What About The Children - 1

Under non-Christian welcomes a Turning Point. We kid the district is no greater heartache than the loss of a child to help withdraw how to ease the right of the durbar offers biblical assurances that children who toss away. Toss right into the arms of God is that which is what about the children well in the series that we have done on heaven.

Perhaps the most poignant question that I received was what about the children. What happens to children when they die.

And the answer to that is found in several passages and the Bible, and perhaps more meaningful is the answer this question in any will ever ask about the mysteries of heaven.

So let's find out what the Bible says about.

First of all I would like you to think with me for a moment about the character of God so the Bible is information about the character of God that he is given the name father tell us something that many things we can summarize about the character of God drive us to the conclusion that children who die before they can understand the gospel do indeed go to the father's arms in heaven examine a few verses with you. Psalm 8615 you are God, full of compassion and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in mercy and truth.

Psalm 135 in verse nine is all, and his tender mercies are over all his works. These are just two of thousands of verses which tell us that the God we serve is a good God is good all that would certainly include infants. God is fair and God would never judge anyone unfairly, some might argue that if we believe this that would excuse have not heard the gospel, but such reasoning is flawed because both Romans and Psalms teach us that no one is without a witness that God's creation is a witness to his existence, and men are held responsible for that witness, but babies are different. They cannot understand the witness of God. They cannot understand his witness in creation and serve the grace and mercy of God, intercedes on their behalf. When the children of Israel were denied entrance into the promise land because of the unbelief of the people to remember that when they wouldn't believe that God can help them go into the land of the spies came back and said we can't do this. Interestingly enough, when the people that generation were not allowed to go into the land because of their unbelief.

The children were exempted from that penalty. Deuteronomy 139 says it this way over little ones and your children who you say will be victims today have no knowledge of good and evil.

They shall go in there I will give it, and they shall possess.

In other words, the whole generation was going to be penalized for their unbelief. But here's an illustration for God did not.

Children responsible for the unbelief of the adults.

In fact there's a bit of irony in this passage if you will.

The spies came back and said that giants in the land would destroy their little children and God came back and said no no little children are the only ones are going to the promised land.

You remember the story of Jonah. When Jonah was asked by Almighty God to go and preach to Nineveh and Jonah did not want to go because he hated the Ninevites they were cruel and abusive people of the reasons God gave to Jonah for having Penny on Nineveh was the huge number of children that lived in the city. Jonah 411 says it this way should I not pity Nineveh, that great city in which are more than 120,000 persons who cannot discern between the right hand and the left hand and much livestock. In other words God was saving the city of Nineveh, primarily because there were so many children there and he would not punish the city as wicked as it was because the children there kept him from doing it. The careful study of God's word by anyone who has an open mind reveals a heavenly father who deals justly with us all in his justice he provides for children who are not old enough to comprehend the gospel.

In fact, in the book of Ezekiel we are told that Almighty God considers all children as his Ezekiel 1620 says.

Moreover, you took your sons and your daughters whom you are to me. God says your brother's children. To me these are my children. God is not going to do unrighteously with his own children. The character of God provides a special grace for those who cannot believe on a number of occasions.

God refers to these little ones as innocence. Jeremiah 234 on your skirts is found the blood of the lives of the poor, innocence. Jeremiah 19 for this place with the blood of the innocent, not listen carefully. Although children are sinful creatures, just like all of us. They are not responsible in the same way as those who sins are ripple and premeditated and God refers to them in that sense, as innocence. That's the name he gives them their innocence. So we see this matter of the character of God certainly lays the foundation for the realization that children who do not understand the gospel and never understood the witness of God.

These children are provided for in the grace and mercy of our Lord. Let's take another look at this second reason I believe that children go to heaven when they die they are not old enough to understand the gospel has to do with the condition for salvation is the one requirement for a person to be saved to put it another way, what must a man do to be lost all threats of hell in the Bible are reserved for those who have sinned knowingly and willingly. Galatians chapter 519 through 21 speaks of those who end up in the hell, and it gives along grocery list available things that they do to deny the holiness of God. Revelation 21 eight has a similar list, but much shorter but the cowardly, and the unbelieving in the abominable and the murderers and the sexually immoral, and the sorcerers and the idolaters and all liars shall have their place in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second best doesn't mean little ones ever committed the sin can go to heaven, but it means those who continue to live this way and deny the grace of God.

