Luke 9:43-48 Like little children

Luke 9:43-45 Jesus tells His disciples that He is going to be delivered into the hands of men. This passage is paralleled in Matt 17:22-23 and Mark 9:30-32. In a sense, this is just revisiting the earlier discussion in Luke 9:21-22. Luke notes that at this time the disciples did not understand what He said, it was concealed from them, and they were afraid to ask Him about it. Perhaps this was just denial - how could such a good man, demonstrating the power of God, be arrested and executed by human authorities?

Luke 9:46-48 Jesus explains that the least is the greatest. Parallel passage in Matt 18:11-5. An object lesson in humility that even the disciples could understand. Jesus stood a child in front of them, no doubt put His arm around the child, and told them that whoever received a child in His name received Him, and thereby the One who sent Him. So that the one who is greatest is the most humble, and the one who thinks he is the greatest is the least of all, in God's eyes. Matthew adds that this is what the kingdom of heaven is like.

         What is it about children that God approves of? Little children tend to be selfish and self-centered. Well-raised children curb these tendencies through self-discipline, but that is making them more like adults. Most likely there are two aspects that shape this metaphor. Firstly, we tend to overlook the faults in children because we recognize that they haven't had time to learn right from wrong, or learn to be good, or whatever. We give them grace, yet at the same time we attempt to teach and disciple children (at least our own children) to behave in ways that we think are proper. And so God deals with us. Secondly there is the aspect that children tend to receive whatever is given to them as gift, and unless they are incredibly spoiled, are grateful for it. To a child, the entire world is a magical place, filled with wonderful things, and they are often surprised by what they receive from it.

         But the aspect of humility that the disciples really needed to learn (which will surface again in Luke 22:4) was that in God's kingdom, greatness is inextricably bound up with service. In the world, the great are served by those who are oppressed by them, or those who are cozying up to them, or those who are in league with them. But without exception, the great are served. Not so in God's kingdom. Everyone from Brother Lawrence to Jesus Christ who has stature in God's kingdom is noted for the service they perform for others.