He's the King of the kingdom upside-down
Right before our passage we find Jesus and the disciples traveling from Capernaum to Judea. As usual, they are being followed by crowds of people. Jesus is taking the time to teach them and answer their questions. As well, we find out that the disciples have been caught arguing about which one of them was the greatest (Mark 9:34). Jesus, gathering a little child in his arms, tells them that the last shall be first and the first shall be last. Also that, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me” (9:37).
Fast forward just a little further to the passage we are to focus on, and it seems like the disciples have already forgotten these words. Although it would have been a long, dusty walk to meet with them, the disciples are rebuking parents and their children for wanting to approach Jesus and receive a blessing. Jesus is angered by this and once again reminds them that the children are of importance. In addition to making it clear that by welcoming the children, they welcome him, Jesus indicates that the children have something important to teach the disciples and to others. They can show a proper right attitude with which to enter the Kingdom of God. They can demonstrate humility. They can demonstrate a simplicity of faith that is often lost in adulthood. Jesus goes on to further address the issue of humility and pride within the next section of text.
These passages makes me think of a kids worship song called “Upside down.” The lyrics are “He’s the King of the Kingdom upside down, if you want to go up, you have to go down. If you want to be the greatest, you need to learn to be the least. For He’s the King of the Kingdom upside down.” In the Kingdom of God, titles and wealth are meaningless because they belong to the world. A person must be willing to submit themselves fully to Christ and reframe their thinking of “power” and “significance.” That means learning to revalue things and see them how God sees them.
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