These people cannot go to heaven.

You cannot go to heaven in your sin.

That's what Revelation is saying. Ezekiel 1820 says. At the same way only individualizes it and it says the soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

Isaiah the prophet speaks about such a.

No innocence in the life of the child in this prophecy is actually speaking about the Lord. Isaiah 716 says before the child know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by broker kings before child knows to choose between evil and good. That's a period of time in a child's life. A time when I don't understand the difference between good and evil when they cannot yet comprehend what the gospel is all about. During that period of time according to what I understand from the Bible. These children are protected under the blood of the Lord.

So first of all, the character of God teaches us that little children go to heaven. Secondly, the condition for salvation which is to reject the gospel teaches us that the child is not rejecting the gospel, but certainly God has provided for him in grace. Thirdly with me at the compassion of the Savior. When you study the life of the Lord Jesus and discover at once that he had an incredible love for children. He demonstrated that love on so many different occasions. Here are some passages in the Gospels that express the compassion of Jesus Christ the Savior for children to the notice and want to emphasize this as I read them. How many times in these passages we read the word or the phrase children or little children, not children only but little children Matthew 1913 and 14. Then little children were brought to him that he might put his hands on them and pray that the disciples review them. But Jesus said, let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Mark 1013 and 14 and they brought little children to him that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked those who brought them but when Jesus saw he was greatly displeased and said to them, let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of God. Luke 1815 through 16. Then they also brought infants to him that he might touch them. Notice the word is changed from little children. In this text. Now the word is a different word for children and it means infants little babies and they also brought infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples sat they rebuked them.

But Jesus called them to him and said, let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of God. Are you getting the picture for the love that Jesus has for children at that time the disciples came to Jesus saying then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven and Jesus called a little child to him and set him in the midst of them and said assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives a little child like this in my name receives me. I want you to notice this next phrase. Even so, it is not the will of your father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. Now if I didn't have anything else in all the Bible but that one phrase I be okay. It is not the will of your father in heaven that one of these little ones should perish, there you have's strong evidence a strong, unambiguous statement of the Savior. He is not willing that one of these little ones should perish, but that was all I had I been my hope on that alone. Lord Jesus has compassion for children and infants and is not willing that even one of them should perish, I believe, is all who accept the authority of God's word that a child is a person from the moment of conception, since that is true, since that is true, then all these unborn one for what reasons they have been unborn will be taken by the father to heaven. These principles apply to those who in days past, perhaps in weakness or in fear or in unbelief allowed abortion. There is no one I know who is more sensitive to this issue than a woman who has had an abortion want to say to all of you gals if that's happened to you.

God has forgiven you. That is not the unpardonable sin.

God has forgiven you. And he's even gone beyond that he is so gracious to you that one day that little one that was aborted. You will hold in your arms. These principles also apply to those who, while they are mature physically have never matured mentally or emotionally, but maybe in the body of a mature person but the mind has been impaired to such an extent that they have a mind of a child as far as heaven is concerned they are children and they would be taken to heaven when they die.

So I am absolutely certain from these first three points the character of God. The condition of salvation and the compassion of the Savior that little babies who died before they are old enough to understand the gospel go to heaven but that is not the most powerful reason there is an incident in the life of David that is fundamental to the question we are answering today 12 chapter of second Samuel records the events that happened in the life of David immediately after he was confronted by the prophet Nathan know I have to not assume that everybody knows the Old Testament, so let me just tell you briefly the story David committed adultery with Bathsheba you will know that you know that in the process.

He also had Bathsheba's husband, Uriah the Hittite killed and for a whole year. David hit this in his heart. Nobody knew it but him and one day Almighty God came to Nathan his profit and he said Nathan I have an assignment for you. You are now to go and confront David. I've often thought how awful it would've been to be Nathan, you want me to go confront the king yes so Nathan goes and he confronts David concerning his adultery and the murder of Uriah and among other things. Nathan told David that the child that he and Bathsheba have brought into the world would be taken away in death, to pick up with me your reading of this text in second Samuel chapter 12 in verse 13.

