Are you dying inside (Part 2d1a)

 in Bible

Dear Friends,

This is the first baby post. I hope it further convinces you that the popular view of John 3:16 can’t be right, and we need to stop putting God into unbiblical little boxes. Let us behold together his true majesty and love!

Series Outline:

Part 2 Outline:

Goo-goo ga-ga

I have never heard a single Christian propose that all babies go to hell. It’s understandable, because this would be an unbiblical and horrfiying idea.

Trouble is, if John 3:16 is telling us how to get to heaven, then it raises the serious question of how babies could be saved.

[Jhn 3:16 KJV] 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Are babies capable of believing in Jesus? If not, how can they be saved?

Today, we are actually just going to look at Biblical examples of babies who died and went to heaven, or people who were clearly regenerated even during infancy. I want to prove to you that it’s very important to confront the baby question, because the Bible confronts it head on.

I already spent 8 posts talking about regeneration, so I won’t rehash that today, even though it is very relevant. I wrote 2c8 (see link in outline above) as a summary of that series.

A voice was heard

There are several examples in the Bible of babies who died and went to heaven or who were clearly children of God before they grew out of infancy.

In an attempt to kill baby Jesus, king Herod killed a large number of children two years old and younger. This is recorded in Matthew 2:16., but Jeremiah also prophesies about this event. Watch for a prophecy of restoration, in bold.

[Jer 31:15-17 KJV] 15 Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, [and] bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they [were] not. 16 Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. 17 And there is hope in thine end, saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border.

He doesn’t say “heaven” explicitly….but since it has to be talking about heaven or hell, I think heaven is the clear choice. Otherwise, this would not be a very comforting message for poor Rahel. So, here we have children under two years of age going to heaven.

I shall go to him

Think two years old is old enough to accept Jesus? Here is a seven day old baby who went to heaven:

[2Sa 12:18 KJV] 18 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead?

[2Sa 12:23 KJV] 23 But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

What fits better with the statement “I shall go to him”? The idea that David will get a glimpse of the child before the child is cast into hell on judgment day, or that David and the child will be reunited in heaven? I say this child went to heaven.

Also, remember that David made many messianic prophecies via the Psalms. David was a prophet as well as a king. So I would caution against interpreting his statements here as mere expressions of emotion.

Upon my mother’s breasts

And speaking of David…

[Psa 22:9-10 KJV] 9 But thou [art] he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope [when I was] upon my mother’s breasts. 10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou [art] my God from my mother’s belly.

Interesting how he doesn’t just say God was taking care of him when he was young. No, he goes beyond that, saying that God actually imparted hope into David’s infant heart. He says you are MY God from my mother’s belly. Is that the description of someone who is totally depraved and going to hell? I hope we can agree David was already regenerated as a suckling.

If David can be regenerated as a suckling, why not other sucklings who never make it past suckling stage?

When Jesus makes you jump

This passage is a huge reason I reject the idea that you have to make a conscious decision for Christ in order to become regenerated. Here is a baby (John the Baptist) who, if he had died immediately after the passage I’m using, would surely have gone to heaven.

[Luk 1:15 KJV] 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.

[Luk 41-44 KJV] 41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: 42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed [art] thou among women, and blessed [is] the fruit of thy womb. 43 And whence [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

I don’t know how this passage can conform to “believe to get born again” theology.

Let me humbly suggest something to you: instead of figuring out how John could be filled with the Holy Ghost and leaping for joy at Christ’s arrival AND at the same be totally, completely depraved, why not accept that people can be regenerated in infancy, through a divine act of God’s sovereignty?

Either way, I think this post provides ample evidence that babies can go to heaven.

Sneak peek!

In the next post, I would like to tackle this question:

Are we sending those lovable little rascals to heaven just because we see examples of it in the Biblical narrative and/or because it makes us feel better, or because baby salvation actually syncs up with our broader Biblical understanding of God’s big, epic, amazing plan of awesomeness?

I don’t know about you, but I think it’s cool when the historical AND doctrinal passages in the Bible harmonize into a beautiful, operatic masterpiece of love.

God bless.

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