It seems like Christianity and Jesus are increasingly under attack. What's going on? What we'll be looking at is what happens when Christians use human wisdom to interpret the Bible, twisting scripture away from its intended message. This blog is dedicated to using Scripture itself to interpret and help us understand Scripture. You are welcome to add your comments and thoughts. Other viewpoints are welcome. Disagreements are welcome.
The United Methodist Church is holding their national meeting in Texas this week. An issue that has been a hotly debated topic is that of homosexuality. This week, by a vote of 55% to 45% the United Methodist Church has reaffirmed their official position that homosexuality is not compatible with the teaching of the Bible. They got it right! Hallelujah!!
If a blind man is walking toward a cliff, we don't encourage him and tell him how wonderful he is and how he should be enjoying his walk. We WARN him. "Stop, blind man!! You are about to step off a cliff and die!" That is the loving thing to do... warn the blind man about the danger. That is what the United Methodist Church did this week. They took a courageous and loving step in saying to the spiritually blind, "Stop! You are heading for eternal death. You are going the wrong way." Turn from your sins, repent, and trust that Jesus has paid the penalty for all that you've done wrong!
New England, and Massachusetts in particular, seems to be the source of a new twisting of Christianity into something totally unChristian--"Progressive Christianity". Both words, "Progressive" and "Christianity" are misleading as this movement is neither.
The past eight posts have been based on observations made during visits to a Massachusetts United Methodist Church that was embracing "Progressive Christianity". This post provides an index to those posts. Each topic below is a link. Click on it to see the article.
This is the the third part of a three part post. I've been talking about how the United Methodist Church not believing in the inerrant and infallibility of the Bible has let to a practice of using changing human culture as the basis to interpret scripture, and this has led to the separation of love from obedience (toof God).
This brings us to the final point, the heresy that is driving United Methodists away from God. The worshipping of the god of inclusiveness. Everything I've observed in the United Methodist Church, and in the articles in the Progressive Christian Magazine, and in talking with practicing United Methodists... their beliefs and how they live out their faith is based not on the Bible, but on inclusiveness.
Love is defined not as obedience to God, but as inclusiveness.
Inclusiveness is the god of the United Methodist Church (or at least the god of many of the churches within the UMC).
In an article ("Blaming Our Ugliness on God") in the current issue of Progressive Christian Magazine, the Rev. Scott Campbell states: "The religious right has been on a campaign to belittle and ridicule the notion of inclusiveness, insisting that inclusion is not a doctrine, as if somehow that makes it less worthy or less linked to Christ."
Let's see if I understand the last part of what he is saying... if inclusion is not a doctrine taught by the Bible, we should still link the doctrine of inclusion to Christ. He is saying that our own human ideas are in authority over God. If we think it is a good idea, then we can make it a part of Christ. We decide what Christ's message is, instead of believing the Bible. This is what is called making god in your own image.
Looking over my past six posts we can see that the foundational doctrine that is driving un-Biblical practices in the United Methodist Church is the doctrine of inclusiveness. Everything is filtered through the doctrine of inclusiveness. Inclusiveness trumps everything else, including the Bible, the church's own Book of Discipline, the teaching of Martin Luther and John Wesley... everything.
What does the Bible say about inclusiveness? To start I researched (in the KJV) the words: include, inclusive and inclusiveness. None of those words are ever used in the Bible... anywhere. The Bible never talks about inclusiveness. It's a big book, with lots of words. But these words are never used.
Of course, that doesn't mean the principle of inclusiveness isn't taught in the Bible. So let's find out. Does the Bible teach the principle of inclusiveness?
Acts 4:12 says: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
So salvation is very exclusive. It is through Jesus Christ alone.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus says:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. " (Matthew 7:21)
The kingdom of heaven is very exclusive. Only those who obey God will enter the kingdom.
