Jesus and the little children

“People were bringing little children to Jesus to have Him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, He was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.’” Mark 10:13-14
Here is one of the few places in the Gospel accounts where we see Jesus indignant at someone – and in this case, it’s at His own disciples! He was irritated because of what they were doing, in turning people away from bringing their children to see Jesus. Most of the other instances are against the Pharisees, who were likewise preventing others from coming to see Him, or hindering people from entering into the kingdom of God (Matt. 23:13).
The disciples viewed children as being unimportant. That was the way society worked. But Jesus saw things differently: children are often more receptive to spiritual things than adults, because their hearts are still soft to the things of God – they haven’t lived long enough to harden their hearts against Him. These children would grow up into the future leaders and parents of the next generation. The same is true today. Spending time with children, teaching them about the things of God, is never a waste of time. Let’s always remember this, and try to never hinder anyone from coming to the Lord.