Tag: disciples

Living Water and Real Food (John 4:5-42)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman, by He Qi

So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

“I have no husband,” she replied.

Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”

Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.

They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” (New International Version)

Samaritan Woman and Jesus at the Well, by He Qi

Samaria, back in Christ’s day, was viewed by many as an infamous place, full of untrustworthy people who were a mongrel mix of Jewish and ancient Assyrian blood. And their religion was most suspect of all – an unholy blend of Jewish and Gentile practices. So, no respectable Jewish person ever got near Samaria or even talked with a Samaritan.

Jesus, however, saw things differently. He did not avoid the territory but confidently walked through Samaria. Christ had no problem stopping to rest on his journey in a foreign area. That’s because Jesus didn’t class people into groups, nor did he attach adjectives to people, such as “those” Samaritans. He had no obstacles between himself and others.

Which is why an organic conversation happened between Jesus and a Samaritan woman. Christ simply saw a human being who happened to be a woman and a Samaritan. He acknowledged both her gender and her ethnicity without those being a problem. Not even Christ’s knowledge of her string of husbands was an issue in conversing with her.

Every time I read this narrative of Jesus interacting with the Samaritan woman, I imagine what all the non-verbal communication was like. I’m sure the conversation was as much about Christ’s affect, gestures, and tone of voice, as it was his well-placed words. I fully believe both his verbal and non-verbal communication was perfectly congruent with each other, giving the woman a compelling sense that her ultimate needs could be met with the living well of a person in front of her.

Water gives life. And Jesus, as living water, gives new life. A bunch of failed relationships testified to the woman’s dissatisfaction. Even though we hear no more about her after this story in the Bible, we as readers get the overwhelming sense that the woman finally found satisfaction. The love which kept slipping through her fingers now had staying power.

Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (John 7:37-38, NIV)

We need the living water of Jesus as a river flowing straight from him to us — replenishing, renewing, sustaining, and breaking through every barrier in its path like a mighty flood overcoming and pushing everything out of the way that blocks its path so that our love can overflow onto all sorts of people, like a Samaritan woman.

The disciples come along, seemingly confused about this scene of Jesus and a Samaritan woman. So they blurt out something like the stereotypical mother concerned for her son saying, “Sit down and eat some of Mama’s pasta. You need some food!” As if preparing and serving a meal will make everything better.

Food has both the power to bring us together, as well as separate us. A meal can create the conditions for fellowship, acceptance, and enjoyment. On the other hand, sitting down to eat can also be a way to avoid painful emotions, and so, becomes an obstacle, keeping love at bay.

The disciples were uncomfortable and maybe a bit stressed. Looking to fill up with food instead of with God, their sense of unfulfillment was coming out sideways by opening the pantry and looking for comfort food. Jesus saw through the situation and put the focus on the disciples’ spiritual hunger.

Paying attention to our vocation and discovering humble work in the service of God, rather than a vacation to the fridge to cover unwanted feelings, is the essence of Christ’s interaction with his disciples.

People are much more ready for the gospel than we think. There are times we can become insular, lost within our own heads, that we are then unable to see the world as ripe for a harvest of people who are eager to be gathered into a community of redemption and love.

Jesus had a significant interaction with the Samaritan woman – despite the social prohibitions of the time. Shenanigans like this, by Christ, got a lot of people’s  undies in a bundle. The disciples, having a front seat to most of Christ’s ways, did a few too many palms to the forehead, believing their Rabbi’s behavior was going to make him unpopular. They feared no one would follow him.

Looks like the disciples didn’t quite get that one right.

The Samaritan woman received Jesus as Living Water, having her ultimate needs met by the Lord of all. The disciples hadn’t quite caught up to this, so fell back on their old ways of physical food and drink to assuage the awkward uncomfortable feelings happening inside them.

The woman became a wellspring of good news to her community. Whereas the disciples eventually became a fountain of the gospel after Christ’s death and resurrection, they are here only an annoying drip from the kitchen faucet. A non-descript ethnically suspect woman of dubious character coming to faith was meant by Jesus to open the disciples’ eyes to a new reality:

The good news of Christ is meant for the world, not just Jewish men.

