From my home congregation: Sermon Archive » Blog Archive » “Let the children Come to Me”
The disciples whom our Lord called are not always portrayed as the smartest or holiest of men. Often they are presented as hard-hearted and thick skulled. But our Lord still uses them for good in this world. Just as he uses other earthly means, that which is mundane and meager, to accomplish His will in the world, so also He uses those whom He calls for a specific purpose.
We should not be too quick to pass judgment upon the disciples, for our attitudes and the attitudes of the world are really no different. How often we think of children as inconsequential or an inconvenience to our lives. The world manifests this attitude in the vilest extreme of abortion. That is the taking of a life that is inconvenient, for convenience is what it ultimately boils down to.
We stand against abortion and rightly so, but we cannot be held guiltless of similar attitudes. The truth of the matter is that children do not make life easier, whether you are parents or not. Day-to-day interactions with children often times leave us frustrated or exhausted. They can be loud, unruly, and above all else, needy. How often we are annoyed by the crying child in the store or in the pew. Often we desire that they be taken out of whatever space or situation we are in, or that they behave more like adults.
Even the parents, who love their children more dearly than anyone else, succumb to this demeanor, when the hour is late or the sleep is lacking, and the child is temperamental. We desire that things be easier, or more conducive for our needs.
This does not negate our love for children. Few people in this world would say that they hate children. Rather, we find great joy in the birth of a child, the new birth of a child in baptism, and the raising and instruction of a child. We love them, but we also view them as inferior. And so it strikes us as odd that our Lord would say “such is the kingdom of God.” We often view supremacy as the norm of being a Christian. From this we get the false understanding that only when we can truly rationalize and understand the faith can we become true members of the Church. We understand that children cannot do this, that they don’t “get it.”
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