What kind of king or queen would you be? What would you ask for? What would you do? How would you treat people? Would you be a kind or difficult leader? Here is what Jesus says about being a leader: "… whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant" (10:43). This sounds kind of upside down, doesn't it? A king or queen being a servant?
When we look at the life of Jesus we see that his purpose was to serve. He said, "For the Son of Man also came not to be served, but to serve…" (10:45). Jesus was sent by God and he could have had anything he wanted. He was a king, but he chose to serve and help others. Wear your crowns and remember that the best leaders are those who serve and care for others. Try it. Be happy kings and queens.
James and John come to Jesus and they tell him they want to be his special helpers. Jesus tells them that he doesn’t need helpers for himself – and that he was here to be a helper to others. And he tells them to do the same.
We know the rules to have a good life and do the right thing, but it is not easy to follow those rules. We are not perfect. The answer to the question of what we must do to have eternal life is this: Trust in God. He will love us and guide us each day of our lives.
Jesus said, "It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God" (10:25). When you see that a camel is much taller than a man and you look at this needle, you can easily understand how it is impossible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Then is it impossible for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God? No, and here is why. Jesus also said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God, for all things are possible with God" (10:27).
I brought something to show you today – it’s a needle, for sewing. I’ll walk it around so you can take a look. One end is very sharp and the other you’ll notice (if you look very closely) has a tiny hole in it. We call this hole the “eye” of the needle. It’s where you put the thread. The eye of a needle is awfully small – and it has to be - because the whole needle needs to be small enough to pull right through the cloth that you are sewing.
Jesus told all who were gathered there that the kingdom of God belongs to children. He teaches us that children know how to listen to God's message of love and how to receive it. Adults can learn this from you. The story ends by telling us that when the children came to Jesus "he took them in his arms, and blessed them…" (10:16).
Jesus says the kingdom of God belongs to kids and to those adults who have the spirit and faith of a child. The way for an adult to become a part of God's kingdom is to be like a kid. God favors you and uses you as an example of what is good. Wow, you are special!
Jesus talks about children in today’s Gospel story. There are some people who are bringing their young children to be blessed by Jesus and the disciples don’t understand why and try to send them away. But Jesus explains to them that the very best time to learn about the kingdom of God is as a child. It’s why we pause and take this time to make sure that there’s a special time during our service that’s just for you.
Jesus says, "Have salt (love) in yourselves," and he also says, "Be at peace with one another." We accept God's love for ourselves and learn how to share that love with others. We may have disagreements with our friends, family members, classmates, members of our church, but Jesus reminds us that we should get along and find ways to "be at peace with one another."