Children Really are a Blessing

In my rather short nine-minute sermon last week, I made the point that the blessing of the Little Children's Ceremony is very rich in meaning. Nine minutes for nine children. We were blessed to have nine children go through the ceremony last week. Not only are we asking God's blessing upon these little children when we have this ceremony, but we are all benefiting from having this ceremony each and every year. How do you and I benefit from this ceremony? It should help us realize how precious little children are to God and to Christ and how we need to be more like them. As I mentioned last time, it's easy to dwell and focus on the negative aspects of small children. Remember, I pointed out that there are some negative aspects, such as millions of diapers, whining, incessant crying, super-demanding, and sometimes very obnoxious behavior. But in spite of all the negative aspects, the positive blessings far outweigh any negatives. And surely Christ was telling us to dwell on the positive aspects of little children and emulate those characteristics in order to inherit the kingdom of God. Little children really are a blessing to us in many, many ways. Children are our heritage of the Eternal, and the fruit of the womb is His reward. These are blessings from God. We inherit our children from God, and they are a great reward. Christ said, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall know wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. Also, Jesus was not a little displeased. He was much displeased when the disciples were not allowing the children to come to Him. So that should tell you how Jesus Christ feels about children and how He interacted with children. I'm sure He was amazing with children.

So why are little children such a blessing, and why should we focus on the positive aspects of little children? Today I'd like to share with you nine. That's right, nine. Amazing, isn't it? Nine reasons why little children are such a great blessing. Number one, little children have very quick, steady growth. It's amazing how quickly they grow, isn't it? And how steady that growth is if they're healthy? It's an amazing thing to watch, to see children grow. Now, it would be difficult for a mother to deliver a teenager.

In fact, when it comes to birth, I would think as long as they're healthy, the smaller, the better. Right? But little children, again, they do grow very quickly, very rapidly. We start small as little children, and then we grow both physically and spiritually. There's an analogy here, obviously. We are to grow spiritually, so we look at infants, and we see how quickly they grow. And when God calls us and opens our mind to His truth, amazing growth takes place in a Christian. Now, we begin changing our lives right and left. We stop doing things we once did for years. We become motivated. We're inspired, and we make changes. And then we're supposed to go on from there with steady growth, coming off the milk of the Word, learning the meat of God's Word, maturing spiritually, learning to live by every word of God, growing together as family, becoming strong, becoming unified. And then being amazed at the blessings that God brings when people are genuine and when people are real like little children. So the first point is expect some strong spiritual growth to begin with, and then continue steadily from then on, growing and overcoming, becoming like our Savior Jesus Christ. Secondly, small children are completely dependent, so parents learn to sacrifice. They learn to give to them. We must see our dependency as well upon God who sustains this universe and gives us life each day. Now, I would like to commend you mothers out there, because it's a difficult job to be a mom. It's hard to sacrifice as you've sacrificed. And I'm inspired. My mother was an amazing example. Seven children, and she was so faithful and loved us so much, sacrificed for us so much that we ought to have Mother's Day every day, not once a week or once a year. Once a week would be better than once a year. But you know what I'm saying? You know, we should be so grateful for our mother. You know, and there is an analogy that God's Church is the mother of us all. How much do we honor God's Church? How much do we honor one another by learning to love each other, to be unified with one another, not allowing anything to offend us?

We should be completely dependent on our God in heaven, our Father. We should look to Him, and also to the Church, who will hopefully give us what we need. We haven't always done the best job. I know that. But I'm so grateful to be a part of this Church of God for the last 44 years, because I've had tremendous nourishment from this Church. You can say whatever you want to say about the Church of God and its shortcomings, but we've all been very, very blessed because of our relationship with God's Church. In Galatians 4, verse 19, it says, My little children, of whom I travail in birth. It's not easy for a mom to have a child. It's tough. I've been there. I've seen two children born, just right there. And I've been at the hospital many times when other children have been born, and I know mothers have suffered to bring children into this world. I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you! Christ is to be formed in you. That's what God's looking for in all of us, to become like Christ. You know, I don't mind getting a bit emotional. This is important to me. Jesus Christ is to be formed in each and every one of us. We are to become like Christ. When people look at us, they should see Jesus Christ.

