“Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 18:3 NIV
Have you ever been afraid of asking a stupid question? Worse have you failed to ask a question for fear of appearing dull only to find yourself totally lost, kicking yourself for not having just asked the question you needed to gain clarity? Mark Twain’s quote, “I would rather keep my mouth closed and appear dull than open my mouth and remove all doubt.” may not be the best advice to follow in these circumstances.
My mother is in a small group. One of the ladies in her small group has a sweet little granddaughter- about 7 years old who we will call…Arri. At the end of one of these small groups, the leader led a closing prayer after which everyone was invited to add their prayer. The group had just concluded an in-depth discussion on a section of Revelation. At the end of the prayer time the daughter decided to pipe up, “And dear Lord please help me to understand all this!” They all laughed and my mother told me how cute it was but it made me think; cute? Or was Arri just acting as Jesus tells us to act?
Young children are known for their many questions; they continually ask why, why, why- sometimes to the mental distress of their parents!! But these questions are also so full of innocence- they don’t posture or act like they know the nuance of everything in the world around them, instead they ask questions, not being afraid of what anyone else might think of their questions. They want to gain clarity in their little world.
Arri didn’t feel the need to act like she understood everything that was being said; instead, she was willing to admit that she really didn’t get much of any of it- but she wanted to understand more!
Perhaps this is why in Matthew 18 Jesus called a child to him and placed the child among them and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of his child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (NIV version)
It is easy, especially for those of us who have grown up in the church to not want to admit when we don’t understand something. There are familiar passages which we feel that we should understand but when we think about it, we realize we have lots of questions; but to ask them questions would appear elementary. However, we will never come to the end of discovering new things about God. There will always be more to learn, but if we never stop to ask questions, and truly dig deep into God’s word, then we will inhibit our growth, and thereby not fully open ourselves up to invite God to do the work He so wants to do in our lives.
Proverbs 12:15 Tells us, “The way of fools seems straight to them, but the wise listen to advice.” (NIV) If we are never vulnerable to seek advice how can we listen to wise counsel?
The next time you are in a small group or bible study, (or anywhere else for that matter) remember these verses, and go ahead and ask the stupid question! Allow yourself to like the little children, even if it makes you uncomfortable, and see what God does in your life as a result!
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