The disciples were given the opportunity to participate a mission of bringing the love of God where love wasn’t present, of helping all kinds of people awaken to the deep spirituality within them, of lifting their downcast faces of guilt and shame to see the Living God bless the world with the body and blood of Jesus.

All of our work, no matter how big or small, is made possible by God, the great Chef of the universe. God has done all the preparations of chopping the onions, mincing the garlic, slicing the carrots, and peeling the potatoes so that we, his followers, can make a savory stew of diverse people sharing a common pot of God’s love and hospitality. It is, therefore, our privilege to be the wait staff who serves the meal to a whole host of persons.

O God, you made us in your own image, and you have redeemed us through your Son Jesus Christ: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Who’s the Greatest? (Matthew 18:1-7)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Jesus Loves the Children by Sarah Hornsby

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Then he called a little child over to sit among the disciples, and said, “I assure you that if you don’t turn your lives around and become like this little child, you will definitely not enter the kingdom of heaven. Those who humble themselves like this little child will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever   one such child in my name welcomes me.

“As for whoever causes these little ones who believe in me to trip and fall into sin, it would be better for them to have a huge stone hung around their necks and be drowned in the bottom of the lake. How terrible it is for the world because of the things that cause people to trip and fall into sin! Such things have to happen, but how terrible it is for the person who causes those things to happen! (Common English Bible)

How would you answer the disciples’ question of who is the greatest in God’s kingdom?

Jesus answered the question by essentially stating that the least among us are the greatest. To be little is to be big. The kingdom hinges on being humble, gentle, meek, and lowly.

That definitely isn’t the way Western society looks at greatness – even the Western Church typically devalues the importance of such virtues and spiritual qualities.

In particular, many Americans takes pride in their can-do spirit. They seem always on the lookout for those who are assertive and can get things done efficiently and quickly. The tragedy of this is that, even though intentions may be noble, such a spirit often ends in causing others to stumble over their prideful beliefs of being hardworking and right.

Methinks Jesus and Horton the elephant would get along well together. In Dr. Seuss’s book, Horton Hears a Who, Horton exalted the littlest of persons whom others could neither see nor hear.

“A person’s a person no matter how small” said Horton to the people completely unconcerned for all the residents of Who Ville, living on a clover. They were unconcerned because the Who’s were invisible to them. 

Dr. Seuss chose to make Horton an elephant, a large creature able to hear with big ears and be attentive to the small. Largeness of heart comes from being attentive to the smallest ones among us – so small that the big people are unaware of them.

People who no one sees or notices, nonetheless matter to Jesus; and so, they should matter to us, too. 

Jesus often mingled with the little people of his time – children, women who had no rights, social misfits like lepers, the chronically ill, religious outsiders, tax collectors, and prostitutes. 

Our world is filled with similar people – angry adolescents, unwanted babies, forgotten old people, the mentally ill, moral failures, immigrants and refugees, and, if we have eyes to see and big ears to hear, lots of poor people who reside on the dark underbelly of society. They are around us, even if we fail to see or hear them.

The way to become great in the kingdom of God is to descend, not ascend, into greatness. The main enemy of any community is a desire to be prominent – it’s called “pride” and it will give us a terrible end if we hold onto it.

The disciples’ question is dripping with a desire for position and prestige. It’s a question meant to posture themselves into prominence and power. They want to know how to climb the ladder in God’s kingdom and be the important people.

I admire Christ’s grace for not throwing up his hands and going off on these guys: “What!? You’ve been with me how long and you ask me a stupid question like that?  Where have you been?  Have you learned nothing from me?” 

But instead, Jesus calmly called a child to him and used them as an example of his answer: Unless you become like this little child you will have no future at all with God. The way to have what you want is through humility.

In Jesus’ day children had no status or rights. Ancient culture was not kid oriented and there was no such thing as a youth culture. Children were, for the most part, viewed as potential adults – weak, small, and unable to contribute much of anything until they grew up. 

Christ’s disciples are to become like children, to become lowly; they are to give up their status and a desire to be important. They can only be big if they become small.

