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johncanalesusa
Posts:52
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Posted:05/23/2006 2:11 AM |
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What happens to infants and children who die before they are old enough to respond to the gospel?
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gfike
Posts:234
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Posted:05/26/2006 9:28 AM |
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This is an excellent (and frequently asked) question. If we are all born into sin, that is, having a sinful nature as a result of original sin (Romans 5:12-14), then it would follow that all people (including infants and young children) who die without placing trust in Christ would be lost. However, scripture implies that babies and young children have a covering from God until such time as they grow into an understanding of their accountibility to God's law. Note in the middle of the above scripture Paul states "but sin is not taken into account when there is no law..." Take the statements of Jesus regarding children: "Let the children come to me, because of such is the kingdom of heaven" and "whoever does not change and become like a child shall not see the kingdom of heaven." In fact, some of Jesus' direst warnings regarded how we affect the lives of children: "better to tie a millstone around your neck and be flung into the sea than to cause one of these little ones to stumble."
In the book of Isaiah, the king is given the prophecy concerning God's deliverance and he is given a timeline in 7:15 about a child: "until he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right..." This is one indication that there is a point of maturity in which one becomes conscious of choices between sin and righteousness. We don't know when that point might be, so we need to instruct our children from the first moments of life about God's love and righteousness and lead them to choose God's salvation. But we need not fear when a young child passes because God tells us "mercy triumphs over judgment." (James 2:13)
This is a very simplistic answer for the sake of brevity, but a deeper study of scripture on your part will bear it out.
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