God Moments

An Invitation

by Anna-grace Mitchell

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child and set him before them, and said, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless you repent [that is, change your inner self—your old way of thinking, live changed lives] and become like children [trusting, humble, and forgiving], you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives and welcomes one child like this in My name receives Me.” Matthew 18:1-5

Do you remember life as a child? Maybe you had big dreams of daring adventures? Or your imagination ran wild? Or was it a time of freedom, without worry and fear of how you were perceived? In Matthew 18, Jesus beckons us to return to our childlikeness by stating that children are the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, but what exactly does it mean to become like a child? Jesus breaks down his meaning by saying we must take on childlike qualities and pursue repentance and humility.

In verse three, Jesus says that becoming like a child means trusting and forgiving. However, as adults, we know these qualities are occasionally considered foolish, silly, or even stupid. Maybe you can even picture yourself describing a child as naive because they are too trusting and forgiving. It’s easy, as adults, to harden our hearts toward this cruel world, and I believe this is precisely what the Messiah is warning against in this passage. While Jesus doesn’t say this directly, when I read this scripture, I can feel him whispering, “Anna, keep your heart soft.”

As I’ve mentioned, a soft heart is difficult to maintain as an adult. Likewise, change is difficult to cultivate in adulthood. We get stuck in our ways and become complacent in our habits, but Jesus says we must change. The catch is he isn’t simply talking about our habits. Instead, he is referencing something much more difficult: repentance. This version of scripture gives more insight into repentance when it says, “change your inner self–your old way of thinking, live changed lives.” As an adult who finds it difficult to change her bedtime, changing my “inner self” is daunting.

For instance, let’s say you do something you thought was right every day for your whole life, and then one day, you realize this thing is wrong. That alone is scary, but what’s even more alarming is you’re now faced with a choice. Do you continue doing what’s wrong because it’s a habit you’re comfortable with? (Maybe you even find some satisfaction in it?) Or do you decide to cut this thing out of your life and never look at it again? This is the choice that Jesus is presenting to us, and he is fully aware that it is more challenging to make this choice as an adult. He wouldn’t use this whole childlike analogy if he didn’t see the difficulty. However, he ends the passage with one more childlike quality that is a necessary piece of repentance: humility.

Humility is the last quality Jesus mentions in this passage, and it is a difficult quality to maintain because it is more than a “one and done.” It takes incredible discipline, but it hinges on our time with Jesus. Honestly, I don’t see humility preached often in the Church. Anointing and ability are referenced and practiced readily, and those things are great, but quite frankly, they are easy to fake. While humility takes years of cultivation, ability is sometimes visible simply because someone is more charismatic than their quiet counterpart.

Humility also implies teachability. If our pride is not in-check, sometimes it can be so humiliating to be told we’re wrong that we will walk around the rest of our lives with offense weighing on our shoulders. Don’t live that way! Jesus calls His children to a free life where we can hear someone say, “You don’t have all the answers,” and we can respond, “You’re right. I don’t.”

        Although all of the qualities listed are worth continual pursuit, it is essential to remember that when humility is lacking, we will simply be seen as prideful people who know about the Bible. This characteristic transforms our personal lives and ministers to those around us. If you’re reading this and only take one thing away, I hope it is this: the Lord invites us to be trusting, forgiving, and humble while continually pursuing new life with him!