Matthew18::Kids, Lambs, and Servants

Most of my posts on Matthew have been about Jesus' authority and his willingness to be confrontational.  It's an important theme for Matthew, relative to the other gospel writers, and it's also part of Jesus' personality that is lost in the common notions of who he is.  But Matthew 18 gives us another facet of Jesus, in private moments with the disciples.  His themes are humility, grace, mercy and forgiveness, wrapped in stories of children, lambs and servants.

This is not the only reference the gospel writers make to Jesus and children.  He apparently liked having them around, and the disciples took note of it.  The God-Man, the King of Kings, the One who has an authority unlike any other teacher, who never considers himself above anyone.  Kids were drawn to him, without fear.

To which character do you relate: the child Jesus welcomes, the lost sheep rescued by the Shepherd, or the servant whose massive debts are forgiven by the Master?  In any case, the news is all good--God embraces all three.  And His response to us serves as the template for our relationships with each other.