======================================================================== BE LIKE A LITTLE CHILD by Zac Poonen ======================================================================== Summary: This sermon emphasizes the importance of being like a little child in the Kingdom of Heaven, focusing on humility, trust, and simplicity. It highlights the need to have a childlike faith, free from self-defense, ambition, judgment, and anxiety, and to trust in God as a loving Father who cares for His children. The message encourages believers to approach God with a childlike heart, seeking His Kingdom first and trusting in His faithfulness. Topics: "Childlike Faith", "Trust in God" Scripture References: Matthew 18:1, John 14:18, Romans 8:15, Philippians 1:9, Isaiah 11:6, Matthew 11:25, 1 Corinthians 14:20, Psalm 139:23, Mark 9:35, Proverbs 3:5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------ This sermon emphasizes the importance of being like a little child in the Kingdom of Heaven, focusing on humility, trust, and simplicity. It highlights the need to have a childlike faith, free from self-defense, ambition, judgment, and anxiety, and to trust in God as a loving Father who cares for His children. The message encourages believers to approach God with a childlike heart, seeking His Kingdom first and trusting in His faithfulness. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ There's a question that people in the world always want to know, and the disciples also wanted to know that too. In Matthew Chapter 18, the question is, who is the greatest? Like in a school, children want to know who came first in the class, who won the race, which team won, which is the best team, whether it's soccer or basketball or football or anything, which is the best, who is the greatest. And everybody has a longing to be the greatest. Children go to school and they want to be on top. And the sad thing is, in Christendom, in the church, also you find around the world, people want to be known as great and the greatest. The greatest preacher, the greatest healer, the greatest Christian, or if it's not, most of us don't have any worldwide fame, but maybe in your local church, you want to be known as the great or the greatest. It's good to know Jesus' answer. Very, very important. Matthew Chapter 18. The disciples asked the same question. Okay, forget about the earth. Verse 1, who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And today, the kingdom of heaven, and when the disciples asked that question, the kingdom of heaven had not yet come. The message of John the Baptist is repent, for the kingdom of heaven is coming, is coming, is coming. Jesus said, repent, the kingdom of heaven is coming, but on the day of Pentecost, it came. Do you know that the kingdom of heaven came to earth on the day of Pentecost? Until then, it was a kingdom of earth. It's very important to understand this difference. What the Lord promised the Israelites was an earthly kingdom. Earthly, prosperity, physical healing, a land on earth, earthly enemies defeated, zero about heaven. You look through the entire Old Testament, there was no promise to the Israelites about anything in heaven. It was a kingdom of earth. But then the last prophet in Israel, John the Baptist came and said, Hey, prepare the way, because another kingdom is coming now. It's the kingdom of heaven. And when John the Baptist was locked up, we read in Matthew chapter four, that Jesus continued to preach, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is coming, teaching us that the way to be ready for the kingdom of heaven is by repentance. Those who really repent of their sin and hate their sin, want to turn around, will understand the kingdom of heaven. The rest will not understand it. So they asked, who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And they were absolutely surprised. And I'll tell you something. I wish all of today's Christians would understand the simple truth that Jesus said as to who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. We tend to forget it. Sometimes we don't even know it because we've not been taught it. How many sermons have you heard in your lifetime about the greatest person in the kingdom of heaven being a little child? I reckon there are not many sermons on that even on the internet. But that's what Jesus said. Don't you want to be great in the kingdom of heaven? The Bible says that the angel told Zachariah, your son John the Baptist will be great in the eyes of the Lord. In the sight of the Lord. I remember when I first read that. I said Lord I want to be great in the sight of the Lord, not in the sight of men. The opinion of men is trash, is fit for the trash can. To be great in the eyes of men is fit for the trash can. To come in first in anything on the earth is fit for the trash can. But to be great in the eyes of the Lord, that's a wonderful thing. So we need to know, if you are serious about your Christian life, you will want to know, not whether you are great in the church, but whether you are great in the