By Eric Taylor
Pastor, Cedar Hill Baptist Church, Cedar Hill
Focal Passage: Mark 10:13-22
In the passage this week, there are two main thoughts that teach what commitment to Christ looks like. First, when Jesus received the children in Mark 10:13-16, He was teaching His disciples that salvation and entrance into the Kingdom of God is a work of God alone in that we “receive” it by grace through faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).
You see, Jesus is not just telling us to have childlike faith. While that can be said, the spiritual truth runs deeper. For example, notice that apart from coming to Him, these children did nothing to merit Jesus’ treatment. In a sense, Jesus destroys the concept of legalistic, works-based salvation, which taught, and still does, that we must do something to earn the right to be children in the Kingdom of God. [Read more…]