What does it mean to come to God as a child?

Question

Mt 18:1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Answer 1

As Hank H. often says, "It is best to let scripture interpret scripture when possible." So if we are to come to God like children of God, there are people in the Bible that we can gain an understanding of what that means. Hebrews 11 would be a place to start.

What would it take for you:
Like Noah, to build a huge boat miles away from
water?
Like Abraham, to sacrifice your only son?
Like Moses, to not be considered the son of Pharaoh’s
daughter and enjoy sin for a season?
Like Elijah, to stand before the King and your entire nation
and say that it isn’t going to rain unless you say it will?

The purpose of this exercise is to know what it would mean to you to humble yourself like a little child…as they did. When approaching the question from this angle, it is obvious that unlike large children or teenagers, we are to come to God knowing how completely dependant we are on Him. This fits in nicely to when Jesus said,

I am the bread of life.
I am living water.
I am the light of the world.
I am the truth, life, and the way.

So the bigger we are in our own eyes, the smaller God is. The smaller we are in our own eyes, the bigger God can be. As Blackburn said in “Experiencing God, “God is not looking for us to come up with a plan. He already has a plan and wants us to join Him in His plan.”

We have to understand like Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Elijah, God has to do the majority (if not all) of the work. So approaching God as a little child means: We can’t do it alone. But our Father can! And I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Answer 2

Revert to idiocy, when you knew nothing and someone told you everything you needed to believe and you accepted it as truth. If you know for fact that the earth is round and is not resting on anything, then why would you believe the vagabond sheepherders who tell you it is flat and resting on four pillars? They can't get you to give up all your stuff and become a vagabond like them unless you accept the notion that grass, flowers, and birds have clothing that was provided by god and god will do the same for you, because you are better than those things. Nevermind that your parents had been putting clothes on you since your birth, they were wrong. God would have done it if they had let him.

You have to be gullible to fall for such tricks. At carnivals, they call people like that "Mark," just before they talk them into playing a game that's impossible to win. They have great big prizes to encourage you to play, such as giant teddy bears, remote control cars, movies, etc. But they know your chances of winning next to impossible, so they can offer those great prizes and only charge you $5 for three tries. They know that for everytime they lose a $20 prize, they'll make $500 from the stupid people that tried and failed. Religion is the same same way. You have no way to win while you live, your can only claim your prize when you can't come back to complain.

Answer 3

To me, Jesus uses a little child as an example of innocence, openness, and trust. Little children (which to me means ages 3 to about 6) are also some of the most loving and forgiving people I've met. This doesn't mean that we are to come to God as mindless little sheep. A little child also has opinions, likes and dislikes, and can be VERY stubborn.

So in order to come to God "as a little child," we are asked to give up some control (or the illusion of control) and trust that God will care for us. We are asked to listen and learn, to ask questions (have you ever met a child who didn't have a million questions?) and to love. And yes, it can leave us to seem weak and vulnerable, at least by hierarchial standards.

Answer 4

The key word is "humble". My kids do not ask me for intellectual proof of the existence of God. They just believed the good news that they can know Him personally, they came to Him with arms outstretched and just believed. The proof will come as they grow in His Word and fellowship.

Now remember, the original question was, "Who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" The answer is not the intellectual who can cut you to shreds with hypothesis and doctrine. Rather it will be the one that has that excitement and joy that comes from a relationship with the Father.

Answer 5

Children believe without question. We are to come to God like that.

Many children believe in Santa Claus. If you ask one of them how does santa go all around the world in one night, or visit homes with no chimneys, they will answer those questions. They do not ponder over how something can be done when it seems illogical, they simply accept it.

it is about trust. Little children put a lot of trust in things they do not see. They do not depand proof of existance, they simply believe. We are to be like this.

Answer 6

Children aren't hardened like Adults, and so they accept things much more easily. they are innocent and trusting, there is no malice in them so they accept God and Jesus without any question. that's why he says "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.".....you gotta accept him without any "scientific, or absolute proof that he exists. that's the only way you will be able to enter Heaven. you gotta believe that God is who he says he is without any proof. that's Faith.

Answer 7

Come with a humble heart.
"God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble" James 4:6

Answer 8

As adults we can become so set in our ways- and we become more prideful as the years go by- when Jesus said we are to come to him as little children- that means in the truest sense of humility and excitement. Have you ever noticed how a child runs into the arms of their father, when they come home- that is what we need to do as we go to Jesus.

Answer 9

Children are anxious to learn. They are uninhibited. There is a sence of innocence in a young child. Children are totally dependant on their parents. Children understand that their entire life depends on their parents. Children are loving and kind. Do you get the point?

Answer 10

At a young young age, probably the first three years of a childs life, they are pure and have not been corrupted by society and are too young to comprehend the evil around. This is why they say when a child dies, he dies with a pure uncorrupted heart and is accepted into heaven.

You also hear the term losing your innocence as you grow up, this is what it refers too.