33 They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” 34 But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.
35 Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
36 He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, 37 “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”
Read Mark 9:33-37 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
Have you ever wanted to welcome God into your life, or serve Him with how you live?
In this passage about humility, we find an interesting metaphor for how we can welcome God: We welcome God by welcoming children, and not just any children, but specifically “little children”.
I’m not sure exactly how old of a child Jesus selected, but in my imagination, this child might have been in the age range that they want to know “why” about everything. At this age, the child is an empty cup that wants to be filled with all knowledge of the world around them, and they finally have the language and intellectual development to want to learn more. The child is like a black hole for information; they are always taking in more and more while never being fully satisfied.
However, it is in this phase of development where parents might become the most annoyed, which is why my imagination places Jesus choosing a “little” child in that phase of development and makes the statement: If you welcome the least appealing child, whether they be an “ugly” child, or an annoying one, you are welcoming Jesus – and not only Jesus, but also God as well.
In this dialog, Jesus is stressing the point that how we treat others, interact with them, and/or welcome them into our lives is equivalent to us treating God that way. By welcoming little children into our lives, homes, and situations, we are welcoming God in as well. God is honored when we honor others.
God values everyone, He welcomes everyone, and Jesus died to open salvation up for everyone. God is an equal opportunity includer, and he wants each of us to be includers as well.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
Subscribe to this blog and never miss an insight.