We saw in a previous post that the Lord's Supper is very exclusive. It is for believers only, and only those believers who are coming to the table in a worthy manner. (1 Corinthians 11:26-29)
Sin cuts us off from God. Isaiah 59:2 tells us: "Your iniquities have separated you from your God." Our sin divides humanity into two groups, those who are separated from God and believers who are no longer condemned by their sin (Romans 8:1) and thus have Jesus Christ living in them (Galatians 2:20). Each group is exclusive of the other. You can not be in both groups, and you must be in one or the other. They are exclusive.
God excludes some people from certain activities. Women may not teach men (1 Timothy 2:12). Only believers may be in ministry (1 Timothy 3:1-13, Titus 1:6-9). Those who embrace sin are not believers (Acts 3:19, 26:20, Luke 13:3).
Christianity is not inclusive. God has set boundaries and limits.
There is one aspect of Christianity that is inclusive. Salvation through God's grace is available to all. It does not matter where you live, what culture you are in, who you are, or how much you have opposed God (sinned) in the past. Everyone who repents (turns away from sinning) and trust Jesus Christ as their Savior is saved.
What principle about inclusiveness do we get from the Bible? Salvation is open to all (the opportunity is inclusive), but only those who repent and trust Christ are saved (salvation is very exclusive). That's it.
If there is a doctrine of inclusiveness, that doctrine is that we (believers) should be sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-3) with everyone... no exceptions. Are you doing that? Or are you instead worshipping the false "god" of inclusiveness and spending your time making sinners feel good about their sin? That's all that worldly inclusiveness accomplishes. It is a very unloving attitude to have.
If you truly love your neighbor, show that love by warning them about sin and eternal hell.
The Prince of Preachers, Charles Spurgeon said: "Have you no wish for other to be saved? Then you are not saved yourself. Be sure of that."
Jonathan Edwards said: "The only way we can know whether we are sinning is by knowing His Moral Law."
George Whitefield said: - "First, then, before you can speak peace to your hearts, you must be made to see, made to feel, made to weep over, made to bewail, your actual transgressions against the Law of God."
The Bible says: "But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murders, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." (Revelation 21:8)
"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? " - Romans 15:14
Christians need to go out and tell people, tell all the nations of the world, the good news about sin and Jesus Christ. That is practicing inclusiveness!
"Ignorance of the nature and design of the Law is at the bottom of most religious mistakes." - John Newton (who wrote the song "Amazing Grace")
Today I'll continue looking at the Progressive Christianity Magazine article (current issue) titled "Blaming Our Ugliness on God" by The Rev. Scott Campbell. My purpose is to shine a light on the most significant problem the United Methodist Church faces. The Rev. Campbell's article gives us the perfect example of that problem.
In yesterday's post we saw that Rev. Campbell believes we should be "personally accountable for our decisions and actions" instead of basing them on "Scripture, canon law and books of church order." So if we are not to base our decisions and actions on Scripture, what should we base them on? The answer, according to Rev. Campbell, is that the power of culture guides us. Speaking of the Bible's moral law concerning women and homosexuals in ministry he writes:
"Some will no doubt claim that Scripture is the source of the prejudices in question. It is curious however, how quickly such ironclad injunctions seem to lose their power when culture leaves religious law behind."
This gets right to the problem. He is stating that culture is in authority over God. That God's word must be interpreted, not through Scripture, but through our culture.
Who creates culture? People do. Do people have authority over God? No!
The Rev. Campbell is falling into the same trap Satan used to tempt Eve into sin in the Garden of Eden. Satan planted doubt that God's word was true (don't trust Scripture). He led Eve to change God's word (modify God's word based on your circumstances). And then led her to believe she could be equal to God and become a god herself (have authority to determine what is right and wrong). Might Satan be at work here? Martin Luther said:
"Satan, the god of all dissension stirs up daily new sects. And last of all which of all others I should never have foreseen or once suspected, he has raised up a sect such as teach that men should not be terrified by the law, but gently exhorted by the preaching of the grace [mercy] of Christ."
