Sunday, July 19, 2009: Our Children, Our Future

Our Children, Our Future
Mark 10: 13 – 16 AND Mark 9: 36 – 37.

I. Introduction.

There is an age-old expression about the Christian faith. “Christianity is always one generation away from extinction.” I don’t remember where I was when I first heard this, but I do remember that I didn’t like it. I didn’t like thinking that our faith—the only true faith—could pass away in just one generation. Surely that is not true. But surely it is true. If we fail to reach the next generation with the Gospel, Christianity will surely die out with us.

Perhaps this will be easier for us to imagine if we simply think about our own church. Take a minute to think about our church as a microcosm of Christianity. What if no one ever joined our church again? How many of our own children will return to Lufkin and First Baptist Church when the graduate high school and college? If no one ever joins our church, what will our attendance and budget be like ten years from today? Twenty years from today? Fifty years from today?

At the very least, I perform 12 funerals a year for members of our church. Realistically, if no one ever joins our church, we will have 120 fewer people in ten years; 240 fewer people in twenty years; and 600 fewer people in fifty years. Again, let’s be realistic as we dream about the future of our church. Ten years from now, we would still have a decent attendance and a respectable budget. However, twenty years from now, we would be in a real crisis. Fifty years from now, we might not have the budget to support a full time pastor!

I suppose I could use this opportunity to emphasize the importance of outreach and evangelism for the future of our church. And, I suppose that is a part of what I am saying… But what about our children? If we fail to reach the next generation, our church will be dead and gone in twenty to fifty years! On one hand, we need to reach our own children. We need to invest the Gospel into the lives of every preschooler, child and youth in our families. On the other hand, we need to think seriously about how we can reach beyond the walls of this church—and the families of this church—and make the same Gospel investment in the children and youth of Angelina County. I don’t want to imagine what the future of Lufkin, Hudson and Angelina County will be like without First Baptist Church or a Christian witness.

A friend of mine grew up in West Texas in a church that made the decision to place a lesser emphasis on children and youth. They didn’t think they could afford to continue supporting the expensive children and youth ministries. They believed their finances would be better invested in ministry to adults through discipleship and Christian growth. They were surprised with the results. An adults-only church very quickly becomes a SENIOR-adults-only church. If there are not quality ministries for children and youth, the only adults who come to your church are adults with no children at home.

The economic times we are living in are difficult on everyone. All over the United States, families and individuals are facing job losses, foreclosures, bank failures, inflation and tight budgets. Churches are not exempt from financial problems. I have heard of churches in Texas that are cutting ministries and laying off staff. Our church is not exempt from financial problems. Our financial picture is comparable to where we were at this time last year. We are using a little over $60,000 of our reserve funds to keep up with our expenses to date. I am not suggesting that we lay off staff. Here I am recommending a new staff position.
Can we afford to call a children’s minister right now? I don’t think we can afford NOT to call a children’s minister right now!

Ministry to children and families IS the future of our church. Sure, we could save some money by not calling a children’s minister. But what good will that money do us if there is no one left in our church twenty years from now?

You cannot find a children’s minister in the New Testament—and I will not try to pretend there is one there. However, we have a New Testament mandate to minister to children. It actually comes directly from the teaching and example of Jesus!

Read Mark 10: 13 – 16.

II. Verse 13.

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them…
The idea of a healing touch is found throughout the Gospels. There was probably an idea that for a “Holy Man” to touch a child was like a special blessing. If so, then the crowds of people recognized there was something special about Jesus. He was holy, righteous and close to God. Therefore they wanted him to touch and bless their children.

But the disciples rebuked them…
Were the disciples just having a bad day? Were they just tired and irritable from their travels with Jesus? Possibly. But more than likely they were jealous of the children. In the First Century world, children were “non-persons.”

Children were viewed differently in Jesus’ day than they are today. In our world, parents are accustomed to scheduling their lives around the activities of children: piano, dance, baseball, soccer, football, school, social gatherings… This was not the case in the ancient world. The ancients viewed children as unwise, unable, unequipped, dependent, vulnerable and needy. They had no inherent rights of their own. They were little more than the property of their fathers.

The disciples had entered into their discipleship relationship with Jesus wanting to spend time alone with Jesus and learn from his teachings. However, everywhere they went, sick and demon-possessed people took Jesus’ attention away from them. And now it is children…These insignificant, little, unwise and needy people.