sight of the Lord. And every one of us has the opportunity to be great in the sight of the Lord. And the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, Jesus said, he called a child, verse 2. And he said leave alone being great in the kingdom of heaven, that is another question. If you want to enter the kingdom of heaven, verse 3, you got to be converted and become like a little child. Now I think perhaps all of us sitting here are pretty certain that we are going to enter heaven, right? I don't think anybody here has a doubt. You are absolutely sure you are going to heaven. You don't have any doubt about it. You think others may go to hell but not you. Well examine yourself by this verse. Unless you are converted, converted from what? Converted from all these high thoughts that people in the world have about what greatness is. Converted from the completely wrong ideas of greatness that people in the world have. They think if you have accomplished something in the sports field, or in the scientific field, or in the academic field, or in the business area, you become a great person. Converted from all those wrong ideas, from cleverness and all that that make people great. Converted from all of that, and unless you become like little children who worldly people never consider great. Have you ever thought of any worldly person thinking of a child as great? No. You will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Forget about being great in the kingdom of heaven, you will not even enter it. I believe the words of Jesus, 100%. Jesus said heaven and earth will pass away, my words will not pass away. So when I read a word like that, I say Lord I want to enter the kingdom of heaven, I don't want to sit in a church and assume, oh of course I am going to the kingdom of heaven, because some ancient time in the past I said Lord Jesus come into my heart and I sit there, and I never become like a little child. I am deceiving myself in that case. And I want to tell you the truth, if you are sitting here like that, you are deceiving yourself. So I want to deliver you from that deception today. That's one of the things we do in this church anyway, we deliver people from deception by showing them the words of Jesus Christ. They are in your bible, I mean you have read them many times, but trouble with many Christians is they don't take it seriously. Listen to it again, unless you are converted and become like a child, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Forget about being great. Next is the answer to that question, first how to enter. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, Jesus took a little baby. When you say child, we are not talking about a 10 year old, or a 5 year old, or even a 2 year old. We are not even talking about a 1 year old, we are talking about a baby, maybe 1 week old, 2 weeks old, baby. Whoever humbles himself like this baby is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. So we need to understand, I meditated on that for a long time. Lord, what does it mean to be like a baby? Because not only to be great in the kingdom of heaven, let me say one thing before I go further. We know that Jesus is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, there is no doubt about it. God has given him a name which is above every other name. He sits at the father's right hand with all authority in heaven and earth. He is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. So when you put those two truths together, the greatest in heaven is like a child, and Jesus is the greatest, we know that when Jesus walked on the earth, his attitude was like that of a little child. That doesn't mean he was stupid. It doesn't mean he was dumb. Because it says in 1 Corinthians 14, I want you to see in what area we must be like a child, and in what area we must be mature. 1 Corinthians 14 verse 20, the scripture is very clear, very important verse, so that you don't misunderstand. 1 Corinthians 14 verse 20, I want to read the last part first. In your thinking, and the King James Version says, in your understanding, be mature. Be like a very very wise old man, in your understanding of God, and your understanding of the truth, and your understanding of scripture. That is the other tragedy. People are not growing in their understanding of scripture or the knowledge of God. But, in evil, be like a baby. So where are we to be like a baby? The Holy Spirit says, in evil. You know a one week child, there is no evil in its mind. Nothing. Zero. Zero. That's my goal. My goal is to have the mind of a one week child, with zero evil. Is that your goal? But in understanding, I want to be like a mature hundred year old man, who knows God, who knows the scriptures, who knows God's ways. This is the balance. And they go together. Jesus had the greatest knowledge of God, of anyone who walked on this earth. And he had such wisdom and understanding, to help anyone who came to him in need. That is mature wisdom. But, in his attitude to evil, he was like a little child. And, I want to show you one