A Simple Faith; A Complicated Life
Love Him Like a Child, Obey Him Like an Adult
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” —Matthew 19:14
Reflecting back on my life, I first think about our home. It was busy and complicated. We were maintaining our marriage, parenting three children, acting like Uber drivers for school and church activities, balancing the checkbook, and managing expenses, schedules, meals, and deadlines. We had disagreements, kids grumbled, funds were tight, and pizza became a staple for dinner.
Looking back at my work experience and those of others, I realize that it was also complicated. It could involve long hours, demanding bosses, customers with unrealistic expectations, and company policy fluctuations. Travel was wearisome, and efforts sometimes were under-appreciated. It had rewards that came with effort and sacrifice.
Church was and is a flurry of activity: Sunday worship, Sunday school, weeknight events, choir, small groups, and an early morning and late afternoon Bible study. Add committees to the mix, and you may travel to church three or four times a week.
Is our faith as complicated as our lives? As a child, I responded to the Gospel in simple terms. At seven years old, I prayed the sinner’s prayer with my mom as we knelt by her bed. I believed it and responded to the Gospel like a child would, with childlike innocence. I didn’t know much about myself, less about God, and little about the complexity of life. The question is, “Can I apply that childlike faith to a complex adult lifestyle?”
Matthew 19:14 is about responding to the Gospel with an openness and a sense of wonder that can only be found in a childlike attitude. Children don’t have complex agendas, nor are they looking at complex answers. The Gospel is Jesus Christ. That’s it. What do I do with him? Forget all the other religious trappings, questions, and contradictions. “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.” (Lyric in the song Solid Rock by Edward Mote in 1834.)
But we must still apply the Gospel to every aspect of our complex lives. We no longer reason like a child. We don’t talk like one, and our responsibilities are hundredfold. Can I bring Christ into my crazy busy life and maintain a childlike innocence? I have to. Otherwise, my faith will stagnate. This is why giving over all areas of my life takes a lifetime. Yielding to Him never ends. The only thing constant in life is change, and that fosters new ways to surrender to his will.
First Corinthians 13 is considered the love chapter. Verses 1-8 beautifully define the meaning of love. But in verse 11, the apostle Paul admonishes us to think like adults. That seemed like a contradiction. Maybe he means that I live with the child-like love of Christ in me and demonstrate that love to others as a mature adult. It is a simple faith brought to certainty in and through a complicated life.
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." —1 Corinthians 13:11
In the presence of God, we are all children. Love him like a child. Obey him as an adult.
Reflecting back on my life, I first think about our home. It was busy and complicated. We were maintaining our marriage, parenting three children, acting like Uber drivers for school and church activities, balancing the checkbook, and managing expenses, schedules, meals, and deadlines. We had disagreements, kids grumbled, funds were tight, and pizza became a staple for dinner.
Looking back at my work experience and those of others, I realize that it was also complicated. It could involve long hours, demanding bosses, customers with unrealistic expectations, and company policy fluctuations. Travel was wearisome, and efforts sometimes were under-appreciated. It had rewards that came with effort and sacrifice.
Church was and is a flurry of activity: Sunday worship, Sunday school, weeknight events, choir, small groups, and an early morning and late afternoon Bible study. Add committees to the mix, and you may travel to church three or four times a week.
Is our faith as complicated as our lives? As a child, I responded to the Gospel in simple terms. At seven years old, I prayed the sinner’s prayer with my mom as we knelt by her bed. I believed it and responded to the Gospel like a child would, with childlike innocence. I didn’t know much about myself, less about God, and little about the complexity of life. The question is, “Can I apply that childlike faith to a complex adult lifestyle?”
Matthew 19:14 is about responding to the Gospel with an openness and a sense of wonder that can only be found in a childlike attitude. Children don’t have complex agendas, nor are they looking at complex answers. The Gospel is Jesus Christ. That’s it. What do I do with him? Forget all the other religious trappings, questions, and contradictions. “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.” (Lyric in the song Solid Rock by Edward Mote in 1834.)
But we must still apply the Gospel to every aspect of our complex lives. We no longer reason like a child. We don’t talk like one, and our responsibilities are hundredfold. Can I bring Christ into my crazy busy life and maintain a childlike innocence? I have to. Otherwise, my faith will stagnate. This is why giving over all areas of my life takes a lifetime. Yielding to Him never ends. The only thing constant in life is change, and that fosters new ways to surrender to his will.
First Corinthians 13 is considered the love chapter. Verses 1-8 beautifully define the meaning of love. But in verse 11, the apostle Paul admonishes us to think like adults. That seemed like a contradiction. Maybe he means that I live with the child-like love of Christ in me and demonstrate that love to others as a mature adult. It is a simple faith brought to certainty in and through a complicated life.
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." —1 Corinthians 13:11
In the presence of God, we are all children. Love him like a child. Obey him as an adult.
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