Jesus Came For All

Sermon Outline

Jesus Came for All!

I. The parents in our text recognized that Jesus had come not only for them, but also for their children.

II. Jesus teaches us, too, that God’s kingdom is indeed also for children.

III. And Jesus teaches us that the faith of a child is precisely the kind of faith God looks for in all believers.

Sermon

Our Lord Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. There, he was about to shed his lifeblood as the sacrifice for our sins and the sins of the world. Prophesied by the inspired messengers of God for years and years, the fulfillment must have been on our all-knowing Lord’s mind.

His reputation had been well-established by this time. His miracles attested to his power, his teaching to his gracious wisdom. People flocked to see him wherever he went. His popularity had increased among the people of Israel and so had the opposition and hatred of the religious establishment, the scribes and the Pharisees. The Pharisees followed him and tried again and again to challenge him and his work. In our text, Jesus taught them and answered their questions—he tells them that God brings couples together; he guides their lives together that they might live their lives for God. And with the disciples he urged the sanctity of marriage.

Then he teaches us that God not only loves husbands and wives, but that he loves the products of these marriages, their children. They are indeed beloved by God, and they are important to our Lord! Scripture is clear:

Jesus Came for All!

I.

The incident that brought this to light was parents bringing their children to receive a blessing from Jesus. Now when you are a new parent, you bend the ear of your pediatrician…a lot. My child has this bump…not eating right. When you go to the pediatrician they give you these graphs. Most children your child’s age weigh this much, are this tall, can crawl, turn to the location of noise. Those mile markers are important. We want to make sure our children hit those and if they don’t what do we need to do to get them there. Parents can be the blessing or bane at school. But they have the welfare of their little ones in mind. These children were already members of the kingdom of God since they were members of the faith. The boys were circumcised on the eighth day by the faithful. Yet these eager parents still brought their young children to Jesus. They recognized that Jesus had come not only for them but also for their little children. They went to have their children receive the blessing and the love of the Savior.

Ooh, that is a little dicey. Because the next logical question for you and for me…do we ask the Savior to bless our children. Do we bring them to the Lord’s house, to hear His Word, to sing hymns and learn of the deeds of God? And we as a church…do we welcome the little ones? Do we encourage their parents when a little one decides to do an impression of a tornado siren? Or are we like the disciples, trying to shush little ones?

But someone didn’t approve of the parents’ action. We don’t know why the disciples did what they did. Perhaps the disciples thought Jesus was too busy to be bothered with such actions. The disciples turned them away—and the parents kept trying to bring them to Jesus. The action of the disciples troubled Jesus; indeed, the Gospel recorded that “when Jesus saw it, he was indignant” (v 14). Jesus had righteous anger and proceeded to show the disciples how wrong they were, as our text records it: “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (vv 14–15). Scripture uses the word “indignant”. I’m going to go with “he was mad”.

Jesus came for all. His life, death, and resurrection would attain salvation for the world! If only the world wouldn’t reject God’s grace! The Son of God indeed came to seek and to save the lost—from the greatest to the least. He went to the Samaritans, he rejoiced over the confession of a Roman, and here he showed that even the youngest child was precious in his and his Father’s sight!

II.

The disciples, like many in our time, think that little children can’t believe, that they don’t matter. The disciples failed to understand why Jesus came and what his Kingdom was all about. So Jesus proceeded to teach his disciples and us adults two important lessons.

First, God’s kingdom (his gracious rule in the hearts and minds of the believers) is also for children. Faith is not a matter of the intellect or will, but a matter of trust in Jesus and in the promises of our gracious Father.

Today there are many obstacles to that faith. How many children today don’t even have a chance to live, because their parents, for the sake of convenience, expedience, or some other reason, determine that it would be best to terminate their life before they’re born? They are God’s creation! As the Introit today proclaimed: “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.” How indignant must Jesus be over these who are kept from life?

Or there are the parents who think, “I will give my child his choice of religions when he grows up. I won’t do anything with him now.” Jesus said, “Let the children come!” Bring them to him—now!—that the Holy Spirit may do as he intends—create faith in that infant’s heart by the washing of regeneration, Holy Baptism. And then this faith must be fed, just as the little baby needs to be fed and nurtured.

So, too, the faithful Christian parent and the Church seek to nurture the child in the faith. The parent educates the child in the way he or she should go. Teaching and leading by example, by word, and by deed. Bringing the child to God’s house, placing the Word into their hands and hearts—catechizing them, leading them in the way of Christ, that when they are older they might not stray away from the way of our Lord.

 2   The great men and the doctors understand not the word of God, but it is revealed to the humble and to children.

Martin Luther

Table Talk (16th century)

Martin Luther

I have sometimes met with a deeper spiritual experience in children of ten and twelve than I have in certain persons of fifty and sixty. It is an old proverb that some children are born with beards. Come Ye Children, Page 24

Charles Spurgeon

III.

Second, not only are children part of God’s kingdom through faith in him, but also, it is precisely that kind of faith that God looks for in all of his believers: simple, humble, trusting faith that looks only to him. By nature, just like little children, we’re unable to save ourselves. We truly are dependent on God; we can’t make a decision to follow Christ, but the Spirit comes and creates this faith in us. This faith, a gift of God, is in the child, the parent, the grandparent who believes, and it is by this faith that we apprehend the Kingdom! “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (v 15).

Despite what others teach, the truth remains that there is original sin. Children do receive the guilt of their parents by nature and thus need salvation. Jesus said, “Let them come!” Today, through the water and Word of Holy Baptism, they come. Through Baptism, he gives his gracious forgiveness of sins to even the youngest child. “Let them come!” It is no accident that this passage is included in the Order of Baptism of children.

Jesus told the disciples not to hinder these children. He was indignant, the text says, angry with the disciples, with anyone who would prevent even the youngest child from receiving his blessings. How much righteous anger must he have for those who ignorantly prevent children from receiving the blessing of Baptism today! That day, thinking ahead to the cross, he proclaimed the preciousness of the life and salvation of these babes in arms.

Christian parents bring their children to Christ. In Baptism, God graciously welcomes their gifts into his saving faith, bestowing upon them the Holy Spirit. He grants them faith and forgiveness through this gracious water of life. This faith is valid. It is sincere! It is the faith of which Jesus spoke when he said, “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (v 15).

“Let the children come!” And you, too, trust in him as a child—with a faith that takes his Word to heart, completely trusting in him and his love. As our heavenly Father, he desires to bless us every day, and that is exactly what he does. Amen.