As a Little Child
“I have still been constantly learning how to be my Father’s child”
I learn a lot from my friends with kids. Or, rather, I learn a lot from their kids. Specifically, how they relate to their parents. Just about any time I’m around them, I learn something through their parent-child relationship about my own relationship with my Heavenly Father.
A couple years ago, for example, I was at Pastor Brandon’s house, having dinner with him and Eva and the kids. Their son, Shepherd, was about 8, and you could tell he was having kind of a sad time. After dinner, he went over and gloomily leaned on his dad. Brandon had a quiet little conversation with him and told him to go get ready to sleep, and then he’d be up to put him to bed. After Shepherd had solemnly crept up the stairs, Brandon explained, “I haven’t been able to put him to bed this week. And when he doesn’t get time with me, he gets weepy.”
A little while later — a few weeks, maybe — I was having a car cry while driving home from somewhere. This had been happening a lot recently. I would suddenly get very sensitive and tired and weepy. While I was thinking on this as I drove around the bend to turn down Rockhill by the Nelson, I realized that I was like Shepherd. All these times that I would get quietly yet uncontrollably weepy were a direct result of not spending time with my Father.
Once I had that realization, I finally had the perfect Father-child relationship I’d been seeking, and I’ve had a problem-free walk with God ever since.
Lol jk. Like I said, it’s been a couple years since then, but that was just another step down my path to truly relating to God as my Father. I have still been constantly learning how to be my Father’s child. Most recently, I’ve been learning to let go of my “maturity”.
It was brought to my attention late last year that even though I know God is my Father, I keep trying to come to him as a mature adult child, rather than as a little child like Jesus talks about. This is probably due to a blend of: my do-it-myself personality, trauma-induced maturity after my father’s suicide when I was seven, and being an actual, you know, adult. But I realized that when I come to my Father, I come as if I’m supposed to have everything sorted out beforehand. More often, really, I come knowing that I DON’T have everything sorted out, and then feel ashamed that I don’t. Whether it’s my circumstances or my emotions or my sin, I come to him in shame, as if I was the one who was supposed to fix the problem before I showed up. And yet little children don’t fix problems for their parents; it’s the other way around.
Upon realizing this, I cried a bit (a lot) and did a study on what the Bible says about being a little child. My starting passage was Mark 10:13-16 because it’s what our Bible study was in and it’s what immediately comes to mind when I think of this concept. Let’s break it down.
Mark 10:13 And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. 16 And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.
In this passage, Jesus is “much displeased” when his disciples try to turn away the little children. Their parents want Jesus to lay his hands on them — presumably to heal or bless them — but the disciples rebuke them. Why? We’re not told, but it could be that they thought Jesus didn’t have time for all that nonsense. Maybe they thought that kids are too rowdy or too unlearned to understand the things Jesus is teaching. Whatever their intentions, Jesus didn’t agree.
He tells them first to suffer (KJVese for “allow”) the little children to come to him, because “of such” is the kingdom of God. He goes further and says that if a person isn’t willing to receive the kingdom of God “as a little child” that he won’t be able to enter it. To put it in other words, he’s teaching that 1) the kingdom of God is not just made up of spiritual little children, but 2) that the requirement for entry is that same characteristic. That’s a big statement! But what does that mean practically? Well, there are two main places in scripture I looked at to answer that question.
Acknowledge your Inability
The first mention of the phrase “little child” in scripture is in 1 Kings 3, right after Solomon has been crowned king of Israel. God appears to Solomon in a dream and tells him to make a request. Here’s Solomon’s response:
1 Kings 3:7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
We read that God was pleased by Solomon’s response, and gave him what he asked for: wisdom and understanding. But because of his humility, God also blesses him with many other good things.
So what do we learn about coming to God as a little child from Solomon’s example?
First, he acknowledges that he has no knowledge or understanding on his own. He says that he doesn’t even know how to come out or go in! That doesn’t mean he had problems figuring out whether the door was one that you push or pull. He’s speaking in hyperbole to get across just how incapable he is of knowing the way he should go. Makes sense that he’d later write this:
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. 7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. 8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
Solomon acknowledged that he needed to stop trusting his own understanding and trust the Lord to lead him. Solomon couldn’t afford to be wise in his own eyes — to do what appeared to make sense. We can’t see past the moment we’re in, so we need God’s wisdom to lead us. When we trust and fear him and depart from evil, it brings us life.
So the first aspect of being a “little child” before God is to come to him in humility and acknowledge your lack of ability or knowledge. This applies in two ways to what Jesus says in Mark 10.
Entering the Kingdom in Humility
First, the requirement to enter the kingdom of God (God’s spiritual kingdom), according to Mark 10:16, is to receive it as a little child. In other words, in order to be saved from the penalty of sin and become part of God’s family, you have to acknowledge your inability to achieve it on your own. This lines up with what we see in other passages like Romans 10:9-10 and Ephesians 2:8-9. There’s nothing we can do to save ourselves from our sins. We have to confess to God that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation, the only absolute truth, and the only source of life. If we do that, we are humbling ourselves before God just like Solomon did. And just like God answered Solomon’s prayer, he will answer the lost person’s humble cry for salvation.
God also blessed Solomon beyond what he ever asked for! And just like that, God also bestows upon us “all spiritual blessings in Christ” when we accept the gospel, because we’re now adopted by him (Eph 1:3-5).
Living Humbly in the Kingdom
Second, Jesus says in Mark 1:15 that the kingdom of God is made up of spiritual little children. Primarily, this has to do with our state before God. We are his little children, and we stand before him as such. But it also gives us an idea of how we ought to be living right now.
