BLESSING THE CHILDREN (Mark 10:13-16)
INTRODUCTION:
Our Scripture reading from Psalm 128 said that children are like olive plants around your table. In Psalm 127 the psalmist Solomon writes, “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.” (Psalm 127:3–5, NASB95)[1] Though the Old Testament spoke highly of the benefits of having children, in Greek society which had taken over most of the world in Jesus’ day, children were not always looked upon as a gift, or a reward. Sometimes children were loved, sometime exploited, depending upon how they were perceived as benefiting the family. Infanticide was not unheard of in the first century. Roman law gave the father absolute power over his family—which extended even to life and death. As late as AD 60 a son or daughter could be put to death by a simple order of his or her father. The practice was not outlawed in Roman law until AD 375.
The influence of this abuse of children can be seen in the house of Herod and in his public slaughter of the babies upon hearing of the birth of the king of the Jews. When the magi did not return to report where they had found the Christ child, Herod ordered the murder of all the male children in Bethlehem and the surrounding vicinity who were two years old and younger. Children clearly were not presumed to be blessings in the non-Christian culture of Christ’s day. This was not true of Biblical, Hebrew culture which elevated the family and children. The words of the psalmists still rung true in the home of most Israelites, and they wanted the best for their children, both sons and daughters. Our passage in Mark ten this morning shows us a further elevation of children by our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus not only elevates children as people in this passage, but He also elevates their faith, and as a result elevates ours. Let’s pray and then get into out passage for this morning.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles this morning to Mark 10:13-16, just a few verses this morning. Mark and the parallel passage in Matthew both put this incident right after Jesus had spoken of marriage and divorce. It seems that Jesus may have been in the house where He was staying when this event took place. Please, stand if you are able, in honor of the reading of God’s Word and follow along as I read.
Mark 10:13-16,
“And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, ‘Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.’ And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.” (Mark 10:13–16, NASB95)[2]
THE ELEVATION OF CHILDREN (Mark 10:13-14)
This event begins by Mark telling us that people from the region were bringing their children to Jesus so that He might touch them. From what Mark and Matthew and Luke tell us fathers and mothers and maybe even older siblings were bringing younger children, many of whom were babies, because that is how Luke describes them, to Jesus for His blessing. There was nothing strange about this, it was in keeping with the Jewish culture of the day, a custom that dated all the way back to the time when the patriarch Israel had laid his hands on the head of Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons, and blessed them. It was all very proper, traditional, and wonderful. They would take their children to rabbis to be blessed. Proud parents were bringing their children to Jesus, He would take them in His arms and lay His hand on their heads and lifting His eyes to heaven, He would pronounce a blessing on them.
Just think that about how the word got around that Jesus had blessed my child and quickly a line formed of a number of cheerful families standing and chatting, with babies in arms and younger children scurrying around. Then it stopped. Outside the house the disciples were sending the families away with a rebuke.
Why were they doing this? They thought they were protecting Jesus. They knew that He was under pressure all the time and they were trying to create some down time for Him. Wherever Jesus went He was met with conflict—one time it might be demons, another it might be a delegation of Pharisees, and if that was not enough there were always the crushing crowds surrounding Him whenever He was outside. This matter of blessing the children was just one more drain. Besides these were just children, many of them infants. They were of little importance. They could not debate or contribute to the cause, even if they did understand about Jesus. So, the disciples stopped the flow of families seeking Jesus to bless their children. Those parents who were stubborn or just didn’t get the hint when asked to leave received a rebuke to send them on their way.
Verse 14 indicates for us that Jesus saw what was happening and Mark records that He was indignant. The Greek word translated “indignant” is used only here in the New Testament and it is a combination of two words: “much” and “to grieve.” In other words, Jesus was much grieved by what He saw the disciples doing. The things that grieve us or make us indignant reveal a lot about the kind of people we are, and what Jesus said and did here tells us volumes about Him, as well as about our children and ourselves.
Jesus usually reserved His indignation for the Pharisees, but He had just recently told the disciples when they were still in Capernaum, “Taking a child, He set him before them, and taking him in His arms, He said to them, ‘Whoever receives one child like this in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me does not receive Me, but Him who sent Me.’ ” (Mark 9:36–37, NASB95)[3] When Jesus saw His disciples sending the parents and their children away He quickly and sharply rebuked them. Mark records His rebuke, “But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, ‘Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.’ ” (Mark 10:14, NASB95)[4] What should we draw from this sharp rebuke from Jesus?
First, Jesus loves children. Jesus, after all, had been a child Himself. He was a real baby, a real child, and real teenager, and finally a real man. St. Irenaeus said of Christ in the second century, “He came to save all by means of Himself…who through Him are born again unto God—infants and children, and boys and youth…He therefore passed through every age becoming an infant for infants…a child for children…a youth for youths…”[5] Throughout the Gospels we see Jesus’ love for children. Often this is seen in the many miracles that involved children. The nobleman’s son, the demonized girl in the vicinity of Tyre, the demonized son of the man near Caesarea-Philippi after Jesus was transfigured. Jairus’ daughter to whom Jesus tenderly said “Talitha cumi,” which means “Little girl or Little lamb, I say to you, arise!” Jesus truly as man and as God loved children.
