Returning to Child Likeness

Several years ago I read an interesting fact. It was stated that when churches would hold a "Favorite Hymn Sunday" that the most requested song is "Jesus Loves Me." The amazing part was that the song was not requested by the children but by the senior adults. That's right! The elder members of the congregation chose to sing one of the first songs they ever learned in church. I believe there is something to learn here.

When Jesus walked upon the Earth, He praised His Father for revealing things to the children. It wasn't the intellectuals, the scholars, or the theologians that grasped the simplicity of what God was doing in their time. It was the unlearned. It was the uneducated. It was the ones who seemed to be so far away from God who received the message of God's grace. Maybe it's time we do the same.

I have a friend in ministry who is on staff at a particular church. When the opportunity arises for him to share with the congregation, He always shares messages about the unconditional love of God & our acceptance in Christ. Without fail, the older ones in that church come to him & thank him for preaching the truth. Some have even said things like, "This is something that I always knew was true in my heart but had never heard from the pulpit." Please pay careful attention to those words. They reveal something deep inside of you.

Think about it. If you grew up in church, then as a small child you heard the story of creation. You were brought to an understanding that God created the world, you, & everything in it. You were told that God loved you. You might have even made a paper crown that said "Child of the King." And then you were taught the words & tune to "Jesus Loves Me." Oh, how you would smile when you sang that song. You would throw your head back, stick out your chest, and sing with all your might the words "Jesus loves me this I know. For the Bible tells me so..." This song, as simple as it is, resonates within your spirit. You didn't realize it at that moment, but God was establishing something in you.

So what happened? How is it that so many people who are raised with this awareness lose the idea of God's love? It's quite simple actually. We lose it in complexity. We lose it in theology. We lose it within the ideas of works based faith. We lose it within our doctrines & our religion. It's still there. Still burning deep within you. However, we get swept away with so many other things. I find it interesting that what we teach kids about a loving God and His acceptance of them is considered right/proper, but when you try to teach these things to adults it's considered wrong (at best) or heretical (at worst). No one seems to have an answer as to why.

Where am I going with this? It's simple really. The more seasoned saints within our midst understand what I'm getting ready to point out. The older you get, the more eager you are to think upon the things that bring comfort. You are less confident about your ability to sustain the love that God has for you. You are old enough to know better. You have tried to jump through all the hoops & in the end there is one thing you are relying upon: the love that God has for you. That's why the first song you learned in church stirs your heart. There are no expectations. No religious hoops to jump through. No laws, rules, or traditions. All you know is that Jesus loves you. Why? Because the Bible tells you so. And that assurance is enough.

What if you were never taught fear?
It's the fear within so many that has questioned the simplicity of the Gospel.
The result has been a presentation that has mingled Grace with Works, Love with Fear, & Acceptance with Separation.
What has been lost is the simplicity of why Jesus came: to Redeem, to Rescue, & to Recover a lost humanity.
The Gospel has been reduced to the idea that you can accept Jesus. It has missed out on the incredibly GOOD NEWS that He has accepted us. Jesus said it Himself, "God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

During this Holiday season, I want you to reflect upon the goodness of God. I want you to see the coming of the Messiah through the lens of God's love. This is a time of "GOOD TIDINGS of GREAT JOY which shall be to ALL PEOPLE..." What God has accomplished in Christ is so much greater than what many of us have believed. He, who is our life, came to give us life abundantly. Don't miss it. The Messiah has done what He came to do. Our belief in Him doesn't make it true, it simply allows us to experience all that He has done. That may sound too simple, but my encouragement to you is to return to child likeness. Return to what you already knew was true in your heart. YOU. ARE. LOVED.