We should reflect our Savior in the way we live our lives and how we treat one another, the choices that we make daily. If you call yourself a true Christian, then certainly behave like one. 1 John 2, verse 28, says, Now, little children, abide in him in Christ, abide in your Savior Jesus Christ. When he shall appear, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming. Now, remember on Trump, as I talked about, we need to come to Christ before Christ's coming, and before Christ returns, everyone of us needs to come to our Savior Jesus Christ. We need to come to him. We need to live by every word. We need the living Word of God. Jesus Christ should live in us. Christ is the unleavened bread that comes down from heaven. He's to live in us. He is to change us so that we might reflect his character in everything that we do. And we should not make excuses for bad behavior. We should just admit it. Yes, I blew it. I'm sorry. I'm wrong. I was wrong. I can do better.

So little children, abide in him, abide in Christ, that when he shall appear, you may have confidence. Remember, I said, if we come to Christ now, we can have confidence when Christ returns. We'll be ready for his return. We will be in the first resurrection. And we will rule and reign with Christ, having the very character of our Savior Jesus Christ and of God the Father. So the second point is little children are completely dependent upon their parents, and we need to surrender to God and allow Christ to live in us and to reflect the very character of God Almighty. Thirdly, how are children a blessing? Because they're very happy and they're full of joy. I mean, if you're not getting this, then you're missing something. You need to spend more time around little children. Little children are very happy. No, not all the time. You know, I said there's some down time. There's some obnoxious behavior, but Christ focused on the positive, and so should we. We should focus on the positive. All right, so children are very happy and they're full of joy. Show you appreciate God and Christ by being happy and joyful yourself. Now, you are a little child. You're God's child. You should be very happy. You should be full of joy. The negativism needs to go, people. Let's get rid of it. Let's cast it out because Satan's behind it. Satan's behind the negativism. The critical spirits. That's Satan. Cast that out of your life. Don't be party to that. Become very happy and full of joy like a little child. You know, our little grandson, Wilder, it was so uplifting at times. You know, that little kid was jabbering back there in his in his car seat nonstop for about 20 minutes. He knew exactly what he was saying, but none of us did. But he was he was so full of joy and so happy. I mean, I just was amazed. I want to be like that. You know, I want to be happy like that. And also, um, you know, he was he was laughing, smiling incessantly. I mean, something was just really funny to him. I don't know what it was was going on in his head, but something was just very, very uplifting and positive that he was thinking about. And it was really cool. And, you know, I started doing something when I first saw my little grandson when I was in Alaska. I guess that was the first time. And I played Boom Boom the Baby. Have you ever played Boom Boom the Baby? You really should try it. Kids love it. So I would pick him up and I'd say, Boom Boom the Baby! Boom! And I'd throw him down on the mattress and he was so happy and so joyful. My daughter says, now he wants to do it all day long. He wants to do it all day long. Look, you should try to interact with children in that way. Boom Boom the Baby. They love it. Boom the Baby. They love it.

Little children are very happy and full of joy. Let's try to be the same. Number four. Another blessing. Little children are innocent. They're free from deceit. They're free from guile. We should strive for innocence and genuineness. There should be no politics. That's one thing that I want to bring to the home office when I go, is someone who does not believe in politics. I don't believe in politics. I never have. I've hated to see it, especially in God's church. I'm thrilled to be able to work with Vic Kubik and Chris Roland and others out there, because I sense that they feel the same way I do.

Let's be innocent. Let's be free from deceit. Let's be free from guile. Let's strive for innocence and genuineness. What was Jesus Christ against most of all? What did he rail against most of all in God's word? In Matthew 23, time after time, he rails at the Pharisees because of their hypocrisy. Just the opposite of being genuine and without guile. You owe it to each other to get rid of the hypocrisy. That's another aspect of Satan the Devil. Cast that out. Don't be a hypocrite. Be genuine. Be real. Be honest. Be true. Again, if we're not easily offended, and if we're not easily offended ourselves, and if we're also careful how we treat one another, then we're not... it's going to be such a much better place to be. Our children are going to be so much happier to be a part of this group. It's hypocrisy that messes up our teenagers. If they see people who claim to be Christians behaving differently, so you adults owe it to the children in this room to get rid of the hypocrisy. God wants us to become like little children, innocent, no hypocrisy. Love is genuine. God is genuine. Anything else is hypocrisy.

We are to be known by our love for one another. That's how Christ's disciples are to be known, for the love that we have for each other. So let's get rid of the hypocrisy, and let's truly learn to love each other the way God would have us love each other the way God loves his son, and the way the son loves the father and has for all eternity.