more verse, before I explain to you what a little child is like. Please turn with me to Matthew chapter 11. Matthew 11. In 25, Jesus said, Father I praise you, Father Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things, from the wise and the intelligent people of earth. You have hidden many things from the clever, intelligent people of earth, and revealed them to babes, to infants. Yes Father, for this was well pleasing in your sight. So in God's eyes, the Father's eyes, it was well pleasing, to reveal the greatest truths of scripture, to those who came to the Bible, like a baby. So in other words, if you don't understand scriptures, because you haven't come to it like a baby, you have come to it like a very clever person. Christendom is full of people, who come to their Bible with cleverness, who go to Bible schools, to study the Bible. Cleverness, wisdom, intelligence. And Bible schools are full of professors, all clever people, who are trying to teach the Bible. It's all academic knowledge. They are scribes. What the church needs is disciples. The scribe must become a disciple. Father, it pleased the Father, to humble man, to humble Christians, by revealing His greatest truths, to those in the church, who became like little babes. Now when I read that first, I said, Lord, what to do? I'm a clever person. I'm not a stupid person. I'm an intelligent person. And the Lord said, you can use that out in the world, for your work and your business. But when you come to me, when you come to my book, you must be like a little baby. Acknowledge that you understand nothing. So I'll tell you honestly, for many, many, many years, that's how I've come to the Bible. I come to the Bible and say, Lord, I cannot use my earthly cleverness, which I use in my work and business, over here. I'll be completely blind and dumb. And that's exactly the reason, why so many Christians are completely blind to the truths of scripture. Why is it millions of born again people don't understand the new covenant? Even though it was established on earth 2,000 years ago. It's like a person not even knowing that the earth goes around the sun. I mean 2,000 years ago, people thought that the sun goes around the earth. But clever people don't know, believe that today. You know that the sun does not go around the earth, but the earth goes around the sun and rotates on its own axis. Why is it, that they don't understand scripture? Because you can't understand scripture with cleverness. I've seen so many people who come to argue with me with cleverness. And I shut them up by giving them some other answer. I will not answer their question because you cannot understand the Bible with human cleverness. And if you have not understand the scripture more and more, my dear brother and sister, please, please, from today onwards, be like a little baby. That's what I did. I said, Lord, I want to come to this book as an ignorant child who does not know ABC of spiritual things. Then I began to understand. I'll tell you, in the last 40-50 years, it's amazing what the Lord has taught me in this book, when I decided to come like a babe who knew nothing. You do that, you will see amazing truths in scripture. So, I want to show you one more verse in Isaiah chapter 11. In the coming kingdom, in the time when Jesus reigns on the earth, when there will be peace on the earth and lion will lie down with the lamb, there will be no more wild animals. You read in Isaiah chapter 11 about that day when Christ will reign on the earth. Isaiah chapter 11, verse 6, And the lion and the wolf will dwell with the lamb and the leopard, Isaiah 11 verse 6, The leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the young lion will play together. This is going to be the kingdom where there is no violence and the wild animals become peaceful just like in the original garden of Eden. And then, listen to this, who is going to be the leader in that kingdom? A little child. A little child will be the leader. Do you know that's how it's going to be in God's kingdom? Not these clever guys. Little children don't become leaders on this earth. God's kingdom is entirely different. What it means is, those who have the spirit of a little child, they are going to be the leaders and the greatest in that kingdom of Christ. And if you want to be prepared for that kingdom, in our mind, we have to begin to think like that. We have, all of us, have got a lot of intelligence and cleverness. Use all of it in the world. I use all of it in my worldly business and even what I do today to support myself, I use my human cleverness and intelligence to the best of my ability. But when I come to the things of God, when I come to my fellowship with believers, and when I come to the Bible, I want to lay all that outside the door. I want to be like a little child. I don't want to speak with human cleverness like a lot of preachers. Because I don't want to impress people with my cleverness. I want to lead them to God and I will not be able to lead them to God if I don't come as a little child. And so, I