Matthew 18:2-5 And Jesus called a little child to him, and set him in the middle of them,… But, moreover, there is testimony in Christianity, not only for the love of God to the child, but to the spiritual worth of the child. The child illustrates the value of the soul as Christ brings it before us here. Now, observe, there is no materialistic theory that would be consistent with the way in which Christ treats the child, because, on the materialistic theory, everything grows upward, grows wider and better. But the doctrine of the text is not the doctrine of development; we must go back to childhood again; we don't develop humility. We may develop physical strength; we may develop intellectual splendour; we may develop imagination or reason, but we do not develop humility. In that the child has the advantage of us. If it were merely material, why should not the child have less humility than the man? No; we come back to the child's condition, in some respects; and that illustrates the child's share of our common spiritual nature, And here is the reason why we find the element of greatness set forth as it is by Jesus Christ. Greatness is in spiritual power; it is not an outward attainment that the man can attain and the child can not. It is not any outside clothing; it is not in crowns; it is not in the world's fame; it is a spiritual quality, and the child has that spiritual quality which is the condition of all greatness. (E. H. Chapin, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,WEB: Jesus called a little child to himself, and set him in the midst of them, |
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