JUNE 27, 2023
“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 the kingdom of heaven.”(Matthew 18:2, 3)
Before we comment upon Jesus’ words and the wonderful truth that He sets forth in these two verses, I would have you to notice something that is most precious about the person of our Lord. It is not specifically mentioned either here in this passage, or in other places where the same wonderful trait is clearly seen. When Jesus said to His disciples, “Suffer the little children to come unto me,” is it not clearly implied that children (of various ages) were willingly coming to the Savior? There must have been a special tenderness and kindness within His holy character that was manifested in His countenance. On this occasion, “Jesus called a little child unto Him,” and it would seem that there was no thought or concern about whether the child might be afraid or resist. We do not know the child’s age, or to whom he belonged. I picture a little boy about three or four years of age. Perhaps the child belonged to Peter. We know his home was there at Capernaum, and likely served as a meeting place for Christ and the disciples. Children are usually good judges of character, and it seems that they were drawn to our gentle and loving Lord.
Coming now to the text itself, we are taught the necessity of conversion, and of conversion manifested in childlike humility. The disciples came to Jesus with this question: “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” The verse before opens the chapter with these words “At the same time…” In other words, at the same time that our Lord was showing great humility and self-denial (Ch. 17:24-27), His disciples were (as another Gospel account tells us) arguing about which of them was in line to be greatest in the Kingdom. They spoke as men full of carnal expectations. They received from our Lord an answer well calculated to awaken them, an answer containing a truth which lies at the very foundation of Christianity – “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Let these words sink down deeply into our hearts. Without conversion, there is no salvation. We all need an entire change of nature. Of ourselves, we have neither faith, nor fear, nor love towards God. We must be born again. Of ourselves, we are utterly unfit for dwelling in God’s presence. Heaven would be no heaven for an unconverted soul. Regardless of rank, class, or order of mankind, all must be converted in order either to enter or to delight in the Kingdom of Heaven. A new heart must be given to us, and a new spirit put within us. Old things must pass away, and all things must become new. It is a good thing to be obedient in believers’ baptism, and to attend to the ordinances of the Church, but if one is not a believer – not converted, it will avoid nothing.
How can we know if we are truly converted? Our Lord gives the acid test by which we are to try ourselves. The surest mark of true conversion is humility. If one has truly received the Holy Spirit, he shall show it by a meek and childlike spirit. Like children, we shall think humbly of our own strength and wisdom and be very dependent on our Father in Heaven. Like children, we shall not seek great things in the world, and learn that in whatever state Providence places us, therein to be content. It is easy to be converted from one opinion to another opinion, from one religion to another religion. Such conversions save no one’s soul. What we want is conversion from pride to humility – from high thoughts of ourselves to lowly thoughts of ourselves. Remember, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.” These are conversions that are wrought by the Holy Spirit.
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