God desires us to be filled with the joy of Jesus (John 15:11). “The joy of the Lord is our strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). Jesus used a child as an object lesson of free and joyful living. “And He (Jesus) called a little child to Himself and put him in the midst of them and said, ‘Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children (trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving) you can never enter the kingdom (at all)’” (Matthew 18:1-3 Amplified Bible). A child is willing to bumble himself, admit his wrongs, and change. Jesus said that if we are not willing to humble ourselves as a child and repent of our sins we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus then adds, “Whoever will humble himself therefore and become like this child (trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving) is greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:4 Amplified Bible).

Every healthy adult should have a child within. Each of us starts as a child and as we grow up we need to protect that child within us. Jesus emphasized the importance of a childlike spirit. The Amplified Bible gives four virtues of children (Matthew 18:1-4). Children are by nature trusting, lowly, loving, and forgiving. We would have the joy of Jesus and enjoy life much more if we lived out these four virtues in our daily lives.

Satan is always out to kill the child. He put it in Pharaoh’s heart to have all the Hebrew babies under the age of two killed. His mother hid Moses and God used him to deliver Israel from slavery. King Herod was afraid when he heard the report of a newborn Christ child, the King of the Jews. He made a decree to have every male child in Bethlehem two years of age and under put to death. But God warned Joseph in a dream about the plot. In our day thousands of babies are killed each year before they are born. Satan is afraid of the potential for God in them. Don’t allow Satan to kill the child within you and steal your joy (John 10:10).

Children are not able to protect and defend themselves. They naturally trust their parents to meet their needs. Our children do not have to earn our love, we love them because they are ours – they are related. “Blood is thicker than water.” Through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, we become children of God. “To as many as received Him, gave He power to become children of God, even to them that believe on His name” (John 1:12). The Bible ways that we are God’s beloved children when we trust in Him (Deuteronomy 28:8). Our Heavenly Father will bless and take care of us (Matthew 6).

In his book The Rhythm of Life, Richard Exley writes, “There is not enough success in the world to quiet the discordant voices within. Self-esteem is not the by-product of achievement, but the natural consequences of a healthy relationship with one’s parents, peers, and, of course, God. It is a matter of who you are, not what you have done.” Are you a child of God? Do you trust God as your Heavenly Father? Then rejoice in Him! Let God fill you with His joy!

A child loves naturally. When you love God and others your life will be full of contentment and joy. God is not like people. If people in your past have hurt you, don’t let it affect your relationship with the Lord. God’s love will uphold you. “(And the Lord answered), ‘Can a woman forget her nursing child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, they may forget, yet I will not forget you” (Isaiah 49:15). As a child runs to its parents, you can run to your Father in heaven for whatever you need.

If you are a child of God through being born again (John 3:3; 1:12), you are also an heir of God. You are not a slave but an inheritor (Romans 8:16, 17).

A child has an easy time forgiving. As children, my brothers, cousins, and I would have our fights and arguments but usually within a few minutes we would forgive and forget and be playing together as if nothing had happened. Don’t allow the devil to rob you of your joy through unforgiveness. (See Matthew 6:12, 14, 15.)

Children are free. Jesus came to set us free – free to love, to live, to enjoy, and to be all we can possibly be, in Him. “So if the Son liberates you (makes you free men), then you are really and unquestionably free” (John 8:36). Do not allow the devil to kill “the child within”. “Live as children of obedience (to God)” (I Peter 1:14). Give Him praise! “Out of the mouths of babes and infants thou hast perfected praise” (Matthew 21:16).