"Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it." Pr. 22:6 NASB
Today, millions of children are being brainwashed with a philosophy of hatred. Pick up any paper, turn in to any news channel, or log into the Internet and see how children strap explosives to themselves, learn how to fire automatic weapons, or sit in classes denigrating those not of their particular religion or race. In the Gospel's, Jesus told people to permit the little children to come unto Him, and forbid them not.
Jesus' goal was to provide new life for/to little children. Children, as young as five years, perhaps younger, can understand the Gospel message of salvation and honestly respond by asking Jesus into their heart. Too many Christians believe that a child must attain a much older age before they can receive Christ. When asked what age that would be, they waffle, not giving a clear answer if one is even given. It is something they have been told, but have not bothered to verify via the Bible.
The Bible tells us God has placed into each person born certain traits, gifts, or talents, and this has been validated by the scientific world. Parents are responsible for recognizing these traits, gifts, or talents, and for training their children accordingly. Parents are also responsible for teaching their children the Word of God.
Do you know the minimum requirement for entering into heaven? If not, why not? Have you studied the scripture, the Bible, to see what God has to say? 2 Peter 1:3, 4 tells us:
"… seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life, and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust." N. A. S. B.
Though a child, an adult, or an elderly person may not fully understand the various aspects of salvation in hearing/reading the Gospel, they can receive Christ, for they can realize they are eternally lost and they need a Savior.
You must be born again thru' accepting Christ and His atonement and enter into heaven when you die. Refuse Christ, and enter into Hell when you die. The scripture speaks clearly in these matters. Those dying before the age of accountability must enter heaven for they are innocent because they are too young to understand.
Jesus gave us the great commission of making disciples. To enable new believers to mature. One other important part of the maturing process can be found in Hebrews 6:1-3.
(1) "Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, (2) of instruction about washings (baptisms), and laying on of hands, and the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. (3) And this we shall do, if God permits." N.A.S.B. (emphasis mine.)
(1) "Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, (2) Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. (3) And this will we do, if God permit." A.V.
One might liken salvation to being hired for a job. When you receive Christ as your personal savior, in essence, you are hired to work in and for the Kingdom of God. But, like any job, one must be taught the basics. As shown in the above scripture, there are some very important basics that the new believer must come to know and understand. They comprise the foundation upon which the new believer builds their spiritual house. (More on the spiritual house later on.)
I've shown the comparison between the N. A. S. B. and A. V. in order to better understand the different use of words. There are six principles of the doctrine of Christ that each believer must come to grips with. They are:
1. Repentance from dead works.
2. Faith toward God.
3. Baptisms (washings) (plural in both versions.)
4. Laying on of hands.
5. Resurrection of the dead.
6. Eternal judgment.
Verse three contains a remarkable statement. God determines if we are to go on to maturity. Meaning, He may not permit a Christian to mature and be entrusted with the secrets of the Kingdom.
At this point let me digress a bit. In the Gospel of John chapter 15, Jesus is giving His disciples/Apostles some fundamental truths regarding relationships and the comparison between slave / servant and friend. In verses 14 and 15 we read the following:
"Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. (15) Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you." A. V.
"You are My friends, if you do what I command you. (15) No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you." N. A. S. B.
It is God's desire that the servant/slave status be changed to one of being a friend of God. A friend of God is one who goes on to maturity. Simply stated, a Christian is not to remain a child in their understanding of scripture, nor in their relationship to God. Moses was God's friend. [Moses knew God's ways because he was God's friend. Israel only knew God's acts.]
The friend is then given a deeper understanding of what God is doing. This is what I call the Maturity Factor. The maturing is a life-long adventure. During this adventure, God will test each of us to show us if we have gained in maturity or not. Comparing this with Hebrews 6:1-2 gives a clear understanding of what God requires if one is to go on to maturity.
We read in Colossians 2:3. All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are found in Jesus Christ. John 1:4 tells us that "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men." N. A. S.B. The following insight will help us understand the Maturity Factor.
"Consider a candle as an example. The nature of a lit candle is to give light and whatever one does with it, it cannot help but give light. To hide a candle is not to allow it to do its natural work of giving light, whether to others or only to oneself. No matter what one does, light is light and it cannot but illuminate. This is what a Christian ought to be. Therefore krúpto (Strongs 2928), to hide, in this instance means to cover. One cannot annul the nature of something such as light. [I begin with light as He not only is light, but gives us light, both in His indwelling person and in wisdom and knowledge.] Apókruphos, however, means to hide away from somebody. It is usually used with a good sense meaning to keep something secret or hidden from someone for benevolent reasons for a calculated time. God keeps certain things secret from us for a certain time, but this is for our good, exactly as we withhold certain knowledge from our children until the appropriate time. The distinction is clearly indicated in the third occurrence of Apókruphos in Colossians 2:3, …. . One can never know certain truths that are treasures unless one knows Jesus Christ Himself. Our knowledge of what Christ knows comes only as we become intimately related to Him and in the growth of that relationship. The treasures of wisdom are hidden from people as long as they do not know Christ Himself."1
Now, as to our spiritual house, we should understand man is a triune being. This consists of: body, soul, and spirit. To break it down further, the body consists of the five senses: seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, and touching. The soul consists of: mind, will (volitional: limited free will), and emotions. The human spirit consists of: revelation, intuition, and conscience. The outer house, the body, contains all the other parts that make up a human being, soul and spirit.
When I speak of the human will being limited I mean that all human beings are responsible for their thoughts, words, and actions. The will is limited in that regardless of what a person may want to do (the will), they are unable to do so. A person may will to fly and jump off a tall building, but he is incapable of overcoming the law of gravity.
In addressing moral issues, man is responsible and accountable. We always have a choice. Some choices can be extremely difficult to make, but there is always an alternative decision that can be made.
When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden through eating the forbidden fruit (disobedience to God's commandment), something called sin entered into them. In Romans 7 and 8, the Apostle Paul tells us that every human being has a law in their members (parts of the body) called sin. We are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. This law rules us in our members@.
Man, by himself, is incapable of overcoming the law of sin and death in his/her members. We pass this condition down to our children when they are conceived. The only hope man has to change this state is finding a way of overcoming the laws in their members and the law of sin and death. (I do not have the space to go deeper into the law in our members, but hope to do so at a later time.)
In Romans 7:24-25 Paul tells us, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law (this is good), but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin (this is not good)." N. I. V.
Our humanness became corrupted in the garden when the forbidden fruit was eaten, but there is hope for all who place their trust in Christ. We're going to be a slave to something whether we like it or not. We are far better off, eternally, being a slave/servant of God.
When one becomes born again, an incorruptible seed is planted within. We are, what the Bible calls, a new creation in Christ. Whereas before we were a slave/servant to the law of sin and death, now we are alive because of Jesus Christ.
This act of God produces within each one a "spiritual house." This new creation is to grow spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically through self-discipline, in reading & studying the Word of God, through prayer, fasting and in spiritual warfare. This is the way we go on to maturity. By training ourselves according to Hebrews 5:14 we can, with God's help, go on to maturity.
"But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." (Emphasis mine.)
In the future I will continue, if God allows, developing this theme. It is my hope that each of us profit by the study of the scriptures. That's The Way I See It. You may see it differently. If so, I hope you base your beliefs on the Word of God.
