Gospel: Matthew
18:1-5, 10
The
disciples approached Jesus and said, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of
heaven?” He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said, “Amen, I
say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the
Kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in
the Kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one child such as this in my name
receives me.
“See that
you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels
in heaven always
look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
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Reflection:
Why did
the disciples asked Jesus about who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
Were they expecting that Jesus would tell them that they would be one of the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven because they are close to Him? From all
indication this question of the disciples was asked to serve their own egos and
Jesus knew about this.
Therefore to straighten out things and to tell
the disciples that self-seeking individuals will not be the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven. Jesus told the disciples; “Amen, I say to you, unless
you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven. Whoever
humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven
(Matthew 18:3-4).
The
Kingdom of Heaven is reserved for the humble only for we cannot ascend heaven by our own effort. And we cannot ascend heaven without dependence on
the good Lord. Therefore children are not only perfect models of humility they
are also perfect examples for their reliance on their parents. Could children exist by themselves? No they could
not exist by themselves they need their parents to be with them to survive.
In like
manner the disciples did not rely on themselves they humbly
relied on God rather than in themselves. This was perhaps one of the salient point of
Jesus when He called the child to their midst (Matthew 18:2).
This also
applies to all of us, we cannot rely on our riches (If ever we have riches) no
matter how presently rich we are. We cannot rely on our power as well no matter
how presently powerful we are for all of these are creation of this world that
could evaporate from our hands anytime. - Marino J. Dasmarinas
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