missmuffet Posted January 9, 2020 Group: Royal Member Followers: 34 Topic Count: 1,991 Topics Per Day: 0.48 Content Count: 48,689 Content Per Day: 11.80 Reputation: 30,343 Days Won: 226 Joined: 01/11/2013 Status: Offline Share Posted January 9, 2020 Like children who trust their parents believers trust God. We trust in God no matter what happens. Our Father in heaven will take care of us. This is what makes a believer like a child. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnthebaptist Posted January 9, 2020 Group: Non-Conformist Theology Followers: 6 Topic Count: 118 Topics Per Day: 0.06 Content Count: 4,361 Content Per Day: 2.31 Reputation: 2,109 Days Won: 0 Joined: 02/25/2019 Status: Offline Birthday: 02/03/1953 Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/6/2020 at 6:01 PM, Frank Goad said: What did jesus mean that heaven is made for children?In Matthew 19:14?What is it talking about? The only thing that comes to my mind is that children might be a whole lot more humble than some of us adults. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ineedhugs Posted January 20, 2020 Group: Junior Member Followers: 2 Topic Count: 16 Topics Per Day: 0.01 Content Count: 103 Content Per Day: 0.06 Reputation: 54 Days Won: 0 Joined: 12/13/2019 Status: Offline Share Posted January 20, 2020 A little child is innocent and obeys their parents commands without question. I think Jesus was saying we have to be like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtletwo Posted January 20, 2020 Group: Royal Member Followers: 35 Topic Count: 1,192 Topics Per Day: 0.19 Content Count: 7,264 Content Per Day: 1.18 Reputation: 15,710 Days Won: 194 Joined: 07/15/2007 Status: Offline Share Posted January 20, 2020 A very small child with loving parents trusts everything his/her parents say and depends fully upon them. They believe their parent is invincible and can do anything. They see in their parent somebody awesome beyond compare who they feel safe with... someone who loves and cares for them. So must those who are believers see God in this way and approach Him accordingly...thereby being like little children. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted January 20, 2020 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 0 Topic Count: 905 Topics Per Day: 0.19 Content Count: 9,646 Content Per Day: 2.02 Reputation: 5,832 Days Won: 9 Joined: 04/07/2011 Status: Offline Share Posted January 20, 2020 If we do not have a child-like faith we cannot enter the kingdom of God. Trying to pick apart the Gospel (for example) with every human / satanic argument... trying to add to the bottom line "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved," not trusting God implicitly... Children aren't that way with their parents (not until they near adolescence anyway). This is not to say never question God or never look into whether or not Christianity is true... But when it all boils down to what is actually convincing / convicting of the individual who is truly saved... is whether or not they just believe. Then comes the proofs and assurances that ours is a faith founded on fact. By grace you have been saved through faith not of yourselves it is the GIFT of God... Our smartest / wisest minds that ever lived are complete stupid fools compared to the mind of God. All of our reasons beyond that of approaching God as a little child is as to approach a parent as a know-it-all rebellious, sassy teenager always blaming them for everything accusing them of ruining their lives... etc. Interesting what God says also about the woe to those who cause one of these little ones who believes in him to sin... Does he mean only little children? Or does he mean all who believe in him like a little child? Christians are covered by the blood. But unbelievers who cause believers to sin... whoa! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted January 20, 2020 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 0 Topic Count: 905 Topics Per Day: 0.19 Content Count: 9,646 Content Per Day: 2.02 Reputation: 5,832 Days Won: 9 Joined: 04/07/2011 Status: Offline Share Posted January 20, 2020 Just now, JohnD said: ...interesting what God says also about the woe to those who cause one of these little ones who believes in him to sin... Does he mean only little children? Or does he mean all who believe in him like a little child? Christians are covered by the blood. But unbelievers who cause believers to sin... whoa! This brings to mind a Christian woman who scolded me once for looking at her amply exposed legs. I responded that I am but a normal heterosexual male responding to what was on display for all to see. She replied that it was a sin, and I shouldn't look or be so cavalier about the matter. "Sin?" I asked. "Where do you get that?" "The Bible," she said emphatic ally. "Oh, a Bible scholar. Wonderful. Matthew 5:27-28, right?" "Uh, yeah," she said a little less confidently. My delight in the topic parameters seemed to make her more nervous as the conversation