wrote down a few things, so that I don't forget. What is the mark of a child? There must be many, many more, but I just wrote down a few. First, a child has no self-defense. It makes no excuses. We are quick with excuses. From the time of Adam, God asked Adam, Did you eat of this tree? Oh Lord, it's not me. It's my wife. She's the cause of the problem. She's the one who gave me food and I ate it. And ever since that day, man has always found excuses. Ask yourself, when you are confronted with something, maybe you did something wrong, but you have an excuse. But not a little child. Even two-year-old children have excuses, but not a one-week-old baby. That's why I say the child I'm talking about is not a two or three-year- old. I'm talking about a one-week-old baby. You go to a one-week-old baby and said, Boy, you spoiled your diapers again. What's that one-week-old baby going to reply? Nothing. It's got no self- defense, no excuses. It smiles and says, Yes, I did it, mommy. I'm a helpless baby. Help me. No excuses. No self-defense. Wonderful. This is true Christianity. Are you like that? Remember, in understanding, be mature. Use your worldly wisdom out there in the world for everything. Earn all you can with your intelligence. But when it comes to your character, be like a little child. No self- defense. No making excuses. Then a second thing about a child is, that I thought of was, it never stands up for its rights. The world is full of people, trade unions and everybody else, they stand up for their rights. I have a right to this. I have a right to be paid more for what I have done. I have a right to be respected. You're not treating me with respect. I have a right to be respected. I have a right to be heard. You're not the only one who's allowed to talk. I have a right to be heard too. Standing up for our rights. The world is full of people. All the rebellion and fighting and trade unions and communism and all that you've seen. Standing up for our rights. People who've got crazy ideas of what human beings should be like. We have our rights. And you must respect our rights. We don't have the same view of sexual differences between male and female that you have. But we have our rights. And we're going to fight for it, if you don't give it to us. Rights, rights, rights. That is not Christianity. As soon as I see it, I say, this is not Christianity. I want to have nothing to do with it. Don't be deceived. Be like a little child. Then a third thing I wrote down here, which I thought of little children are, they are never offended. You cannot say anything to them that will offend them. Do you get offended? I've heard a lot of people say, boy, the way that person treated me, I'm offended. That's not the way people should treat other human beings. I'm offended. There's a lot of racism in the world. You have to face up to it. Even among Christians, I'm sorry to say. And those who are at the other end of being, suffering because of racism, they say, hey, I've got rights. Don't be a racist. Don't treat me like that. So what if somebody does treat me like a racist? Okay. I'm not going to fight with them. What he says is not going to make me different. I am what God made me. What in the world does it make a difference if somebody looks down on me because of the color of my skin or because I'm not so clever as he is or not educated. It makes absolutely no difference. I am what I am, what God made me. Never offended. Never, never offended. No matter what happens. By never feeling insulted. You know, sometimes husbands can feel, I'm the head of the home. How dare my wife talk to me like that. Uh-huh. You're not like a little child. You haven't understood Christianity. You haven't understood the ABC of Christianity, my brother. Jesus said, The greatest in God's kingdom are those who are like little children. But you say if we don't stand up for our rights, people will take advantage of us. I'll tell you something, which I've experienced in 60 years of being a Christian, and even when I was in the Navy, as an officer, and when I did not stand up for my rights, I discovered one thing, that God is so much in control of this earth, that he never has allowed me till today, to be tested beyond my ability. But whenever a temptation came, he made a way of escape for me to do that. Now if you don't have faith in a God like that, if you have faith in a helpless God who can't help you at all, and you're at the mercy of all type of people taking advantage of you, then you do what you like. Fight for your rights. But I have faith in a Father, who has told me very clearly, he will never allow me to be tested or tempted beyond my ability, out in the world, or in my home, or in the church, or anywhere else. I thought of that when people took me to court, unrighteously, on false charges. I said, God, you will never allow me to be tested beyond my ability. It's wonderful to have such experiences. A child is never offended with anything. And number four, a child has got no stored up anger. Stored up anger. You know how we hear