In his article the Rev. Campbell further clarifies his thoughts by writing: "I believe it is offensive to God to offload our own fears and prejudices onto God. In so doing we misrepresent God to the world. Instead of proclaiming a message that conveys the wideness of God's mercy, we tell a tale of a God who is frightened and limited..."
It sounds like the Rev. Campbell is preaching the message Martin Luther says comes from Satan.
One problem the United Methodist Church faces is that they do not believe in the infallibility and inerrancy of the Bible. The Book of Discipline (UMC Book of doctrine and rules) states that the Bible is sufficient for our salvation and that the moral law in the Bible should be obeyed. But, how do you know what the moral is, if you do not have the infallible and inerrant word of God to reveal the moral law? Do we use culture, which changes over time and is different around the world, to reveal moral law? Under no circumstances! That makes no sense. You would then be basing God's moral law on a foundation of sand.
The other "pillar" progressives use to support using culture to interpret Scripture is that by doing so we are, in the Rev. Campbell's words, following God's "mandate of living out Christ's inclusive love." The two key words are "love" and "inclusive".
What is Christian love? John Wesley said: "Before I can preach love, mercy and grace I must preach sin, law and judgment."
The Rev. Campbell is trying to separate love from God's law. But according to John Wesley God's law comes before love. You can not love without the law. Why? Because God's law describes God. It describes His character. It describes who He is. If you take away God's law, you no longer have God and you are worshipping a pagan idol you have created to serve you.
As much as the Rev. Campbell hates to turn to Scripture for guidance, let's see what Scripture says about the relationship between the law and love. This is 1 Peter 1:22
"Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply."
Peter is saying that obeying God (the truth) creates sincere love.
Keep in mind that love is not a feeling, it is an action. If we live in obedience to God, our actions toward others will be loving actions.
John, who is known for writing about love, says in 1 John 2:3-6
"We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, I know him, but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him. Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did."
Here again we see that it is obedience to God's word that defines a Christian. Remember, who Jesus was. He was without sin. He always obeyed the Father.
I've heard United Methodists say that because the great commandment (Mark 12:29-31) says to love God and love your neighbor, that this is how we obey God... by loving others. My question is, how do you do that? What exactly does loving God and loving others look like? 2 John 6 tells us:
"I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands."
Biblical love is not a feeling. The Greek word used in the New Testament for "love" is agape. It literally means to love with your actions. What are the actions? Obedience to God's word.
You can't know about love unless you are obeying God. You can't obey God unless you are loving. They are intertwined so tightly they can not be separated. The problem is that some United Methodist Churches force them apart, throw away God's word (law), and try to retain what they define as God's love. That doesn't work.
My next post will talk about inclusiveness.
Jonathan Edwards - "The only way we can know whether we are sinning is by knowing His Moral Law."
My last four posts may seem like I'm attacking the United Methodist Church. I'm not. Each of the problems I wrote about are not the result of United Methodist doctrine. United Methodist doctrine, as published in the Book of Discipline, is sound with only two exceptions that I've noticed... one of which I'll discuss in this article -- women as pastors.
The United Methodist Church allows the ordination of women as pastors. As we will see, although not prohibited by the Bible, there is a Biblical problem with this in some circumstances.
An article in the current issue of The Progressive Christian Magazine (a United Methodist related publication) discusses the topic of women as pastors. I'd like to use that article as the jumping off point for this discussion. There is a lot in the article and I'll talk about those other points in a future post.
The article is called "Blaming Our Ugliness on God" by The Rev. Scott Campbell. Concerning women as pastors he begins by stating:
"...even more distressing is the willingness of so many religious people to offload responsibility for the basest inclinations onto Scripture, canon law and books of church order, thus insulating themselves from the responsibility to be personally accountable for their decisions and actions."
This statement sounds like someone who is claiming Judges 21:25 as the way to live our lives -- "everyone did as he saw fit". Except in Judges everyone doing as they see fit, making their own decisions and actions independent of God, was not a good thing. Here Rev. Campbell is implying it is a good thing.
