The Kingdom of Kids...

"Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, 'I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned inthe depths of the sea'" (Matthew 18:2-6).

My recent journey through the valley of despair included some stops at some places that I had not visited for a very long time. These are places that I have not wanted to visit because of the pain that I have tried to bury in those places. I didn't want to visit the basement of our next door neighbor in Kimball, Nebraska where I was taught to confuse sexuality with acceptance. I didn't want to visit the handful of elementary schools that I passed thorugh during my childhood--the confusion of acceptance in one place--rejection in another. I didn't want to visit the locker room of the Jr. High in Ft. Yates, North Dakota where I learned that I wasn't allowed to fight back. I did not want to visit the home where the sacrifice of one's family for the sake of the church was a virtue. I did not want to visit parents who failed to notice the tell-tale signs of the molestation of their children. I didn't want to visit those places. I didn't want to acknowledge the little boy that was living in all of those spaces. Afterall, it's in those places that David learned that he was not safe to feel, he was not safe to trust, and that he was certainly not safe to "be a child".

As I meditated on the words of Jesus this morning, He took me back to some of those places. These are places that I have now learned to visit more frequently and with less fear. There was a time when I wouldn't step foot in those towns but now I've found that I can come and go without relative freedom--though I still enter cautiously. For me, Jesus is saying this morning, that in order for me to fully enter into the Kingdom that He is inviting me to--I must allow myself to enter as a broken, hopeless, guilt-ridden and molested child. God loves that little boy! God wants me to run and play. God wants me to trust Him. God wants me to find sanctuary in his loving arms. He is safe! It's a great thing to be a child in the Kingdom!

By the way, the picture is of the elementary school in Kimball, Nebraska where I began Kindergarten. I took the picture when I visited last Fall...

Children as God's Greatest...

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these" (Matthew 19:14). The Kingdom may belong to the children but do they have the right to vote in a church business session?

I would expect that if children have very little to contribute to the church because of their underdeveloped intellect and their lack of experience with the world's ways, that God would pass them by in order to find more qualified candidates for service. I would expect that there would be few if any examples of God using these "weak" ones.

Allow me to share with you seven biblical examples of God speaking to and working through children:

• Mary who conceived by the Holy Spirit and brought Jesus into the world (Luke 1:26-38).


• King Josiah who took the throne of Israel at age 8 (2 Kings 22:1-2).


• David who through the power of God slew a giant (1 Samuel 16:7-13; 17:33, 42, 55-56).


• Joseph who received prophetic dreams (Genesis 37:1-11).


• Samuel who heard the voice of God (1 Samuel 2:18; 3:1-19).


• John the Baptist who recognized Jesus in the womb while in the womb himself (Luke 1:41-45).


• Jesus who taught the teachers at age 12 (Luke 2:40-52).

So, if God has used children in the past--why couldn't he also use children in the present and in the future? Is it possible that a church could cut itself off from the influence of these "kingdom owners" by denying them the ability to fully participate in church decisions? Isn't the "eye" guilty of saying to the "hand", "I don't need you" by closing our ears to the voices of our children? (1 Corinthians 12:21).

"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me" (Matthew 18:1-5).

Children as Spirituals...

The question is, "Should children under 18 be allowed to vote in church business sessions?" I believe that the answer to the question has more to do with the Holy Spirit's indwelling power than anything else. Adults will logically come to different conclusions on any given subject including this one. That explains why such a thing as a "church fight" exists. Minds will often differ and and as a result will produce division . . . but the Holy Spirit will always be united!

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12 that though there is diversity in the Body of Christ, there is "the same Spirit" (v4), "the same Lord" (v5), and "the same God" (v6). "For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jew or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:12-13). Note that all Christians are baptized into the same body through the same Spirit regardless of race or heritage. All Christians are indwelt with the same Holy Spirit of God regardless of anything else including age. In fact, Jesus went so far as to say that the greatest occupants of Heaven are the children! (Matthew 18:1-5). Look at what Paul says in verse 24 of 1 Corinthians 12, "But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked (honor)". The children who appear to be the weakest members of the Body of Christ are in fact the greatest members and therefore are worthy of the greater honor! Are believers who happen to be children indwelt with the same Holy Spirit that lives in adult believers? Absolutely Yes! Are children then, under the Holy Spirit's leadership, able to make spiritual decisions along with the rest of the Body? Again, absolutely yes!

"When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice and said, 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happend to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy" (Luke 1:41-44). Is it possible that John the Baptist while in the womb recognized the Lord Jesus while he also was in the womb? Apparently, yes! Now tell me, if a yet-to-be-born baby can recognize the work of God--why couldn't a young adult believer who is 17? or 16? or 6? It's not about mental ability . . . it is about Spirit-ability!

Children as Church...

We are in the process of reworking our Constitution and Bylaws at Cornerstone and have bumped into a previously held rule that prohibits children under the age of 18 from voting in congregational business sessions. I have not previously seen this prohibition in any Southern Baptist Church of which I have been associated.

The rationale for not allowing children to vote seems to run in two primary streams of argument:

• #1--Children do not have the mental development or maturity to cast a vote.


• #2--Large families would have increased influence in church decisions through their children.

I can appreciate both of these arguments as rational and reasonable. However, we must ask some other questions in order to make a sound spiritual decision based upon the biblical record.

Question #1--Does the Holy Spirit indwell all believers including children?

Question #2--Are there biblical examples of God speaking to and through children?

Question #3--Should we be concerned with mental development or spiritual development?

Question #4--What would Jesus do?

I'll be posting over the next several days the answers that I am finding to these important questions.