Life Lessons We Learn from Children, Part 3

Today on Insight for Living, from Chuck Swindoll. Be careful what you say about others in the family of God. Guard your tongue. Watch your thoughts. Don't pass along information that would be hurtful.

Unless it's absolutely essential and said in the right context, seal your lips. You reveal more about yourself than you do about the one you're talking about. When we think of history's heroes, our mind creates images of decorated officers, noble statesmen, or perhaps pioneers in modern medicine. And yet when Jesus was asked to identify the greatest of all, he put his arms around a little child and said, this one. This little girl, through her humility and innocence, portrays true greatness in the kingdom of heaven. Wow, the disciples were stunned.

And today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll invites us to read the biblical record in Matthew chapter 18, as he offers a message titled, Life Lessons We Learn from Children. Interestingly, when they ask, who is the greatest in the kingdom, Jesus doesn't point out one or several of them. Look at verse two.

I love this. He called a little child to him and he put the child among them. Now, do you realize that in 14 verses, a little one is mentioned eight times over and over and over and over? It's about the little child.

Why do I make a thing of that? Because the very one everybody would have overlooked is in fact the object lesson from whom we can learn so much about life. And whether a little boy or a little girl, I want you to see the value, so valuable that Jesus teaches 12 men arguing over which one of them is the greatest. Some lessons about life that they needed to have learned early on, but didn't. So he brings up the little child. We're going to have her be a little girl.

And he stands her in their midst. They're all wondering, what is this about? What are they going to do? That's not what's important. It's what are they going to learn? But normally, you and I have to admit, we don't learn a lot from anybody because we're so preoccupied with ourselves. That's the whole point of this. Stop being concerned about who is number one among you.

Life isn't about that. Let's learn from this child. So in verses 2 through 4, we have standing here an example, two things, of unspoiled innocence and second, unguarded humility. He put the child among them, verse 2, and then he said, are you interested in the kingdom life as I've been teaching? Are you interested in what heaven is all about? Are you interested in connecting with the world I'm trying to introduce you to? Seek first my kingdom and my righteousness and all the other stuff of life will be added to.

Are you interested in that? Start with a child. Here's a child standing among them in her unspoiled innocence, no agenda, no speech to deliver, no hidden desires, no secret sin, no guile.

She's not even aware of why she's standing there. And secondly, look at the next statement. Then I tell you the truth unless you turn from your sins and become like little children. You'll never enter this into this kingdom life. So anyone who becomes as humble as the little child.

You ever thought of that? A child is by nature just who they are. A childlike humility would be virtually impossible to offend the little one. Just childlike in every way.

And he says a basic lesson to learn in life is the value of authentic humility. How do we handle our children? In verses five through 14, four different possibilities are set forth.

And I want you to see all four. Since the child is in their midst and they're no longer arguing over because they're ashamed of themselves for thinking so much about who was the greatest. They now have a little child. What are the things Jesus teaches them about learning about life from children? The first is we can accept and delight in them. That's in verse five.

Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. How valuable it was as they were given to us that we accept them and welcome them. That we realize each one was a gift from God. Each one. The same is true in the body of Christ. Each one of us called interestingly children of God.

We guard against comparing them because they're not the same. They have different interests in art or in sports or in life. Some learn quickly, some learn slowly. Some learn the hard way.

Some learn easily. Some require more discipline than others required, but all four for us were to be accepted and delighted in. And the same for your children. Now when you get to verses six to nine, the scene is not pretty, but it's realistic. Stay with the little children image because it's woven through the fabric of these verses and look at verse six.

But there's that connective that introduces a contrast. There are those who don't delight in children. There are those who don't value children. What do they do? They mistreat and offend them.

Read about it. If you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin. And then he uses some of the strongest words in all his teaching on earth. Look at what he says.

It would be better for that person to be drowned in the depth of the sea than to be guilty of hurting, offending, mistreating one of these little ones. When you're in Israel and you see a millstone, you see a solid rock about this round, maybe three feet across with a hole in the middle where it would roll like a wheel and it would be used for grinding grain or grinding corn. It was called a millstone, would often weigh a ton or more. He uses exaggerated language to convey extreme punishment.

Look at what he says. That a large millstone would be hung around your neck and you'd be drowned in the depth of the sea. What sorrow awaits the world because it tempts people to sin.

Then he describes the temptations that follow. You want to know the ultimate example of mistreatment would be human trafficking. Never diminish the awfulness of that trade where little girls are sold, bought, exploited, sexually mistreated, discarded like a load of cardboard. Ultimate in mistreatment and offending and when they are rescued by some who are courageously involved in that ministry, they often don't know what life is about. They are so confused because they have been mistreated, offended. They have not been treated with dignity and significance.

They see themselves as merchandise to be exploited, no self-worth, thrown aside, tossed aside to die when they've served their purpose. We can mistreat and offend them. Will you please remember, though you do not go that far, of course, before you lash out, before you let your anger get away from you and you go too far, remember they're just little children.

They're at your mercy. Here's this little girl standing there batting her big eyes and here are these grown men listening to Jesus teach about what it's like to be kingdom people who know how to treat others. In this case, he uses a child. The same could be said for one another. Be careful what you say about others in the family of God. Guard your tongue. Watch your thoughts. Don't pass along information that would be hurtful. This is absolutely essential and said in the right context.

Seal your lips. You reveal more about yourself than you do about the one you're talking about. To offend and mistreat other people is dirty pool in the family of God. There's a third possibility and that's in verses 10 and 11 where we can undervalue and discount the child.

Look at how he puts it. Go to verse 10. Beware that you don't look down on any of these little ones. I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my Heavenly Father. Many teach guardian angels based on that verse of scripture that each child has his or her own guardian angel.

