Bible Stories for Adults

Jesus Blesses the Children

Matthew 18-19

Next Week - Jesus in Samaria (John 4:1-30; 39-42)
Bible Words to Remember:
He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

What significant event of Jesus' ministry preceded these stories?
Luke 9:29-31 = Transfiguration - Jesus talks with Moses & Elijah about coming events
Who was with Jesus during this event?
Luke 9:28 = Peter, James and John - Jesus' inner circle
How did the disciples react to this special appearance by Moses and Elijah?
Luke 9:46 = They argued over who was the greatest
How did Jesus deal with their argument?
Mark 9:33-34 = He asked what they had been arguing about - no answer
How did Jesus show them that He already knew?
Mark 9:35 = Sat them down and explained that to be first, you must be last

What object lesson did Jesus add to strengthen His point?
Luke 9:47-48 = He used a child to show they must serve even the least
Was Jesus serious in saying that welcoming a child welcomes Him?
Matthew 18:10 = Figuratively and literally, God's angels are with them
Does God really send out "guardian angels" to protect His children?
Psalm 34:7 = The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him
Was Jesus' point that we should specifically serve children?
Matthew 25:34-40 = Children were used as example of serving the least of His

What warning did Jesus add to His instruction to welcome God's children?
Matthew 18:6 = Don't do anything to cause a little one to sin
The Greek used for millstone (mulos onikos) refers to one turned by a donkey
Typically 3-4 ft in diameter, hundreds of pounds
Depths of the sea should be far out in the open sea - Jews feared the sea & drowning
Revelation 21:1 = There would be no more sea in heaven
With so many other people in the world, does God really care if one of His children turns away?
Matthew 18:12-14 = Yes, He sent Jesus to bring in His lost sheep
Is this word of warning strong enough to keep people from leading others into sin?
Matthew 18:7 = No, such things will happen, just make sure you aren't a cause

How careful should we be to not cause anyone to sin?
Matthew 18:8-9 = If a part of our body leads us to sin, better to get rid of it
Why does this teaching sound so familiar?
Matthew 5:27-30 = Jesus said the same about adultery in His Sermon on the Mount

Fire of hell in Greek is Gehenna
Gehenna was the valley of Hinnom, a valley below the mountain of Jerusalem
How did Gehenna get its reputation for being the fires of hell?
2 Chronicles 28:1-3 = Ahaz, worst king of Judah, sacrificed his sons in Gehenna fire
What did Josiah, the reforming king of Judah, do about the sacrifices in Gehenna?
2 Kings 23:10 = He destroyed the Topheth, where the fires were made
What prediction did Jeremiah make that was obviously true by Jesus' time?
Jeremiah 19:6 = People would refer to the place as the Valley of Slaughter

What other body parts could Jesus be telling us to keep pure?
1 Corinthians 12:27 = The body of Christ, the church - we are all parts
Would Jesus really be telling us to cut off a sinful church member and send them to hell?
1 Corinthians 5:5-7 = Yes, don't let the yeast of sin destroy the whole body (cancer)
Are we to stay away from everyone in this world who is openly sinful?
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 = No, but expel the wicked man from among you
(See also Deut 17:7; 19:19; 21:21; 22:21, 24; 24:7) = OT laws to purge the evil
Wouldn't it be easier and better to just let people stay members?
1 Corinthians 12:26 = No, all other parts will suffer if one part is diseased

If Jesus was referring to His body, the church, what would He have meant by "little ones"?
1 Corinthians 3:1-2 = Infants in Christ, Baby Christians
What example did Paul give to the early Christians of a topic that could cause little ones to sin?
1 Corinthians 8:4, 7-9 = New Christians could have trouble eating meat offered to idols
How could exercising your God-given freedom be a stumbling block and lead others to sin?
1 Corinthians 8:10-13 = Baby Christians don't yet fully understand these freedoms

Should we then keep baby Christians and each other from using these freedoms?
Romans 14:1-6 = No, everyone should do or abstain as he sees right
So we should then feel free to exercise our freedoms openly?
Romans 14:13-16 = No, it is better to act in love and not set up a stumbling block
What is the important thing to remember through this confusing discussion?
Romans 14:17-19 = Don't worry about the details, but about building each other up
So should we drink beer or wine around our Baptist friends, or not?
Romans 14:20-22 = No, because it may cause them to stumble
What should we do about freedoms we aren't so sure about?
Romans 14:23 = Don't do them

What lesson did this story begin with that covers all of the rest of the lessons we've discussed?
Matthew 18:1-3 = You must change and become like little children
Is Jesus telling us to change from being so serious and become more childish?
1 Corinthians 14:20 = More childlike, not childish - ignorant of sin
What does Paul mean that we should be adults in our thinking?
Ephesians 4:13-15 = Grow in spiritual knowledge, attain the full maturity of Christ
So in what way are we to become more like children?
Matthew 18:4 = Humble, dependent, trusting

Humility - When you know you have it, you've lost it.
Humility thinks of others, not of self.
True humility is not thinking meanly of oneself; it is simply not thinking of oneself at all.
How did Paul define humility?
Romans 12:3 = Do not think of yourself more highly then you ought
How does Peter describe humility?
1 Peter 5:5-6 (James 4:6-10) = Submit to one another and God, He will lift you
Where can we find an even better example of humility than a child? = Past two lessons
Philippians 2:3-11 = Jesus - Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit... (v3)

What was Jesus getting ready to do that further taught this lesson on humility?
Matthew 16:21 = Going to Jerusalem to suffer and die for all
What priority did Jesus and His disciples have for this last trip to Jerusalem?
Mark 9:30-31a = Teach deep topics to the disciples to mature from childishness
How ready were the disciples to receive and understand this mature "solid food"?
Mark 9:31b-32 = Couldn't even understand direct explanations
How much time was the group able to get to be by themselves for this training?
Mark 10:1 = Little, crowds everywhere they went

How did the disciples handle these interruptions to Jesus' limited important lessons?
Mark 10:13 = They rebuked the mothers who interfered with babies for Jesus to touch
Mothers often brought their babies to be blessed by a rabbi
(Luke 18:15 says people were bringing babies for Him to touch)
How did Jesus feel about the disciples protecting their limited and valuable time together?
Mark 10:14 = He was indignant (upset) with them
What did He mean that the kingdom of God belongs to such as these?
Mark 10:15 = We must receive the kingdom as a little child to enter it
What did Jesus then do about the babies?
Mark 10:16 = He took them in His arms and blessed them

How is a child-like dependence critical for receiving the kingdom of God?
1 Corinthians 12:3 = No one can say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit
How did Martin Luther state this in his explanation to the Third Article of the Apostles' Creed?
I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength
believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him;
but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel,
enlightened me with His gifts;
sanctified and kept me in the true faith.
How does the Spirit call us by the Gospel? = We have the mind of Christ
1 Corinthians 2:10-16 = He reveals God's wisdom in ways others can't understand
Can't we receive the kingdom by being as good as we can? Do we have to be dependent?
Ephesians 2:8-9 = Saved only as a gift of God, not by works
Children greatly trust their parents to take care of them. Who are we to trust?
John 14:1 = Trust in the Father and in the Son and in the Holy Spirit