Jesus Blesses the Children

INTRODUCTION

I want to begin this morning by asking you a few questions:

First, Why did the people bring their children to Jesus to bless them?

What was the blessing?

Why did the disciples try to stop them?

What did Jesus mean when He said that children belong to the kingdom of God?

What did Jesus mean when he said that you have to receive the kingdom like a child?

Where do children go when they die?

Is there a special grace for children?

Is there an age of accountability?

Well, all of these questions are going to be answered today in our study of Mark 10:13-16

Please take your Bible and turn to Mark 10 as we see Jesus blessing the children

We just looked at verses 1-12 where we heard Jesus’ answer the Pharisees about divorce

We move now from criticism to comfort, from those who are accountable to the truth to those who are incapable of knowing the truth

From the last account to the previous one, we see a contrast

In the previous story there were those who knew the law, and in our present story there are those who have never heard the law

Our story is found here and also in Matthew 19:13-15 and Luke 18:15-17

I am going to read both accounts together from John MacArthur’s book, “One Perfect Life”

Listen as I read from Matthew 19:13-15 and Mark 10:13-16…

"Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and called them to Him and said to them, 'Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.'

And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them, and departed from there."

The Bible teaches that everyone is a sinner, even children

Solomon said in 1 Kings 8:46 “…there is no man who does not sin”

Romans 3:23 agrees when it says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”

David said in Psalm 51:5, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.”

So everyone is a sinner from the very womb and even Genesis 8:21 says “…the intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth…”

But there is something interesting when it comes to babies, infants, young children and those who are intellectually disabled

It says in Deuteronomy 1:39, “Moreover, your little ones…have no knowledge of good or evil…”

They are as Jeremiah 19:4 says “ innocent” but they are also sinners

Since Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death,” that proves they are sinners

But what happens to them when they die?

We know what happens to believers and unbelievers

Believers go to heaven and unbelievers go to hell but what about children?

What about babies?

Since they have “no knowledge of good or evil” and are therefore considered “innocent”, what happens to them?

There are many opinions on this subject but were not interested in human opinion

We’re interested in what God says

I think David answers that question best

After David sinned in having sex with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife

She became pregnant

David tried to cover it up by having her husband come home from one of his military campaigns

He hoped that he would sleep with his wife and the news of her pregnancy would be because of this not because of what David had done

So after he returned to the battle, David told Joab to withdraw when the battle was intense and Uriah would be killed

That’s exactly what happened

2 Samuel 12 records God sending Nathan the prophet to confront David regarding these two sins

After the confrontation David confessed that he has sinned

Nathan told David in verse 13, “The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die” but verse 14 says, “However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.”

And that’s exactly what happened

Seven days later the child died (v.18)

After David learned of his death, verses 20-23 says, “So David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he came into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he came to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him and he ate. 21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept; but when the child died, you arose and ate food.” 22 He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ 23 “But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.””

This text shows David expressing confidence that his deceased infant son is in the presence of God; and that brought him comfort, not by the idea of a family cemetery, but by knowing he would see his child again after he died

This reflects the biblical understanding that children who die before reaching the age of accountability are gathered to God

In other words, If they die before they reach the age of accountability (which is different for everyone) they go into heaven

But if they die after they reach an age of where they are accountable for their sin, they need to repent and be forgiven or they will not go to heaven

David’s confidence over the babies death contrasted with his grief over his other son, Absalom’s death

David mourned deeply for Absalom but does not mention assurance of Absalom’s salvation, unlike his mourning for his infant son, where he expresses hope of seeing his child again

Absalom’s life and death was marked by rebellion, pride, and a disregard for God’s order and law

He died “hanging between heaven and earth” (2 Samuel 18:9), which some interpret symbolically as being spiritually lost and without reconciliation with God

Absalom’s burial—under a heap of stones in a nameless grave (2 Samuel 18:17)—was a sign of shame and judgment, not divine approval or hope of heaven

Stoning was a punishment under Moses’ law for serious sin, further symbolizing a lack of repentance

There is no evidence in Scripture of repentance or receiving God’s grace before his death

Some conclude Absalom died lost, with no biblical basis to suggest he was saved or went to heaven

This confidence that David had was rooted in God’s sovereign grace—when children die before they are personally responsible for sin, God saves them at the point of death

Thus, 2 Samuel 12:23 illustrates the unique hope and assurance that such children are safe with the Lord, and parents can find comfort in this promise

As we look at Mark 10:13-16 we are going to hear that same confidence but this time from Jesus

There are 6 activities taking place in this passage…

Our story begins in verse 13 with the first activity…

Mark says…

They Were Bringing Children to Jesus (v.13a)

“And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them”

“They” likely refers to the parents or the guardians of the children

In Jewish culture, it was common for parents to bring their children to rabbis to receive a blessing

We even hear of fathers blessing their children

The Greek word Mark uses for “children” (παιδία, paidia) refers to young children

Mark used this word in Mark 5:39 of a girl twelve years old, but it generally denoted young children. The ages of the children no doubt varied…(Hiebert)

Luke 18:15 uses a different word

He uses the Greek word brephos which refers to "infants" or “sucklings”, and children perhaps up to 3 years old (MacArthur)

Mark says, “they were bringing children to Him”

‘Bringing’ (prosepheron) is an imperfect verb that implies repetion (Robertson)

They “kept bringing” the children to Jesus

They were bringing them one after another for Jesus to touch and pray for them

They were like the fathers in the Old Testament that laid their hands on their children to bless them

