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It had been over forty years since the incident but it
still made him angry to talk about it. He was a member of the church I served
as pastor immediately after seminary. His story was about the death of his
child many years previously. He and his wife had a child that lived only a few
days. At the time he was working at a factory and riding to and from work with
three other men. On the day after the funeral he met his work-mates and climbed
into the car. All of them expressed their sympathy but one did it in a way that
would remain with the grieving father forever. "I'm sorry about your baby
dying and going to hell," was the man's attempt at comforting the father.
As I heard the story and saw the terrible emotions it brought to the surface,
theology ceased to be an abstract intellectual exercise. Doctrine matters
because it can heal or it can harm.
I grew up in a Southern Baptist church where I was taught that God loved
everybody and especially children. I heard the doctrine of the "age of
accountability" preached from the pulpit and was assured that children
were safe until they were old enough to know right from wrong. As I entered the
world of theology, I discovered that not everyone accepted that idea. Some
argued that children could go to hell if they died without baptism or outside
the church. Others said they did not know but could only trust God to be
gracious. That some children were safe and others in danger depending on God's
prior decision was also an option. To discover other
Christians believed these things was hard, but to find that even some Baptists
accepted them was more disturbing.
As a pastor I need to know what to say to grieving parents who ask about the
place of their little children who die. While it is important to know what
various theologians and denominations teach, the only center for authority in doctrine
must be the holy scriptures. It will be my intent to
be informed by others but to rest my case on the Bible.
Children in the Bible
Unfortunately, the scripture does not answer the question in a simple passage.
The phrase "age of accountability" is not found in the text. This
should not deter us in our search for an answer since other doctrines like
"trinity" are not named in the text. By examination of passages that
show the attitude of scripture toward children and their spiritual condition,
we can determine a reasonable idea about the safety of children in spiritual
matters. There are several passages that bear on the subject and a careful
examination of them can give us an indication of the answer.
Luke 2: 42-47. In this account of the visit of Jesus to the
temple at age twelve we see evidence that Jesus participated in the Jewish
religious custom which recognized the responsibility in spiritual matters of the
person at age twelve. It was the habit of Mary and Joseph to travel to the
temple for the festival and special mention is made that at age twelve, Jesus
accompanied them on this religious holiday. While too much meaning should not
be given this action, it does validate the idea that a person reaches an age
when they become responsible for their spiritual life. It is inconceivable that
Jesus as the sinless one would have taken part in a practice that was based on
mistaken theology.
Matthew 18:3-6. When he needed an example of what it means to
be a member of the kingdom, Jesus used a child. It was his teaching that any
who would seek to enter the kingdom must become as little children. It would
seem from this passage that children are closer to being safe spiritually than
adults are. A stern warning is given to those who would hinder a child from
following Jesus. It would appear from this passage that Jesus thought children
were spiritually acceptable and those in danger of punishment are adults who
refuse to accept the humble spirit of children.
2 Samuel 12:23. This passage from the life of David gives
insight into the view David had of the afterlife. David's son by Bathshebia died and David returned to a normal life after
his period of pleading with God. When questioned about his change in attitude,
he said the child could not come to David but he could go to the child. It
certainly appears that David expected the child to be in a place of joy that he
would someday enter.
Romans 7:9-12. This passage describes the process of
moving from a state of relationship with God (life)
to a broken relationship with God (death). Verse 9 says: “Once I was alive
apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.” Paul is clearly referring to
spiritual life and death here. He describes himself as once having been alive.
That means he had a relationship with God. When he learned the commandments,
sin sprang to life. The result of that event was Paul's spiritual death. This
perfectly describes the doctrine of the age of accountability. A child does not
know right from wrong. It has no concept of good and evil to guide it’s decisions. In that state of innocence the child
resembles Adam and Eve before the fall. When the person becomes aware of sin,
the result is death. Please notice that the sin "sprang to life." The
child may resemble Adam and Eve before the fall but the truth is the child is
born in sin and sin is lying dormant in the fallen human nature waiting to be awakened so it can do it's
terrible crime of killing the person spiritually. The point for this paper is
that until that spiritual death, the child is alive to God. If such a person
dies, they will be safe with God.
Are Children Sinners?
Now we come to the heart of the issue. Are children born with the sin of Adam
in them so that they need salvation at the moment of birth? Many accept that
idea and believe it has good Biblical support. This is a major factor in belief
that infant baptism is important in the spiritual safety of children. This
concept was very important in the example with which I began this article for
the man who angered my church member was from a church that teaches the
necessity of baptism to be saved. According to that doctrine, since the baby
was unbaptized, it must of necessity go to hell. What
does the Bible teach about inherited guilt?
Romans 5: 12-19. It is impossible to discuss these matters
without dealing with this passage. Verses 12-13 say: Therefore, just as
sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way
death came to all men, because all sinned-- 13 for before the law was given, sin was in
the world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law. We do not have time for a lengthy
discussion of the various views of what we received from Adam. Some Baptists
have held that Adam was the representative of all humanity and his sin
condemned every member of the human race. Southern Baptists hold in their
confession of faith that we inherit a "sinful nature" and that we do
not become actual sinners until we are capable to moral action. Thus a child
who does not know right from wrong is not held accountable for the sinful
nature it received from Adam. We see this position confirmed in verse 13 where
we see that sin is not taken into account when there is no law. This is
consistent with Paul's testimony in Chapter 7 that we examined above. Before
the child understands the commandment of God, the sin is not taken into
account. It is interesting to note that Jesus taught the same principle
in John 9: 41, "Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no
sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth."
We conclude then that children
inherit a sinful human nature from their parents. That fallen nature is
disposed to sin and will certainly lead the child to sin when the age of
accountability is reached. Those who die before that age are accepted by Jesus
based on the principle given in scripture that "…sin is not taken into
account when there is no law."
Are
Babies Saved?
In the remarks, I have refrained from saying that infants are
"saved." That term should more properly be used to refer to those who
have made a profession of faith in Jesus and been justified by his blood.
Children are "safe" in that their sin is not counted against them. It
would not be proper to speak of them as "saved" since they have never
been "lost" (their relationship with God has not been broken).
