Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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Greatness in the kingdom: becoming like a child

Bible Reading: : Matthew 18:1-14

Key verse:  

“And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3

DEVOTION

We are all proud to be Marthomites. We share the history of our church, dating back to St Thomas the Apostle. Many times, we tend to be complacent with our weekly Sunday services and the Holy Communion, just like Pharisees with their rituals in the temple. Jesus Christ urges us to change the status quo and to be like children to enter the kingdom of heaven. 
The nature of children is to be curious and think critically without being judgmental, hypocritical or presumptive. Being like little children is hard work; it takes you out of your comfort zone, to take up the lowly position, to be innocent and honest with words and deeds. It reminds us of the fact that being a follower of Jesus Christ is not easy; it challenges us to be with the marginalized and downtrodden, to liberate the oppressed and to act against injustice. It requires immense courage and resilience to take up our daily cross and follow the footsteps of Jesus Christ. He showed us a life of truth, love and sacrifice. He told us to serve and not to be served. 
Being a serving community should be the signature quality of our church. We must constantly introspect if we are being Christ-centric in our day to day lives.  Jesus Christ reminds us through the parable of lost sheep that standing up for the right thing might come with a huge expense according to human standards, yet we ought to stand firm for it. Are we able to see the needs of people around us? How can we be influential in the lives of people within our small circle? Let us not be judged by what we believe, but by the action which exemplifies the value of what we believe. 

PRAYER

Our Lord and Father, help us to be true Christians and be the followers of your Son, Jesus Christ, in our daily lives. You told us to change ourselves and become like little children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Help us to understand the inner meaning of your words and live accordingly. We understand that you set us an example to follow in the life of your son, Jesus Christ, on earth. Help us to follow you truly, be honest and innocent in our ways and give us the eyes to see the needy around us.   Amen

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

“The opposite of poverty is justice.” (Bryan Stevenson)


Sijo Chemmannur
St Thomas Mar Thoma Church, Vancouver, BC

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