Childlessness is rebellion against God

So is it okay for a married couple to pop out one child and then choose not to have any more?

 

==With maybe a very few rare exceptions I agree with the position Dr. Mohler outlined on deliberate childlessness. However I disagree with Mohler's endorsement of Debbie Maken's book "Getting Serious About Getting Married" in which she promotes the marriage mandate doctrine. Dr. Mohler has also promoted that doctrine in recent years though not as forcefully as Maken.

 

I think what a Christian couple decides to do within their marriage is between them and God. Just because there isn't a Biblical example of a couple who chose to be childless doesn't argue for it being rebellion against God. That's an argument from absence of evidence, which isn't a Biblical or scriptural argument. To draw a conclusion about this issue related to the Christian faith, there would have to be direct principles or teachings from the New Testament. There aren't any.

 

I agree with his sentiments.

"As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate." - Psalm 127:4-5​

If individuals with full quivers shall not be ashamed, then I would suspect that the converse would be true as well.

 

Why would you suspect that? The converse of anything isn't necessarily true, let alone this statment.

From this text we know for a fact that:
1) a man with many children is happy
2) a man who doesn't have many children is ashamed (disappointed).

What the text does NOT say:
1) the man with no children, or few is not happy
2) a man with many children is not ashamed (disappointed)

 

I disagree with him on a lot of things when it comes to marriage and singleness.

To echo Jack Matthews, just because something isn't in the Bible doesn't mean it is automatically prohibited. My wife and I are waiting, probably 5 to 7 years, before we have kids so we can get squared up and ready for them.

Nothing wrong with waiting. Also, as soon as the second comes rolling around we won't plan on having anymore and take steps to ensure that.

Children are a gift from God...so is waiting to have them imho.

 

I dont know about all of this. We have 1 child, and will not have anymore. Too old at this point anyway. After we had the first we discovered that both my wife and I have genetic diseases, and we chose not to take the chance on passing them along. We would have like to have had more children, but the prospects of sentencing a child to a life time of pain seems too selfish on our part, so we opted out.

 

I have one child currently, and am as happy as could be. We are planning on having another one, but two will probably be it (unless God has different plans )
When I "go to the gate" (work), I'm as proud as can be of my little man! I think in context, that verse probably has to be looked at in the background of that day and age, something that I would hope an Al Mohler would do.

 

I think children are a wonderful blessing from God. I would guess that most Christian couples would want to have children. However I don't see scripturally were we can say that if they choose not to, they are in error of the word of God. Someone definitely should not be dogmatic about that point of view

 

Hello...

In this case the couple has obeyed the command to be fruitful and multiply (1x1=1 and that is multiplication :smilewinkgrin: ). So is it okay for them to opt for not having anymore?

 

The Biblical definition of multiply is to increase in number. Having one child does not sustain the population much less increase it.

 

I agree, married people should have children. It's the modern woman thing, "want my own space, be my own person, find my identity, have a career" that causes many to chose not to have children. Want to know who you are, where you belong in the world, have an identity, after being a christian, your next identity is wife and mother. Everything, absoutly everything, comes after God, husband and children.

 

So how many do you have to have to be right? Two? Four? Ten?

If one is not enough, then can you have too many?

Just wondering.

 

There is a biblical definition of multiply? What passage? Or do you mean that someone's interpretation of what multiply means is what you are talking about?

 

Yes.

The word multiply occurs in the Holy Bible 42 times. I know not of an instance where it does not mean increase in number or reward. Here are a few that apply to our topic...

"And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth." - Genesis 1:22

"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." - Genesis 1:28

"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them," - Genesis 6:1

"And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth." - Genesis 9:1​

No. Some things are self-evident.

In the below quote, definition 1 is the Biblical definition, definition 2 is the arithmetical definition.

 

Can someone tell me how the earth needs filling today? "Be fruitful and multiply" is taken out of context, IMO to support having children.