Sunday, September 14, 2014

September 14, 2014 … Jesus and the Kids

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2014 - Day 257

Devotional Song: Go to this link  … Please take the time to see a video of the Glasgow High School choir singing Charles Wesley’s hymn, written in 1742 - Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild - extolling the heart of a child to be like that of Jesus.


Highlight Passage: Matthew 18: 2-3 [NKJV} … God’s promise through Isaiah …
  2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. …” 
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Highlight Context - NKJV: Matthew 18: 1-10 [NKJV] … GO TO THIS LINK
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Reference Passage #1: Matthew 11: 28-29 … [NKJV] … Jesus in describing Himself for any of His children [i.e., disciples]…
  28 “… Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. “ 

Reference Passage #3: Matthew 19: 13-15 … [NKJV] Oh how Jesus loved the kids …
  13 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” 15 And He laid His hands on them and departed from there. 

My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread devotional entry, authored by David McCasland, took his readers - including myself - back to the reminder, from Matthew’s Gospel, of Jesus’ attitude toward children. Jesus obviously loved kids; and they obviously flocked to Him; and in His teaching on God’s kingdom, the children w\ho came to Him (see the Matthew 18 & 19 passages copied above) became examples of the attitude it takes to enter Heaven.

I don’t think I’m being lazy here by my ending this journal entry with these question:
... Do we have the attitude of those kids who jumped in Jesus’ lap in those passages quoted by Matthew? 
… And are we doing all we can to make sure others come to our Lord in the same way?

Please take the time to listen to that classic old hymn, linked above, written by Charles Wesley in the 18th century, which describes the attitude of a child in coming to know Jesus as Lord. And then let’s ask ourselves ...
Is that my attitude toward my Savior? 

 And how I pray we answer a resounding “YES!” to all of these questions.

My Prayer for Today … Lord, I am Your child - forever! Amen

Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK  on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.

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