Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 329

November 25;       Matthew 19:15;       19/260;       ‘Jesus Blessed the Children’

Matthew 19:15 And he put his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.

The ministry of the Lord Jesus exposed religion then and now.  Religious leaders had no time for children and considered them a nuisance.  Along comes Jesus and even His disciples tried to keep the children from Him.  This annoyed the Lord.  He is love, not religious tradition and His treatment of the children spoke volumes to others that there is a difference between religion and a relationship with Jesus.  Everyone is important to the Lord.  Religion is nothing more than man made rules.  So often they reflect the views of those who write these religious regulations, often to manipulate others to the author’s advantage.  Again and again, I cannot emphasize enough that our safety, protection and godly information comes from the Bible.  Religion is a very cleaver tool of the devil who knows the spirit of people, deep inside longs for God.  If the devil can get sincere people to believe religion, rather than the Word of God, this dangerous deception can cause a person to believe they have a relationship with the Lord when they do not.  Everyone is important to the Lord Jesus Christ.  His substitutionary death on the cross was for everyone.  His love for everyone was easily seen in His mannerly treatment of women, His love and fondness for the children and His compassion for all of the hurting regardless of their wealth or status. We have a love relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, by the Word of God, and sincerely desire to be like Him.  His life was and is a pattern for us to copy.  If you love others as you are loved, your conduct will ‘declare’ you are a Christian.  God’s Word reveals His love for the children.