| | [Do All Babies Go to Hell?]
you
said all of us are born sinners=inherently bad. i understand this. so
this leads me to a very common question. do babies go to hell? based on
scripture, i'm going to assume yes. what i really want to know is how
do you explain this to a non-believer? i remember my friends were over
one time, and somehow we got on the topic of religion. they were saying
things most non-believers would say. like, "how is it fair that God
only chooses a few people (predestination) and no matter what other
people do, they can't get into heaven?" it's hard to explain God's
grace and holiness to people who don't believe in Him. so when they
asked if babies went to hell, i said i think they do. and i had no way
to justify it in their eyes, if that’s even possible. so i was just
wondering about this.
Do babies go to hell?
Some
reputable Christian pastors and scholars argue that ALL babies, because
they have not reached the “age of reason,” will be spared from
judgment. I believe that this line of reasoning completely
ignores “original sin”—the fact that people are born into sin.
Therefore, I wouldn’t be able to agree with the conclusion that ALL
babies will be spared from eternal death.
However, I don’t
think it’s right to assume that all babies will go to hell
either. It’s true that all babies are sinners in need of God’s
saving mercies. But it’s also true that God has chosen His people
before the foundations of the earth were laid.
Can a baby that
God has elected be condemned to hell, because s/he hasn’t verbally
(externally) professed faith in Christ yet?
Am I saying that a profession of faith in Christ isn’t necessary for salvation?
No,
it’s necessary. It’s the God-ordained norm. Someone hears
and understands the gospel message and responds to it in faith
(internally from the heart and externally through words and
deed). But could there be exceptions as with the case of infants,
the mentally ill, the mute etc? Would it be possible for God to
actually do the work of internally regenerating (transforming) the
heart of an infant or even a mentally retarded person? The
internal change would be there, but the external response would be
delayed till later in life.
Ultimately, I think we should leave matters of salvation up to God. He will save whomever He chooses to save.
He is the author and perfector of salvation.
But I personally think it’s more than likely that many infants, by virtue of being chosen by God, will be saved.
How do you speak about such things with non-believers?
Step-by-step.
You
can’t expect them to readily accept the doctrine of election if they
have no concept of their own depravity and sinfulness. When they
question God’s fairness (justice), they are using their own standards
of fairness and placing judgment on the God of the universe. But
from a Christian’s perspective it makes no sense for creatures to judge
the Creator. I think that’s one concept you have to communicate
at some point. Just slowly introduce them to how and why you view
the world as a Christian and leave the results up to God.
But I would also add that you don't want to make election the first
thing you talk about as if that defined the entire Gospel. If it comes
up deal with it in the best way you can, but don't make it the
centerpiece of your evangelism efforts.
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| | Posted 9/26/2006 11:09 PM - 23 Views - 2 eProps - 1 Comment
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