But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 3:14-15
Do children, babies, and the unborn go to Heaven when they die?
I am convinced, by the word of God, that they do, while simultaneously cognizant of God’s all-knowing attributes and how that plays into the picture. There are some Bible truths we all should know. First, Psalm 9:8 tells us that God will judge the world and He shall administer judgment to all with equity. In other words, this applies to everybody, but God is fair and He will take their unique circumstances into account. Babies are born sinful, but God recognizes their innocence at the same time. God acknowledges this truth in Jeremiah 19:4-5 and in Deuteronomy 1:39.
Moreover your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims, who today have no knowledge of good and evil, they shall go in there; to them I will give it, and they shall possess it.
In today’s vernacular, we would say that these children have not yet reached the age of accountability. Yes, they might understand that’s it’s wrong to hit another child (for example), but they don’t fully comprehend the notion of sin and how it defiles a relationship with God the Father. Because of this distinction, children are considered by God to be His children. Ezekiel 16:20-21, Matthew 18:2-3, and Matthew 19:13-14 bear witness to this also. Because they are His children, they go to Heaven if they die prematurely. In 2 Samuel 12, we see it again confirmed as King David reminds us that he would once again see his son in Heaven. Amazingly, God has found a way to put Jesus into our children!
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”
Our children have found favor with God!
Does that sound familiar? It should. It reminds me of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Like Mary, somehow, someway, God has manifested Himself inside our little ones as well. Just as Mary was safe and protected as Jesus grew inside her, so are our children. Miraculously, our kids have Jesus within and He abides with them until they are old enough to understand that they should also abide with Him. If tragedy should strike before they mature, believers have the assurance that these kids will be instantaneously ushered into the Father’s presence. Praise be to God!
But what occurs to our grown children after they reach their age of accountability? As strange as it sounds, what happens if they don’t die young?
He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. Revelation 3:5
That verse should give every Christian parent a shiver. First, the passage confirms what we have already established: all the names of our children are written in the Book of Life; if they should die at a tender age, they go to Heaven. However, it also carries a stern admonishment — that these very same names can be blotted out. Their names will be removed if they do not overcome.
Overcome what?
Well for one thing, child-birth! That is to say, re-birth. If they do not give birth to that which has been growing inside of them, their names will be removed from the Heavenly roll call. Nobody knows when this age of innocence is over, because it’s different for each person. They are born again by faith as the Holy Spirit gives breath to faith and our jobs as parents is to see that Christ grows in them prior to that event.
Imagine for a moment that you were the mother or father of Mary. Surely you would have done all that you could to ensure her the safe delivery of her baby. We must do the same for our children! Make no mistake about it! All children, like Mary have found favor with God. They have within them Christ Jesus and they must by faith bring forth this Son of God.
Parents, we have been given a great assignment!
Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6
Here is the reality — If we entrust our children to the world, the world will do all within their power to convince them to abort Jesus. It sounds ugly because it is ugly. God instructs us to train up our kids because once they are old enough to know right from wrong, they must choose to follow Jesus for themselves. Our duty is to take this responsibility seriously. We must train our children in the Way, as if their faith in Christ Jesus were in Olympic event!
Do you send your child to Sunday school?
That’s not enough. If that’s all you do, then you’re entrusting your child’s eternal future to what they glean in 30 minutes, once a week. If you were training your child for the Decathlon, would having him run around the block a few minutes, once a week be sufficient? Training our children is a huge responsibility and it’s a full-time job. Having your child pray before dinner is not enough either; nor is having them learn a memory verse now and them. The reality is if we want a child to be saved, we must train that child, so when the time comes, they will not depart from what they’ve been taught. If most of their time is spent in public school, in front of the TV or computer, and consuming junk food, what should we expect. If we let our children do this, then we run the great risk of our children rejecting Jesus and being damned to hell.
I submit to you, that if you truly know the fear of the Lord, you will not allow this to happen
“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:6-9
But my children are grown now!
Then pick up where you left off. Pray for them consistently and continually. Ask the Lord for open doors towards training opportunities. Pray. Confess to them how you sinned and ask for their forgiveness. There is hope. My parents, who I love and adore, did not train me up in the way, but God sent others. God will send others to your children as well. Pray. Pray. Pray.
