church

INI
Third Sunday After Trinity
June 28, 2009
Ascension Lutheran Church, Tacoma WA
Paul Naumann, Pastor

OF SUCH IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Mark 10:13-16

Grace, mercy, and peace be with you from God the Father and from the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, Amen. This morning's text is taken from the
tenth chapter of Mark's Gospel, beginning with t he thirteenth verse, as follows:

Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the
disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He was
greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do
not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you,
whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means
enter it.” And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and
blessed them. So far the Holy Word.

In the Name of Jesus Christ, DEAR CHILDREN,

-- Are you surprised to hear me address you that way? Perhaps you adults
already feel a little left out: "Why should I listen if the pastor is only going to
talk to the children?" You may be right. Today's sermon is only for children,
because according to the Bible, there's something very special about being a
child.

Now that seems odd, doesn't it? We usually talk about childhood as though it
were something to escape. Kids generally can't wait to grow up, so they can
have more responsibility and do more fun things. When a person does
something we consider foolish, we often say, "Don't be so childish! When are
you=2 0ever going to grow up?" But there is one area of life where it’s really
good to be childish - or, more properly speaking, childlike - and that's the
kingdom of God. Jesus' words in our text for today reveal that, not only are
children included in the kingdom of God -- but only children may enter it!
Consider with me the words of our Lord:

OF SUCH IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD!
I. Children are for the kingdom.
II. The kingdom is for children.

At the wrong time and in the wrong place, having kids around can be a bit
irritating, isn't it true? Well, at the time of our text, Jesus and His disciples were
in the region of Transjordan in Judea. On this particular day Jesus was teaching
them about the sanctity of God's holy institution of marriage, a subject the
disciples were very interested in. That's why they became rather annoyed when
their discussion was interrupted -- by a bunch of kids. Actually, it was a group
of Jewish mothers who were bringing their children to Jesus. By the way, the
parallel account in Luke reveals that at least some of these children were infants
- newborn babies (hold that thought, because that will be important in a minute
or two). What did the mothers want? They wanted Jesus to lay His hands on
them and bless them. Then they brought little children to Him, that He might
touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

The word for "rebuke" there, by the way, is very strong - they forbade them,
they threatened them. After all, there was an important discussion going on!
They were talking about matters that concerned the kingdom of God. Certainly
- they thought - Jesus had no time for children! That was how they felt about it,
anyway. Keep the kids out of here! What have they got to do with the kingdom
of God? Very shortly, however, the disciples would find themselves on the
sharp end of Jesus' tongue. They'd learn a hard lesson about children; Jesus'
lesson, that children ARE for the kingdom!

The disciples were making a big mistake by forbidding little children to come
to Jesus. But you know, they're not the only ones. It's a mistake a lot of people
make, even in our day. You may be aware that Reformed churches refuse to
baptize young children. Like those disciples, they want to withhold this
powerful means of grace from little children. Why? First, they believe that
baptism is nothing more than a symbol, an act of confession and obedience
performed by us. And if that were true – if baptism were nothing more than a
symbol, then it might make sense to withhold it from children until they’re old
enough to understand the symbolism. But baptism is much more than this
watered-down Reformed version. Scripture proves that what baptism really is is
an act of divine grace performed by God. What does baptism give or profit?
Luther answers, "It works forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil
and gives eternal salvation to all who believe." So you see the difference -
baptism is not an act of obedience performed by man, but a means of grace
bestowed by God. Yet the Reformed reason that you must reach a so-called
“age of discretion” (13-14 years old) before you are baptized. They say that you
can't really believe until you're old enough to know what you believe in. And
that obviously doesn't include little children.

My fellow-Christians: how terrible it would be if that were true! We know from
Scripture that, without faith in Jesus, the kingdom of God is locked. And if little
children can't believe, then little children simply are not for the kingdom. Then
the disciples were right in forbidding them to come to Jesus. But notice our text.
Jesus didn't approve of what the disciples were doing. Far from it - He lashed
out at them in righteous anger! When Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased
and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them;
for of such is the kingdom of God.” You're wrong, He said, children ARE for
the kingdom, and don't you forget it!