However, because of this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord, to blaspheme the child is born to you shall surely die. Then Nathan departed to his house and the Lord struck the child that Uriah's wife brought to David and it became ill therefore pleaded with God for the child and David fasted and went in and laid all night on the ground so the elders of his house arose and went to him to raise him up from the ground, but he would not nor did he eat food with them.

Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died and the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said. Indeed, while the child was alive.

We spoke to him and he would not heed our voice.

How can we tell him that the child is dead he may do some harm when David saw that his servants were whispering, he perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants is the child then and they said he is dead, so they would arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes and went into the house of the Lord and worshiped.

And he went to his own house and when he requested they set before him, and he ate. Then his servants said to him, what is this that you have done.

David fasted and wept for the child while he was alive when the child died, arose and you ate food and David said, listen to this. While the child was alive, I fasted and wept for. I said who can tell whether the Lord will be gracious to me that the child may live, but now he is dead.

Why should I fast can I bring him back again.

I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me what was David's confidence in that moment that he would see that child again. He said I can bring the child back but I will go to the child. Some people say well what David is talking about here is the just as the child went to the grave. David would go to the grave.

But wait a minute. It was this thought of a reunion with this child but chair David but where did he think this reunion would be going to be in the grave or in hell and heaven believe that he himself would go to heaven after death and consequently meant to express the belief that this child had gone on before him for that blessed place in the idea of meeting his child in the unconscious grave had no rationally emotional comfort for him. He could not have thought of any good thoughts. If he thought the child was in hell no he said I am encouraged.

I want to go to that child, so much so that he quit weeping and fasting he went in and dressed himself when he came out and met the people. David knew something that we now know that when little children die before they understand the gospel. They go straight to heaven. And no matter what anybody says the tenor of the word of God. The character of God. The consequences of believing all of that bring together this truth that children who die before they can understand the gospel go to heaven now let me answer a couple of other questions that are always a part of this discussion. What about the age of accountability. We say that children are protected until the age of accountability. People are always asking me the question what is the age of accountability. They want chronological number of the age of accountability is this different as the ability of your children to comprehend how many of you have more than two children.

Many would say that your children all developmentally along the same line perfectly so that they understood things of the same age anybody. I don't think so. Not even twins all come along a different path so the age of accountability is a different age chronologically for each child. It simply means a time when children can understand the gospel are little children innocent until they reach a certain age know they are not innocent in the sense of their cinder centers.

They are covered by the blood until they can understand that, and then they become responsible.

The Bible is very clear that we are born in iniquity and shaped in iniquity were born with the sin nature. Age is a child when he becomes responsible for his relationship with God.

Isaiah refers to such a time that we mentioned earlier in Isaiah 716 and I want to go back to that passage again for before the child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, important thing to remember is that the Bible does not make any reference at all to an age of accountability, but there is a time in the life of every child when they are able to understand God's love when they comprehend what it means to be a sinner and for some children that knowledge comes at a very early age and for some it may take more time. The age of accountability is not a chronological measurement.

It is a reckoning of spiritual understanding. So we just pause here for a moment and say to parents. How will I know when that time comes. If you raise your children in the context of the gospel.

They will ask you the questions almost without exception, that happens you get into a conversation become the church, they hear the gospel. I grew up in a pastor's home, I went to church every Sunday.

I heard my dad give the gospel and preaching. Oftentimes I saw people come forward and I'll go home and asked my father about that. We have this discussion.

I think it's also very fair for me to say that often in Christian families are what we might call pre-conversion experiences for children have a sensitivity to the Lord and they make the prayer but later on realize that there was more that they needed to understand and so we pray the prayer again.

