THE GOSPEL OF LUKE: - Vital Christianity

This practice of bringing children goes back to the practice of bringing children to theelders or scribes for a prayer of blessing upon them on the evening of the Day of Atonement.180JESUS IS REBUKED BY THE DISCIPLES (18:15)It is astounding to think that Jesus is rebuked by His disciples! But He is in this passageas well as in other passages:"People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have Him touch them. When thedisciples saw this, they rebuked them" (v. 15).Wasn’t Jesus’ time too valuable to interrupt with little children?Not to the parents whose children were often with them when listening to Jesus. Theseparents wanted their children to join them in experiencing the blessings of the Lord. Yet thedisciples not only did not approve of such a practice, but had the gall to stop the little childrenand tell their parents off and thus seeking to stop such a wasteful religious practice.THE VALUE OF CHILDREN IN JESUS’ DAY (18:16)Is it fair to blame the disciples for rebuking the parents since children were viewed asunimportant in Palestine during the time of Jesus. The previous incident in Luke that involvedchildren is a good example:"An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be thegreatest. Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him standbeside Him. Then He said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this little child in Myname welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me welcomes the one who sentMe. For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest" (9:46-48).The idea of children's innocence appears in Paul’s Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Co14:20). A more common theme is the immaturity and inferiority of the child (1 Co 3:1; 13:11;14:20; Gal 4:1, 3; Eph 4:14; Heb 5:13; 1 Pe 2:1-2) and the "foolishness" bound up in the heart ofa child (Pr 22:15; 29:15).While children were prized by parents, especially boys, in society they were generallyignored as unimportant.