Whether or not that teaches that is debatable but the point is there is an angel available to each one and there are those who are weak and fragile and they can't keep up. Then you slow down. Take time for them.

See the value in them. I love the scene where Jesus talks about future rewards and he says I was sick and you brought me something to eat. I was in prison and you came and visited me. I was thirsty and you brought me something cool to drink and the one hearing it says when did we bring you something to eat? When did we visit you in prison?

When did we give you something cool to drink? And Jesus answer is in as much as you've done it to the least of these you've done it unto me. I love that verse Matthew 25 40. In as much as you have done it to these who couldn't keep up. These with special needs. These with congenital brain damage. These with physical conditions that hinder them from being able to run like the other children or to have coordinated bodies like other fast moving and well coordinated kiddos.

Guard against devaluing a child or discounting them. This is a great moment for me to add this to those of you who are fathers and and and you love sports. You may have a boy that isn't given to sports. Give him a break.

Give him a break. Sports isn't his thing. I'm thinking of a very tall and handsome young man today who looks like a football player but was never interested in football but his father was interested in his being that and until the boy would be involved in football, the child was hardly valuable to the dad.

How tragic that setting is and the boy grows up wondering about his own value because he was never in his father's eyes significant because he was not a football star. Some children are born to be artists. Encourage the art.

Some are born to dance and sing. Encourage them there. Value whatever it is that God has placed in the lives.

Study that child so that you know. And this brings me again to our body of Christ. Guard against judging those who are different. Guard against placing value on those that are like you are. How important it is that we don't look down on any of this. That you don't look down on me and I don't look down on you and we don't look down on one another. We realize that each one of us has a place.

And then finally we can neglect and lose a child. And you know, you've known all your life about the ninety and nine that are lost, that are safe and one gets, one wanders away and is lost. Remember the story? What will he do, it says, what will he do when a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders off? He doesn't stay with the ninety-nine. He cares about the one that's wandering.

And what does he do? He rejoices over that one when he is found because he had been lost and now he has been found. I don't know if you remember the story, true story of the little two, three year old child in West Texas a number of years ago who stumbled into the well shaft and the whole nation stopped and watched it on television and read about it in the paper wondering if that child would be saved before she died in that well shaft.

All kinds of special digging and excavation was done and they rescued the child and the whole the whole country rejoiced. She received thousands of cards and letters welcoming her which illustrates how valuable he is when when the one that was almost lost came back. Let me speak very tenderly here and and I'll say this as I close. You may have one who has wandered.

When I was younger in the ministry, I was a lot more severe, a lot more judgmental, and now that I'm older and I've had years as a shepherd, I have another view of how we deal with those that that drift. I realize now the greatest thing we can do is to help them find their way back, help them recover, to pray for them, to throw them lifelines, to give them words of encouragement and hope, to count on God to bring them to their knees. And I know some seem lost forever.

I know what I'm talking about here. But God in his own time has a wonderful way as he brings the wanderer back and everyone rejoices. How great it would be that when the wanderer finally returns, he or she can look at you and say thank you for being there for me when I was so far away.

For never writing me off, never casting me aside, never condemning me. Because as he puts it in the same way, it is not my Heavenly Father's will that even one little one perish. Our hospitals are filled with little children, one in a family, and the family has almost stopped everything else to give attention to that one suffering child in hopes of bringing them back to full health. Be careful how you treat those who wander away that you don't neglect them or you don't reject them. What can we remember from children?

Two simple lessons. Number one, we're all equal in the sight of God. We're all equal in the sight of God. Isn't that wonderful? No one in here is number one.

Isn't that great? No one is number two. No one is number ten. We're all equal.

The ground is level at the foot of the cross. Children teach us that. Like someone asks you, which one is your favorite child? Well, some days you could answer that a little bit easier than other days, but when you're really thinking seriously, you know the answer. They all mean the same to me. And the second thing we learn is that we all come to God the same way, like little children who really know the meaning of the word help.

Help me. And often have their arms outstretched for you to pick them up. Maybe your arms are stretching out today and I have great news. Maybe your arms are stretching out today and I have great news. The one who put a child in their midst is here today to take you up and to bring you home. Come.

Come. Will you bow with me, please? If you've never come before, come today like a little child. Dear Father, thank you for your special care over every one of us and for the things that you teach us, for the tenderness we learn from those who show us mercy and the forgiveness from those who forgive us. Thank you for your grace that comes to our rescue when we least deserve it and always willing to make this the first day of the rest of our lives. For those who've come today, thank you. May they find in you the hope they've longed for and the relief, finally, they've searched for. In the name of Jesus, our Savior and Lord, we pray, and everyone said, amen.

Amen. You're listening to Insight for Living and a message from Chuck Swindoll titled, Life Lessons We Learn from Children. And there's much more from Matthew 18 that he wants to share with you. And if you'd like to learn more about this ministry or to see what resources are available for today's topic, please visit us online at insightworld.org. Before we move ahead, I want to remind you that we've hand-selected one of Chuck's hallmark books to complement your study in the book of Matthew. Today, I'm directing your attention to The Grace Awakening. In The Grace Awakening, Chuck assures us none of us can attain God's standard of perfection, and we need to stop trying. Our only hope is found in submitting to the gift of God's amazing grace. Over the years, God has used The Grace Awakening to help strengthen believers who had allowed their grace muscles to atrophy.

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Have a relationship in disrepair? Thursday, Chuck Swindoll talks about caring enough to confront, right here on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Life Lessons We Learned from Children, was copyrighted in 2017 and 2021, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.