I have 3 children; two boys and a girl. I did not take seriously the training of my first 2 children (twins) until they were about 11 years old. Honestly, I did not know the fear of the Lord. As a result, as young adults, they are not where they should be, spiritually speaking. I have not given up because God has not given up. In contrast, I started with my youngest before she was born, and although my training techniques are not perfect, I have been consistent. She has made her decision to follow Jesus and is moving strongly forward along the path.
Bottom line: the younger they are, the easier it is.
I cannot get a do-ever with the boys. I’ve confessed my sin and am doing all that I can now to make up ground, trusting in the Lord to restore what the locusts have taken away. And there is one other thing I can do — I can warn you. If you are not training your child properly, begin now and do whatever it takes. Eternity is at hand.
These articles may or may not relate:
- The Christmas Story – Part 1 (livingontilt.wordpress.com)
- Perfect Righteousness (iaminhim.wordpress.com)
- Pastor’s Corner: Are you giving Jesus a Christmas present? – Newnan Times-Herald (times-herald.com)
- Good News! (1singlefocus.wordpress.com)
- The Virgin Birth of Messiah (inspirationalchristiansfortoday.com)
- The importance of Christmas now more than ever. (travellingpreacherteacher.wordpress.com)
- Matthew 1: Jesus the King! (inchristalonedevotions.wordpress.com)
- GOD’S PROMISE – JESUS CHRIST – Born of a Virgin (ptl2010.com)
- Many people have asked me this year, “What is the Rapture”? Here’s what I tell them. (vineoflife.net)
- The Holy Spirit Dwelt Within Her (maryscatholicgarden.wordpress.com)
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Amen!
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No one goes to Heaven “when” they die; some will go “after” they die. How long after depends on whether you believe in the Rapture (many Christians do not): this is the only group who goes to Heaven. Children are sanctified by their parents believing until they are capable of making such a decision for themselves.
Prov 22:6 has nothing to do with raising a child “in the Word.” Yes, it is a huge parental responsibility of figuring out how to train a child in the direction the child is designed to go. Are they musically or mechanically inclined? What do they like to do? What skills do they exhibit? What don’t they like? This Scripture has more to do with their personal success in life than anything else.
Rev 3:5 has nothing to do with being “saved” here and now. We have nothing to overcome, just to accept Jesus as Lord of our lives. The overcomers applies to those left behind after the Rapture of the Church.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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I don’t see that ‘children are sanctified by their parents believing until they are capable of making such a decision for themselves,’ in the Bible. Do you have a bible reference for that?
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1 Co 7:14
For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.
NASU
Children are holy (sanctified) because of the believing of the husband, wife or both.
Holy = NT: 40-hagios
Sanctified = NT:37-hagiazo, comes from hagios
Thanks for asking. God bless and Merry Christmas.
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That’s not how I’m reading that. In regard to the citation, sanctification and salvation are not the same. If they were the same, then this same verse implies an unsaved spouse is saved. At any rate, I believe the Lord painted this picture in this manner so parent(s) would not assume anything regarding a child’s eternal destination, and therefore diligently teach them in the way they should go. One cannot or should not assume (for example) because they are stellar athletes, that the child automatically inherits that DNA. In the same way, the Christian faith is not automatically inherited, that is to say, once a child reaches that unknown age of accountability. A wise man surely would not assume their growing child is saved, and endeavor to instill in that child the full counsel of God. We see what occurs when Christian parents fail to do so — often times their grown, adult offspring falsely believed that are going to Heaven merely because their parents are believers. This is far too common a phenomenon. I also can see how the entire doctrine is a sticking point for the Calvinist and why this debate has endured for thousands of years. I’m ok with that, because I see God’s hand in it. Anyway, nice discussion. Merry Christmas.
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You may not see the verse in the same light as I, but we should allow others to see it how they would; it should be quite comforting to a believer who loses a young child. Perhaps we can see more by looking at the converse, being “unclean.” We see here in Ephesians that no unclean person has any inheritance
Eph 5:5
For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
KJV
It stands to reason that clean persons do. Holiness and Sanctification my not precisely equal salvation, but concerning the subject of this discussion, I think God will extend it because of a believing parent.
As far as grown children go, don’t assume anything until you hear them speak in tongues.
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…which is why the debate will continue until Christ returns. I discern God’s purpose for brushing this canvas in grayish hues. The issue of tongues will be for another day.
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