Full Question:
You'll have to be as a little child to enter the kingdom of heaven?
What does that mean?
Answer:
This is a good question and I like to give the best answer for your question by explaining it. I feel the answer is very simple, but I don't wonder people asking its explanation. Because, even Nicodemus, a teacher of law asked for explanation for these type of question.
We can first look at that verse. It is in Matthew 18:3 and it says, "and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven."
First we can just look on the situation which made Jesus said those things. The situation is a small quarrel happening between the disciples saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
Then Jesus answered these the verse you mentioned. But on noticing that verse we can see that, while disciples asking about the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, Jesus is answering about a way to get into the kingdom of heaven. By this we can clearly understand the difference in views of Jesus and human.
Getting into heaven is not so easy as many people think. That is the reason Jesus is giving such a reply to their question, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Now we can learn the reply of Jesus and practice it in our life to get into heaven. Jesus is telling that, 'you change and become like little children'. By these two things are clear, One he is not speaking to little children and two he is speaking to something else than little children. From these we know he is speaking to the adults standing there. But How can an adult turn into little children?
I will explain it very simply so that everyone may clearly understand what He really means. No human being is born as an adult. He became an adult by passing through many stages of life. I will explain the different stages of growth with the help of a small diagram.
Baby--->Child----->Adolescents-------->Youth------------>Adult
And Jesus is saying to turn from what you are to a child. And so an adult need to change like this.
Adult------------>Youth-------->Adolescents----->Child<---Baby
We all know that no person can return to a child once if they passed through that stage, in the case of our body. But Jesus is not telling us to be a child with our body. But he is telling us to change to a child in our nature and characters. We all know that the nature and characters of child are their good behavior, happiness, no worries, no tension, no sins, satisfaction, joy, peace, purity, no limitations, all believing, all trusting and so on.
We can see we lose all those good characters when we grown up. Now all we have is bad behavior, sadness, worries, tension, sins, dissatisfaction, violence, impurity, limitations, unbelieving, not trusting and so on. Jesus is telling us to change from all these types of characters, and to become people with the characters of a child, to enter in the kingdom of God.
The first thing which came to our mind after hearing this may be, who then can enter into the kingdom of heaven. I believe Jesus said the next sentence to confirm these, which says, 'ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.' If Jesus says, by no means, of course there will not be any other means to enter into the kingdom of God.
But we don't need to be worry about it. Because whatever we are, to turn like little children is so easy with the help of Holy Spirit and by the grace of Jesus Christ. But to make a decision is a part we have to choose. Hope all of you will decide to turn yourself to little children. May God help you for that and may God bless you with this answer.
You'll have to be as a little child to enter the kingdom of heaven?
What does that mean?
Answer:
This is a good question and I like to give the best answer for your question by explaining it. I feel the answer is very simple, but I don't wonder people asking its explanation. Because, even Nicodemus, a teacher of law asked for explanation for these type of question.
We can first look at that verse. It is in Matthew 18:3 and it says, "and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven."
First we can just look on the situation which made Jesus said those things. The situation is a small quarrel happening between the disciples saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
Then Jesus answered these the verse you mentioned. But on noticing that verse we can see that, while disciples asking about the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, Jesus is answering about a way to get into the kingdom of heaven. By this we can clearly understand the difference in views of Jesus and human.
Getting into heaven is not so easy as many people think. That is the reason Jesus is giving such a reply to their question, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Now we can learn the reply of Jesus and practice it in our life to get into heaven. Jesus is telling that, 'you change and become like little children'. By these two things are clear, One he is not speaking to little children and two he is speaking to something else than little children. From these we know he is speaking to the adults standing there. But How can an adult turn into little children?
I will explain it very simply so that everyone may clearly understand what He really means. No human being is born as an adult. He became an adult by passing through many stages of life. I will explain the different stages of growth with the help of a small diagram.
Baby--->Child----->Adolescents-------->Youth------------>Adult
And Jesus is saying to turn from what you are to a child. And so an adult need to change like this.
Adult------------>Youth-------->Adolescents----->Child<---Baby
We all know that no person can return to a child once if they passed through that stage, in the case of our body. But Jesus is not telling us to be a child with our body. But he is telling us to change to a child in our nature and characters. We all know that the nature and characters of child are their good behavior, happiness, no worries, no tension, no sins, satisfaction, joy, peace, purity, no limitations, all believing, all trusting and so on.
We can see we lose all those good characters when we grown up. Now all we have is bad behavior, sadness, worries, tension, sins, dissatisfaction, violence, impurity, limitations, unbelieving, not trusting and so on. Jesus is telling us to change from all these types of characters, and to become people with the characters of a child, to enter in the kingdom of God.
The first thing which came to our mind after hearing this may be, who then can enter into the kingdom of heaven. I believe Jesus said the next sentence to confirm these, which says, 'ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.' If Jesus says, by no means, of course there will not be any other means to enter into the kingdom of God.
But we don't need to be worry about it. Because whatever we are, to turn like little children is so easy with the help of Holy Spirit and by the grace of Jesus Christ. But to make a decision is a part we have to choose. Hope all of you will decide to turn yourself to little children. May God help you for that and may God bless you with this answer.
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