Christ said, "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:6).
Why did he designate particularly harsh punishment for anyone who hurts a child? How can the special place of children in Jesus’ heart bring comfort to mourners in the wake of school shootings and other acts of violence against young people?
Jesus and the Little Children
After Jesus had cleared the money lenders and merchants from the synagogue, the Pharisees heard children calling after the Rabbi, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” and were offended (Matthew 21:15).
For adults, there had been a barrier between themselves and God all their lives. They had to approach the Lord through a priest, and even the High Priest could not enter the Holy of Holies.
Yet for the children, there was no obstacle between them and Jesus. They did what Jesus has called on us all to do without reservation: talk to him about our day, or joys, our sorrows; tell him what we need; let him teach, lead, and help us. They felt an honest longing to be near him.
“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). A child’s simple devotion is humble, eager, trusting, and joyful.
Christ’s instruction to be “like children” also points to the kind of relationship God wants to have with his people.
He wants believers to emulate that same trust, humility, eagerness, and joy. The reward of such a faith is to be granted the right “to become children of God” (John 1:12).
The disciples asked Jesus who would be the greatest in heaven. Jesus explained, “Whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me” (Matthew 18:4-5).
Christ was particularly soft-hearted towards children, the most vulnerable group of people in any culture. “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven” (Matthew 18:10).
Trauma and Sin
In the United States, children are exposed to domestic violence every day, but gun violence is on the rise too. More and more young people are witnessing events such as school shootings. The effects of trauma are amplified for the very young.
For example, “misconceptions of reality compound the negative impact of traumatic effects on children's development. Young children who experience trauma are at particular risk because their rapidly developing brains are very vulnerable.”
An article by Julie Collins and Emily Swoveland points out that “children exposed to gun violence may experience negative short and long-term psychological effects, including anger, withdrawal, posttraumatic stress, and desensitization to violence” and also that some young people “may be at higher risk for negative outcomes if they are exposed to gun violence.”
When someone shoots the students and staff at a school, a church, or in the home; when a parent attacks another parent in front of his or her child: this influences the way a young person perceives God the Father and deeply impacts his or her sense of safety.
Moreover, victims and witnesses of crime are more likely to become perpetrators of crime. Their ideas of “normal” and “right and wrong” are being shaped while they are weakest and most vulnerable.
Little ones copy what they see grown-ups doing, so grown-ups have the responsibility to do better. God commands us to help children:
Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy (Proverbs 31:8-9).
He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy. From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight (Psalm 72:13-14)
Do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place (Jeremiah 22:3).
“You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless” (Exodus 22:22-24).
God’s anger burns hottest against those who harm children because children are the most helpless and impressionable members of society.
They are most easily led astray into a spiritual wilderness where they can be separated from God the Father for eternity, and this “leading” could be a matter of action or omission.
Mass murder is not easy for anyone to process at any age, although many individuals will actually be led to the Lord in the midst of their suffering.
But if a child’s brain is adversely affected by witnessing violent death, how much more difficult must it be to grasp the logic and love of the one true God?
If those who step in to offer protection turn away from God, angry that he would permit such a thing to happen, what will the emotionally brutalized child believe about Jesus?
There is no guarantee that sound and compassionate support will lead a suffering child into the arms of God.
But the responsibility remains: we must teach our children to love the Lord and support parents by demonstrating the transforming power of Jesus’ sacrificial work, his Holy Spirit, his resurrection power, and what it means to be called a child of God. There is no life apart from Him and no peace without him either.
Violence in the world around us will cause individuals to spout lies about God and push undefended hearts and minds away from the only peace, the only life which comes from a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.
Little ones are just forming their beliefs about the world. Teaching them about the person and power of God, available and approachable through Christ, is the most important teaching of their lives.
What Is the Punishment?
While we cannot understand why God permits children to suffer, we take encouragement from his promise to punish those who commit evil against the most vulnerable members of society.
“Because of your false words and lying visions, I am against you,” declares the Sovereign Lord. [...] “In my wrath I will unleash a violent wind, and in my anger hailstones and torrents of rain will fall with destructive fury” (Ezekiel 13:8,13).
God spoke against those whose words, whose actions, whose very lives would lead children and other vulnerable people away from him, and Jesus echoed the Father in Matthew 18.
If children (and those without faith or with a weak faith) are persuaded to form an incorrect view of the Lord, whether, through false teaching or evil behavior, His punishment will be severe.
His anger will rage like a tempest. “Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him” (Isaiah 3:11).
The Comfort for Parents
What comfort can parents take from Scripture for the sake of their children? For one thing, they can know for certain that God will punish those who hurt children and do not repent.
Concerned with justice, and hating violence committed against little ones, the Father will not let evil go unpunished.
Wicked people have this in store: the “flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus” (2 Thessalonians 8).
For another thing, children are held tenderly by the Father. He loves them in a mighty way, as indicated by Jesus’ statements about children.
Thirdly, there is guidance in God’s Word as to how young ones can be supported and sensitively counseled following an event such as a mass shooting.
Josh Weidmann gives some practical advice about how to talk to children about such tragedies. “While young children might not need to know about every tragedy in the headlines, sheltering older kids from harsh reality isn’t caring for them — it’s only forcing them to find answers elsewhere.”
This is a time to talk about the reality of evil and the fact that God is in control. God has a plan, and he loves his children.
Weidmann urges parents to “talk about the real-life battle between good and evil that mass shootings so vividly illustrate.” And make sure the conversation leads to the hopeful conclusion of Christ’s power over death — the resurrection. Our only hope is in Christ, and it is a profound hope.
As we teach our children these truths about the omnipotence, righteous anger, and majestic love of the Father, this is a comfort for the parent or caregiver also.
What Does This Mean?
Children die around the world and all over the United States every day, and violence contributes to the statistics. Young people might be afraid to enter school or to leave home, or simply to live life. The Lord does not want his children living in fear.
The most common exhortation in the Bible is “do not fear” because fear takes one’s eyes off of Jesus and his power.
We need to come alongside children and parents to promote a hopeful and triumphant view of the world, a view seen through an eternal lens, knowing that the Lord has our children in his hands.
For further reading:
A Prayer for Those Affected by the Covenant School Shooting in Nashville
What Should Christians Do after a Mass Shooting?
Why Did Jesus Say 'Let the Little Children Come to Me'?
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