Matthew 18:1-4 New International Version (NIV)
The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven
18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Wed. July 29 - Matthew 18:1-4 We do not quite understand how radical a statement Jesus is making here. We see children as precious, innocent little angels that should be cherished and adored and the period of childhood is a time that should be treasured. That is a relatively new way of thinking about children and childhood. For thousands of years children were seen as lesser humans until they reached adulthood. This is why rites of passage into adulthood were so important in so many different cultures around the world. Children are essentially worthless when it comes to productivity. As they get older they can do a few things here and there, but even that is very basic manual labor at a much slower pace than an adult. However, Jesus says it is children who exemplify citizenship in God’s kingdom because children have nothing to give. All they do is receive. The greatest in the kingdom of heaven is the person who receives the most!