when He said “of such is the kingdom of heaven.” We don’t require proof positive at every word because we just take Him at His word.
On the other hand, it isn’t wrong to establish truth just to bring clarity and substantiation to the matter, but it does mean that we learn to trust that God knows what He is talking about and we just know that we can trust Him.
In that respect, yes, we are and can be ‘the innocent ones.” We can trust God’s word. There’s plenty of proof out there that the Bible is true and can be trusted. But there’s something humbling to just be at peace and simply believe.
Those are the ones making up the Kingdom of Heaven. Let’s learn to simply and humbly and without doubt and hesitation learn to trust God. It is freeing, I promise you. To just let go and simply believe will take you to an entirely different world. And that is the way of the innocent ones.
— Jerry D. Ousley is the author of “Soul Challenge”, “Soul Journey”, “Ordeal”, “The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional” and his first novel “The Shoe Tree.” Newer books include “Finality” and “Dividing God’s Church.” Visit the website at spiritbread. com to download these and more completely free of charge