Number five, another blessing. Little children are loving, they're cuddly, and they're affectionate. They're loving, they're cuddly, they're affectionate. Express your love to God and Christ in the same way. Strive to be loving. Cuddly, affectionate. Toward God. Get down on your knees and pour out your heart to your Heavenly Father. Tell him how much you love him. Tell him how much he's changed your life, how much he's helped you for the better. 1 John 3, verse 18, My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but let us love in deed and in truth. Let us truly love one another genuinely as God loves us and as God loves his son and his son loves the father. Let us become like them. Let's become loving, cuddly, and affectionate like a little child.

You know, again, express your love to God and to Christ. Get involved with your children, your grandchildren, the children here in a right and godly and proper way. Let them know that you truly do care for them. It's okay to be appropriately affectionate.

So little children are loving, cuddly, and affectionate, and we should strive to be the same. One with another, within God's ways and his laws. You know, I'm talking about genuine, right kind of love toward one another. Number six, another true blessing that we get from little children is we see that they are wholehearted and persistent. I remember my son learning how to ride a bicycle. And I mean, he crashed that bicycle so many times, but he was so excited that he got 37 pedals in before he crashed. He'd come and tell us. He'd give us a report. Got 37 that time. I got 45 this time. He would count the pedals, crash, come and tell us. He was very persistent. Now, my grandson Wilder, we went fishing together, and we're on a boat. We're on my son-in-law Alex's skiff, and this is a big gigantic skiff that he uses for commercial salmon fishing. We're going about 30 miles an hour. Little Wilder is up in the front, and he's bracing himself because not only is the wind blowing like crazy, and we're going 30 miles an hour, but it starts to rain. I've got some pictures of him up there, and it was pretty inspiring to me to see a little kid like that just loving it so much and being persistent. Sticking with something, his father said that one of the things he loves the most and has been the most persistent about is fishing. I was really glad to hear that. I took him fishing. We called him an Irish lord. I think you'll see pictures of that probably in today's presentation after services today. I've got a picture with Xander and the Irish lord. I think it's a cool name. It's a big ugly fish, and in fact Xander calls him Uglies, and other people call him Uglies, but Xander likes to fish, and so we went fishing together and enjoyed that a great deal. But children can be very wholehearted. They can be very persistent. We should emulate little children and do the same. Number seven, another blessing. As I said last time, they are reachable and teachable. You might remember that. They are reachable and teachable. Little children love to have you read to them, don't they? And they don't mind if you read the same story over and over and over and over and over again. They're reachable. They're teachable. John 13 verses 31 through 35. Let's go there. Let's turn to this one. John chapter 13.

John chapter 13 verse 31. So when he had gone out, Jesus said, Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in him. Now, of course, this is just before Christ is taken and crucified. We read this every passover. The Son of Man is glorified. God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and glorify him immediately. Little children. John calls us little children. Jesus Christ calls us little children as well. As we can see, little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek me, Christ says. And as I said to the Jews, where I am going, you cannot come. So now I say to you, a new commandment I give to you that you love one another as I have loved you. Okay, that's the beauty of that new commandment. We're to love as Christ loves us. You know, we're to love as Christ loved us and gave himself for us. We're to love our wives as Christ loved us and gave himself for us. We're to love the church in that same manner, in the same way. A new commandment I give to you that you love one another as I have loved you, that you also love one another, and by this all will know that you are my disciples if you have love, genuine, godly love for one another. And then in 1 John 3, verse 7, the apostle John says, little children, let no man deceive you. Let no man deceive you. He that does righteousness is righteous even as he is righteous. Let no one deceive you. Be reachable. Be teachable. Be reachable. Don't let anyone deceive you. If you're reachable and you're teachable, it will be very difficult for Satan to deceive you. But if you're not reachable, and if God can't reach you, if he can't teach you, if you want to allow God's church to instruct you, to guide you, then Satan will have a much better opportunity to deceive you. Because we need each other. We really do need each other. And we need to realize that Christ is the head of his church. No man. Christ is the head. Christ is the head. So whenever you disparage the church of God, are you not disparaging Christ who is the head? You have to be very careful how you handle this. Now, you better be right. If you're going to criticize the church of God, you better be right about what you say.