something, or somebody treated us some way, and we have filed that. We've got a file, in which we have filed that information. Fifteen years ago, this guy spoke to me like this, or treated me like this. I cannot remove the memory of it. It's impossible. But I can remove the anger, connected with the way he treated me. That I can get rid of. I cannot remove the memory of the evil somebody did to me, thirty years ago. How can I do it? I don't have control over my memory, but I have control over my will. That I will not store up any anger, against that person for treating me like that. Probably okay. A child does not have, for example, you go to a one week old child, and slap it. Pinch it. You come back tomorrow, and look at that child, and smile at you. It doesn't even remember, this is the guy who pinched me, and slapped me yesterday. Believe me, it's true. That's how children are. Don't try it, but that's how children are. They have no memory, of past evil. No stored up anger. No memory of the evil, that this guy did to me yesterday, or last week. Be like a little child. When you listen to these things, ask yourself, Are you like a little child, in relation to evil? Again, let me repeat, in understanding, be mature. Sure. I want to strive, to be more and more mature, in my understanding of scripture. But I also want to strive, in the same way, to be more and more like a child, in my attitude to people, who live in an evil world. Okay, number five. A child has got no human cleverness, to display and show off. What a temptation there is to us, when a discussion is going on, among number of people. Ah! I want to give my contribution, to that discussion. Sure, there is nothing wrong in that. But if the purpose, with which you are giving your contribution, is to show that, Hey! I'm a clever guy. I've got something to tell you, that you guys haven't thought of so far. That motive, to share something is good. Definitely. But to show that, you know more than the other person, that attitude is wrong. There is no human cleverness, a one week old baby has to display, because it doesn't have any. It's wonderful. Very often, I've seen, heated discussion is going on. If I am wise, I will just keep quiet. If there is error, I will correct it. But I will not correct it with the arrogance of an expert. But with love, seeking to deliver them from their false understanding, so that their lives will become better. Such a lust in us to display our cleverness, or to talk about our experience. I'm sort of an experienced guy, you know. I have enough experience in this area, and I would like to give you guys some information and some correction, from all the vast years of experience I have. Garbage. By all means, help them, but with the spirit of a child. This is Christianity. And when you hear these things, and you look around at so many Christians, how they conduct themselves, or how you conducted yourself, you say, Lord, how is it, I've never understood all these things, all these years. How is it I've got Matthew's Gospel, I've read Matthew's Gospel so many times, I've never read that I've got to be like a little child, to enter God's Kingdom. How is it? I'll tell you. Because the devil blinds our eyes from knowing what is most important. He makes you concentrate on the parts of Scripture which are not most important. He will first of all try to stop you from reading the Bible, and he succeeded with many, many Christians, that they don't read the Bible regularly. He succeeded there. And if he doesn't stop you from reading the Bible, then he'll make you concentrate on those things that you already know. You've already known that for 10-15 years, and you keep on going back. It's like studying kindergarten lesson again and again and again and again. He will not allow you to know deeper truths in Scripture, like the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven is a child. So there's a blindness that the devil brings. Okay, number six. A child does not judge other people. He has no opinions to express about other people. No. I'm not saying we should not have discernment. In our understanding, we must be mature. And I'm not going to be like a dumb person who doesn't know that this guy is a fake Christian. He's not genuine. As an elder in the church, one of the greatest needs I have is to discern between humbugs, counterfeits, fakes, people who teach wrong teaching, or people who come to the church with the wrong motive. I want to see through all that. But, I don't want to judge him. There's a lot of difference between condemning a person and having an opinion about him. There are lots of people I have opinions about, but I don't go and tell them that. I discern. Because I have to discern in different churches, I have to appoint elders. How can I ever do that if I don't have discernment? Who's mature? Who's humble? So I have my opinion, sure. And all the many believers I meet in different churches, I have to know who's really a humble brother, whom can I give responsibility to. But, I don't judge them. And you need to