Children Are Born Innocent of God

Matthew 18:2-6 “Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, (3) and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  (4)  Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  (5)  Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.  (6)  "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”

In the above quoted passage of scripture our Lord Jesus taught us that we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven unless we are first converted and become like little children. Some have thought that what Jesus was referring too was that we need to become as humble as little children, in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. But that is not what Jesus said at all. Jesus mentioned humility in this passage in the context of being great in the kingdom of heaven, not in the context on how to enter the kingdom of heaven. We do not enter the kingdom of heaven by being humble; we enter the kingdom of heaven by being born-again. And so we see that we are converted and become as little children when we are born-again, for it is at that point that we become babes in Christ. And so what Jesus is teaching us in this passage is that when we are converted i.e. born-again, then we become just like all little children already are; we enter the kingdom of heaven, in which they are already part of. There are two further truths about children that our Lord Jesus teaches us in this passage of scripture. The first is the severe warning that He gives to the one who would cause a little child to sin. Have you ever heard it said that you don’t need to teach children to be naughty because they are all just naturally naughty? If that were true, then why would Jesus hold us accountable for causing little children to sin, if sin is just part of their nature? The reason He holds us accountable is because it is not natural for children to commit sin, for they are born of God. The second truth that our Lord reveals to us in this passage is that all little children naturally believe in Him. For He said, “these little ones who believe in Me”. Again, the reason that children naturally believe in God is because they are born of God. Children believe what they are told; that is how God created them, for He created them to only ever be told the truth. Let that truth sink down into your understanding. And so to teach children anything but the truth is to cause them to believe a lie. Fairy tales may seem innocent, but they damage a child’s faith in God when they finally realize that fairy tales are not true.

Mark 10:13-14 “Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.  (14)  But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.”

 In the above quoted passage of scripture we see how close to Jesus’ heart little children are, for the scripture says that He was “greatly displeased” when He found out that the disciples were trying to keep the little children from coming to Him. I can imagine that the disciples learnt very quickly not to transgress in this area again. So just why was Jesus so protective over small children? Jesus answers that question Himself in this passage, when He plainly tells us that “of such is the kingdom of God”. The reason that Jesus stated that children were of the kingdom of God, was because He knew that all children were born of God.

Matthew 18:10 “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.”

 In the above quoted passage of scripture when Jesus revealed the truth about angels being assigned to children, He did not state that only a select few had angels assigned to them. He clearly stated that all children have angels assigned to them, and that their angels always see the face of God the Father who is in heaven. The reason that God assigns to each child on the earth their own angel, is because each child born into the earth is a child of God. In this passage Jesus taught us not to despise little ones. The reason for that is because they are God’s children, and any that harm them will have to give an account to Him.

Deuteronomy 1:34-40 “And the Lord heard the sound of your words, and was angry, and took an oath, saying, (35) 'Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers, (36) except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because he wholly followed the Lord.'  (37)  The Lord was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, 'Even you shall not go in there.  (38)  Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.  (39)  'Moreover, your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims, who today have no knowledge of good and evil, they shall go in there; to them I will give it, and they shall possess it.  (40) But as for you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.”

 The above quoted passage of scripture gives us clear insight as to how God’s sees little children. The context of this passage of scripture is that Moses was recounting to the children of Israel how God had led them up until that point. Moses told them what God’s response was to them refusing to enter into the Promised Land when He had commanded them to. The point that I want to highlight from in this passage of scripture, is that God Himself said that their little ones “had no knowledge of good and evil”. And so clearly in God’s eyes children have no knowledge of good and evil, and He deems them to be innocent before Him. In other words God does not hold them accountable for any sin, for He is not unjust to hold accountable those who have no knowledge of good and evil.

Psalms 106:37-38 “They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, (38) and shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; And the land was polluted with blood.”

In the passage of scripture quoted above the Holy Spirit reveals to us that God views children as being innocent, for He tells us that their parents, who had murdered them by sacrificing them to demons, had shed innocent blood. This passage again confirms to us that God does not hold children accountable for sin, for one who is innocent before God is free from all guilt. And so, we can clearly see from the scriptures quoted in this section, that all children are part of God’s kingdom and that He does not hold them accountable for sin.

Michael E.B. Maher

Of Such Is the Kingdom

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