[Sorry, no audio this time – the entire service is available on YouTube and Facebook]
Psalm 78:1-7; Mark 9:33-37, 42
March 7, 2021
In the opposite direction from last week’s sermon and the topic of silence, this Sunday we are highlighting children. Yes, anything but silent. I had a pastor friend back in the days when my own children were very little who told me once that the biggest mistake he ever made with his children was teaching them how to talk. Once the mouths start going, they never stop, until they are teenagers (when they decide to not talk (at least to us)), and hopefully, one day they will talk, again, before they leave and have their own lives. We shall see.
When I was planning out the Sunday messages earlier this year, I was drawn to these passages in Mark’s Gospel that bring up the idea of children. There are a number of passages here that are interesting for how Jesus relates to children and how he shows us something about life in the Kingdom of God through the gift of children. I thought I would tie into some of that interest today and next week. Children can apparently be instructive in how to walk with Jesus in his mission toward the cross.
“But wait a minute, preacher,” you might say. “We are a bit short on our supply of children around here.” I’m glad you brought that up. That is fairly common for many churches these days. Younger folk are less inclined to head to church, and to be honest, people also don’t have as many children anymore. So the question has to be whether these passages really just relate to children or whether there is something bigger going on that relates also to children. Spoiler alert: I will go ahead and tell you that this teaching is about more than simply people between the ages of one and thirteen.
First, we have to consider the idea of children. The Jewish people did not look at children the same way we do today. No big surprise there. Children back then did not survive as well as they do today with health care, legal protection, and nutrition. Also, children in ancient times were not all that useful in working environments and not very educated. In a world that struggled more than we can imagine, they contributed very little to the household, and they were children, after all, and like today – full of wildness, trouble, and lack of discipline. You just couldn’t do that much with them, so all of this made children less valued, the least powerful, and lowest on the social ladder. Even slaves in ancient times were of somewhat more actual value for a number of reasons. Something else in this time is the concept of “Pater Familias” or Family Father. The power of the father in the classical world was supreme over the whole household, and if a child insulted a father, the father could potentially have the child executed. This was actually the case in the parable of the Prodigal Son, but that is another sermon. Suffice it to say that kids had little value, little place, little voice, and little respect when they were little. Yes, children were a great blessing and showed the goodness of life itself, and they tended to grow up into greater productivity. People celebrated new children, but they were just not worth very much as children.
And yet, Jesus seems to find children particularly important.
Part of the answer is in Psalm 78. Children are an investment but not like the stock exchange or my 403b. Because children are the next generation, if we want to have any hope for the world, civilization, our culture, our nation, or our family to continue, we need to invest what is important to us into the lives of those who will come after. The psalm talks about old sayings, mighty deeds, wonders of the Lord, and God’s decree and law. We need to teach the children all of this as they become the very vessel of our life’s investment. Hopefully, they will build on what we have done, continue in our commitments, and pass along what is most precious to us because it becomes precious to them. Of course, this applies to the connectional life of the church, too. Even though we are the Body of Christ, and he will endure forever, we still need people to carry out his legacy in the world and serve as his living mission among us – Christ’s hands and feet.
So the short answer is that children represent our future because they are our future, but our future is not only limited to children. That is really important for us here right now. Another significant difference between the world of Jesus’ day and our day is that we live on average twice as long. That is no more evident than right here. Stop and appreciate that. How many generations does the average person live to see? How many generations have you seen? We have the capability of touching the future and guiding the decades to come, again and again and again. Sure, children are the easiest most logical way of looking into tomorrow, but they are far from the only way. And when Jesus brings children into his teaching, he is both calling attention to those who were of less value, but perhaps just as much, showing us how to shape the future.
A mother was sending her 8 year-old son off to school one morning for the first time. She walked him to the bus stop where they waited patiently; the bus came and her son got on the school bus. Then, the mother proceeded to go home so she could get ready to go to work. About 15 minutes later, the doorbell rang; it was her son at the front door. She was shocked to see him since she just got him on the school bus. Then, she noticed the school bus in the road with its door open in front of her house. The mother asked her son, “What are you doing back home?” Her 8 year-old son said, “I’m quitting school: it’s too hard, it’s too boring, and it’s too long.” The mother looked at him and said, “That’s life; now get back on the bus.”
Children exist at the beginning of life’s course and may have just enough of a sense of what is going on to be a part of things, but they are far from aware of the larger possibilities of life and the tremendous work and grace that it will take. Still, we count on them to see it through and to make a difference in the world if they want. Thankfully for us, children are not the only ones who can work for God’s good in the long run and carry on our work and commitments going forward. We have people all around us to bless that they might be a blessing.
That brings us to our investment. The last passage in Mark really drives this home. Are we leading, preparing, encouraging the people heading into our future in godly ways or are we making more difficult for those who will come after us to follow Christ? Whether they be actual children, young adults, new people to the faith, people who have had to start over in life, or just people new to us, all of them carry the possibility and potential to be our bearers of good news to a generation still to come. Of course, we should be working on one another, as well, and giving all a helping hand with being God’s ambassadors.
As a church in the Body of Christ, we believe in love, forgiveness, reconciliation, and community. We can share those values with young and old, black and white, rich and poor, liberals and conservatives, all of God’s children. And hear that – we are all God’s children. Just think how we might invest in the lives of those whom we already welcome: folk coming for NA, AA, the Longwood community, and our neighbors. In the past, we have embraced the Discovery School ladies, and while that school may no longer be operating, maybe there is another group to adopt, so to speak. We are also on the verge of beginning a whole new movement in community outreach because we believe we have something good to offer that is worth sharing, but it is going to take our dedication and support; yes, this is our investment. You may be hearing new ideas in the coming months. We need to pray for a spirit of openness to where God is leading us. If we are serious about paving the way for those who will come after us and welcoming God’s children, we have to do new things. This pandemic has proven that, if nothing else.
Be mindful of the community God is calling us to be. Be mindful of how God wants us to support efforts for greater community. Be mindful of how we can reach the community with the love of Christ that we have been given. Be mindful of the grace we have to share. And be mindful of the actual lives that we can bless and who will carry our blessing – mind the children of God that we have here in the grace of our Lord.
To God be the glory. Amen.