A Child's Heart

By Samantha Rodriguez

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.’”—Matthew 18:1–9 (NIV)

In today’s passage, the disciples ask Jesus a question that seems really insignificant. “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Why would they think there are levels of greatness in the kingdom?

As humans, we have the tendency to think in terms of hierarchy, power, and position. This is the framework in which the disciples still operated because of their understanding of the world. Jesus came to shift our perspective, though, and He does that by pointing them to little children. Before He even answers who is the greatest, He just tells them what it takes to even enter the kingdom of heaven. To do this, He directs their attention to a child in the crowd and says, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like a child, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

There are multiple things I love about this answer. First, Jesus literally calls a little child to Him before answering. This means there were children nearby, and you can see the childlike faith on display in the way this child came to Jesus upon being called. The disciples didn’t have to imagine anything, Jesus showed them. The next thing to note is that Jesus says we must change to become like a child. We were all once children, but an inevitable consequence of growing up is losing our childhood inclination towards trust and wonder. He also points out that children walk with joy despite living in a humble and lowly position dependent on others to be provided and cared for and as people who are not fully capable on their own. These aspects of children are exactly why Jesus tells us to become like children ourselves.

Imagine a young child for a moment. How does a five-year-old react when they see their parents after a long time? They run into their arms with inexpressible joy! Think about how they listen to a fun and adventurous bedtime story. They listen with awe and wonder in their eyes. Think about how they play fearlessly on a playground or dance unashamedly to the sound of music. Think about the way they trust so quickly, so easily, so fully. This is the heart and faith Jesus calls us to embrace.

Jesus goes on to warn them about causing these little ones to stumble because, though the stumbling is inevitable, woe to the one through whom that stumbling comes. You may be thinking, “I would never intentionally try to make someone, especially a child, stumble.” That is what I thought as well, but then I realized that sometimes we cause others to stumble when we simply don’t love them like Jesus. It’s not always about what we do to cause others to stumble, but sometimes it’s also about what we don’t do.

When we don’t love, don’t speak truth or encouragement, don’t serve or help those in need, it can cause others, including little ones looking up to us, to stumble as well. Of course Jesus doesn’t expect perfection from us, but He does want us to be mindful of the ways we can hinder others from having a childlike faith that’s completely devoted and wholeheartedly sold out for Christ.

Let’s build up childlike faith in ourselves and in those around us!

Pause: What do you think it means to have childlike faith? What aspect of this is hard for you?

Practice: Meditate on the power of God and all He’s done! Think about the most insane sights you’ve seen or beautiful experiences you’ve had and allow yourself to praise God for them. Bring yourself to a place of childlike wonder before the Lord!

Pray: Heavenly Father, You’re the Most High God! You’re the King of Kings, the Creator, our Lord of Lords, our incomparable Master! Thank You for being faithful to me even when I’m not faithful to You. Thank You Jesus for humbling Yourself to walk on earth and endure the cross for us! I want to change to be like a child in my faith and relationship with You. Help me to remember that being utterly dependent on You, completely trusting of You, and constantly in awe of You is the only way to live a life worthy in the kingdom of heaven! Amen.