Be reachable and be teachable. Number eight, little children are believing, and they are very trusting. They believe, they have faith, and they trust. So you believe, as a little child, you believe, you have faith, you trust. Turn yourself over to God and let him live in you, change you, transform you. You know, isn't that what baptism is all about? It's being transformed. It's being a different person. It's giving yourself totally to God. Without, you know, without compromise, learning to surrender to God and to Christ. First John chapter 4 verse 4, you are of God, little children. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. Satan is the God of this world. Satan wants to destroy you. You're his enemy. He wants to destroy you. Whoa! It's moving. He really does want to destroy you. He is your enemy, and he will use all means to infiltrate, to deceive, and to get the best of you. So you better put your trust in God, and you better rely on him, because he is your refuge. He is your strength. He is your power. He is what you need. So go to him and have faith that he'll always be there for you, that he will never leave you, that he will never forsake you, and that he will give you the strength to overcome whatever it is you're battling. Trust him and expect change in your life.

1 John 5, verse 21, little children, keep yourselves from idols. Don't be involved in idol worship. Anything that you put in front of God is an idol. When you become stubborn and refuse, that's an idol. That has become an idol, whatever it is. If you refuse to yield to God and to his will, then you have an idol in the way. Christ says, little children, keep yourselves from idols. Be believing. Be trusting. God is your God. You should serve only him. 9. Little children are cute when they're born, aren't they? They're cute. But as they develop a personality, they usually become really cute. At least, that's how I found little children to be. I like babies, but I really like it when they get a little bit older and you see their personality. It's just so heartwarming. Little children are amazing. Wilder is of the age now. He's just full of personality. Xander was the same way at that age. It's funny, they do change as they get older. It's a sad reality that we have to be careful as we grow older. We're not as cute and not as cuddly. We're not as warm. We're not as affectionate. In some ways, we're not as loving. Because the world takes a toll on us. The world wears us down. Even small children, four, five, six years old, they start going to school. Kids wear them down. Teachers sometimes wear them down. Life wears them down. They lose some of that. Let's be on guard. Let no one steal from you your joy. 1 John 2, verse 13, I write unto you, fathers, because you have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one. And I write unto you, little children, because you have known the father. Little children, we are to know the father. You know, I try to be a good father to my children. And without vanity, I believe I accomplish that. I'm close to my kids. You know, they love me. Just as they love their mother, you know, she also, very good mother. They know me. They know I love them. There's no question in their minds. They know it. And I know God loves me, and I know he loves you.

So, number nine, little children are very forgiving, and they are forgetful as well. So, let us all be very forgiving, and let us be forgetful of those who wrong us. Human beings, as they grow older, of course, they will wrong us in various ways. None of us are perfect. None of us are Christ. You know, we all have our shortcomings. We sometimes sin. And so, we hurt other people. But let us be forgiving, and let us also be forgetful as a little child. Little children get over things quickly. They get over things very, very quickly. It's like it's not even in their heads anymore. They forgot all about it. They just want to have fun. They just want to have fun! Don't you want to have fun? I'm a fun-loving guy. I love to have fun. Good, clean fun. I'm all for it. I'm all for it. Let's embrace that. You know, let's have fun. Let's all have fun. Can you do that for me? I'm serious. You know, we need to have more fun. That's why I have a lot of hobbies. Because I have fun. And I hope you have hobbies, too, that are fun. Things that you enjoy doing. Things that break the monotony. It's important.

1 John 2, verse 12, I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven, your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake. Little children, your sins are forgiven. You know, Christ died for you. Christ died for each and every one of you.

Your sins are forgiven. God loves you. If you've accepted Christ as your personal savior, if you're genuine about it, if you've repented of your sins, if you're striving to put sin out of your life and you're not playing games with God or with others, then you're forgiven. But be sure your sins will find you out if you're not genuine, and you will pay a price over and over again until you finally get it. So, little children are truly a great blessing from God. Are they not? Are they not a tremendous blessing? I think, amen. You know, it's so important that you embrace the little children among us, not just physically, but most importantly, spiritually, that you set a good example for them. So, when they come in here, they're more encouraged than they were when they walked in the door, because they've been around a bunch of great people who love them. So, take a little more interest in the children among us. Try to be like them. Try to see their innocence. They are a true blessing from God. We are to become like them if we are to be in God's kingdom. Little children grow quickly, and they grow steadily. We should grow spiritually, as well. Little children are dependent upon God. They look to Him. They're very happy. They're very full of joy. They're innocent. They're free of deceit. They're free of guile. They are loving. They're cuddly. They're affectionate. They're wholehearted, and they are persistent. They are reachable, and they're teachable, and they are believing, and they're very trusting. And perhaps most of all, they are very forgiving and forgetful. So, let us all become like little children, and really, let us enjoy God's warm embrace, and let us have some fun.