Luke 18:15 - Meaning and Application

This story is also found in Matthew and Mark. It fits here right after the parable of the Pharisee and the publican, because it confirms the lesson of that parable. God accepts and honors those who humble themselves, and Christ has blessings ready for them, the best and richest blessings.

Notice first, those who have been blessed in Christ should want their children to be blessed in him too. In doing that, they show real honor for Christ, because they bring their children to him. They also show real love for their children, because they care about their souls. They brought infants to Jesus, very young children, some likely still needing to be carried. No one is too small or too young to be brought to Christ, who knows how to show kindness even to those who cannot yet serve him.

A single gracious touch from Christ can make our children happy. They brought the infants to him so that he might touch them, as a sign of his grace and Spirit being given to them. That touch would make way for his blessing, which they also expected. This fits the promise in Isaiah 44:3, where God says, "I will pour my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants."

It is no surprise that people who come to Jesus for themselves or for their children sometimes meet discouragement, even from people who should support them. When the disciples saw this, they thought it would create endless trouble for their Master, so they rebuked the people and pushed them away. The church has often done this to sincere seekers, as the bride complained about the watchmen in Song of Songs 3:3 and 5:7.

Many whom the disciples turn away, the Master welcomes. Jesus called the people to him when they were starting to draw back because of the disciples' rebuke. They did not need to appeal from the disciples to Jesus, because Jesus himself took notice of their overlooked cause. He made it clear that he cared about those whom others had dismissed.

It is Christ’s will that little children should be brought to him and offered to him as living sacrifices to his honor. "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them." Nothing should be done to keep them away, because they are as welcome as anyone else. The promise belongs to believers and to their children, so the one who gives out promised blessings welcomes them along with us.

The children of those who belong to God's kingdom also belong to that kingdom, just as the children of free people are free. If the parents are members of the visible church, then the children are too, for if the root is holy, the branches are holy too. So children are not only welcome to Christ, but in a real sense they belong among his people.

Children are welcome to Christ in another way too. The grown people who are most welcome to him are those who have the most childlike spirit, as Luke 18:17 says. Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child, meaning with humility and thankfulness, will never enter it. They must not pretend they have earned God's gifts, as the Pharisee did. Instead, they must gladly admit that they depend on free grace, as the publican did. Unless a person comes to God in that self-denying way, he will never enter the kingdom. They must receive God's kingdom as children receive an inheritance, not as something they bought, but as their Father's gift.