All Lives Matter

To fully interpret and understand Jesus' words, one must understand the culture in which he lived. Children were treated differently than they are today. That does not mean that parents did not love their children as much as parents do today. Parents loved their children because they were blessings from the LORD. Creating a family was essential to every married couple. It must be noted that there were aspects of the culture where children were expected to become invisible. Perhaps it was because politics or some other subject was being discussed. Children tend to repeat what they hear even if they are told that it is a secret. If several adults met at home to discuss some aspect of Herod's rule and if discovered that they disagreed, they could be put to death or imprisoned. Therefore, it had to be kept quiet.

I remember saying to one of my children when they were very young that they needed to keep a purchase I made a secret. The child assured me that they would be quiet. Unfortunately, I was a new parent and soon discovered that the child ratted me out. So, I asked the child why she ratted me out to mommy? After a couple of minutes of thinking, the response from the child was, "I don't know." I learned quickly that kids do not keep secrets. In Judea or the Galilee in Jesus' day, a child saying something about their parents' feelings about the local or Roman government could easily lead to death. The culture around children may have developed from the fear of the government. Jesus tells us to include children and says that adults should not say anything around children that they do not want them to repeat.

Imagine a world where everyone would work out their problems with each other instead of gossiping. The problem with a child is overhearing and repeating something their parents said about a neighbor or relative would be gone. I took a college course in American History and learned that many wars had been fought because of gossip. World War I was started by assassination, but the tensions that led up to the war were gossip inside Europe and Asia's royal houses. So many people died because the royals of that time could keep their mouths shut. They should have sat down together and settled their disputes. Instead, millions of people died in a senseless war.

As far as the culture of Jesus day, it is essential to understand that the attitude of adults toward children was different from today. Too many times I have heard church people say, "how could they treat their children that way?" These people are ready to condemn the people of that day. That is wrong thinking. Culture evolves, and the attitude toward children changed. You cannot condemn the parents of Jesus's day for following their culture.

Here is an example. I grew up in the 1960s and the first half of the 1970s. My parents were well-known for capital punishment (they hit my siblings and me with hands and leather belts) for minor infractions. My father openly cursed every other word. I remember having my mother force soap into my teeth and mouth because I followed his lead. Today that is considered cruel, and they would be sent to jail, and I would be in a foster home. The way my parents treated their children is definitely wrong. But the culture of the 1960s and before that was to hit children to discipline them. I learned never to do that, and I never raised a hand at any of my children. Using the culture of today to condemn parents before the 1980s is wrong.

Another thought to leave you with about this passage is this. Are there persons or groups of people you treat in the same manner as children were dealt with in Jesus' day? All people, no matter what race or nationality they are, are equal. Jesus said that children were equal to adults. Let us expand that understanding today to be all people are of value! All lives matter to Jesus. Thus we must learn to treat each other as Jesus treated people. He did not care if the person was a child or an adult. He did not care if the person was from Samaria or Judea. Jesus treated all people as children of the LORD and thus equal.

By the way, for church attendees, are you treating your pastor in the same way as you want Jesus to treat you. My experience is that some church members treated me like family, being the pastor, but too many did not. In the church, all members are equal!

Ask yourself if you are treating people the same way Jesus wants you to treat them?