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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Must u b Christened to get to heaven | Acts 2:1 | Irish Eyes | 198545 | ||
No, water baptism is not necessary for salvation. Remember in Luke 23:43 where Jesus said to the thief, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." In his final hours on earth the thief was saved simply because he believed that Jesus was the Son of God. The thief was never baptised. The choice whether your daughter accepts Christ or not will ultimately be hers to make when she reaches the age of God-consciousness and accountability. What you can do as a parent is make sure that she learns about Jesus through Bible study. Age 6 is a great time to start teaching a child about the Savior. Children are so eager to learn! Proverb 22:6 says "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." Pray that God grants you wisdom and guidance as you instruct your child in the ways of our Lord and Savior. There is an added benefit in teaching a child, because the teacher always learns as well. |
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2 | Must u b Christened to get to heaven | Acts 2:1 | DocTrinsograce | 198563 | ||
Hi, Irish Eyes... Where might we find in Scripture this "age of God-Consciousness and accountability?" Does this sudden human responsibility for sin come in moment? In Him, Doc |
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3 | Must u b Christened to get to heaven | Acts 2:1 | Irish Eyes | 198634 | ||
Hi Doc, I suspect you may already know the answer to your questions, since the doctrine on the age of accountability is not directly written into the Scriptures. But I thank you for asking the question because it does encourage me to pray, reflect and study further. The age of accountability is a doctrine that has been hotly debated for quite some time, and probably will continue to be for quite some into the future. There are many doctrines that are addressed clearly and unquestionably, but the age of accountability is not one of them. Another issue of which there is no clearly defined doctrine is at what point does human life begin. But I digress. One compelling reason for the doctrine is the progression that condemnation must precede justification, and justification must precede sanctification. Yes, every human is born with the sin nature. Elohim is certainly aware of it, although we are not. I doubt that anyone could disagree on this point. Isaiah 7:16 even reads "For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good...", indicating that at some point a child DOES reach a point where he or she reaches discernment between good and evil, or right and wrong. Does it come in a moment? I'm trying to recall my point of awareness and it eludes me. For me it was more of a gradual awareness in lieu of one defining moment. It must have occurred at a very young age. Can you recall when you reached your point of awareness? Responsibility, though... even when I became aware I still doubt that I felt the burden of responsibility. That came later. There is no certain age when one reaches a level of awareness for God, for it varies from person to person depending on intelligence, societal influence, and the presence (or lack thereof) of evangelism. Some never reach it, either due to an early death or due to severe mental impairment. I would be interested in reading your thoughts on this subject, Doc, if you care to share them with me. In Christ, Cheryl |
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4 | Must u b Christened to get to heaven | Acts 2:1 | DocTrinsograce | 198669 | ||
Dear Cheryl, In the former post you spoke of the doctrine of the age of accountability in dogmatic terms, even to the point of using it as the basis for further action. As we teach -- which each of us do as we post on the forum -- we want to take care that we do not impute to a doctrine any greater authority than what can be derived, with certainty, from Scripture. As you've pointed out, the doctrine of the age of accountability does not have this kind of solid support. We might infer it from a variety of passages, but sound doctrine is grounded in better stuff than inference. Your qualifying post straighten that out. The the old Baptist divines never actually taught an age of accountability, per se. They did, however, assert that "Elect infants dying in infancy are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit; who worketh when, and where, and how he pleases; so also are all elect persons, who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word (John 3:3, 5, 6; John 3:8)" (Second London Baptist Confession of 1689, chapter 10, paragraph 3). This is also based on inference, yet the question is so often asked, and they were so certain of their conclusion, that they included it in the chapter on the doctrine of effectual calling. I wasn't just trying to make the point in my first paragraph when I sought your explanation. I'm always hoping that there is an interpretation from didactic passages, providing a firmer substantiation the doctrine. Until then, it seems safer to stick with the more certain doctrine of Scripture that the age of accountability begins at conception (Job 15:14; Psalm 51:5; Romans 5:12; Ephesians 2:3; etc.). Thank you for your qualification and clarification. It was well done! In Him, Doc |
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