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An argument arose among the disciples about which of them was the
greatest. Jesus realized the intention of their hearts and took a
child and placed it by his side and said to them, “Whoever receives
this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives
the one who sent me. For the one who is least among all of you is
the one who is the greatest.” Luke 9:48
This conversation between Jesus and His disciples took place
shortly after three events. First, it took place after the
disciples returned from the first mission on which Jesus had sent
them. Second, it was after Peter made his profession of faith
stating that Jesus was “The Messiah of God.” Third, it occurred
after the Transfiguration in which Jesus took Peter, James and John
up the mountain to reveal His glory. After these three events, it
appears that a certain rivalry began to manifest itself among the
disciples. Perhaps there was jealousy of Peter’s profession of
faith, or perhaps the disciples who were not taken up the mountain
of the Transfiguration were a bit envious. But whatever the cause,
Jesus addresses what is the beginning of a desire for vainglory
among the disciples.
In commenting on this passage, Saint Cyril of Alexandria notes that
in the spiritual battle, the devil’s first tactic is to stir up
fleshly desires within our souls to keep us bound by the desire for
those pleasures. However, when a person is able to escape these
more base and fleshly desires, then the devil stirs up a spiritual
sin; namely, a selfishness and vainglory. It is this desire for
vainglory, the desire to be perceived as the greatest, with which
the disciples were struggling.
Our Lord addresses the disciples after He “realized the intention
of their hearts.” This is a very important line. Essentially, Jesus
noticed that the desire for vainglory was just beginning. By
analogy, when a weed begins to grow, it is easily pulled up by the
roots. But if it is left to grow for a while, then the roots are
more difficult to pull up, and doing so often affects the other
plants and ground around the weed. So it is with sin. By gently
bringing a child into their midst and stating that “the one who is
least among you is the one who is the greatest,” Jesus was helping
them to remove this “weed” of the sin of vainglory before it took
deep root in their lives. As Jesus continues His conversation with
the disciples, He continues to act with gentleness, addressing
their slight error in their reasoning.
This is important to understand, because our Lord always desires to
address our sin the very moment it begins. If we are open to His
subtle promptings of grace, gently redirecting our actions the
moment we begin to go astray, then our attentiveness to His loving
rebuke will help keep us from becoming more deeply rooted in our
error, whatever it may be. Establishing a practice of constant
self-reflection greatly helps with this. Establishing this habit
means we do not see our Lord as a harsh and critical Judge; rather,
we see Him in His gentleness and care. This image of Jesus gently
bringing a child before the disciples so as to teach them about
true greatness should help us to realize that we should never fear
these gentle promptings of grace.
Reflect, today, upon our Lord appearing before you, gently
addressing the small sins with which you are struggling. Of course,
all serious sins must be firmly dealt with first. But once all
serious sin is rooted out of your life, be attentive to the gentle
and merciful promptings of grace by which Jesus wants to root out
every small sin at its beginning and even every spiritual
imperfection. Attentiveness to these graces is the surest way to
grow in holiness and to allow our Lord to lead you into His
glorious will, making you truly great within His
Kingdom.
My most merciful and gentle Jesus, I thank You for the many ways
in which You come to me, revealing Your love and grace. Please help
me to see clearly the ways that I must change, so that even the
beginnings of the smallest sin in my life may be rooted out. I love
You, my Lord. Help me to love You with all my heart. Jesus, I trust
in You.
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Featured image above: Jesus Christ with the children /
Let the little Children come unto Me / Suffer the Children By Carl
Bloch, via Wikimedia Commons
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