Children Matter
Proverbs 20:11 Even a child is known by his doings,
Intro: Jesus loves children.
·
Mark
10:13 And they brought young children
to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought
them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer
the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the
kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you,
Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not
enter therein. And he took them up in
his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.
Jesus was extremely upset at those that prevented the
children from experiencing His touch.
We need to be cautious that our lifestyle, our home life,
our hobbies, our actions, our words, our attitude doesn’t prevent our children
from getting close enough to God to experience His touch.
·
Matthew
18:1 At the same time came the
disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And
Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be
converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom
of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall
humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of
heaven. And whoso shall receive one such
little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these
little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were
hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
OFFEND: to cause
to stumble or fall; to lead astray; to cause a person to begin to distrust and
desert one whom he ought to trust and obey
God has harsh words for those that hinder the spiritual
growth of a child!
Back to our text: Proverbs 20:11, notice:
I. The
Significance of a Child – “Even a
child…”
God can use children in a mighty way.
·
SEE II
Kings 5:2-4 And the Syrians had gone
out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a
little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife.
And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet
that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. And one went in,
and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of
Israel.
This little girl was used to change a life; a family; a
home; a nation.
God also judges children as adults many times.
·
SEE II
Kings 2:23 So the waters were healed
unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake. And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and
as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the
city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou
bald head. And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name
of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty
and two children of them.
Paul noted the influence that the Scripture had on Timothy
in II Tim. 3:15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are
able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
II. The Statement
of a Child – “…is known by his
doings…”
A child needs to be taught that even they have the capacity
to have a testimony – a reputation.
A child is KNOWN BY HIS DOINGS.
A child doesn’t need to start being concerned with having a “good
name” when he’s in his 20’s.
He should understand that even at the age of 12, Jesus
subjected himself to Mary and Joseph in Luke 2:51, 52 and he increased in
wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.
Children can have a favorable relationship with God as well
as with others.
III. The Service
of a Child – “…whether his work be
pure, and whether it be right.”
Look at John 6:9
·
John 6:9 There
is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what
are they among so many?
Our children need to be taught that they can WORK – serve in
the ministry.
This lad learned the blessings of sacrificial giving – giving
his all to the Lord, and watched God bless thousands.
Conclusion:
Children matter. Love them, lead them,
train them, guide them, encourage them, be an example to them and watch God
transform our church and our city by using our children.
