It is a shame how abused the first few verses of Matthew 18 are by Bible teachers and preachers alike. I've heard so many sermons and sat through countless classes espousing "theories" and "philosophies" for what it means to be a "child" or "childlike" in the kingdom of God. Frankly speaking, NONE of them are found in the text! I've heard we need to have the "simplicity" of a child. We need to be "trusting" like a child. We should be "innocent" like a child. Christians should be "naive" like a child (now that one, we've probably got covered-- but not the kind of naivete we'd be hoping to have). So many "child-like" ideas, but none of them substantiated by Jesus.
While all those concepts of childlikeness may make for great sermon outlines or lesson fodder, the truth is... NONE of them appear in the text! Jesus simply says these words recorded by Matthew, "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" (18:3-4).
The key is right there in one simple word: humbles. Period. That's it. No more, no less. Just... "humbles." Short sermon. Long life lesson.
Can we do it? Can we ever become like little children and be truly humble? If there is anything we lose as we grow into adulthood (arguably even into adolescence by my observations) it is humility. Go to your next dinner party and just listen to the grown-up conversations. Start keeping track of how many times someone uses a phrase similar to... "Oh yeah? Well that's nothing... one time I was..." I promise, you'll be amazed at how often we "adults" posture ourselves in this manner. One-upsmanship abounds and it eats away at the heart of humility and kingdom living.
What is it with human beings that we always have to "better" ourselves by comparing to someone else? Even with our closest friends, we'll try and top their story with ours. You don't believe me? You are reading this saying to yourself, "I don't do that! I'm not like that. I don't compare myself to other people just to make myself feel secure or superior. I don't! I know other people who do it, but I'm not like those other people." (Okay, was I close? Be honest... you were thinking it, weren't you?). If that is anywhere close to what you were thinking... you're guilty!
You see, it is simply an inversion of the "I can top your story" dynamic only on the other end of the spectrum. We simply compare ourselves to those who are more likely to behave in this manner, but we're still comparing ourselves to someone else. It is a sticky wicket and so much a part of our social culture, we aren't even aware we do it -- even when we tell ourselves we're NOT doing it... we're quite likely doing it!
Enter the can of playdough. Every night this week, I watched curiously as little kids worked on making little Playdough animals. Some kids had already "matured" to the "mine is better than yours" stage of human development. But many had not yet found that level of "maturity." Praise God! I wondered if there was some way to stop their "maturity?" I felt a bit desperate... really.
The vast majority of those kids (aged three years through sixth grade) just had fun with their own ball of dough. They apparently didn't even THINK about comparing theirs to someone else's work. They simply created... laughed... and helped their neighbors (the last couple of groups even figured out they could share the Playdough and create multicolored images -- thankfully they were among the last groups of the week or we'd have some radically polychromatic sculptures laying around)!
For me as a host/helper to those kids, I have to say it was so easy to compliment each individual's work without the need to compare the work to someone else's. I complimented each one on its own merit, not on the basis of someone else's work. Were some better than others? By my subjective opinions, of course! But I didn't feel the need to compare one against the other. Each was a created wonder unto itself.
I'm considering if this is one of the keys to finding true humility. Shouldn't we listen for the Heavenly Host/Helper's compliment or affirmation and simply be secure in it alone? If we aren't listening for God's approval, then we are naturally going to seek desired approval in someone else or, worse yet, generate it for ourselves by comparing our "work" to another's and position ourselves in superiority to them. Therein lies the death of "greatest in the kingdom." We pursue temporal "greatness" and lose eternal kingdom value in the exact same moment. A lame exchange, if I ever saw one!
I'm telling you... go get a can or two of Playdough and begin meditating on what Jesus says... I'm not kidding here! It may take some time, but we CAN learn to be kid-like again... We can go and be "humble" (yeah, I know the "h" is silent in some parts of Texas... but I'm still a California boy and the "h" is still there in the dictionary, so go ahead and pronounce it that way, okay?).
Here is fair warning... If you follow this suggestion and start working the "dough," it will really begin to bug you how much we, generally speaking, lack humility. Begin praying for God to reveal your pride... and I promise you it will get down-right ugly before it gets better! But remember Christ's grace is sufficient and you'll be a whole bunch closer to the kingdom of heaven in the process! How do I know, you ask? Jesus said so... and my God is bigger than your god. So there!
Happy sculpting...
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