III. Verse 14.
When Jesus saw this, he was indignant…
Notice the use of the word “indignant.” When I began my doctoral dissertation on the Gospel of Mark, I had always believed there was only one time when Jesus got angry. It was the story of the money changers in the Temple. These men were using the Jewish feasts and festivals as a time to make money. They had stolen the significance of worship by setting up shop and turning a profit on the religious feelings of worshippers.

But four years ago, this word “indignant” just jumped off the page at me. Here is another example of Jesus’ getting angry. I’m not trying to say that Jesus was an angry person. And I am definitely not saying that Jesus sinned. Jesus had a “righteous indignation.” The only times (plural) Jesus was angry, he was angry at injustice.

When Jesus was in the Temple, he became angry about the perversion of worship. In this story, Jesus was angry at the mistreatment of children. Children are real human beings with rights just like their parents. Specifically, children ought to have an opportunity to “come to Jesus.”
We need to share Jesus’ passion for children.

He said to them, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them”…
Beginning in the Second Century, the Catholic Church started using this verse as a way to justify the practice of infant baptism—as if Jesus had said, “Do not hinder the children from being baptized.” But I do not think this is about baptism.

I believe Jesus is teaching us, “Do not hinder the children from spending time in the presence of Jesus.”

Give the children every opportunity to learn about Jesus and to experience Jesus and to receive the Gospel message about Jesus. Do not keep children away from Jesus. Do not put obstacles in between children and Jesus.

Modern day obstacles:
1. Parents who do not share their faith with their children.
2. Parents who do not bring their children to church.
3. Parents who drop their children off at church, teaching them that they will one day outgrow the need for discipleship and spiritual growth.
4. Parents who take their children to church but gripe about the sermon, the music, the church leadership, the hypocrites at church…teaching their children that church is a miserable place.
5. Television, Internet, schools and friends who do a better job at defining the worldview and priorities for our children. Our children will never learn about Jesus from television, Internet, school or friends.


For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these…
Does the Kingdom of God really belong to children? No. I think Jesus is using a metaphor. The Kingdom of God belongs to men, women, boys and girls who possess Childlike Characteristics.
1. Innocence…Humility…Dependence…Trusting…Helpless…Receptive…
2. Eager…Learning…Expecting to Grow…Willing to Bring Friends…

In our world today, children are the church members who are most likely to “bring a friend” to church. If church is a normal and natural part of their lives, children want their friends to be involved in church. We would all be better off if we were a little more childlike—innocently wanting the important people in our lives to be involved in our church.

IV. Verse 15.
“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it”…
In this verse, Jesus described the Kingdom of God in two ways. He mixes his metaphors and would have made a “C” if he had written this in a high school term paper.

First, the Kingdom of God is “Something We Receive…” It is a gift. We do not earn the Kingdom of God, we do not work for it, and we can never deserve it.

Second, the Kingdom of God is “Something We Enter…” It is a new realm in which God is the King. Once we receive this Grace gift, we hand over control of our lives to God.

In the first church I served as pastor, I had a woman speak to me about her grown children. They were both in their 30’s and she was very concerned about their salvation. She was concerned that it was too late for her children to become Christians, because neither had made a profession of faith. She cited this verse from the King James Version, “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God AS a child will never enter it.”

Jesus is not telling us that you have to make a profession of faith before you turn 18, or else it will be too late. Jesus is saying that everyone who becomes a Christian must become like a little child first. Innocent…Humble…Trusting…Dependent… Helpless…

V. Conclusion.
This story is most often used to illustrate Jesus’ love for children. There is even a song, “Jesus Loves the Little Children…All the children of the world…” And the story does express Jesus’ love and concern for the children. But, if you want to know what Jesus really thought about children, we will have to read another passage…

Read Mark 9: 36 – 37.

Did you hear that? Welcoming children is the same thing as welcoming Jesus! I wonder what that says about our churches? I wonder what that says about our church budget? Churches that welcome children are welcoming Jesus. The money we spend to reach children with the Gospel is money we are spending in a Christ-like manner.

You have heard the statistic published by the George Barna Group…64% of all Christians today became Christians before the age of 18…13% became Christians between the ages of 18 – 21…Only 24% of all Christians accepted Christ as adults.[1]

Still another way to state that is to look at our church…How much money do we invest annually to minister and evangelize people under the age of 18? Is it 76%? Or have we reversed the equation? Are we trying to spend the majority of our financial resources on an age group that is less responsive to the Gospel? What about our church facilities? What about our church staff?
Jesus said that welcoming children is like welcoming Jesus. Jesus also said, “Let the children come...Do not hinder the children…”

[1] http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/5-barna-update/196-evangelism-is-most-effective-among-kids