"Of such IS the kingdom of God." With these words, Jesus specifically
includes even the smallest children in the congregation of His saved believers.
Make no mistake about it, children ARE for the kingdom! "Let them come to
Me," Jesus says. That means little children are ready to come to Jesus, if only
some misguided grownups don't get in the way! What a warning this is for those
who would deny baptism to little children. What a warning for those parents
who take their children to school, to activities, to sporting events -- but won't
bring them to Jesus - won't bring them to church and to Sunday School! How
chilling are the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 18, "But whoever causes one
of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a
millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the
sea." -- Mat 18:6.

On the other hand, what a blessed invitation we have here from Jesus.
"Children ARE for the kingdom," Jesus says, "so bring them to Me!" That's why
we bring even our infant children to be baptized - because they're part of the
"all nations" Jesus commanded us to baptize, because they too are sinful and
need forgiveness, and because they too can believe -- as this text so clearly
proves!

Like those Jewish mothers did that day, Christian parents are encouraged by
the Savior to bring their children to Him. Bring them early, and bring them
often! An expert on child development once advised, "Be very careful what you
put into the head of a child, because chances are you'll never get it out again."
How true that is! The lessons children learn in their youth remain with them for
the rest of their lives. Many a elderly Christian has gone to his rest treasuring
the Bible stories he learned at his mother's knee, the faithful teachings he
learned in Sunday School and confirmation class -- the beloved hymns he sang
in the church he grew up in. Wise King Solomon said in the Book of Proverbs,
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart
from it." --Pr 22:6. As often as you bring your children to Jesus, you will never
be turned away. Christ promises to give them His richest blessings. At the
conclusion of our text comes the scene that we've often seen portrayed so
touchingly in artists' pictures: And Jesus took them up in His arms, laid His
hands on them, and blessed them.

Children ARE for the kingdom, there's no doubt about that. If that were the
only message of this text, I could say "Amen" right now. But Jesus has another
lesson to teach us here, and this one is for everybody - parents and single
people, children and grownups alike. The lesson is: The kingdom is for
CHILDREN.

Jesus said, "Of such is the kingdom of God," and He was talking about
children. We understand that part. But He added this: Assuredly, I say to you,
whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means
enter it. This is something else again! Jesus says that not only are children
admitted to the kingdom -- but nobody except children can be admitted. You
have to be a child to be saved! That doesn't mean that you must be four feet tall
and under the age of ten. But it does mean that you must have a faith that is
CHILDLIKE. Jesus said you have to "receive the kingdom of God as a little
child."

And how does a child receive things? Well, let’s think about that for a moment.
A child rec eives things with simple acceptance. The kingdom of God is only
for those with a child's acceptance. When a little child asks his parents what a
giraffe is, or how an automobile works, and they explain it to him, he accepts
what they tell him in simple faith. For a child, the test of truth is very simple: if
Mom and Dad say so, then it must be true. When parents tell their children
about Jesus - how He loves them, and how He suffered and died to take away
their sins so they could live in heaven with Him one day - they accept it. For us
grownups, having a childlike faith means that we accept the truths of salvation
in the same way. Not because we have scientific proof. Certainly not because it
makes sense to us – a lot of God’s Word makes no sense at all to our human
reason. And the best example of that is the Gospel itself. The idea that God
would sacrifice His perfect Son to save sinners like you and me, well, that
doesn't make a whole lot of sense, does it? Still, we believe it in the same way a
child believes his father. We believe it beca use our Heavenly Father says it's
true: "God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life!" A
childlike faith accepts that wonder of God's grace simply because the Bible says
so.

