Humble children and the good shepherd

Christ showing a little child as the emblem of heaven, Benjamin West, 1790

Reflection on Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14 at morning worship with the Community of Brendan the Navigator 0n 11th August 2026

‘(Which of us) is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?’, the disciples ask Jesus.

He does not reply directly. Instead, he calls a child to him, and tells them, ‘Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven’.

The world in Jesus’s time was just as competitive as our own. People were just as ambitious. They jostled for position and recognition, just as we do. And Jesus’s disciples were no different. Each one of them wished to be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. They still did not understand the nature of the kingdom.

We often make the mistake of thinking that our children are guileless, completely innocent. But those of us who have had the privilege of raising children know this is not true. Children are often wilful, spiteful and jealous, they find it hard to share, and they tell lies. Even so we love them. And as they grow to adulthood, they learn from our own behaviour to become good, generous, and loving adults. We owe so much to our loving parents, don’t we?

So, what is it that makes this particular child a candidate for greatness in the kingdom of heaven, a model for the disciples to follow? Surely not because s(he) is a model of goodness. Rather, this child is humble, meaning I think, (s)he is shy. (S)he does not push herself forward, unlike the disciples pressing Jesus to tell them who is the greatest. In the kingdom of heaven, the first shall be last, and the last first.

As Christian disciples, we are on the wrong track if we push ourselves forward as better than our fellows. Those who do deceive themselves. We must be humble. We must acknowledge our failings. And we must never despise those who are not pushy, but shy and modest in professing their faith. Because Jesus tells us, ‘In heaven their angels continually see the face of (their) Father in heaven’. It was a common belief in Jesus’s time that each person had a guardian angel who spoke for them before God, and guided them in the right way. We may use different words today, but I believe the Holy Spirit works within each one of us through our God given conscience to do just that.

Jesus goes on to tell the parable of the lost sheep. Sheep are valuable, but in some ways they are childlike, skittish, liable to stray. If one goes missing, a good shepherd will go in search of it, to bring it back to the safety of the fold. And he will rejoice when he does so. In just the same way our Father in heaven will seek us out, his little ones – he will even hunt us down – when we stray from him.

I finish with this comforting thought, in Jesus’s own words. ‘It is not the will of our Father in heaven that (even) one of these little ones should be lost.’