No Ticket to Heaven

Everyone needed to change.

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. "If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one by whom the stumbling block comes! "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than to have two hands or two feet and to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the hell of fire. "Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.    What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost. - Matt. 18:1-14

All of them must change, He tells them.  Become like children, in order to enter God's kingdom in heaven.

Wow!

But I thought we didn't need to do anything to become worthy of eternal life.  Isn't that what he is talking about?

Shouldn't we automatically gain entry into heaven just because we believe?  After all, Jesus died for our sins, so we have nothing to fear, right?

We may have a free ticket, but there are things we can do, things we do, which can prevent us from using that ticket.

One that Jesus mentions is causing an innocent child to stumble.  Anything we do that interferes with the faith and future of a child could be that stumbling block.

I guess it boils down to abuse.

Too much discipline could be abuse, but so could too little.  Making it hard for a child to succeed in school could be a problem, but making it too easy is as well.

A child is an imprint-able entity.  What we write on them, stays with them.  How we treat them, shapes how they treat others.  What we teach them either helps them in life or causes them pain.

Jesus warns his apostles to take care.  The angels in Heaven watch over the children and they see what you do.

We may think this is a warning for pedophiles, but it is a warning for all of us who come in contact with children of all ages, people who are in vulnerable positions, the innocent and the naive.

It is about power over others. If we exert power over others for our own purposes, chances are we are causing people to stumble and fall.  What we imprint on them can stay with them a lifetime.

So, when we think we are doing them a favor, we should think twice.  Is it truly in their best interest in the long term, or are we just trying to make ourselves feel good?

More to come...