Sermon Tone Analysis

Let’s begin this morning with one of those “stump the preacher” questions: how old will I be when I get to heaven?

I know the Bible says all born again believers will be resurrected and given a new body which will live forever.

I know it will be a perfect body, a body free from all sin, disease, or pain.

I know we can do the math and figure up how many years we have existed, but when we step out of this world into the next, how old will you be physically, emotionally, mentally?

Since heaven is a perfect place, I suppose you will be an ideal age, the age when you were the most happy and carefree.

What age would that be for you?

If you could choose one stage of your life which could go on forever, which stage would it be?

I never really thought much about this question until I read an essay by a Christian musician named Terry Taylor.

He speculates God might make us kids again when we get to heaven.

He seems to think this is the perfect age of innocence and wonder, of dependence and trust, the age when we have the least worries and the most fun.

Now I know that not everybody experiences a perfect childhood.

This world is a cruel place and many children suffer terribly growing up.

Today it seems we’re trying to grow up kids faster and faster—too fast, if you ask me.

But I’m still thinking Taylor has a point.

I’m not so sure about what age we’ll be in eternity, but I do know Jesus welcomed little children to come to Him, and went further to tell us that unless we become as little children, we’ll never make it into the kingdom of heaven.

What does He mean by this connection between kids and the kingdom?

That’s what I want to explore with you this morning as we read *Luke 18:15-17*.

*PRAYER*

*            *I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed, but it seems like Jesus has a soft spot for kids.

*Mt 18:5-6, 10 */5//Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me. 6“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

//10//“Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven./

/            /That really shouldn’t surprise us.

After all, God came up with the idea of childhood in the first place.

Flip through the OT and notice how often God expresses His fierce anger at those who mistreat kids.

You’d think anybody that knew Jesus would know He loves kids.

But these disciples didn’t get the memo.

*Vs.

15* tells us a group brings some kids to Jesus /that He might touch /(=bless) /them…/ It was common back then for parents to bring their kids to the Rabbi for him to lay his hands on them and pray God’s blessing on their lives.

Luke specifically calls these /infants /but the parallel passages in Matthew and Mark say there are also some older kids there.

One thing to notice is that they’re all too young to get to Jesus by themselves.

Somebody has to bring them.

You can use your imagination a little  and see how this might happen.

It’s probably another case of the power of the mommy network.

One mom is chatting with another mom one day, and they get the idea of bringing little junior to Jesus.

Pretty soon those 2 talk to a few more, and before you know it, there is a small crowd of mothers, toting kids on their hip, leading kids by the hand, shepherding a flock of kids all to find Jesus.

But before they get to Jesus, they have to get past His disciples.

We don’t know why these men try to turn them away.

Perhaps they think Jesus is too tired; perhaps they’re afraid a bunch of kids and moms might stress Him out.

Perhaps they think Jesus has more important things to do, more important people to see.

/I’m sorry, lady, but Jesus is a very busy Man.

Why don’t you try the Rabbi down the street?

/Whatever they are thinking, they try to get rid of them, or in the language of *vs.

15*, they /rebuked them.

/

But Jesus gets wind of what’s happening.

He steps around the wall of disciples trying to “protect” Him and *vs.

16 *says* */He rebukes *His disciples*!

/In the parallel passage in

*Mk 10:14* /But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased…//= very grieved and angry/

/            Don’t ever come between Me and the kids!

/Jesus says.

Do you get the picture?

Here is one group trying to bring kids to Jesus, and here is another group (Jesus’ followers) trying to keep the kids from coming to Jesus.

There is an important principle here about kids and the kingdom:

*I.              **JESUS WELCOMES US TO BRING CHILDREN TO HIM.

*

How many of you have ever taken small children to an amusement park? Kids and people who aren’t afraid of heights have a lot of fun at those things.

But not all kids get to enjoy the fun.

Some of the rides have a little display out front—usually a cartoon character with one hand held out, and a sign that says /you must be this high to enter this attraction.

/You have to be older, or taller, or even grown up to go here.

I think the disciples would’ve liked a sign like that.

But I’m not sure Jesus would.

I think Jesus wants us to feel welcome to bring our children to Him.

How do you bring kids to Christ?

Some good people look at this verse and try to make it say more than it actually does.

I’ve read behind some who try to make a case for baptizing babies from this verse.

But Jesus doesn’t say anything about baptism here, so that sounds a little far-fetched.

So how old /should/ a child be before you bring them to Jesus?

I think the answer is wrapped up in exactly what we mean by the phrase /bring them to Jesus.

/You can bring a child to Jesus in several different ways.

You can bring them to Jesus in prayer.

Whenever you pray, you ought to pray for the kids in your family, in your church, in your community.

We ought to bring them to Jesus and ask Him to help them grow in mind, body, and spirit.

We ought to bring them to Jesus and pray for protection from evil, to ask God help them be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

Another way many people bring their kids to Jesus is through child dedication.

This is a special service in which parents dedicate their child to God (usually an infant, but not always).

It’s based on the Biblical custom of presenting children to the Lord (Hannah, Joseph and Mary).

The parents make vows to raise the child in a godly home, to teach and train them in the ways of the Lord.

All 3 of my sons were dedicated to the Lord when they were babies, and I’ve been privileged to minister in many other child dedications.

Finally, there is a time when a child is old enough be brought to Jesus through conversion.

How old should a child be before they can come to Jesus and be saved?

I don’t find anywhere in Scripture where a particular age is specified I think one way to determine the answer is not by age as much as by their understanding.

I believe a child trusts Christ as Lord and Savior:

·         When they are old enough to be convinced they are a sinner who needs God’s

forgiveness.

·         When they’re old enough to understand they can only be forgiven through Christ.

·         When they’re old enough to understand Jesus died on the Cross to pay for their

sins.

·         When they’re old enough to understand they must turn away from their sins and

commit their lives to Jesus Christ as their King.

/They don’t have to understand everything./

When you gave your life to Christ, you didn’t understand everything.

They don’t have to be perfect any more than you have to be perfect.

If they understand the basic truths of the Gospel, they can come to Christ just like you and I did.

Can kids really come to Jesus?

One survey I read recently said most people come to faith in Christ before they are 18.

If they don’t /they will probably never come to Him at all! /

How old were they when they came to Jesus?

Matthew Henry was 11.

Jonathan Edwards was 7. Isaac Watts (Joy to the World, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, At the Cross) was 9. Corrie ten Boom asked Christ to be her Savior at age 5. W. A. Criswell, the famous Southern Baptist pastor, was saved when he was 10.

Hymnist Philip Bliss [It is well] was 12 years old.

Nicholaus Zinzendorf, the father of modern Protestant missions, was saved at age 4. [i]