discern between what it is to have discernment and judgment. The Bible says we must have discernment. Philippians 1.9 Let your love grow in discernment. But judge not. Don't judge according to the outward appearance. You don't know his motives. So a child, that's another area where we need to be like a child. We don't have any judgment of others. And number seven. A child has no ambitions to make a lot of money or to get a lot of power or to be famous. No ambitions. No achievements to boast about. You know, there are very subtle ways in which Christians sometimes boast about their achievements and accomplishments in past years. Sometimes in a very subtle way, trying to get a reputation for humility all along. Because they don't want to be proud. They don't want to look proud. But it is in a subtle way to communicate to someone that I've accomplished something, by the way. I'm not the ordinary guy you think I am. I'm a little more important than you think I am. I've accomplished something. Dear brothers and sisters, there are amazing things we can learn from little children. No achievements to boast about and no ambitions. There's nothing wrong in earning money. We must, as I said, we must use our intelligence out in the world to earn, I would say, as much money as you can righteously, without neglecting the Kingdom of God first. If you put the Kingdom of God first in your life, you can use your intelligence to earn as much money as possible because you can use it to bless others. You can use it for the Kingdom of God. Yeah, but when it comes to our attitude, that's not my goal. My goal is not to make money in the world. My goal is not to become famous in the world. No. My goal is to earn my living as much as God gives it to me and use my intelligence to earn it so that I don't become a burden on others. Right from the time CFC started 45 years ago, I decided, my wife and I, we will never be a burden on others. We will never be dependent on others. We'll support ourselves one way or the other. If I have to ride a scooter all my life, I'll ride a scooter all my life. If I cannot afford to buy a car, I will not buy it. But I will never be a burden on others. The child has got no ambitions. True Christianity is like that. Use it out in the world. I'm not saying that having a car, two cars or three cars is wrong. Because there are different needs in different parts of the world. I was talking about India 40 years ago. So, please remember this. And finally, I want to say one more thing. That is, a child has got absolutely zero anxiety. It has got a simple trust in its parents. I think I used to think like this. Supposing a person who is living in a rented house is told to vacate the house by tomorrow morning. I see that sometimes in India. Somebody has not got enough money to pay the rent and the owner gets a court order to get the fellow out of the house. And father and mother are worried. Where in the world are we going to go tomorrow? We will be out in the streets. And there is a little one-year-old child sleeping there. Fast asleep. Not a worry or an anxiety. Or if it is old enough to speak, say it is a three-year-old. You wake up that child and say, Hey, don't you know, you may have to be kicked out of this house tomorrow morning? He said, don't disturb me. I am going to tell my dad. And goes back to sleep. That is the way a child is. I have a heavenly father. A problem comes to you, I am going to tell my heavenly father. I am not an orphan. It is a wonderful thing to know that I am not an orphan. Jesus, let me show you this in closing. John Chapter 14, Jesus said, I don't know whether you have seen the connection here. John 14. When he spoke about the coming of the Holy Spirit. He said in verse 16, I will ask the Father and He will give you a helper. Another helper, just like me. And He will be with you forever. You know, they were concerned. Jesus is going away. No, no, don't worry, don't worry. The Holy Spirit will come. It will be just like me. Being with you. The thing is, if I am here, I can only be here in Israel. What about all those people in India or America? But, I will send the Holy Spirit. And then it will be just like having Jesus wherever you are. Wonderful. And, I will not, verse 18, leave you as orphans. I will come to you in the Holy Spirit. So what does the coming of the Holy Spirit do? Delivers me from this orphan syndrome. I am a helpless orphan. No, I am not. If you feel like that, brother, sister, you know what you need? You need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. I don't mean this fake fullness of the Holy Spirit that a lot of charismatics are talking about. I am talking about a genuine fullness of the Holy Spirit. And how do you know you are filled with the Holy Spirit? You won't feel like an orphan anymore. You won't feel like a helpless orphan at the mercy of people who are trying to take advantage of you. No. The Holy Spirit tells me, I am not an orphan. I am a Father in Heaven. In fact, it says in Romans chapter 8, that when the Holy Spirit comes into