Humility: A Meditation on Matthew 18

At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, 

Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?

And Jesus called a little child unto him, 

and set him in the midst of them, And said, 

Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, 

and become as little children, 

ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, 

the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, 

it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, 

and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

Matthew 18 begins with a very human question which Jesus’ disciples ask him:  Who is greatest…?  Perhaps one can assume a little tacked on piety by amending the question with in the kingdom of heaven, but ultimately the heart of man is revealed in the premise about who specifically is greatest.  Lest we think the disciples any less human than the rest of us, St. Matthew faithfully records this embarrassing episode between them and Jesus, so that we might hear Jesus teach us what He taught them.  As Jesus so often did, He went to the heart of those who asked the question, rather than directly to the question itself.

In using a child for His response, Jesus took a person who was generally without any rights or dignity in the surrounding culture.  Certainly the Jewish Law provided for recognizing the humanity of children based on their divine Creator’s image given to them, and the Law of love pertained to them as well as anyone else, forbidding that they be murdered or abused.  But adults in every age have a way of using their physical and social power against those weaker than themselves, and so children have often been abused, murdered, ignored, or manipulated for adult interests.  In our own day we see much the same— child abuse of every kind and sort, sexual slavery and kidnapping, degeneration of public services for children (such as decaying and violent schools, social policy engineers using them as experimental subjects in gender and sexuality wars, etc.,) and when children are unwanted by their sexually libertine and self-absorbed parents, they are abandoned, aborted, and murdered.  The sad reality is that children are easier to abuse and manipulate because they have less physical power than adults, generally have little legal standing in society, are less educated, are more naive and less corrupted by the perversions of society at large, and they depend upon adults to protect, nourish, and guide them into their own adulthood.  This is partly why child abuse is often passed from one generation to the next, as the survivors of abuse learn their future behavior from their childhood abusers.  Cultures across the world have been guilty of abusing children, and ours is no exception.

But a child, as Jesus points out, is necessarily humble.  They know they need their fathers and mothers to care for them, that they are not strong enough to defend themselves against the evils of the world, and that they don’t know enough about how to survive and thrive in adulthood.  Of course, there are examples of children who were too prideful or rebellious to recognize these truths, and such children often find their ends in graveyards, prisons, or destitution.  There are also examples of children who through divine providence escaped the abuse and perversion of those who sought to harm or destroy them.  But a child who is raised by their loving parents in the fear and love of their Maker comes naturally to see their humble state, knowing that they live and grow by the grace given to them.  Such a child trusts both their parents and their God to care for them, to give them what they cannot provide for themselves, and to love others as they have been loved.  They see their parents and their Savior sacrifice themselves for the good of their children, and they learn that no greater love can a person have, than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  They learn duty and courage, faithfulness and perseverance, respect and dignity, justice and compassion, from those who have demonstrated these virtues in caring for them.  Such children are humble as a reflection of their order in creation, and by their humility, receive the grace to grow into honorable adults.

Juxtapose that concept with what the disciples were really asking.  At this point, they didn’t see themselves in need of grace, but rather in the pursuit of power.  To ask Who is greatest is to reveal the heart of pride and selfishness that would abuse and use other people to reach a pinnacle of lordship over others.  This heart could never even enter the kingdom of heaven, let alone be great within it, which by pride and lust for power desires to stand before their suffering, sacrificial, and compassionate God, only to seize for themselves greatness.  Like ignorant or rebellious toddlers who petulantly demand what their parents have denied them due to their own immaturity, the disciples reveal the heart of all fallen men who think they can seize greatness with their tiny fists from the Almighty and Everlasting God.  What’s more, Jesus reveals that not only is their heart corrupt and unworthy of entrance into heaven, but the wounds they and others impose on the humble— be they children, or adults who have become humble as children before their saving Lord—are deserving of the most brutal condemnation.  Jesus teaches them that it is better for a person to be maimed, disfigured, blinded, or even drowned in the sea, rather than to harm, offend, or lead into corruption one of these humble little ones.  The heart of pride which seeks to know who is greatest, is also the heart inclined to abuse others in the pursuit of greatness, and thus Jesus pierces their hearts with a devastating Word of Law which cuts them to their core:  not only have they no hope of seizing greatness in the Kingdom of God, but they are worthy of eternal torment and condemnation for the abuses they have already perpetrated upon those humble souls to whom God has given His gracious presence.

And yet, with such withering Words of Law, comes also the hope and consolation of the Gospel.  Jesus does not leave them condemned in their sins, but calls them to faith and repentance which is marked by humility, love, mercy, and compassion.  Rather than trying to take or work for the greatness they covet, He invites them to see themselves as they really are— blind, weak, and helpless in a dark and deadly world.  He calls them to understand their fate apart from God’s grace, and to return to Him that they might abide in His grace.  Knowing that His disciples and the whole world are enslaved by their fallen nature to sin, death, hell, and the power of the devil, Jesus calls them— and us —to trust in Him for all the things which people cannot earn or take by their own power:  forgiveness, life, and salvation in His Name, all for the sake of His sacrifice on Calvary in our place.  In such recognition comes the humility we need to receive the grace of God by faith in Jesus Christ, which then in turn grows us and matures us into people who reflect His great love, mercy, hope, compassion, joy, and victory over every foul and loathsome force at work in this fallen world.  There, in Jesus, the humble of heart and mind become the blessed children of His Heavenly Father, inspired by His Holy Spirit to live in Jesus forever.  There, composed of the humble who live by grace through faith in Christ alone, is the Kingdom of Heaven, where the just live by faith, the Communion of the Saints share hallowed eternal fellowship with their Savior and with each other, and where the greatness of Almighty God pours out as a life-giving river to nourish everyone who abides in Him.

To you, this Word of Law and Gospel comes today, to warn and convict you of your pride and malice, and to offer you something you could never earn, take, manipulate, or steal.  This love of God comes to you this day, freely offering grace and mercy, love and compassion, to all who would repent of their wickedness and become like humble children before their loving and gracious Father.  Hear Him as He calls to you this day, that you might repent, believe, and live.  Amen.