“Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And he laid his hands on them and went away.” (Mt 19:13-15)
I’m not certain what the disciples were thinking here. I suspect they were trying to protect Jesus’ time and energy. That may sound strange to people who have never been involved in public ministry. Working with people can be draining in so many ways, and it is tempting to find ways to avoid people.
That may sound counterintuitive, but I am aware of a megastar pastor who intentionally designed his new church building to provide a protected entrance to the pulpit, so that he didn’t “have to be around those people.“ I have seen staff pastors fill their hands with documents so they can pretend to read in order to avoid people as they move through a crowd on Sunday morning. These pastors have lost sight of their claimed call to gospel ministry. Gospel ministry involves people. That’s true for pastors and lay people alike.
Jesus’ response to the disciples was instructive for all of us. “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them.” While his specific point of not excluding children is not lost on me, I think this was Jesus’ message about people, in general. We should not hinder people, any people, from coming to Jesus. I am reminded of the story of the blind men at Jericho who the crowds tried to silence as they cried out to Jesus for help (Mt 20). Jesus’ response in that situation was to call those blind men to himself.
This gives me much to consider in how I selectively encourage or discourage various people related to coming to Jesus. Oh yeah, I almost forgot: Mark 14:10 says Jesus was indignant about the disciples trying to prevent children from coming to him.
Father, please help me not to be selective in who I encourage or allow to come to Jesus. Amen.
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