Grace and/or Truth
...as it relates to that child who just won’t be quiet...
and just won’t sit still...and just won’t pay attention...
and just won’t..........
I think we’d all pretty much agree that kids - no matter what country, no matter what era - are pretty much the same. Sure, there are some differences, but bottom line, kids are kids. They love to laugh. They love to wrestle. They love to be loud and crazy. They love to have fun. Lots of it! While I’ve never traveled in time, I think it’s a pretty safe bet to say that the same is true of kids who lived during Jesus’ time.
So... why did Jesus ever say, "Let the children come to Me" ?? Didn’t He know that they would act up, misbehave, wouldn’t sit still, and would definitely not pay attention through the whole Sermon on the Mount!?!?! How would Jesus have handled that child who wouldn’t be quiet, who wouldn’t sit still, who wouldn’t pay attention? A verse in John 1 sticks out to me:
"For the law was given by Moses,
but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ."
Grace AND Truth. Normally, I think of a situation where I demonstrate Grace OR Truth. Not both. Why? ...because exhibiting both takes work! Exhibiting both at the same time...well, that’s exhausting!! Isn’t it?
And yet, can you picture Jesus blowing up at a kid who was goofing off? At the same time, and on the flip side, can you picture Jesus allowing a kid to disrupt and distract all the other kids? See my point? Grace AND Truth. Normally, it’s not a combination that we think of. However, it is the ideal recipe for teaching and training our kids in the most effective way.
One more note on this subject. It’s interesting to me to see how God, in His incredible wisdom, pairs people together in the various children’s / youth ministries…and marriages. Some of us lean more toward the "grace side" of things, while others of us lean more on the "truth side." It’s not necessarily bad - or good - it’s just the way God has made us. The tension arises, though, when I view someone from the "other side" as "the enemy." OK, maybe enemy is too strong of a word, but we view them as not having a correct handle on how to best teach our kids. Let me challenge you with a course of action the next time that tension begins to rise: Thank the Lord for that other leader who seems to be leaning on the other side of the Grace and Truth issue. Why? ...because they are probably balancing you out. They are helping to ensure that the child in question is receiving BOTH Grace AND Truth.
Because of the example that Jesus set, we owe it to our kids to be teachers and leaders and parents and role models who are demonstrating both.
Grace...and Truth.
Because of, for for Jesus,
Pastor Daniel
