Intentional 21 Daily Devotional: Fully Dependent - Pastor Michel Espinoza

Matthew 18:3 And He said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

If you are an adult, this verse might be a little hard to understand. I’m not saying you don’t know this verse—you might have it memorized. But knowing the verse and truly understanding it are two different things. To understand this verse is important. Jesus came to this world and showed us an example of what a relationship with the Father looks like. Jesus was constantly praying to the Father. In two separate instances, the Father calls Jesus His beloved Son. The first time was when Jesus was baptized (Matthew 3:17):“This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.”The second time was during the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:5):

“Suddenly, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!’”

The relationship the Father and Jesus had was that of a Father and His Son.

What I need to understand about this verse is what it means to become like little children. It’s not about a literal age we should focus on, but the meaning Jesus was trying to get across: we need to be childlike, not childish. When I think of what it means to be childlike, I picture a child, maybe around 4 years old. They can walk, talk, and are potty trained, but that's about it. They can’t cook for themselves, they can't be left alone, and they can't really take care of themselves. They are completely dependent on their parents.

As adults, we often like to believe we’re in control—that we can take care of ourselves and make our own decisions for our best interest. But if we were to look at our lives through God’s eyes, we would see that we aren’t in control at all. In fact, we are pretty helpless without God, our Father. But this isn’t a bad thing. In fact, Jesus gives us an example of this. In John 5:19, He says:“I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.”Jesus shows us that He only does what the Father tells Him to do. Jesus was fully dependent on the Father, and we need to do the same.

Don’t think you have to carry everything on your shoulders or do it all on your own. That is the opposite of what God wants. God wants us to become like little children—fully dependent on Him.

Engagement: Pray (preferably in the morning) and ask the Father, “What do You want me to do today?” “What do You want me to say today?” “Where do You want me to go today?”

Jesus often went away to pray to the Father, spending time in worship. Maybe you will know right away what God wants you to do. Or perhaps it will come throughout the day. But spend one day fully dependent on the Father, and see where it takes you.

Pastor Michel Espinoza