Furthermore, the kingdom of God is only for those with a child's humility. Can
you imagine a child refusing to eat the food his parents give him because he
didn't have a hand in providing it? Of course not! Your two-year-old doesn't try
to pay you for his supper. He accepts it from you gratefully, simply because he
needs it, he's hungry for it, and because you're the o nly one who can provide it.
But so many adults will reject the grace of God unless they can provide some
wretched good works in exchange. They ignore the Word of God which says,
"By the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified." They're too proud to
admit that they need forgiveness, that they're hungry for it, and that Jesus is the
only One who can provide it! Let us come to our Savior with a childlike
humility, realizing our helplessness, and trusting in His precious blood for our
complete forgiveness.

Finally, the kingdom of God is only for those with a child's trust. When a father
picks up his little daughter and to sses her up in the air, she laughs and enjoys it.
Why? Because she trusts her father -- she has faith in him. Even though she
finds herself eight feet off the floor with nothing supporting her, which would
normally be very frightening, she's not afraid, because she has faith in her
father. That's the kind of childlike faith our Heavenly Father wants you to have
in Him. And you need to have that kind of faith, because between here and
Judgment Day you're going to find yourself in some situations that would be
very frightening if you had no Heavenly Father to put your trust in! You're
going to find yourself eight feet off the floor with no visible means of support,
and with a very painful impact coming up fast! But with a child's trust, your
mind can be at ease. Your Heavenly Father is there, and His loving hands are
well prepared to catch you before ever you fall. You can have courage, come
what may. In the 51st Psalm, God gives you a set of emergency instructions
that are as simple as they are effective: "Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I
will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me!" --Ps 50:1.

There are advantages to being a child – especially to being God’s child. For
how can God fail to protect and provide for His own children? Paul asks, He
who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He
not with Him also freely give us all things? – Rom 8:32. Money, a house to live
in, food to eat, deliverance from trouble – those are the easy things. Forgiveness
– that’s the hard thing! William Barclay once wrote, “Forgiveness is a costly
thing. Even human forgiveness is costly. When a son or a daughter goes wrong,
a father or a mother may forgive; but that forgiveness has brought tears... There
was a price of a broken heart to pay. Divine forgiveness is far more costly still.
God is love, but God is also holiness. God, least of all, can break the great
moral laws on which the universe is built. Sin must have its punishment or the
very structure of life disintegrates. And God alone can pay the terrible price that
is necessary before men can be forgiven. Forgiveness is never a case of saying:
‘It’s all right; it do esn’t matter.’ Forgiveness is the most costly thing in the
world.”

Forgiveness is costly, but God paid. And this is ironic, because this kingdom –
the “kingdom that is for children” – was purchased by God at the price of His
own Child’s life. His only-begotten Son He sent down the Road of Sorrows to
suffer for us on the cross. And by His suffering you and I are cleansed.

What a blessed truth! What a comfort for our daily walk! When the stress and
anxiety of day-to-day life threaten to get20the better of you, it’s good to keep in
mind this blessed cleansing that God has given you in Christ. In many
workplaces nowadays you’re not allowed to display any religious symbols, or
passages, or anything like that. But I read of one office worker, a Christian, who
keeps a bottle of Wite-Out on his desk – you know, the correction fluid you use
to cover up errors. No one would ever notice or object to that. But he notices
it. He said that every time he looks at it, it reminds him of Jesus. It reminds him
how “the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” And Christ’s
blood truly does erase sin! It deletes it from the record. In God’s eyes, the blood
of His Son renders us as white and pristine and righteous as our Savior Himself.
“Come now, and let us reason together,E2 Says the LORD, “ Though your sins
are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like
crimson, They shall be as wool.” – Is 1:18.

You hear it every day - people asking that old question, "When are you going
to grow up?" It's a comfort to know that, when it comes to the most important
part of your life - membership in Christ's kingdom of grace - the Lord doesn't
expect you to be a grown-up. He allows you, and encourages you, to be a child.
When it comes to trusting and believing our Heavenly Father, let us all be
children -- for of such is the kingdom of God! AMEN.