You should never ever feel badly about that. I know that happened in my life to three times I was actually baptized twice because the first time I was baptized as a little child and I realize later as I grew up that I didn't really understand the gospel at that time and I want to be sure that I have this in the right sequence so I was baptized once I knew what the gospel is all about mowing the age of accountability happens when kids and Sunday school recent vacation Bible school summary presents the gospel and they know that they need to be saved and so you share the gospel with them. What a privilege it is apparent to leave their child to Lord every one of our children's had a different experience. All have come to the age of understanding in a different time numerous parents need to be sensitive to that and that's one of the reasons why we dedicate parents. We have our dedication services. We don't dedicate children we really dedicate the parents and ask them. You agree that you will ruin your children in such a way that at the earliest possible age they will hear and understand and receive the gospel. That's what you hope is that you help them understand that you bring them to an understanding of and at a certain age you realize that they do understand and then they receive Christ. People asked me when should a child be baptized only when they can understand the gospel and explain it when they can share with you how they know their question and they should be baptized in the same should probably be true of communion reason I'm telling you that is this I want to give you all great comfort about children died before the age of accountability, but I don't want you to go to sleep on the importance of your children coming to know Christ when they reach the age of accountability. There is no guarantee that when a child reaches the age of accountability there just automatically go to become a Christian. If you don't live in such a way and honor the world in such a way and share the gospel in such a way that they will understand and especially do I want to say this to dance if you want your son to be a Christian than the probability is going to have to become one yourself because you cannot import what you do not possess an children will not understand the gospel if it is not lived out before them in flesh and blood red about the age of accountability. I one last question, and they were finished how our children to be in heaven but to go all kinds of different news concerning this question and there is no absolute answer given in the Scripture. Some believe that when we are in heaven we will all be mature in body and mind and spirit and the thought is like this. If babies cannot fully enjoy this life. How can we expect them to fully enjoy eternal life with God, if there still babies.

One proponent of this view argues that the book of Revelation describes worship in heaven, and as it involves everyone who was there. Therefore, whoever is in heaven will be at such an age is to be able to participate in the eternal worship of Almighty God will not do that others that I have read believe that children will be allowed to grow up in heaven and they support this view.

This way if the millennium is the prelude to heaven we know something about the millennium that's true, and that is that there are children in the morning. Remember Isaiah 11 a little child shall lead them. A nursing child shall play by the cobras. Hold aniline child shall put his hand on the viper's den. So if the millennium is part of heaven. Then there's some reasonably but perhaps children will be in heaven. And some people believe the children will be in heaven and allowed to grow up and told me the age of 30, and then the be frozen at 30. Now wouldn't that be something that is heaven. Just think about that is. Anyway, I don't know the answer to that except J.

Vernon McGee, who was such a quite teacher once said, I believe with all my heart that God will raise the little ones, such that the mother's arms.

You have ached for them will have the opportunity of holding them. The father's hand, which never held the little hand will be given the privilege.

I believe that little ones will grow up in heaven in the care of their earthly parents if they are saved well. I tried to deal with the subject in a sensitive way, and I hope that what you've understood from what I've said is if you have one little one who is gone and you no longer with them. They died that little one is with the Lord. I believe that with all my heart, on the authority of the word of God. I can tell you that I can also say don't listen your vigilance for the children God is giving you and watch over them as a mother hen watches over her chicks bring them to a knowledge of Jesus Christ at the earliest possible age, there was a family whose baby boy had died in the little girl came to the mother and ask her where her baby brother had gone and her mother said he is going to be with Jesus. A few days later, the mother was visiting with a friend in she was saying to her friend. I am so grieved to have lost my baby, the little girl heard her remark and came to her mother and said mama is something lost you know where it is.

Well of course not replied to mother will how can baby be lost when he is going to be with Jesus as the little girl baby is not lost when you know that baby is finally there's one more difficult question and then remove close the session, the question of ashes where your baby in heaven, but I want to ask one that's really pertinent everyone of us that is will you be in heaven with your baby. Baby is going to be in heaven.

I can tell you that without any doubt, but I don't know about you new are not under the special blessings of the Lord you are above the age of accountability. You are a morally responsible adult and you must make a decision about heaven.

The children of born-again parents do not automatically go to heaven. Neither do the parents of children in heaven automatically joined them there. If you want to see your child and enjoy a heavenly reunion.

You must be born again you must come to know Jesus Christ Almighty God sent his son Jesus Christ into this world to be your savior.

He has done all the work he has done everything that needs to be done. He only asked you to accept it and believe and receive him into your life. If you do that you become a Christian and you will spend eternity in heaven with God and with those children who have gone on before. If you refuse to do that will not go to heaven. This does not apply to adults, it applies only to children before they can understand, so my plea with you today is to know Jesus. Are you sure that if you were to die today. You would stand before God with the right answer and be able to enter into heaven never made that decision to trust asking. We hope you enjoyed today's Turning Point begin edition with Dr. David Jeremiah to hear this. Another Turning Point programs are to give more information about this ministry.

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