continued. I had clearly made it my goal to engage this lady in debate that she only thought she was prepared for. "Okay, Jesus said it is adultery for a man to look upon a woman with lust..." I began. "Yes. He did." She was a bit more confident. "That was Old Testament. Are you saying we are under the Old Testament Law today? Or that you are trying to hold me to Old Testament Law?" She looked at me like I was out of my mind. "What? Matthew 5..." she said as the obvious forgone conclusion. "Old Testament. Hebrews 9:16-17 clearly states that the New Testament is not in effect until the death of the Testator. Was Jesus on the cross before Matthew 5?" "No, of course not... but the Old Testament clearly ended at -" "Malachi 4?" I interrupted. "Only according to the traditions of man... which Mark 7:13 nullifies the Word of God." She looked startled. "The language of Matthew 5:27 continuing to verse 30 is clearly Old Testament language... 'if your eye causes you to sin gouge it out and throw it away for it is better to enter life with one eye than hell with both eyes.' Is that Law or Grace? Ephesians 2:8-10 classifies this as a work. 'Not by works lest any man should boast.'" She remained silent. "I applaud your vigor, misplaced as it is, but you don't realize that you are holding my feet to the fire of the Old Testament Law while excusing yourself from the same Old Testament Law." "What do you mean?" She was puzzled. "Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount was giving his divine commentary on the Law and the Jewish leader's mishandling of it. This is why he often said 'you have heard it said... but I say...' He was putting the teeth back into the Law that the Sanhedrin pulled out with their traditions. In the case of Matthew 5:27-30, the one-sided way they enforced the Law about lust... namely against women only. Rabbi Hillel formulated a doctrine based on Leviticus 18:8 and Isaiah 47:1-3 that a woman who exposed herself before men who were not her husband... even if by accident, was guilty of adultery. "That meant either stoning or divorce which went very badly for women in those days." The lady felt emboldened to add, "Well women who expose themselves should be dealt with." "Thankfully, for you and me, we don't live under Law but under Grace." She looked as if I threw water in her face. "Me?" "Isaiah 47:1-3 includes as shameful nakedness... uncovered hair, bared calves, and bared thighs. All of which you have on display right now." She was shocked and even more shocked when I broke out my travel Bible and showed her the passage. "I am not trying to put all the blame on you," I said. "I sinned as well. And again, thankfully we live under Grace. So 1 John 1:9 / Psalm 51:3-4 state we confess our sins to God and we will be put back in touch with the eternal forgiveness we have in Christ and can never lose. Jesus, in Matthew 5:27-30 was addressing the teaching of Hillel without refuting Hillel. Hillel got Leviticus 18:8 and Isaiah 47:1-3 right. But he forgot all about Job 31:1-13. All Law. You came out to weaponize the Scriptures at me, and I showed you what the scriptures mean while accepting my sin which I confess to the Lord. But I must point out in addition to your sin of exposure, the fact that without your sin I could not have sinned." This is the ultimate point I am making here. Tying in with woe to those who cause one of these who believe in me like little ones... to sin... I'm not advocating we become obsessed with confessing every sin we ever committed... as if we would lose our salvation if there was one we missed... No. God's Grace is not about legalism. But, food for thought... especially for those who tend to weaponize the scriptures against others... In this case the lady made a conscious / deliberate choice to sin (even if she was ignorant of it at the time read the Law ignorance of it is no excuse). I on the other hand sinned (no doubt) but as a response to her exposure and my life long sin being a leg man since as far back as I can remember. I am not exonerating myself in the least. But I am saying we all should be careful not to judge because we ourselves are guiltier than we think. The flesh is evil. Plain and simple. Don't trust it. Ever. Give into it as little as possible. Stand ready to confess your sins to God when you do give in. The confession itself is what God already knows and in the Greek is more about facing our sin, agreeing with God it is sin, no doubt. And moving on as we are once again back in touch with God's Grace which never wavered... we removed ourselves from it... it's benefits, it's reassurance, it's good feeling, by our sin... but our status with God never actually changed. When we sin we do it to ourselves. God in Christ sees us as holy. Not because of us, because of Christ. Never underestimate how much the Father loves the Son. Never underestimate how much the Father loves us who believe in his Son. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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