“46 An argument arose among the disciples concerning which one of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side 48 and said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me, for whoever is the least among all of you is the greatest’” Luke 9:48.
Lord, when I begin to feel secure, powerful, and on top of things, You unsettle me. You ask me to emulate the powerlessness of children, who cannot plan for themselves. You welcome me as a follower, but warn me that I am not your only follower. There are lots of paths, lots of ways to You. You teach me those who are not against Me are for Me.
Oh Lord, I come with all my baggage, my skepticism, competitiveness, self-regard. Can I put this aside and be like the little child?
Dear friends, in acknowledging children in the group and giving them time, Jesus was going against His culture and religion. Children, while loved and important, would never be given time with a religious teacher. But not so with Jesus who is the One For All, and the surest way of showing this was to give time to the children, against the advice of his disciples.
When you and I become preoccupied with our name and our fame, we become completely absurd. But Jesus is never afraid to push against the cultural. The child whom He welcomed remains anonymous, the least among us, for the nameless are the greatest.
Remember, we don't need a famous name, instead we just need to know who we are to God, for that is enough.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.
From the Bible:
“Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me” Luke 10:16.
“But you shall not be like them. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who leads like the one who serves” Luke 22:26.
“Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever receives the one I send receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives the One who sent Me” John 13:20.
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