Be Still And Know

READ: Luke 18:16-17 NLT Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Jesus continually surprised people but his reaction to children would have been particularly astonishing to his hearers. Children had no status in law and at best they were regarded as potential adults who needed to be seen but certainly not heard. The disciples were keen to protect Jesus their rabbi from the children so that he could get on with the serious business of instructing the adults. But, as so often was the case, Jesus turned their thinking upside down. Not only did Jesus welcome the children but he said that they provided the role model for his disciples to follow. What was Jesus getting at? He clearly wasn’t encouraging his followers to be childish. What he was affirming was that he wanted them to