Rev. Campbell continues in the next paragraph by implying that not allowing women as pastors is something conservatives incorrectly blame on the Bible. He feels they should take personal responsibility for this:
"Bishops and others in authority would have to look candidates for ministry in the eye and declare, 'I judge you unfit for ministry because you are a woman. I hereby take full responsibility for denying your call.'""
In other words, Rev. Campbell is saying that the Bible does not prohibit women from being pastors, it is the men in some churches who are preventing women from being pastors. We'll look at scripture and see if this is true in a moment.
A few paragraphs later he states:
"We could go on to cite numerous all-too-familiar instances of the ways in which even the most conservative churches pick and choose which Biblical mandates they consider binding. Few 'Bible-believing' churches today, for example, insist on a literal adherence to Paul's injunction against women speaking in church. Suffice it to say that no sane person can claim to be an absolute biblical literalist."
He's stated two things: the Bible does not prohibit women from being pastors and although the Bible says women may not speak in church, no one follows this command. This implies that if the Bible did prohibit women from being pastors, we should ignore that prohibition. The reality is that his understanding of these teachings is 180 degrees un-Biblical in both cases.
Women Speaking In Church
So what does the Bible say? Here are the verses that talk about women not speaking in church:
1 Corinthians 14:34 says, "women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak..."
It seems straight-forward and clear... except that by quoting just this verse we are reading it totally out of context.
In 1 Corinthians 14, verses 26-40 Paul is talking about conducting worship services in an orderly manner. For example, people speaking in tongues or speaking prophecy are instructed to not do so all at once, but speak in an orderly manner so that it may strengthen the church.
How we interpret a verse must fit within the context of the surrounding verses as well as the entire Bible. In other parts of the Bible we read about women prophets and women deaconesses. These are positions that would result in women speaking in church. Also notice that in verse 26 Paul says "everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, or revelation, a tongue or interpretation." The term "everyone" includes men and women, so both men and women are speaking and worshipping in church.
If he is not telling women they can't speak in church, what is Paul talking about in verse 34? Notice that verse 35 goes on to say:
"If they [women] want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home..." The overall problem Paul is discussing is disorderly behavior in church. Apparently some women in the Corinthian church were behaving in a disorderly manner, speaking out of turn, questioning others and disrupting the church service. He is telling them to be quiet, don't disrupt the service. They should raise their inquires and objections at home, so they can be dealt with in a manner that is not disruptive.
This is why conservative churches do not take these verses to mean woman can not speak in church. That is not consistent with other Scripture and these verses do not say that. They say that women (and men) should not be speaking out in a disruptive manner in church.
Women as Pastors
The verse that is taken to say women can not be pastors is 1 Timothy 2:12. However, this verse does not say that. Here is what it says:
"I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man..."
Again we can not yank this verse out of it's context. We must understand it based on the immediate context of the verses around it, as well as in the context of the complete Bible.
This instruction is given in the context of Paul's instructions for worship (verses 1 through 15). In other places in the Bible women do have authority over men. For example, Deborah was a prophetess and a leader of Israel. She had authority over men. In the 1st Timothy context Paul is saying that women are not to have spiritual authority over men. They are not to be teachers of men in the context of spiritual teaching.
This means that a woman may be a pastor, if she is pasturing a church that only has women and children. Since part of a pastor's job is to teach and be a spiritual authority, a woman may not be a pastor of a church that has men as members.
For example, in a large church a woman might be the administrative head of the church, placing her in administrative authority over a male pastor. She may teach the pastor skills such as accounting or facility management. But she may not be in spiritual authority over the male pastor.
Paul makes it very easy for us to put this command in the context of the rest of Scripture. Paul goes to Genesis to back it up.
