Conundrum Baptist Doctrine vs Satan

I was making the connection that the teaching of an "Age of Accountability" is something that has been reasoned out from scripture, but is not necessarily a scriptural idea. Moreover, various people and churches like to affix a certain age to the teaching that can be quite destructive. In the Baptist church where I grew up, it was considered to be 12 years old for some reason. Other churches claim the age of a bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah, which is 13, reasoning that it was the age that that Jewish people believe children are placed under the Law.

I don't like to invent extrabiblical teaching like an "Age of Accountability." I think it does not take into account the varying age and maturity of children. Some truly know God from very young, and others of us come to faith later. I think we need to leave the question up to God's character and mercy. Certainly God knows the heart and intent of His children, and He will do right by them.

As for my own experience, although I grew up in a Baptist church, I never heard the true gospel of Jesus unto I was nearly 14. Previously, I heard all kinds of scare stories about burning in hell, promises that Jesus was about to come back at any moment (it was the 1970s) and I probably would not reach adulthood before it happen, that I needed to walk down the aisle and tell the pastor I needed to be baptized, but at the same time, walking down the aisle and being baptized only moved you across the room and made you wet. There was nothing helpful about those teachings, since the whole thing seemed so arbitrary and contradictory. The only constant was the pressure from the Sunday School teachers to "make a decision for Jesus," whatever that meant.

I heard the gospel for the first time at a little "coffee shop" revival center, when the preacher preached on Jesus calling Peter out of the boat. He explained that Jesus was calling Peter into a relationship of trust -- a relationship that would continue even if we slip up and start to sink beneath the waves. That made sense to me and I gave my life to Jesus a few minutes after.

I am convinced that if I had died the evening before, God would have had mercy on me as someone who had never heard. After that night, I knew that God will have mercy on me because I have responded in faith, as an often-faltering disciple.

 

I don't understand your terminology or what you are trying to say. However, a child is a person, and persons ARE souls, both body and spirit. Even though babies and children inherit a fallen nature (they are ruined), that's not the same thing as being in rebellion against God. When one consciously chooses to sin, knowing in one's heart that they are sinning against God, then they become accountable for their actions before God. They have kicked off personal rebellion against God instead of merely being in a ruined state. Those is rebellion have to surrender if they are going to be saved. Those that are merely ruined may be rescued by God according to His kindness and character.

 

I did not claim that. I previously referred to it as "ruined," but more traditionally it has been called a sin nature. It is a bent away from God.

I agree.

The child has a sinful nature, but has not yet had an opportunity to be in rebellion (aka "a sinner").

Because you know better. You have heard. For those who haven't heard AND those who have not yet understood the witness of nature and common reason, they may possibly be redeemed:

Acts 17:30
Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent...​

By the way, the point of the gospel is not to "go to heaven," but to share in the kingdom of God eternally.

 

correct, there should be no such thing as infant death according to Iodebar doctrine.

 

Thank you. I appreciate the expanded answer BB.

 

In Adam, all die (1 Corinthians 5:22).

No, as a Christian. The kingdom of God is God's active rule and authority. It is present now and will always be. It is an eternal kingdom. Regarding "heaven," the heavens and earth will be reunited (Revelation 21:1-4), the curse from Adam's day will be removed, and the tree of life will be available again to those who are in Christ (Revelation 22:1-5).

If IS better to not have heard the gospel than reject it, but the problem is that we are made in the image of God, placed in a creation that testifies to God. Eventually, we will have understanding that there is Someone greater than ourselves and we have choices to make. We can seek the true God (like Abram/Abraham) or reject God in favor of our own conceits.

Hearing the gospel is the best opportunity to understand the nature of the true God and know that He offers a way for us to be reconciled.

 

May we have the evidence from Mormon, JW and Islamic writings please.

Who is the "you" in this sentence?

 

"abortion" is not a fetus that is aborted it is a human child that is slaughtered. Slaughtered, demeaning the lives of unborn children by referring to them as fetuses evil.

 

Thank you.

 

That passage as NOTHING to so with Adam sin and our spiritual state, its talking about somone being punished/executed for the sinful acts they have done here. God will judge and have a murderer killed, but will jnot execute the rest of the family just because dad was a bad man!