There’s another thing about the smallness of children that we ought to notice: Kids see what adults don’t. Whereas adults make distinctions between people on the basis of race, class, ethnicity, and gender, children see children and will play with just about anyone.

Only by getting on the same level as little people can we ever welcome Jesus; a person who is attentive to the lowly is attentive to Jesus. 

We are not to welcome people because they are great, wise, rich, powerful, good-looking, and just like you and me – but because they are noticed by Jesus. Christ stands for those we may tend to overlook.

The proud person who seeks prominence is forever looking for greener pastures, to do things that will impress others and help them advance up the ladder of success. In such a frame of mind, the proud person pays no attention to who they step on along the way. 

Christians, however, are to be different – giving socially insignificant people the time of day and treating them as important – because they are important to Jesus.

Here’s how Christ’s argument unfolds to the disciples:

  • Humility. Those who become like little children enter God’s kingdom, because it is only accessed through humility.
  • Attention. Those who pay attention and receive these little ones receive Jesus.
  • Rejection. Those who reject these little ones reject Jesus, and by their lack of loving them cause them to sin. 
  • Consequences. Leeching the poor and needy, ignoring the insignificant around us, and devaluing the littlest ones is damnable behavior, according to Jesus.

A person’s a person no matter how small. 

We need humility, to lower our sights in order to see and hear little people. No one is to be overlooked or to fall through the cracks under Christ’s rule and reign.

Loving Lord Jesus, you gave honor to the least, the forgotten, the overlooked, and the misunderstood and misjudged. You came to give first place to the last, those left behind and undervalued. You seek to provide a warm welcome to the lost, to the abandoned and the destitute.

Help us to be your ears to listen to their cries; your voice to speak love and acceptance; your feet to walk beside those in need; and your hands to clothe, feed and shelter them. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. Amen.

Don’t Be Afraid (Matthew 17:1-9)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Transfiguration by Sieger Köder (1925-2015)

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” (New International Version)

Fear is a universal feeling and experience. None of us has to work at being afraid – but we all have to work at being brave and having the courage to face our fears.

Sometimes, we adults teach children not to fear because we assume they are afraid of the dark, high places, and monsters in the closet. But I tend to think a lot of our own adult fear is projected on kids. Why? Because some of the bravest folks I have ever known are children. 

Kids don’t understand near as much as we adults do, yet they conquer their fears every day by facing the world with courage. If you were to go to any children’s hospital today, I believe you would be amazed at the kind of courage you would find amongst kids. We adults have a whole lot to learn about being brave because we have become far too sophisticated in hiding our fears and avoiding courage.

This is why the most repeated exhortation is all of Holy Scripture is to not be afraid. We need courage to live the way God wants. Every day is a fresh opportunity to practice courage.

We need the courage to stand alone

Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent,and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?” (Numbers 16:1-3, NIV)

When Moses heard this, he responded with prayer to God – because he clearly understood that this was all a big power play by Korah, who got others stirred up to take action against him. 

Moses stood alone. Out of the millions of Israelites, not one single person stood with Moses. To be sure, the majority of Israelites did not side with Korah; but neither did they come and stand with Moses. Why? They were too afraid to be involved and took the posture of bystanders. 

God did a miraculous thing, never done before or since, by opening up the ground and having the earth swallow Korah and his followers. The Lord wasn’t only upset with Korah; God was also angry with the people for fearfully standing in the safety of numbers and doing nothing. In fact, God was so mad that he was ready to wipe them all off the face of the earth. But, yet again, Moses, in humility, prayed and pleaded with God to spare them – and God did.

There will always be someone opposing you when you are just trying to obey God and do the right thing. And there will always be a crowd of people who do not want to be involved because they are afraid.

The church everywhere needs to be what Jesus wants it to be, and not what a particular person or group of people want it to be. Courageous people need to stand up to people who want positions of power in order to lead in self-serving ways.

We need the courage to love people

Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person. (John 2:23-25, NIV)

Jesus did not get carried away with his own press. Whether people responded to him by the hundreds, or whether they refused him altogether and tried to throw him off a cliff, Jesus was consistently the same. He did not need people’s responsive affirmation in order to do his mission on earth. Christ loved people just because he wanted to, and not because he was trying to get them to love him in return, like insecure and fearful people do.