us, it's a beautiful verse, the Holy Spirit comes into us, Romans 8, and cries out, verse 15, Abba! Abba is not an English word. I feel sad that it was not translated. Abba is a Hebrew word. It's very similar to our Indian language words for Father, Abba. But the English translation of that is Daddy. So if it is translated, it should read like this. The Holy Spirit comes to us and tells us we are sons and cries out from within us, Daddy! You know, like a little child. Think of a little two-year-old looking at his dad and saying, Daddy! He doesn't have a worry in the world. All his worries are in the daddy's mind. We are supposed to be like that. I want to ask all of you a very simple question. Answer to yourself. Have you ever looked up into Heaven and said, Daddy! Have you ever done that even once in your life? With absolute assurance that you have a Daddy up there. I'll tell you, I do it many times. It's part of my life. In church, we are more formal. I say Heavenly Father, but when I'm praying alone, it's Daddy. I realize that not everyone in the church knows God like that, so I don't embarrass them by saying Daddy in public. So I always pray Heavenly Father. But in private, I'll tell you, I look up to Heaven and say Daddy. That's why I'm free from anxiety, fear. Don't you have a lot of concerns, all of you people, about your children? Children get sick. Financial needs of your children. You have to educate them, you have to clothe them. You are not like those rich people who got plenty of money, loads of money. Do what they like. Jobs are insecure. You don't know when your job will be terminated. You'll get the pink slip and you are out of your job. Or you are doing your own business and you don't know when business will collapse. When the depression will come. I have a daddy. I hope you have the same daddy too. Who said, you seek my kingdom first and my righteousness in your life. Never do anything unrighteous, never cheat anyone, never tell a lie. And everything you need will be added to you when the rich people are struggling. I believe that. I believe that when I quit my job 53 years ago. And my fellow officers in the Navy said, Zack, what are you doing? How are you going to support yourself? And what I told them, I said, I worked in the Navy for all these years. Seven years I worked in the Navy. And every single month, on the first of the month, the Navy paid me my salary. And I asked them, do you think God is less faithful than the Navy? If you believe that, then you are an atheist. There is no God in your understanding. No God, no true God can ever be less faithful than a company that takes care. People have the question, what if you die? What if you die? Who will take care of your wife and children? I tell them a story. There is a very big oil company that had a very faithful employee in the Second World War. Out in Singapore, I remember. And that man died, faithfully doing his job for that company in the war. For the rest of his widow's and children's life, that company took care of that widow and the children, every single need. Education, housing, health, all was taken care of by that company because that man served that company faithfully. This is a true story. That widow had absolutely no concern. People think, people, Christians say, I have faith in God, but God is not as faithful as this earthly company. That's not my God. My daddy in heaven is more faithful than any earthly company. Be like a little child, my brother. Simple trust. We have missed so much in our life. When we hear about victory over sin, it's written in the Bible. Won't God give it to us? Can't God give me the power to overcome anger and dirty thoughts and pornography and murmuring and complaining and all the other wretched things the Bible says we must get rid of? You think God will tell us to do that and not give us power to lift it? You think a father will tell a child to lift up one ton weight? No. Always only what the child can handle. And if it's a little too heavy to handle, the father will help. That's the daddy we have in heaven. Dear brothers and sisters, be like a little child in all these matters of evil and doubt and fear. In understanding, be mature. Use your cleverness out in the world for all your work. But when it comes to the church and to Christianity and God, come like a little child, you'll get a lot more. You'll get a lot more from the Bible. You'll get a lot more from your life, and your life will be much more peaceful. You will sleep better at night. It'll be easy to love your enemies. It'll be easy to do good to those who hate you. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we pray that these things will become real in our life, not just theories. Help us, we pray. In Jesus' name, Amen. ======================================================================== Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/df2VP4-EyIY.mp4 Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/zac-poonen/be-like-a-little-child/ ========================================================================