Sermon Tone Analysis

Big idea: Jesus welcomes the dependent - don’t hinder them

Big application:

Come as you are - needy, helpless, nothing to offer

There’s absolutely no other way

Don’t hinder others (too unimportant, nothing to offer)

Outline:

Introduce me

Ever been turned down?

applying for funding - a huge US church who’ve supported over 500 new church starts

thought we were pretty much exactly their cup of tea, wrote pages and pages of application

they came back asking for more details, really specific questions.

I really thought we were getting somewhere

then radio silence for months and when I eventually poked them they told us they’d allocated all their support out into 2020 and we just hadn’t made the cut; no offence - do apply again

but pretty early in the selection process they turned me down

so hard not to feel let down, hurt, angry, defensive in these things - “if that’s the way they’re going to treat us I’m never applying for any funding ever again!”

what about when the stakes are really high?

what about when the stakes are really high?

entering a country, handing over your passport

entering the country

pleading with the bank manager, just a little more time

asking that girl out after months and months of watching and waiting

we all hate to be turned away

disappointment, hurt - then the anger, defensiveness - and shame

makes us not want to have approached in the first place

transition

Reading

Reading

Blessing babies

Jesus is out kissing babies - like watching politicians on the news!

ok, not really kissing - Jesus is blessing babies

“place his hands on them” => seeking blessing ()

“babies” word is going to be important, it’s quite specific

pre-birth - Jesus’ forerunner () or very young - what the Christmas shepherds were sent to seek out ()

Hindering kinder

“place his hands on them” => seeking blessing ()

Hindering kinder

Jesus is busy blessing babies but the disciples are hindering kinder.

You’ll be glad I gave up on trying for rhyming points right there.

But the disciples, “they rebuked them” - why, disciples, why?

Jesus is too important for this sort of thing

“I’m more important than them”

Surprising welcome

Jesus calls them back, overruling his disciples: “let the little children come to me”

“little children” a broader word than those babies we started with but it has enough of a range to include them

Christmas story again: John, the forerunner to Jesus ()

it’s the same babies in view - Jesus calls them back.

Disagreeing with disciples; that’s what should have been on the slide :)

A surprising welcome - Jesus rejects the disciples’ (and the world of the day’s) view

children (sorry kids) historically unimportant - at least until they can work or breed - not idolised like today

children historically unimportant until they can work or breed - not idolised like today

illustrate - nobody’s buying one of these guys a pony for Christmas

Jesus rejects the disciples’ view - instead he tells us “the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” - lit: “of such is the kingdom of God”

Jesus says “the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” - lit: “of such is the kingdom of God”

the Kingdom of God = realm where God is honoured as king, realm of blessing, a realm where things are finally right, a realm with the ultimate hope for a perfect and forever future.

It’s somewhere you want to be, somewhere that’s breaking into our world in Jesus and through him

we started out thinking about being turned down - this is somewhere you don’t want to be turned away from

And Jesus tells us here this Kingdom is composed of people like these babies

cute - but unimportant, insignificant, helpless - the disciples don’t think they are worth Jesus’ time and neither does anyone else

But wait, there’s more: one more thing Jesus has to say here

it’s only people like this - unless you’re like this, you “will never enter it” v17

disciples turning away babies, Jesus turning away everyone but babies

ok, not literally turning away everyone but babies

turning away people won won’t receive/welcome the Kingdom like babies

very emphatic - absolutely no way in apart from this

So let’s recap: what are we seeing here?

Jesus welcomes the insignificant, the helpless.

He tells his disciples not to hinder them.

He tells us that’s the only way to come to him.

So what?

Jesus won’t turn you down

Are you no-one special?

Jesus has time for you.

Lots of ordinary people here, not many significant types.

Jesus has time for each one.

West Wing has the President always asking “what’s next?” as he tries to deal with the overwhelming set of demands placed upon him.

Can picture God like that - far too busy for little old me.

Not going to make it onto his agenda - he’s always got bigger fish to fry.

Amazingly I can promise you that Jesus, King of the whole universe, will make time for you - unimportant though you might be in this world’s eyes.

Jesus won’t turn you down.

you don’t need anything to bring

Do you have nothing to bring, no value to add?

Some pretty gifted people here, pretty cool things they can do, or thing they have done.

Sometimes they can seem a bit intimidating.

But Jesus isn’t interested in what you can bring - nothing truly useful you could bring to the one who made the stars.

Jesus won’t turn you down

Do you feel like you’re helpless?

Well the people around you might look ok on the surface and tell you in that British way we’re “fine” - always “fine” - but you’re surrounded by people who know what it is to be helpless, people who have reached the end of their own resources, people who know what it’s like to be in desperate need of help from outside

That’s just the sort of people Jesus welcomes.

Jesus won’t turn you down.

Those babies were nothing special, had nothing to offer, just little bundles of helplessness and utter dependency.

Babies simply can’t survive without help - they’re weak, vulnerable, needy.

If you’ve had a baby you know how true this is - how complete and utter their dependency is.

If you haven’t, let me let you in on a little secret:

if you’ve had a baby you know that’s true.

If you haven’t, let me let you in on a little secret:

What does a baby do for you?

wake you up.

lots.

cry.

demand food.