We see examples of this:

Noah blessed Shem and Japheth (Gen.9)

Isaac blessed his sons—most notably, Isaac blessing Jacob and Esau (Gen.27)

Jacob blessed his sons (Gen.49)

This was a typical fatherly benediction pronounced on the heads of children, often accompanied by a prayer that God would show them favor, and specifically praying for them to become "famous in the law, faithful in marriage, and abundant in good works." (MacArthur)

The Talmud even describes a custom where parents brought their children to the elders of the synagogue, especially the day before Yom Kippur, for a special blessing and prayer

The people wanted Jesus to touch their child and bless them too

Jesus did everything by touching. He healed with a touch. He touched people all the time, which is exactly what the Pharisees and the scribes never did. They wouldn’t touch people because they would be defiled. Here was Jesus, compassionate, tender to the touch (MacArthur)

So the purpose in bringing them was that He might touch them because that’s what fathers did. They laid their hands on the child, and the elders laid their hands on the child as the patriarchs had done, and then they prayed blessing (MacArthur)

I believe that the text before us is a prayer for salvation. The Jews understood salvation, deliverance from judgment, deliverance from sin, deliverance from punishment (MacArthur)

But Mark immediately notes a problem in verse 13…

The Disciples Were Rebuking Them (v.13b)

“but the disciples rebuked them”

The word “rebuked” epitimaō (ἐπιτιμαω) “indicates that they reproved or censured the action with the intention of bringing it to an end (Hiebert)

This was both unwarranted and without result

The imperfect tense means they kept on rebuking those who brought the children as fast as they came to Jesus (Wuest)

Apparently, the children were being brought to Him personally while Jesus was in the house (v. 10), before the commencement of the journey mentioned in verse 17 (Hiebert)

The disciples felt that Jesus had weightier matters to deal with rather than spend His time blessing little children

But they weren’t in charge of who had access to Jesus, Jesus was!

They viewed bringing the children to Jesus was a unnecessary distraction

Had they remembered His teaching concerning children in Capernaum (9:36–37; Matt. 18:2–14), they could hardly have objected now

So…

Jesus was Indignant Against the Disciples (v.14)

The word “indignant” occurs in Mark alone

This is an ingressive aorist, which means it focuses on the start of the action

Jesus heard what the disciples were doing and from that He became indignant

The word “indignant” is a strong word of deep emotion (from ἀγαν [agan] and ἀχθομαι [achthomai], to feel pain) (Robertson)

It means to be angry or irate (MacArthur)

It’s righteous indignation

He expressed this indignation when He drove the money changers out of the temple on two separate occasions (John 2:13-17; Mark 11:15-17)

Jesus was not just mildly upset—He was extremely angry that the disciples would treat children the way they did

This was not a minor issue for Jesus; rather, His indignant reaction shows that He regarded excluding children as a serious error, rebuking only the disciples for their wrong assumptions and bad understanding of Scripture

When His disciples make other mistakes, Jesus, of course, feels it but is not indignant toward them. But when they ignorantly wrong poor, helpless little children, the indignation of Jesus resents their action (Lenski)

Jesus Permits the Children to Come to Him (v.14b)

“Do not hinder them”

“hinder” (kolyo) means to “prevent, restrain” (pres.act.imp.)

Jesus is saying, “Don’t even forbid them, let them come”

“The kingdom belongs to such as these”

The kingdom belongs to this category of children (babies, infants, little children) and they have a place in the kingdom purely by sovereign grace

The Condition of Entering the Kingdom (v.15)

“Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”

Jesus moves from stating that children are in the kingdom to teaching that anyone who comes into the kingdom must come in the same manner as a child: simply, openly, trustingly, unpretentiously, dependently, weakly, lacking achievement, and humbly

If a person does not come like that, they will never enter the kingdom

This reminds us of what He said in Mark 8:34–35, “34 And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. 35 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.”

Jesus Blesses the Children (v.16)

“And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.”

Mark is the only gospel writer who records this specific action of Jesus of enfolding them in His arms

Mark says…

“He took them in His arms”

“took” is a long compound Greek word that means to "enfold in your arms"—like cradling or embracing a baby

This word goes beyond mere physical contact; it carries the idea of Jesus gathering the children up and holding them closely and affectionately

This is an expression of deep love and warmth

Jesus isn't just touching the children but wrapping them in His arms in a tender embracing way, as any loving adult would do to comfort and bless a small child

This illustrates Christ's compassion and the special care that He extends to little ones

He “began blessing them” and “laid His hands on them”

The word “blessing” (kateulogei) is a compound word for eulogy or blessing

It’s used in the perfect tense to indicate that He blessed them “one by one”

He pronounced intense blessing on them

He blessed them fervently by praying for each one of them, one at a time, with His “hands on them”

CONCLUSION

The greatest blessing that you can give your children today is the gospel

You must evangelize them

You must tell them about the Savior and His work on the cross for them

You must tell them they are sinners

They must understand they need Jesus' forgiveness through His work on the cross

You fail as a parent if you never give them the gospel

They need to hear the gospel more than just once too

They need to hear it all the time and see it demonstrated in your life

But you need to make sure you’re saved before you can talk to them about salvation

Is Jesus Lord?

Have you confessed Him as Lord?

Have you confessed to Him that you’re a sinner in need of forgiveness?

Have you asked Jesus to forgive you?

Have you committed your life to Him?

Romans 10:9–10 says, “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

I pray this is your prayer today

Let’s pray