Fire the Gatekeeper
Read Mark 10:13-16
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 10:14
Before my wife became a pastor, she worked in sales. (Interestingly enough, she now works part-time as a real estate agent, so her journey has come full circle!) One of the things she learned from her time in sales was the importance of winning over the “gatekeeper”—meaning the secretaries and administrative assistants who greeted her when she walked in the door. The executive was the one who could make the decision to buy her product. But she’d never get to the executive if she didn’t first win over the “gatekeeper.”
Executives place a lot of trust in the “gatekeeping” role of their secretaries. They manage not only who gets access to them, but also what kinds of information and problems reach their desk. If the secretary allows everyone to have access to the executive, then the executive is overwhelmed with meetings and information. He or she won’t be able to focus or get anything done. But if the pendulum swings too far the other direction, the secretary can inadvertently block their boss from information or meetings they actually need!
The disciples in this story were acting as Jesus’ gatekeepers. Remember, everywhere they went, there were crowds of people wanting to meet Jesus or needing to receive healing. It’s not surprising that the disciples performed “triage” to make sure that the most important and urgent cases came before him. Children, however, did not meet their criteria of importance.
In the Jewish culture of the first century, children held little standing in society. They could not own property. They did not yet know a trade, so they couldn’t contribute to the economy in any meaningful way. Their opinions were uninformed and immature. In short, they were best seen and not heard. Or better yet, maybe not seen or heard.
Jesus did not view children the same way as his disciples. In fact, just a chapter before, when James and John had argued on the road about who was greatest, Jesus had placed a child among them and said: “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” (9:36-37) So the disciples were literally excluding the people whom Jesus had said were the most important to welcome!
While doing research for this devotion, I came across an article written by Beth Demme. Beth currently serves as a United Methodist pastor in Florida, but she grew up within the Lutheran church, in which children are not allowed to receive communion until the 3rd Grade. When she first began attending a Methodist church (before she became a pastor), she was appalled that we would serve communion to children of any age. These children don’t understand what they are doing! she’d think. They’re not even old enough to hold the juice without spilling it!
She realized that she wanted to put a “gate” around the altar. Children didn’t belong in that sacred space. Ironically, Beth eventually became the children’s pastor at that church, and she decided she needed to better understand the Methodist position on communion. She read many theological and scriptural arguments on the subject, but what changed her mind was a single sentence that convicted her: “Even a child knows when they are being excluded. No one, especially a child, should ever feel rejected at the Lord’s Table.” The altar—and the church by extension—is a place where no one should feel excluded. “Everyone belongs at the Communion table,” she concluded. “Everyone has a place in the Kingdom of God.”
Perhaps you don’t have the same hang-up about children that Beth and the original disciples had, but all of us are tempted sometimes to play “gatekeeper”—to decide who is worthy of the church’s attention and love. (Sometimes we say this differently as to who the church should “prioritize” in its worship, programming, or budget.) Whenever we are tempted to play gatekeeper, we must remember that Jesus prioritized those who were unseen by others. Remember, everyone has a place in the Kingdom of God.
O God, I have limited time, energy, and attention. I know I need an internal “gatekeeper” to keep myself focused and productive. But save me, God, from keeping out those whom You welcome with open arms. Help me to make room to see those who are most important to You. Amen.