Corona Chronicles - Crown of Thorns

Here we are again on corona chronicles. It's Ben and me yet again for our for another 3 sessions. The other the other 2 are just too lazy to be able to do anything, I think. We're in Mark 10, and we've got this wonderful, wonderful little bit. This encounter with Jesus and children and the disciples and and what he's saying here.

So it's verse 13. People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. But the disciples rebuked them When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, let the little children come to me and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly, I tell you.

Anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. Well, I mean, there's blessings and anger and indignation and tellings off and all kinds of things going on here. Right? They're being told off again.

It wasn't long ago that they came to Jesus and said, we saw a guy preaching in your name, but we told him to stop. But now, They're quite they're quite interesting disciples. They often act, don't they? Thinking they're acting rightly. Yeah.

But they've got worldly sort of thinking of That's what that's why we learn from them, though, isn't it? Because they're us, basically. Yeah. Because I don't think we're above them. I know.

And so so this is how you learn from the bible, isn't you don't you don't place yourself above them. You say, well, actually I probably would have done that. Yeah. So the thinking of the day is very different. In how we think of children.

So children tend to be, you know, our idols, the big thing, they're the most important thing. We sort of talk about them like that. Even though we may not actually behave towards children like that. No. That's how we think.

Yeah. Here, children are really not that significant. Right. They're not that important. And to have someone like a rabbi, a teacher, you know, teacher of God.

He would teach the adults, but he didn't want the little children around. Okay. And so that's what's going on here. People, I guess parents, are bringing their children because there's something about Jesus. That is attractive to the insignificantly outcast.

We we already had in Jesus talking about in chapter 10 about the way men were treating women and because they were insignificant. I could divorce them and -- Yeah. -- marry someone else. And he's furious about that. Yeah.

And now you got the same sort of thing with children. Yeah. So the disciples are looking at this and going, hang on a minute. This is not how other rabbis behave. Yeah.

Other rabbis, as you said, don't accept little children because they're insignificant. So Jesus wouldn't want the children to come to him. So what are you doing bringing children to to Jesus. Go away. Go away.

He doesn't want you, he doesn't want you. Yeah. So they think they're doing the right thing. Yeah. Actually, this happened I was in India, and I was in little villages in India, and the the children came out because they'd not actually seen a white man.

Right. So they all came out running around -- Yeah. -- and the bloke came out and told the A religious man with a stick and beat them away. I mean, I I had to say, can you stop this? Really?

I am this is not you you do not represent me. Right. Right? So it sort of still happens in different cultures. And I guess that's what happened here.

I mean, maybe that's I mean, thinking about how Christianity has influenced the way we think in Well, everything really in in the west. Maybe is Jesus that has got us to the point today where we put we dress little children up in those t shirts and things that say Langel and Yeah. Yeah. But they're not though, are they? No.

No. No. No. We've gone sort of too far as it were. Yeah.

But that Yeah. You're right. We've been influenced. Even our secularism has been influenced by Christianity. Yes.

So here they here they come. Then it says that Jesus was indignant and it's a very strong word in the original. He really is very angry about this. Right. Because I think 1, don't treat children like that.

Yeah. 2, you're not standing. Why are you stopping people coming to me? Yeah. That's the interesting thing.

Yeah. And then he says, let the little children come to me and do not hinder them. For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Now this is where we've got to get our cultural differences. What he's saying is is not and then oh, sorry.

He goes on. It says, truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child and never enter This isn't good work stuff. Right. This isn't him saying, you've got to become a lovely, trusting, innocent, a child before you can come to God. Because now suddenly you have to do something.

Yeah. You've got to become a certain type of person. Yeah. You've got to try to be that before you can get in. I think it's I think he's saying, you've got to realize that you have no stand you're insignificant you don't deserve to come.

Right. Yeah. So the disciples are right and wrong. Okay. Yeah.

Because Because yeah, you you can't come to God unless you're and and unless you realize that you are a child that actually you don't deserve to come. Right. But I'm all about that. Once you Whoa. Once you know that -- Yes.

-- you can become a member of the kingdom of God. Right. Which is actually more in line with loads of other stuff, you know, the king of God belongs to you know, the humble and the poor and spirit and those who who don't think might, you know, who are humble and think of themselves as lowly. Blessed are the poor in spirit. Yeah.

Blessed are the hungry and thirsty. Yeah. Those that haven't got. Yes. Got to come for, hasn't it?

Yeah. Yeah. Which is good actually because often, if you if you went down the line of you have to be like a little child to enter the kingdom of God. It sort of means that you think less in some ways. Yeah.

Don't ask questions, you know, just trust. That's what a little child does. Yeah. Except they don't because they ask why thousands of times. That's not what a judge It's yeah.

A child doesn't just accept blindly accept things, do they? And why? Why? So once you know that you don't deserve to come -- Yeah. -- God receives you.

Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. It's it's the other it's you don't come because you deserve anything. That's right.

Yeah. And so this is what people have got to understand. The the message of the the Bible is for undeserving people like you and Once you get that, the kingdom of God is open to you. Yeah. Because you come to the 1 who can bless you -- Yeah.

-- and place his hands on you. Yep. Yeah. And that's an interesting thing, isn't it? What is Jesus doing?

What is he What what is he doing when he blesses them? Is he just saying would you have a blessed life and be rich and be fruitful and be healthy or is there something more going on there? I guess it's got to do with entering the kingdom of God. Yeah. So he's the 1 that blesses you -- Yep.

-- to bring you into the kingdom of God. And so so his own saying in the sermon on the mount, not in Mark, is blessed to the poor in spirit for they will receive the kingdom of God. Mhmm. And so he the very blessing is that the undeserved Yeah. Because of who Jesus is -- Yeah.

-- and what he does on the cross, which we're not there quite yet. But he brings us in. Mhmm. Well, I I guess we better finish there. Yeah.