We need the courage to love the unlovely. And we must understand that perfect love casts out fear.

“We should not only love our brothers and sisters, but also not consider ourselves better than them. Instead, we should show compassion and acceptance to others. We want to have others strictly reprimanded for their offenses, but we will not be reprimanded ourselves. We are inclined to think the other person has too much freedom, but we ourselves will not put up with any restraint to our freedom. There must be rules for everyone else, but we must be given free rein. It is seldom that we consider our neighbor equally with ourselves. If everyone was perfect, what would we have to endure for the love of God?… for we cannot live in this world without adversity. Those who can suffer well will enjoy the most peace, for such persons are brave, courageous, not afraid of pain, have Christ as their friend, and heaven as their reward.”

Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, c.1425, C.E.

It is no test of virtue to be on good terms with easy-going people. And, of course, all of us want to live in peace and prefer those who agree with us. Yet, in this mortal life, our peace consists in the humble bearing of suffering and contradictions, not in being free of them.

We need the courage to please God

The devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” (Matthew 4:8-10, NIV)

Jesus is our model of courage. He sought to please the Father, and not anyone else. Jesus bravely resisted becoming someone other than he was called to be. 

On the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus courageously refused to remain on the mountain, instead choosing to go into the valley and undertake a new and risky ministry. 

Christ fearlessly came to this earth in the incarnation and resisted the comfort of security. He valiantly confronted sin, overturned the money-changers’ tables, and did his Father’s will, instead of shrinking in fear about what people would think. 

Jesus heroically faced crucifixion, even though he was terribly stressed about it, in order to offer forgiveness in the face of persecution. Jesus gallantly said “No!” to the power of sin by rising from death. And he boldly ascended to heaven and confidently passed the work of ministry to a motley group of people who did not show any promise to carry the mantle of his teaching.

The Son found his identity in relation to the Father. For us to please God, we need the courage to play to an audience of One. 

If we need other people’s acceptance and approval in order to do anything, then we will never have the courage to act for God. 

We must live by conviction, and not by sticking our finger to the wind to see which way popular opinion is blowing.

Conclusion

History is filled with men and women who said “no” to destructive fear and changed the world. But imagine if they had succumbed to the paralyzing effects of fear in their lives. Imagine if…

The Apostle Paul, fearing resistance or rejection, chose to stay home rather than embarking on the missionary journeys that took the message of Christ throughout the known world.

Martin Luther King Jr. gave speeches filled with gentle hints about the evils of segregation, because he feared pushing too hard.

Jackie Robinson refused to enter major league baseball so as to not rock the boat; or Branch Rickey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, just going with the way baseball had always operated. But neither of them went that way. In the film, “42,” Robinson asks Rickey:

“You want a player that doesn’t have the guts to fight back?” “No. No.” replies Rickey. “I want a player who has the guts not to fight back. People aren’t going to like this. They’re going to do anything to get you to react. Follow a curse with a curse and they’ll hear only yours. Follow a blow with a blow and they’ll say the Negro lost his temper; that the Negro does not belong. Your enemy will be out in force and you cannot meet him on his own low ground. We win with hitting, running, fielding—only that. We win only if the world is convinced of two things: That you are a fine gentleman, and a great ball player. Like our Savior, you’ve got to have the guts to turn the other cheek. Can you do it?”  Robinson replies, “You give me a uniform; you give me a number on my back; and I’ll give you the guts.”

42 (2013 film)

Now imagine yourself, fully aware of the mission and vision God has placed in your heart to advance his gracious and benevolent rule in this world – and yet there is also present all the phobias, irrational worries, and destructive fears of failure, harm, or rejection. So I ask:

If you don’t fulfill the mission God assigned to you, who will?

Let the Little Children Come (Luke 18:15-17)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (New International Version)

I happen to believe that kids are closer to the kingdom of God than most adults.

Us big people have developed a lot of baggage over the years. And all that stuff tends to obscure God’s kingdom and the light of Christ within us.

