As Director of Children’s Ministry I made a habit of sharing Matthew 18:1-14 as often as I could.
In our monthly trainings, in letters, in one-on-one conversations I would then ask,
- How are the angels reporting to the Father in regard to your care of the children?
OR
- On that day you stand before the Lord of lords and King of kings what will your response be if He asks, “Why did you let one of my little ones stumble?”
Below is taken from the KidTrek: Sunday Plus Director’s Training Manual. If you want a copy of Matthew 18:1-14 lesson to download click here. It includes Leader Notes and participant page.
You are training them to be leaders, whether within the children’s ministry or at home with their own children, thus urge each one to participate.
Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Suddenly, unexpectedly Jesus takes a child and says, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like this little child, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
This certainly isn’t what the disciples were expecting. They most probably had been discussing among themselves the coming earthly kingdom that Jesus would be setting up. How would each of them fit in?
If they wanted to be great, Jesus told them, they must humble themselves.
Note: when Jesus took the small child, there is no mention that the child resisted Him. The child allowed Jesus to place him in the midst of the men, showing a sense of trust toward Jesus.
Remember that children were not important in those days. A child had no rights according to the law.
Then Jesus gives a warning. It is a stern warning that if anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for him to drown in the depths of the sea. Jesus was placing importance on the child.
How much importance do Pastors, Elders, Deacons, Children’s Pastor/Directors, parents, the average church member place on the Children’s Ministry?
What are their motives for wanting a Children’s Ministry? Stupid question? Maybe not.
Most will respond that they want to see children brought into a committed relationship with Jesus Christ. If this is true, are they willing to provide what the children really need – even if it requires sacrifice? I challenge you to think through Jesus’ warning, if we cause one to stumble. Does this in any way change your view of Children’s Ministry?
A story you may want to add to your presentation. Before God ever put me, Wanda, into children’s ministry leadership He taught me that much we do with children is done for ourselves. We don’t make the effort to do for children what they REALLY NEED.
Adults do what is comfortable. You can read how the Triune God taught me that reality here A Children’s Ministry Vision. Or type in the URL https://www.kidtrek-sundayplus.org/vision-brick-2-what-children-need/
My friend’s honesty revealed how I also often did what was comfortable in the discipling of my children, not what they really needed. This ah ha moment not only influenced my parenting it became a key part of the A Children’s Ministry Vision I believe the Lord gave me.
Jesus was also telling these men that they had something to learn from this child.
What did they have to learn? A child is humble, trusting, and totally dependent on others. A small child doesn’t try to have all the answers. He responds eagerly when one beckons him.
In verse 10, Jesus reminded the disciples of the value He places on children as He told them of the angels who watch over the children. The Triune God is sovereign, obviously He knows every little detail of each human’s life, why would He need angels reporting to Him what is happening? (Luke 12:7) Perhaps Jesus is wanting the disciples to grasp just HOW important children are to God the Father.
Remember, staying away from children won’t keep you from being the cause of their stumbling. A child may stumble because you weren’t there to catch him.
This passage gives us two messages:
- Children are important to God the Father and Jesus the Son. We will be held accountable for how we care for them.
- Each of us, to enter the kingdom of heaven, must become as children. We must humble ourselves, recognize our total dependence on God and come to Him willingly. We are called to have a servant attitude – the opposite of what the world looks for in a leader.
Describe the following scene for the participants. Ask them to close their eyes. Consider using names of children in your children’s ministry. Change the story to fit their personalities.
It’s Sunday morning and the kids are beginning to arrive at church. You are suddenly given spiritual eyes and you notice that there is an angel with each child. You observe as the angels protect their individual charges, making sure they don’t stumble on the steps; standing between Billy and Curtis when they begin spitting hateful words back and forth at each other; and the enjoyment the angels have watching Mary and Daniella play hopscotch on the patio.
Then you hear the reports that go up to the Father that evening. Perhaps they go something like this. “Oh Father, this was a great day at church. Mrs. Smith was there today and she so loves the kids. She has taken the time to learn about children and she really understands how special and different they are from adults. The kids loved the time she spent with them. The kids knew how much she loved them by all the things she had prepared, and when they came in, she was ready for them. Then she sat and talked with them. You should have seen little Sara; she sat in awe as Mrs. Smith told her how much You love Sara. Oh Father, Sara is so fortunate to have Mrs. Smith as her Discipler. She is having so much fun. I bet she’ll get her parents to start coming to church on Sunday.”
Then another angel comes up to report to the Father. “Father, today wasn’t very good. Mr. Flash came in late and he hadn’t prepared any of his materials ahead of time. You could tell he didn’t understand the kids. He kept using these big words when he spoke to them. Michael became restless. He didn’t feel Mr. Flash really cared for him. He could hardly wait to get out of there. Father, Michael will keep coming to church on Sunday because his parents will make him, but Father he hates it there, thus he hates learning about You. Father, isn’t there anything you can do about Mr. Flash?”
Go immediately into prayer. Ask the Lord to give each participant a heart for the children and a desire to have the most excellent Children’s Ministry possible. Ask the Lord to give each adult in the church insight to how s/he may be a part of the team to keep children from stumbling.
Have a discussion using the questions from page 4. Encourage participants to share thoughts and/or ask questions regarding your presentation. Challenge them to imagine standing before Jesus as He asks, one-on-one, “What was your role at your church to keep children from stumbling?” What then if He asks, “Could you have done more?”
For a copy of the lesson to download click here. It includes Leader Notes and student page. If you use the Matthew 18:1-14 training curriculum please give a small gift via PayPal – even a dollar helps.