1 Timothy 2:12-14 says: "I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner."
This is my fourth post about my recent experience at a United Methodist Church. This post is about a practice Paul describes as, when done improperly, leading to sickness and death. Paul wrote:
"That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep (died)."
What is Paul talking about? Taking communion wrongly or with a wrong attitude.
Last Sunday at a United Methodist Church, in her introductory remarks to communion, the pastor described communion as being all about "radical hospitality". This was not a passing remark. "Radical hospitality" was described as the central theme of communion. Communion is ALL ABOUT RADICAL HOSPITALITY. (The death of Jesus Christ was never mentioned.)
But the heresy did not stop there.
When she invited people to come forward, she made a point of inviting ALL people to come forward.
Many churches practice an open communion. That means that if you are a believer, it does not matter what denomination you belong to, you are welcome to partake of communion. For example, the Catholic Church practices a closed communion. You must be Catholic to take communion in a Catholic Church.
This United Methodist pastor was not leading an open communion. She was inviting EVERYONE, believers and non-believers to participate in communion. I later spoke with her on the phone about this and she confirmed it. Everyone, without exception, was invited to take communion.
In our phone conversation she also confirmed that communion is all about "radical hospitality". I had not heard wrong or misunderstand what she said during the service.
The Book of Discipline, which is the United Methodist Church's manual describing what they believe and how things are done, says
Article VI, The Confession of Faith: "...we believe the Lord's Supper is a representation of our redemption, a memorial of the sufferings and death of Christ, and a token of love and union which Christians have with Christ and with one another. Those who rightly, worthily and in faith eat the broken bread and drink the blessed cup partake of the body and blood of Christ in a spiritual manner until he comes."
It says nothing about "radical hospitality" nor about communion being open to everyone, believers and non-believers. Communion is described as Christians rightly, worthily and in faith eating the bread and drinking the cup.
So what does the Bible say?
The Bible says that communion is for believers only, and it is very serious about this.
"For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself." -- 1 Corinthians 11:29
The Bible says that you must come to communion with the right attitude. For example, you are not to just treat communion as another meal or as an opportunity to eat. To take communion with an unworthy attitude is a very serious sin.
"Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord." -- 1 Corinthians 11:26
The Bible says that we take communion in remembrance of Jesus Christ and to "proclaim the Lord's death until he comes."
"And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying, 'This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.'" -- Luke 22:19
"'This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way, after supper he took the cup saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood, do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." -- 1 Corinthians 11:24-26
Paul goes on to say:
"A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep." -- I Corinthians 11:28-30
In this case United Methodist beliefs, as described in the Book of Discipline, accurately reflect the Bible.
Why does this pastor depart so radically from the Bible? I'll give you my thoughts on that in a future post.
But I also must ask, why does the United Methodist Church allow heresy to be preached in two of their churches? (This person pastors two churches.) Why do the members of these churches not speak out???? Are there any Christians in these churches?
Yesterday I mentioned having attended two services at a "progressive" United Methodist Church. This is more than a random church I was visiting, this is the church I grew up in.
After attending Sunday school and church services at this church for 18 years, I did not know the meaning of the words "born again" (John 3:3). I did not know that I was a sinner in need of a savior (Romans 3:23). I did not know that salvation was only through Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). In other words I had never heard the gospel.
This past Sunday during the service the pastor briefly said something along the lines of, "This is what the gospel is..." I remember that at the time it struck me as not being the gospel presented in the Bible, but later that day I could not remember what she said. So I called her and asked her to tell me what the gospel is.
She was concerned that the answer to this question was too complicated to discuss on the phone. But she gave it a try. Her answer was that the gospel was very involved and included a wide breath of theology. That in addition to the individual gospel there is a corporate gospel. The gospel is not "all about us individually". The gospel also tells us that we need to do good works. We have to make the world a better place. The gospel is a social gospel.
That's not what I remember reading in the Bible. I thought the gospel is so simple that anyone can understand it. Here's what the Bible says. Paul defines the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
"Now brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain."
