At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. Matthew 18:1-5

Jesus said “If anyone wants to be my disciple, they must deny themselves, carry their cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24) this is such a simple teaching but so difficult for us to follow. At one point, the Apostles were arguing among themselves, who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven (Luke 9:46) but Christ quickly shut down their debate by pointing to a little child, this is the greatest in the Kingdom of God

Ever since the Apostles, the Church has been wrestling with their flesh, trying to be led by the Holy Spirit and not by the flesh. Even when we are serving The Lord, the temptations of the flesh creep in, the desire for power, the desire for respect, the desire for money and fame. We see this prevalent throughout the Church today, ask yourself what are the biggest priorities of your Church today? Most of you would answer the budget and numbers. This is why the majority of Churches are not effective in the world, they are self centered instead of Christ centered

Jesus said “Unless you be converted and become as a little child, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” Wow, this is a big blow to many egos, think of the great theologian who has a PHD and many theological degrees, unless they become Born Again and humble themselves as a child, they won’t enter the Kingdom of God! It’s all about a New Heart, unless you are converted you are still dead in your sins. Your works will never save you, in fact they are filthy rags to God (Isaiah 64:6) You must become Born Again (John 3:3)

Many Churches have good intentions but then the flesh overtakes, many Churches are more concerned about pleasing people today than pleasing God. Jesus said “Humble yourself like a little Child” , as the Bible says “Pride comes before Destruction” (Proverbs 16:18) Are you humble like a Child? Are you teachable like a Child? Are you trusting in your Heavenly Father like a Child? Are you accepting like a Child?

We can learn alot from Children, anyone who has raised Children can attest to this, while most Churches hide the Children in a back room and try to silence them, we can learn from them. Jesus said “Whoever receives one such little child in my name, receives Christ” We are more concerned about conducting a perfect service than acknowledging the children. Remember, “Deny yourself, Carry your Cross, and Follow Jesus” this should be our motto, Amen!