The second thing we learn from Jesus’ indignation and His rebuke to His disciples is that Jesus affirms and respects the personhood and spirituality of children. When Jesus said, “for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these,” (Mark 10:14b, NASB95)[6] He was affirming their full spirituality. They are the hearts He takes to Himself. We shall see why in verse 15 but note here that Jesus Christ affirms and proclaims the spiritual capacity of children. If there ever was a text relevant to child evangelism, this is it. Children can authentically come to Christ early on!
Many years ago, there was a young boy, about six years old, who would walk from school one day a week to the church that his family attended so that he could go to the Good News club that took place each week. One of those days as he sat and listened to the Bible Story he suddenly knew that he was a sinner, that he had done things that were wrong and that he needed to be forgiven, that he needed a Savior. Near the end of the Bible story, the teacher asked the children to bow their heads and close their eyes, then she told them that Jesus had died on the cross to pay for their sins and that by believing in Him you could have your sins forgiven and you would have eternal life. Then she asked if anyone wanted to ask Jesus to forgive their sins. The young boy knew that this was exactly what he needed to do, and he quickly raised his hand. When the Bible teacher was done praying she asked that those who raised their hand to stay for a few minutes after the class as she would like to talk to them. The boy stayed and the teacher told him how he could be forgiven for his sin. The boy acknowledged that he was a sinner and had done things that displeased God, and he prayed and asked God to forgive Him because He believed that Jesus died for him and rose again. That day that young boy was born again, he had his sins forgiven and Jesus was his Savior and one day he would go to be with Him and live with Him forever.
That young boy was me, and the Bible teacher was my mother and on that day I met Jesus Christ and became His child. Over the years I have grown in Him and have come to understand more fully what He did for me on the cross and through His resurrection and I look forward to someday spending the rest of eternity in His presence. Jesus teaches, and experience confirms, that a young child can consciously come to Christ for salvation.
A Gallup Survey revealed that nineteen out of twenty people who became Christians did so before the age of twenty-five. At the age of twenty-five, one in 10,000 will become believers; at thirty-five, one in 50,000; at forty-five, one in 200,000; at fifty-five, one in 300,000; at seventy-five, one in 700,000. This should be a wake-up call for parents, young people, Bible school teachers, and club workers to keep it up, keep reaching out to children and young people with the Gospel message. While parents must never resort to extracting bogus conversions from their children; parents must cultivate the spiritual awareness and sensitivity of our children and pray for them fervently and in detail. Jesus told the disciples not to hinder the children coming to Him. Jesus in His rebuke of the disciples elevates the spiritual capacity of children for all the Church to see. Next, the Lord elevates the children’s faith.
THE ELEVATION OF CHILDREN’S FAITH (Mark 10:15-16)
Listen again to the words of the Lord Jesus, “Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” (Mark 10:15, NASB95)[7] The word translated “not” is very strong, an absolute negation. William Lane, a New Testament scholar, writes, “The solemn pronouncement is directed to the disciples, but has pertinence for all men confronted by the gospel because it speaks of the condition for entrance into the Kingdom of God.”[8] In other words, no one will get into the Kingdom of God unless he receives God’s salvation like a child—no one! How are we to understand and apply this?
For starters, coming as a child does not refer to innocence. Any two-year old dispels such an idea. Neither does coming like a child suggest the wonderous subjective states we often find in children such as trustfulness, receptivity, simplicity, and wonder. What Jesus has in mind here is an objective state that every child who has ever lived, regardless of ethnicity, culture, or background, has experienced—that is helpless dependence.
Every single child in the world is absolutely, completely, and totally helpless. And so, it is with every child who is born into the kingdom of God. Children of the kingdom enter it helpless, ones for whom everything must be done. As the third verse of the hymn “Rock of Ages” states, “Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to Thy cross I cling; Naked, come to Thee for dress: Helpless look to Thee for grace.”[9] There can be no other meaning to verse 15. Have you come to Jesus Christ like this? Is it His grace plus your nothingness? The realization that one is helpless as a child naturally fosters humility. Jesus gave reference to this connection when, in a similar but separate statement in the Gospel of Matthew, He said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3–4, NASB95)[10] The world refuses to come to Christ because of its “self-respect” which often is a euphemism for pride and independence. Come as a helpless child, how humiliating! But Jesus says, “This is the way you must come—as a child, an infant, in complete dependence on Me.
Look at what happens in verse 16 to the waiting children, “And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.” (Mark 10:16, NASB95)[11] The children were unafraid of Jesus, they could tell that He loved them. They would sit in His lap and lay their head against His chest, and He blessed them. The word translated “blessed” here might be better translated “fervently blessed.” Christ did this joyfully with a fervent heart, for they refreshed His spirit.
CONCLUSION:
Do you desire to be held in Christ’s arms and feel His warm embrace, and to hear Him pronounce blessings on you? Eternity will reveal that is all we ever wanted, and our Spirit-given response will be “Abba, Father!”
Jesus has elevated children. He believes they can know Him as truly as anyone else, that they can have a vibrant relationship with Him. He should know because many of His children have come to Him at a young age, including me. Jesus has also elevated the faith of children. No one will receive the kingdom of God without this helpless dependence and humility. Jesus said, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Mark 10:14, NASB95)[12]
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]Hastings, Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, p. 302, who quotes Irenaeus, adv. Haer., II. XXII. 4, cf. III. XVIII. 4.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]Lane, William L., The Gospel According to Mark. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. 1975. p. 360.
[9]Toplady, Augustus Montague. Rock of Ages. 1776.
[10]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[11]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[12]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.