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also..."
Notice that Paul starts out by making it very clear that what he is about to write is THE GOSPEL. It is the gospel that saves. It is the foundation on which we stand. To believe anything else means we are believing in vain.
The Gospel is not complicated and difficult to explain. It is very simple. Christ died for our sins. He was buried and rose from the dead on the third day. He was then seen alive again by many people, demonstrating that there is life after death.
In Galatians Paul makes it very clear, that if anyone else preaches a different gospel, no matter who that person is, that person deserves to be eternally condemned.
"But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned." -- Galatians 1:8
Then in verse 9 Paul repeats what he just said again: "As we have already said, so now I say again, If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other that what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned."
This must be a very important point for Paul to have repeated it. He wants to make his point clear. The gospel he is preaching (1 Corinthians 15:1-8) is the ONLY gospel. How did he know the gospel he preached is correct and is the only gospel?
In verse 11 Paul goes on to explain: "I want you to know brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, rather I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ."
The gospel Paul preached came directly from Jesus Christ.
Yes, as Christians we should be doing good works and be striving to create a better world (James chapter 2.). But our good works are a result of our faith, coming from our love that originates in God. Good works are not a part of the gospel message they are the result of the gospel and God's saving grace.
I urge this pastor to keep in mind Proverbs 30:5,6 "Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar."
Should A Pastor Mislead Small Children Concerning Salvation?
I've just returned from a ten day trip to Massachusetts. One of the greatest difficulties in evangelizing in Massachusetts is that this region is heavily Catholic.
For example, I spent time evangelizing at the Three County Fair in Northampton. People, were very friendly and open to receiving gospel tracts, but not open to talking about the gospel. A common response was, "I'm okay. I'm Catholic."
When I have been able to talk with New England Catholics I've found this means they feel they are saved because they are Catholic, not because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
They have been inoculated against the gospel.
In other words they a belief that because they go to confession, attend mass, participate in the sacraments, etc., they will be saved. Since they feel they are saved, they have no interest in hearing about salvation... they just want to get on with living enjoying their lives. Their trust in a false gospel prevents them from hearing the true gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Catholic Church isn't the only church that does this.
I had the opportunity to attend services at a "progressive" (a word that means liberal) United Methodist Church for two Sundays. What broke my heart was the way the pastor spoke to the small children during the children's part of the service on the first Sunday. Her lesson for the children was that they are "children of God."
To be a child of God means you have been adopted by God. What does the Bible say about children of God?
"Now if we are [God's] children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ..."- Romans 8:17
A child of God is heir to the kingdom God. The pastor was telling the children they were saved! None of them knew Jesus. None of them knew what sin was. None believed that Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for their sin. But they were being told they were saved, and thus they were being inoculated against hearing the gospel that will truly save them.
Before we look at who the Bible says are children of God, I should make something clear. I do not believe children are condemned to hell. The Bible makes it clear that infants and children, those who do not have the capability to understand their fallen condition and the good news of the gospel, are not held accountable by God. Also, I do not believe we should be telling little children they are sinners headed for hell, until they can also understand they are saved through Jesus Christ. However, we are without love for children if we teach them things that are not Biblically true and which will be a stumbling block to their receiving the gospel when they are older.
So who are the children of God?
Galatians 3:26 -- "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus."
Romans 8:13-14 -- "For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are lead by the Spirit of God are sons of God."
Romans 9:8 -- "In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring."
Believers are the children of God.
What condition are natural children in? Psalm 51:5 makes it very clear: "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me."
We are sinners even before we are born. We are sinners from conception! Before we are believers we are children of wrath.
"All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature children of wrath." -- Ephesians 2:3
As cute as they are, little children are still living in sin and are children of wrath. It is only when they accept Jesus Christ as saving them from the consequences of sin that they become children of God. To lie to them, telling them they are children of God, while it may make them feel good, it moves them further away from heaven. How can anyone who claims to love children do that?
