"Sure I’ll fast…it must be really important if Mr. Armstrong wants us to." As I looked into his scrubbed-clean boyish face, I wished I could be more like him. He didn’t even ask me why we needed to fast! Our family had only been attending a few months when the whole church was asked to fast. I had asked my nine-year-old son if he wanted to fast, explaining the children did not have to, fully expecting him to opt out. Yet, his faith astounded me…he didn’t even need the reason, just knew it had to be important. I was so proud of him and still am today, thirty-eight years later.

Then Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew 18:3). Satan is out to destroy the child in us, and if he can’t destroy us physically, he’ll try to destroy our childlike nature. 

Some of the cherished childlike qualities God wants to preserve or restore in us are obedience, a zest for life, transparency, humility, teachableness, and the capacity to forgive.

Jesus has gone on before us, becoming the firstborn of many brethren. He is the ultimate example. "Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered" (Hebrews 5:8). Dr. Mark Bonnington, tutor in biblical studies, "argues that Jesus' obedience to his Father is the key to understanding the Gethsemane narrative. Thus the sufferings of Christ in his Passion and death are to be seen as the embodiment of his obedience, rather than in the way they are commonly read, as being about enduring pain or undergoing innocent suffering. From this we know that Jesus is not just being herded like a silent lamb from garden to Council, from Council to Pilate, from Pilate (to Herod in Luke) to scourging, to cross but is actively embracing the Father's will. (The Obedient Son: Jesus in Gethsemane)

Little children have a zest for life, an eagerness to live it to the fullest. God wants us to safeguard that precious zeal. Paul tells us, "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord" (Romans 12:11). Children seek new experiences; they have no scorn or condescension or pride... They are natural and warm and outgoing. They are excited about the smallest things, captivating our attention. Each day is a wonderful, new, expanding experience, unencumbered by the previous day's issues or troubles. A barely four-year-old girl walked on the stage of America’s Got Talent in front of a huge audience and the judges asked if she lived in New York. She said no, she lived in America. She was not conscience of herself at all. She sang, her voice sweet and pure like her tiny beaming face, winning the hearts of the judges and the audience, becoming the youngest contestant to make it to Vegas ever, then running across the stage and jumping into the arms of her proud papa saying "I love you."

Clearly, Jesus was a brilliant young man with infinite passion for life. His use of language was remarkable and poetic, filled with images and stories. He had an enduring zest for life and for people; his first miracle produced huge water pots of wine for a wedding feast. He had love and compassion for the ordinary citizen, the sinner, the women as well as the blind, lame, deaf. He allowed sufferers to touch him and they would be healed. Yet he challenged the religious and political authority of his day. Jesus loved his Father and the world so much…he gave all he had in his brief life on earth becoming our elder brother and high priest.

In modern culture, pride and confidence in oneself is emphasized as a key to survival and even success. Christ, on the other hand, admonishes his followers to abase themselves, recognizing their own nothingness. It is in this mode of humility that God is able to make his abode with a person and do great things through them. "Part of being a child is to be humble, to be real. You can tell when children are happy or when they are sad. If they are afraid, they act accordingly. Jesus, himself, is our greatest example of humility. The unthreatening childlikeness of Jesus intimidated no one. Both friend and foe approached him freely" (Gayle Erwin The Jesus Style p. 83). "Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:4) "Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people" (Philippians 2:14,15).

And if someone hurts a child’s feelings or they get into an argument with a friend, they don’t wait for days to patch things up.  It’s usually just a short time until their forgiving nature kicks in, apologies are exchanged, and the situation is forgotten. Forgiveness is so basic to God's heart that it certainly should be an expression of the heart of God's children, who themselves are in constant need of forgiveness. We know that Jesus forgave those responsible for crucifying him and he died an agonizing death so we could all be forgiven. (Luke 23:34) "But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven…" (Matthew 5:44-46).

During his ministry, Jesus used "little children" to convey the importance of simplicity, teachableness, and humble dependence on others. Little children cannot survive without help from others, they want to learn. If you tell a child a story, they will listen in rapt attention. Little children come into this world with blank pages. Their parents write on those pages what they will. "I praise you Father, Lord of heaven and earth because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children" (Matthew 11:25). Each day God’s children should leave their mind open so that their heavenly Father may write his will and word in their hearts.

Jesus was extraordinarily teachable as he says "…for I have not spoken on my own, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment about what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I speak, therefore, I speak just as the Father has told me" (John 12:49,50).

"O Lord thou art our Father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand" (Isaiah 64:8). We need to be kneaded by God. In his hands he will shape us into the character likeness of his son. This shaping process requires a lifetime of learning God’s word and being conformed to his son’s image and having our childlike nature re-established.