Jesus Loves the Little Children

By Steve Leininger

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022622.cfm
James 5:13-20
Mark 10:13-16

Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world.
Red and yellow, black and white,
All are precious in His sight,
Jesus loves the little children of the world.

Rev. C. Herbert Woolston, pastor for the East Baptist Church in Philadelphia from 1887 until 1927, wrote the words to Jesus Loves the Little Children in the early 1900s. Those lyrics were set to the tune of composer George F. Root’s “Tramp, Tramp, Tramp (We Go A-Marching)”, a song sung by foot soldiers during the Civil War. I remember singing it in Sunday School as a kid. We were loud and happy. I felt loved.

When I read today’s Gospel, this song was the first thing I thought of. I felt loved sixty-some-odd years later. Then I read the verses from the Gospel of Mark again, this time through “adult” eyes. The message is more complex.

People were bringing children to Jesus that he might touch them,
but the disciples rebuked them.
When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,
“Let the children come to me; do not prevent them,
for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child
will not enter it.”
Then he embraced the children and blessed them,
placing his hands on them.
[Mark 10:13-16]

Jesus and the disciples are beginning the journey to Jerusalem for the last time. The disciples, who have been travelling with Jesus and receiving personal instruction and guidance, have decided that part of their job also includes crowd control. They seem to have thought that the children were an unnecessary distraction to the ongoing ministry and were trying to spare Jesus from having to deal with them.

When Jesus sees this, he is beyond unhappy. He is indignant. According to the Oxford Dictionary, indignant is feeling or showing anger or annoyance at what is perceived as unfair treatment. It’s time for another teachable moment.

Jesus makes two assertions:

• The Kingdom of God belongs to such as these [children].
• Whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.

Can we strive to be “such as these” so that the Kingdom of God belongs to us? Can we be like a child? I’m a bit of an expert on child-like behavior. I have not entirely grown up. So, when I hear I should “be like a child”, I at first think “Great!!  I’m already there!” But maybe that’s not what Jesus was really saying. There are lots of characteristics one might associate with children. I invite you to Google “characteristics of children”. Whatever spin of characteristics and traits you might be looking for, there’s a list for that. 

When we consider the “be like a child”, the characteristics that may be implied are those that are common with younger children such as total dependence or helplessness. This would be in keeping with two things Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:

• Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5:3]
• Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5:10]

It appears that what Jesus really means is that those who have been crushed or have no means to support themselves (like a child) go to the front of the line – the Kingdom of God is theirs. This is more of a state of being, not something to strive for.

Maybe we have a second chance. What does it mean to “accept the Kingdom of God like a child” so that we can enter the Kingdom? Can we accept like a child? Consider the Kingdom of God is a gift, not something you can earn by your own greatness, deeds, or generosity to others. To accept the gift of the Kingdom of God like a child, we must accept it without condition, suspicion, boast, or complaint. We must accept the Kingdom of God with joy, humility, and anticipation, much as a child would accept a gift from a loving and caring parent.

A child was used in the previous chapter earlier of Mark’s gospel to make a point about self-perceived greatness and being acceptable to God:

They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, he began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they remained silent. They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest. Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” Taking a child he placed it in their midst, and putting his arms around it he said to them, “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.”
[Mark 9:33-37]

So, there we have it. The Kingdom of God belongs to a vulnerable child and others in the same helpless condition. But we can prepare ourselves to accept the gift of the Kingdom of God like a child. Humbly without boast, without being “first”, accepting the Kingdom of God with love, joy, and anticipation. Jesus loves the little children, and he loves us, too, if we can be like a child in the way we accept him and the Kingdom of God as a gift.