Title
Childlike Not Childish
Scripture
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son
(Hosea 11:1)
Devotional
God loves child-like faith. It is not childish faith, which is selfish and self-serving, but child-like faith that is believing, trusting and obedient. When Israel totally believed their God for deliverance, He delivered them. When they trusted Him in the wilderness, He supplied all their needs, and when they obeyed Him, they got into the promised land. However, when they failed to believe, trust and obey the Lord their God, they perished. They were given as an example to us, that we would be like obedient children filled with trust and belief. God loves childlike innocence. He loves it when we, as His children, go to Him as to a loving Father. We are to be mature in our responsibilities and children in sin. The apostle Paul said it this way, “Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature.”