But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 19:14 (ESV)
Turn on any news channel or surf any social media portal on any given day and you will find heart-wrenching stories about violent acts committed against, and by, our children. As I pen these words, our city is in shock and dealing with the unimaginable grief that comes on the heels of a 10-year-old male shot and killed in a crossfire, two teen females found shot to death in a car and three teen males charged with the shooting death of another teen said to be their friend.
Violent deaths of our children are not limited to Indianapolis. In cities and rural towns across the nation, our children are literally being slaughtered. In 2015 alone, 560 children ages 0–11 and 2,029 teens ages 12–17 have been killed by gun violence. (Source: gunviolencearchive.org)
The Gospel of Matthew gives us some valuable insight regarding the priority Jesus places on our children. In Matthew 19, Jesus teaches on matters of marriage, divorce and celibacy, and counsels a rich young ruler regarding the danger of placing more value on earthly possessions than eternal life. He also reminds his Disciples that with God, “all things are possible.”
Matthew 19 also records an instance where the little children were brought to Jesus so he might pray for them and bless them. But the Disciples, not discerning the priority Jesus places on our children, rebuked them causing Jesus to speak these words: “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
What was Jesus’ point? Children matter. In fact, children matter so much that one can see what heaven is like by looking at our children in their purest state … before the world turns them cold … before the world turns them into killers … before they lose their lives at the hands of an adult or another child.
Recently, I convened a core team of local lay and clergy leaders under the umbrella of the Urban Initiative. The team consists of Pastor David Hampton, Pastor Michael Jones, Pastor Richard Reynolds, Pastor Denell Howard, Pastor Timothy Taylor, Judge Geoffrey Gaither, Bwana Clements and Floyde Carson.
Our mission is to further address the issues facing youth by implementing positive influence rallies in our schools. We accomplish this by galvanizing the men in our city to join us as we greet students arriving at school for the day with high-fives, cheers and words of encouragement. We also provide these students with something too many of them are missing: positive male role models.
Urban Initiative launched its first rally on Sept. 25, and the response has been overwhelming. An average of 75 men from all walks of life have joined us at our first two schools, helping us positively influence hundreds of kids. Ten additional school rallies are confirmed, spanning into 2016, and more requests are coming in daily.
We can save our city. But it must begin with saving our most valuable asset — our children. Save our children — save our city. The words of Jesus are just as relevant today as they were when Matthew recorded them: “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
Preston Adams III is senior pastor at Amazing Grace Christian Church in Indianapolis. Learn more at Comemeetgrace.org or contact Adams via email at docpta3@comemeetgrace.org or on Twitter @DrPrestonTAdams.
