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NASB | Acts 4:12 "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 4:12 "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation]." |
Bible Question: I have a Preacher Say that if a childs parents have never been saved.That if the child dies it will go to Hell .Does anyone have a response to this outlandish statement??????? |
Bible Answer: Dear Ronbur, The old divines said it best when they wrote, "Our first parents, by this sin, fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them whereby death came upon all: all becoming dead in sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body. (Romans 3:23; Romans 5:12, etc; Titus 1:15; Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-19)" --LBCF, 1689, Chapter 6, Paragraph 2 Now, it is true that Christ saves us from particular, specific acts of disobedience -- either things we have done against God or things we have neglected to do that He requires. However, Christ also saves us from our sin nature. That sin nature dooms us. When Adam sinned, every single one of his offspring died (1 Corinthians 15:22) -- even those not yet alive! (This is why Augustus Toplady in the hymn Rock of Ages wrote, "Let the water and the blood, from Thy wounded side which flowed, be of sin the DOUBLE cure.") Understand this very clearly: we are sinners, not because we sin; rather we sin because we are sinners. That is why David could say he was sinful from the time of his conception (Psalm 51:5). The doctrine of imputation is throughout the Scriptures. The Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms defines it as "A transfer of benefit or harm from one individual to another. In theology imputation may be used negatively to refer to the transfer of the sin and guilt of Adam to the rest of humankind. Positively, imputation refers to the righteousness of Christ being transfered to those who believe on him for salvation." The Easton Bible Dictionary states that imputation is "used to designate any action or word or thing as reckoned to a person. Thus in doctrinal language (1) the sin of Adam is imputed to all his descendants, i.e., it is reckoned as theirs, and they are dealt with therefore as guilty; (2) the righteousness of Christ is imputed to them that believe in him, or so attributed to them as to be considered their own; and (3) our sins are imputed to Christ, i.e., he assumed our 'law-place,' undertook to answer the demands of justice for our sins. In all these cases the nature of imputation is the same (Romans 5:12-19; compare Philemon 1:18-19)." So, the natural question arises: Do all infants go to hell? Actually, Scripture does not give us a definite answer. We know conclusively that they are all, every one of them, in need of salvation. Further, we know that there is no other way of salvation than through Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). These two facts lead us to the inescapable conclusion that IF infants are saved, they are saved only through the atoning power of the Christ's sacrifice. The divines mentioned above further stated, "Infants dying in infancy are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit who works when and where and how He pleases (John 3:8). So also are all elect persons regenerated who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word." It is encouraging to know that, how ever God deals with such situations, He does so while retaining His holiness, justice, love, and mercy. In Him, Doc |