Mark: Living the Way of Jesus in the WorldSample

First Thought 

In today’s world, children are heard as well as seen. They have legal rights. Not so in Jesus’ day when children didn’t really count until they were 13. They had no virtue to commend them. People were bringing children to Jesus for His blessing, but the disciples rebuked them. The children didn’t warrant Jesus’ attention, they believed. They weren’t a priority, but the kingdom of God belongs to such as these, Jesus taught. In other words, to those without virtue or status, to the voiceless, the vulnerable. That’s the wonder of the gospel for us, too. Like those children in Jesus’ day, we possess no virtue in ourselves, yet God has poured out His love to us, unmerited. The disciples wanted to deal with the distraction of the children quickly so that Jesus could get on with the mission, but Jesus needed them to learn this was His mission: to give Himself for the least and the lost, the undeserving and ignored. His love is for all. His kingdom, His gospel, truly wasn’t of this world.

What Does the Bible Say?

What strikes you about Jesus’ declaration that we should enter the kingdom like a little child? 

Living it Out

How does God’s counter-cultural grace impact your everyday life? 

Responding in Prayer

Gracious God, teach me afresh to be like a child in the kingdom of God (…). I pray for (…). I want them to know the joy of God’s grace. Amen.