When we believe on the gospel, we are adopted into God’s family and given all spiritual blessings and access to the deep well of God’s knowledge through the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 2:6-16). But of course, we are always learning and will never have God’s omniscience or ultimate wisdom. So we must always acknowledge to the Lord that we don’t have all the answers and trust him to lead us in the right way, just like Solomon.
I do think it’s important to note (at least for myself) that there’s a way to do this that doesn’t actually trust God. A lot of the time, I find myself telling God I have absolutely no idea what to do and that I need him to lead me but then not trusting that he’ll actually lead me. Don’t do that! Trust God. If you find yourself lacking belief, acknowledge that to the Lord. Don’t be afraid to come to him in weakness, because it’s actually the only way you can come to him. Instead, be like Paul who gloried in his weakness and inability (2 Cor 12:9-10). That’s when Christ’s power is able to rest upon you.
Come in Simplicity
The second attribute of being as a little child is found in 2 Kings 5:1-14. The passage presents Naaman, a Syrian military captain who was a man of honor, power, bravery, and influence. But he was also a leper. An Israelite maid who’d been taken captive by Syria tells him that if he were able to visit the man of God hanging out in Samaria (who happens to be Elisha), he could be cured of his leprosy. So Naaman finds Elisha and listens to his prescribed cure: go to the Jordan river and wash yourself seven times. So simple! So Naaman goes and does that right away.
Gotcha! He didn’t, actually. He receives an incredibly simple solution to his disease, but instead of running to the Jordan as quickly as he could, he leaves angrily.
2 Kings 5:11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.
He wanted something grander or more miraculous. He wanted something that made more sense to him. How could something so simple be the most effective? And because he didn’t understand the solution the man of God presented, he walked away without healing. Thankfully, his servants gave him some wise advice:
2 Kings 5:13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
His servants reason that if Elisha had told Naaman to do one of those grand acts he wished for, he’d have done it. But this was so much simpler and easier, so shouldn’t he be all the more willing? Finally, Naaman is persuaded.
2 Kings 5:14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
Though he initially rejected the solution for his disease, Naaman finally recognized that the only way to be made clean was the simplicity of Elisha’s message. He washed, and he was clean. And what else do we see there? That his skin was as that of a little child! It was fresh and new and without ailment.
By washing in the river, he first became like a little child internally as he trusted the simplicity of the message. Little kids don’t need to be persuaded by grandeur. They trust in simple truths: my parents love me; it’s good for me to obey; Spider-Man is cool. As Naaman trusted in the simple solution Elisha presented, he became like a little child in his heart. But after he was cleansed, that internal childlikeness was manifest on the outside.
Let’s break this down in relation to Mark 10.
Entering the Kingdom in Simplicity
Mankind has tried with all their might to figure out a way to achieve righteousness and divinity, but every attempt always proves feeble and fallible. God even gave the world his divine law through Moses to show them that they could never fully work away their sin or achieve godlikeness by their own merit. So God became a man, lived a sinless life, and laid down his life as the sacrifice for my sin and yours. And if all you do is believe that he — Jesus Christ, the Son of God — is the solution to your sin problem and confess that he is Lord, you will be saved from the penalty of sin and receive everlasting life with the perfect Heavenly Father.
What a simple solution! You don’t have to make a grand sacrifice or go to great lengths to achieve salvation. All you have to do is be “washed in the blood” (1 John 1:7) like Naaman washed in the Jordan. And yet so many people reject the solution of the gospel because it seems too lowly. But in order to receive healing from your sin disease, you must come to Jesus for healing and cleansing. There is no other way (John 14:6).
And just like Naaman, when you trust the simplicity of the gospel, Christ washes you clean. Whatever your past mistakes, no matter how grievous, by placing your faith in Jesus, you are renewed like unto a little child. You are innocent.
Living Simply in the Kingdom
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve realized that I often approach the Lord shamefully because I don’t have things figured out. But after this study, I’ve been reminded that I’m not supposed to come to Jesus with solutions! I don’t have the solution to my struggles with sin. The only solution for salvation was being washed clean by Christ, and that’s still the only solution as it concerns my sanctification.
I try to complicate my sanctification in my mind. I have to have enough discipline or cast down imaginations for long enough or, or, or. But it’s only Jesus who can wash me clean. It is simple. It is childlike. It is coming to his word and asking him to clean me and make me more like him. I must constantly remind myself that the solution is simple, and I don’t need to add anything to it. I can trust that Jesus makes me new again every day. I don’t have to live in shame. Neither do you.
Rest in His Arms
The final thing I wanted to touch on is the very end of the passage in Mark 10. Jesus says that to enter the kingdom of God you must become as a little child (in humility and simplicity) and that those who live in the kingdom are also as such. But then he takes those actual little children up into his arms and blesses them.
Jesus cherished those little kids. He picked them up and held them and blessed them. It doesn’t say this, but I bet he snuggled them. He didn’t rebuke them or tell them, “Go and sin no more.” There’s a time for that when repentance is necessary. But for these little children, the only thing they received from Christ was affection and blessing.
Jesus wants to give that to you, too. He wants you to lay down your understanding and trust his. He wants you to lay down your solutions and trust his. And he wants you to rest in his arms. He is big enough for your problems. He is strong enough for your sorrows. He is patient enough for your stubbornness. He is kind enough for your weakness. And his arms are safe and everlasting.
Deuteronomy 33:27a The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms:
Melissa Wharton is a member of Midtown Baptist Temple and a part of C&YA. She is a part of Living Faith Books team and LF Fellowship blog team. She also leads a women’s Bible study in the Kansas City area.
