WHAT DO WE LACK THAT CHILDREN HAVE?

 

 

Jesus said many provocative things. He claimed that, in order to be saved, we had to become as little children:

 

• Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:15-17)

 

How are we to receive the Kingdom as a child? Must we first become ignorant of so many adult things?

 

Fortunately, the prior passage—the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector— is quite revealing. The Pharisee believed he was deserving of God’s blessings; the tax collector knew that he wasn’t and, therefore, prayed for God’s undeserved mercy. Jesus explained:

 

• “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14)

 

The Pharisee had exalted himself; the tax collector had humbled himself.

 

The next verse starts with “now” or “at this same time,” children were being brought to receive Jesus’ blessing. However, His own disciples rebuked them, showing that they still had the same entitlement mentality as the Pharisee. They believed that they were deserving but not the children, who had no idea of being deserving.

 

The Bible teaches that we only deserve one thing from God—death:

 

• For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)

 

Why then does our Lord bless His children? Simply because He loves us:

 

• but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. (Romans 5:8-10)

 

If He loved us while we had hated Him, we can be doubly sure of His love for us now that we have been reconciled to Him!

 

SCHOOL SHOOTINGS AND RUNNING SCHOOLS ON SECULAR PRINCIPLES

 

 

Of course, you teach your students not to bully. You will tell them, “You wouldn’t want to be bullied, would you?”

 

When you say this, you are appealing to pragmatism—a cost/benefit assessment: “What if someone bullied you, you wouldn’t like it, would you? You might even feel humiliated. Why do it to someone else?”

 

If the students are clever, they might realize that you are not appealing a God-given principle of right and wrong but instead to self-interest.

 

Your students might not be able to articulate what is wrong with this reasoning, but they might intuitively realize, “I know what benefits me more than you do. I enjoy being part of the tough group or gang that is doing the bullying. Not only is it fun, but it builds group cohesion. It makes me feel I belong and am protected.”

 

The same conundrum also pertains to the tragic outbreak of school shootings. The teacher can teach against this tragedy from the POV of self-interest: “You will be caught, and your life will be ruined. Besides, think of the pain you will cause to all the families.”

 

The shooters might have also considered these things and have concluded that they are best served by getting revenge and regaining honor and respect.

 

What’s missing in this equation? God—the source of all objective morality and value. When students realize that they are beloved, valued, and honored by God, the need to secure approval and validation from others is greatly diminished, especially in view that many shooters have come from broken families where they have not been inculcated with assurance of God’s love.

 

These shootings also coincide with the removal of any positive reference to God within our schools. I think that this correlation also helps to explain the proliferation of crime in the West since the 1960s.

REJOICING ENABLES PEACE, CONTENTMENT, AND JOY IN THE LORD

 

 

The oft-forgotten answer to suffering is rejoicing. Initially, the Prophet Habakkuk found little reason to rejoice. His own nation was about to be destroyed by the Babylonians. However, Habakkuk concluded his book with a commitment to rejoice even in the worst of circumstances:

 

·       Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places. (Habakkuk 3:17-19)

 

Habakkuk had learned that there is something greater than our circumstances—the God who is able to lift us above them and to place our feet on solid joyful ground.

Rejoicing should fill all our hours and days as Paul had instructed:

 

·       Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Philippians 4:4)

 

Rejoicing, even when it feels inappropriate or burdensome is something we must do, not only for our survival, but it is also God’s gracious command for our own good:

 

·       Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

 

In truth, we have much reason to rejoice, if only for our eternal salvation. King David wrote:

 

·       Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:9-11; Luke 10:20; Isaiah 61:10)

 

Eternity with our Savior is “fullness of joy!” Rejoicing in suffering also prepares us homecoming:

 

·       Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. (1 Peter 4:12-13)

 

Despite all these things, for years, rejoicing had been difficult for me. Either my troubled feelings would take precedence over the need to rejoice, or I would find this exercise to be laborious. I just couldn’t come up with the right words and trying to do so felt so artificial to me.

 

However, suffering persuaded me to take another look, as it had for many who had been imprisoned for their faith in Jesus. I found that I needed to allow His Words to direct my own. I printed out some of my favorite verses and I attached them to cards that I’d carry with me as I’d walk my floor reciting them.

 

This has proved to be such a rich blessing for me. Often, I’d awake in the middle of the night, tormented by concerns about my aging body. I now look forward to these times, which force me out of bed with my cards in hand.

 

This has not only enabled me to reconnect with my Lord in such a blessed way, rejoicing in Him has also taught me about what is of supreme and all-surpassing importance. My life is not about my depressing physical circumstances but about the Lord who grants me the strength to emerge from my dreary cocoon through praising Him. Thus, my weaknesses have become my strengths, enabling me to be content in all circumstances. But I will grant you that I am just learning.

WISDOM, PRISON, REJOICING, AND TRUST

 

 

Our Lord commands us to rejoice:

 

·       “…steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord. Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart! (Psalm 32:10-11; Matthew 5:11-12)

 

We are the ones who need to practice rejoicing. Pastor Andrew Brunson learned this valuable lesson as he struggled to maintain his life and sanity for two years in a Turkish prison.

 

He never dreamed that it would be so difficult. He had felt that God had abandoned him after 20 years of church-planting in Turkey. He had also expected to receive a divine visitation to bolster his faith in prison but never received one. Therefore, Brunson began to read about how other missionaries coped to survive prison. https://www.persecution.com/ifcevent/watch/?_source_code=YTA21A2C

 

Richard Wurmbrandt had been imprisoned for 14 years by the communist regime in Romania. From him, Brunson learned to daily recommit his life to the Lord, despite His doubts, and to rejoice. Amid his great suffering, Brunson had many doubts which he had stuff.

 

You might think that we must face our doubts rather than stuffing them. The atheist might even respond, “That’s typical of mindless Christians!” However, when we are fighting for survival, confronting doubts is a costly luxury.

 

Besides, we tend to understand far less than we think we do. Therefore, God warns us:

 

·       “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

 

Our Lord is trying to protect us from our conceit and hubris and to teach us to rely on His wisdom:

 

·       Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

 

Our limited wisdom should teach us to rely on His wisdom. Only a fool would perform surgery on his child. Compared to a surgeon, we know virtually nothing:

 

·       If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. (1 Corinthians 8:2)

 

Knowing where our knowledge ends is both liberating and wise. Brunson read that there had been incarcerated Christians who had been driven by insanity to their deaths. I too am bewildered:

 

·       God, why didn’t you intervene? You could have rescued them. Can I trust you to rescue me?

 

I have no answer, but He has rescued me so many times in the past that I trust He will continue to rescue me (2Corinthians 1:8-10). Knowing this liberates me from trying to find an answer. Instead, I trust that God has a satisfying answer, whether it pertains to a temporal or an eternal explanation.

 

I also have learned that some knowledge can be destructive if we lack the wisdom to benefit from it. For example, the Bible doesn’t explicitly tell us about the ultimate fate of the aborted and stillborn babies and for good reason. If the Bible taught us that all babies would go to heaven, concerned mothers would be tempted to kill them. The abortion industry would use it as a sales pitch.

 

Wisdom should teach us to trust in the Greater Authority whatever our circumstances, and it’s the very thing our Lord wants us to do!