“But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.”
The Tree
The disciples had been turning children away, likely assuming Jesus had more important matters to attend to than the interruptions small children would bring. Jesus’s response is notably strong, much displeased, a rare description of genuine anger from him, directed specifically at anyone who would treat children as an unwelcome interruption.
Notice of such is the kingdom of God. Jesus does not merely tolerate children being brought to him. He identifies something in their own posture, whatever that posture specifically is, receptivity, dependence, trust, as actually characteristic of the kingdom itself, worth modeling rather than merely enduring.
This is worth applying honestly to your own moments of impatience with the children in your care, the interruptions, the constant needs, the times their presence feels like it is competing with more important matters you would rather attend to. Jesus’s own displeasure was directed at exactly this instinct, not at the children themselves.
Whatever interruption a child brings to you today, however inconvenient the timing, remember Jesus’s own strong reaction to anyone who forbade children from coming near him. Receive the interruption today, as much as you genuinely can, the way he insisted they should be received.
Tend the Tree
- Notice your own impatience the next time a child’s need interrupts something else.
- Receive that interruption today the way Jesus insisted children should be received.
- Consider what receptivity or trust in your child might actually be teaching you about the kingdom.
Prayer
Lord, forgive the times I have treated my children as interruptions. Let me receive them the way you insisted they should be received, not forbidden or pushed aside. Amen.
Carry this today
Children are not interruptions to the kingdom. They picture it.