Kids, however, especially small children, still haven’t discerned any veil between the seen and unseen worlds. They freely move between them both without any problem.

So, of course, Jesus wanted to be around children. If he had any homesickness at all, I’m sure the presence of kids made him feel at home more than anywhere else on this earth.

Jesus is our Immanuel, God with us.

The kingdom of God is here within us.

The disciples of Jesus had some difficulty with Christ’s branding of the message because it was not exclusive enough for them. They wanted limits on the us part.

Kids are part of that mass of people that God is with. Children deserve as much or more attention than adults. More than simply saying that we care about kids, we need to be like Jesus. He let the children come to him and was intolerant of anyone preventing kids from doing so.

Since the disciples were, ironically, still living in a small world, they rebuked those who brought little children to Jesus.

We aren’t specifically told why the disciples rebuked the adults bringing children to Jesus. Maybe the children were making a lot of noise and were being a nuisance in the middle of Jesus’ teaching. Perhaps the disciples had Jesus on a tight time schedule and this bringing kids to Christ thing was causing a delay. It could be that the disciples simply saw children as an interruption to the “important” work of ministry. 

I tend to think that the disciples simply failed to appreciate the children. The dominate view of kids in the ancient world was to see them as potential adults. Kids were pretty low on the ladder of society. The disciples likely saw no reason for children to be involved in what was happening.

The babies and toddlers and small children were brought so that Jesus might place his hands on them and pray for them. That still seems to me to be the best reason to bring kids to Jesus. 

“This story teaches us that Christ does not receive only those who voluntarily come to Him of a holy desire and moved by faith, but also those who might not yet be old enough to realize how much they need His grace….  From this we gather that His grace reaches to this age of life also….  It would be cruel to exclude that age from the grace of redemption.”

John Calvin

“Jesus does not only save repentant adults; he also saves dependent children and all those whom we think are incompetent to respond to Jesus.”

Frederick Dale Bruner

Jesus flat out rebuked his disciples for hindering the little children from coming to him. He wanted just the opposite of what was taking place. Why? Because the kingdom of heaven belongs to such little people as these. 

As mentioned, children were at the bottom of the societal pecking order in the ancient world. Their place in that society was to be respectful and quiet, to speak only when spoken to, and to never interrupt an adult.

Yet, Jesus took the time to touch them and pray for them. He invited this interruption to his schedule. Christ bluntly told his disciples that they were the ones being the hindrance, not the kids.

I baptize all sorts of people, including kids and babies. Why? Because in baptism, I recognize that the smallest ones among us can come to this holy sacrament. I understand that in baptism the Holy Spirit begins and initiates the process of salvation that will take that little one from infancy to adulthood and eventual death. I discern that, ideally, the child grows to live into their baptism by recognizing by faith that Jesus died and rose from the dead and grants grace and forgiveness to all who come to him. 

In that process of salvation, of coming to know Jesus, we have the sacrament of the Lord’s Table to strengthen our faith and demonstrate to us that the saving work of Jesus that has been accomplished. It is a Table of grace for all the members of Christ’s Church. 

In my Reformed Christian tradition, we believe that Jesus is not physically, but spiritually present at the Table.  Because Jesus is present, we are able to receive the grace available to us as Christ’s members. So why, in light of this reality, and the words and practice of Jesus toward children, would we ever hinder and prevent the smallest members among us from participating at the Table?

Here’s a thought: If Jesus himself were serving communion in a church, and a group of 2-year-old children came toddling up to the Table to see Jesus, would you stop them from doing so? Or much like the disciples, would you rebuke those bringing children to Jesus?

As for me, I’d rather not be rebuked by my Lord.

Jesus gave children the three gifts they most need: time, touch, and prayer. Parenting and teaching are holy vocations, and we have the wonderful privilege of bestowing these same gifts on our children, grandchildren, and students.

Time, touch, and prayer are ways we bless children. And, what’s more, as God’s children, we are all to approach Jesus and spend time with him, allow him to touch us, and interact with him through prayer. 

May we all have the humility to bend down at eye level to the littlest among us so that we and others will know that the kingdom of God is among us.