1. If you were saved as a child, please share; 1.Your name. 2. How old you were when you were saved. 3. The name of the person/people who brought you to Jesus.

2. Kingdom Greatness: Matthew 18:1-14 The Children

3. At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said, ‘I tell you truth, unless you change And become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles themselves like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Attitude Change Toward Our Children

4. “And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for them to have large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the one through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.

5. “It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and thrown into eternal fire. and if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.” Protect Our Children

6. “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. for I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. Respect Our Children

7. What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? and if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety- nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” Sacrifice for Our Children

8. More than half of the people who will ever accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior will do so by age 12. - George Barna

9. Less than 6% of people receive Jesus as the Lord and Savior after age 12. – George Barna

10. By the time a child is 9 yrs. of age their basic moral foundation has already been formed. - George Barna

11. By age 13 a person has formed the majority of their beliefs about 1. The nature of God 2. The existence of Satan 3. The reliability of the Bible 4. What the after-life is 5. The holiness of Jesus 6. Whether one can be saved from sin. 7. The importance of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

12. 4 out of 5 church leaders grew up in church

13. According to a 2005 survey only 13% of churches list ministry to children in their top 3 church priorities.

14. There is a 10 year window of opportunity between the ages of 4 and 14 that a person is most open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

15. Approximately 90 million of today’s 300 million Americans are in that age range – US Census Bureau

16. More than 80% of that 90 million never go to church. – Child Evangelism Fellowship

17. …Reach those children and you will reach today’s young family…

18. …and become a Church marked by Kingdom greatness.

19. Kingdom Greatness is; 1. The child 2. The adults who; ◦ bring that child to Jesus. ◦ do everything within their power to keep that child with Jesus. ◦ run after the child if they stray.

20. Where does holiness fit into ministries to children? When the whole church is involved with bringing, protecting, respecting and sacrificing for our children, we raise the standard for ourselves for our words, actions and habits, not out of legalism but out of a sincere desire to teach our children to love Jesus and love others as we love ourselves.

21. Holiness is a natural byproduct of being missional for our children.

22. Kingdom Action Bringing, protecting, respecting & sacrificing for our children requires a lot of energy. Let’s budget our church energy accordingly.