The Gospel & A Poem
In last Sunday’s worship service, we focused our scripture lens on the 18th Chapter of Matthew, when Jesus urges us to be transformed into child-like beings, so that we can enter the Kingdom.
In a few short verses, Jesus teaches us how we can help him save the world today. And he’s very defiant in his choice of words. Notice the phrases, “unless you change,” and “you will never enter.” Doesn’t it strike you too that Jesus is doing the best he can to make his point to us! Here’s the text of this Jesus Teachin:
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.
In addition to the great stories of the Gospels, other art forms can effectively convey a gospel message in a unique and creative original piece of work. Notice below how a great poet conveys the same basic universal truth that Jesus teaches us in Matthew 18: That the world belongs to the children; so, let us do everything we can to be like them and protect them.
Shoulders
by
Naomi Shihab Nye
A man crosses the street in rain,
stepping gently, looking two times north and south,
because his son is asleep on his shoulder.
No car must splash him.
No car drive too near to his shadow.
This man carries the world’s most sensitive cargo
but he’s not marked.
Nowhere does his jacket say FRAGILE,
HANDLE WITH CARE.
His ear fills up with breathing.
He hears the hum of a boy’s dream
deep inside him.
We’re not going to be able
to live in this world
if we’re not willing to do what he’s doing
with one another.
The road will only be wide.
The rain will never stop falling.
Have a blessed Middle Sabbath … Pastor Bob <><
