Spiritual Children
There is a quote which is often misused even by those who generally have a fairly accurate worldview and the best of intentions. Odds are you’ve seen it yourself. That quote is:
Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
Matthew 18:5-6
Specifically, the context of the punishment is misunderstood. Certainly, the punishment for wronging children ought to be severe. Due to their vulnerability, they ought to be protected with our greatest vigilance. However, the context of this verse is not about those who would harm a child. Rather it is about those who encourage the naive into sin. The context of the “little ones who believe in me” is what Jesus said immediately before (though many versions put a heading break here).
And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 18:2-4
It is a reference not only to those who are developmentally children but regarding all of those who, with childlike humility, accept Christ. Children naturally trust, which is necessary because all of us start out very dependent. As we grow, we learn to provide things like food for ourselves as well as how to recognize people attempting to trick us. However, the relationship between man and God never changes. We are always dependent upon him, and to imagine otherwise is the height of hubris.
Protective God
Just as we ought to protect children due to their vulnerability, we are encouraged to be protective of the spiritually newborn as well. This text promises that those who receive a person who simply believes (who may not have all of their theology ducks in a row but trusts that God has the details under control even if they don’t know them) are also receiving Christ himself.
Those for whom it would be better to drown in the depths of the sea are those who take advantage of that simple faith to tempt a person away from Christ back into service to sin. It is specifically because these people are not as knowledgeable and therefore take for granted what others claim about God that they are so vulnerable.
Woe to the Tempter!
As Jesus continues, this message becomes extremely clear.
“Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes!
Matthew 18:7
God’s plan includes all of us experiencing trials. We are even called to rejoice in them, because of the outcome being maturity. They are necessary.
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:2-4
However, God takes very seriously when someone undertakes intentionally to set those trials before his people in order that they might stumble. These are those who would be better off with a millstone around their necks and some deep sea diving.
Sometimes they make come in ways that are clearly different from Christ (false religions and ideologies) but often they will come to a new Christian in the form of things which seem right but are deliberate twisting.
The early church experienced many such temptations.
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife. And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you.
1 Corinthians 5:1-2
We don’t have a record of exactly how this started but this entire congregation became convinced that they could shamelessly endorse sexual sin. I suspect much of the deliberate temptation in our time follows much the same pattern. We are tempted to abuse the grace of Christ by arrogantly treating sin as no problem when it ought to be leading us to repentance instead (Romans 2:4).
While there are examples of explicit temptation to abandon Christ in the form of false religions, etc… many times the tempters will come proclaiming a “Christ” who bears some resemblance to the true Christ but also encouragement that we can keep the sins from which Christ came to set you free!
If you are spiritually mature enough to recognize the tempter, be eager to receive those who are not into your protection. If you are not, continue to pray for wisdom, because God will give generously. If you are one who attempts to downplay sin among the faithful, this is a call for you to repent. It is a very serious error to tempt the children of God into disobedience, but Christ can save even those who by all rights ought to be at the bottom of a lake by now! After all, there’s not a single person in the Kingdom of God who isn’t there only by the grace of our Lord.
