Communion Meditation-Our Good Father

It amazes me that receiving small children to the Lord’s Table is not the norm in every Christian Church because it does seem that every Christian Church understands that the nature of our relationship with God is that He has condescended to minister to us wee little men. It is God’s great gift that such small men as you and me could ever come to be His friends. There is nothing about our relationship to God to commend us in a very high degree. It is all grace, from first to last.

If we can see this cleary, how can we not see that small children come to God on the same basis? It is not because of good in them but rather, because of the goodness of God. He is that kind of God. He is that kind of Father. Have we misunderstood the character of God so much to think that He really does not want the children to come to Him? And how could we have misunderstood Him so greatly when Jesus expressly said let the children come unto me?

But, alas, I am reminded of the fact that men are indeed sinners. Saying that we are not worthy at all to sit at God’s table, except by His grace and mercy, does not keep us from keeping others out who we deem not worthy. Where does this disease come from, if not from sin? We are glad to be received by grace but are not willing to have that same grace cover other unworthy sinners, even the weakest of them, our children.

Our children are the weakest of the weak. They are needy of the grace of God and a touch from Jesus. Jesus came to the earth expressly to heal the sick and to defend the defenseless. Who are we then to keep those from Him who most need Him? This really is an astonishing blindness.

I suppose it causes us to have to be too humble. If we admit that even children, who do not have a real clue about what is going on can come to the Lord’s Table, then maybe we have to admit that it is not necessary to have a clue what is going on and that perhaps even we do not have a clue as to what is going on. I would argue for that case. Of course, we do have some clue and we are trying to clue in to God more and more each week. But the reality is that our understanding of God’s goodness and favor upon us is so small as to occupy a null space in infinity.

Receiving children humbles us all and makes us completely reliant upon the grace and goodness of God. Thank God for His kindness to us and to the smallest and weakest among us.