Jesus said " Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven."(1)
When I painted Beloved, I wanted to focus on God's love for the children who are trapped in human trafficking. The verse within this painting is taken from Matthew, chapter 18, which opens with Jesus' disciples approaching him to ask who would be the greatest in heaven. In answer to this question, Jesus called a little child over and sat him in the midst of them. He then went on to tell them that except they "be converted and become as little children" they would "not enter into the kingdom of heaven." (2) As Jesus explained the child-like faith and humility required to enter the kingdom of God, he referred to those believers who come to him as "little ones."
Although scholars have differing opinions as to whether or not Jesus was referring to only believers in this chapter and not simply children, I believe it makes sense that Jesus' words are for both. After all, we know from scripture that God is omnipresent - aware about every aspect of his creation, from the number of hairs on my head to every little sparrow that falls to the earth. We also see in scripture a powerful message about God's love for us all. In Isaiah God tells us "For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."(3) God cares about his whole creation, he made every person in his image and he seeks each person as a shepherd searches high and low for his one lost sheep.
I don't doubt that God grieves over and sees each child caught up in the trap of human trafficking in this greed-filled, lust-driven, fallen world. I pray for their rescue, for their protection, for a change in the way our world operates. There are many organizations around the world that are working to rescue these children, and they rely on donations of caring people who are aware and want to help. One such organization is Destiny Rescue, which I support - check them out at https://www.destinyrescue.org/ .
Beloved, 16x20" watercolor, 2016
(1). Matthew 18:10, The Holy Bible: New King James Version; Publisher: Thomas Nelson 1983 (2)King James Version: taken from Matthew 18:3 (3) King James Version: Isaiah 41:13
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