Introduction and the Question

Today, the question that was asked—there were quite a few, and I’m going to try to go fast—but this one made me think, “Why was it asked?” The question was: If God returns and there are young kids who believe in Jesus, will they go to heaven?

The answer is yes. If you trust in Jesus, if you have faith in Jesus Christ, you go to heaven. Salvation is not based on age or maturity but by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone.

This question made me wonder why it was asked. Maybe someone here was thinking, “If I’m a young child or if there’s a young child who believes in Jesus, would that get them—would they be in heaven?”

So it makes me wonder if sometimes, even as we talk about big words—last week, we used big words. Some of those words are in our lesson today. You can see them on your study guides or your breakout session handouts. Words like justification, propitiation, righteousness, and sanctification—these are big words with a lot of syllables.

You do not need to know any of those words to have faith in Jesus.

Sometimes, because Smedley teaches with big words, I teach with big words, and the Bible itself uses concepts—even Peter says about Paul that there are things in his letters that are hard to understand. There’s a lot in the Bible that’s hard to understand.

That might make you wonder: if there’s so much in the Bible I still have yet to know, so much theology and truth I don’t yet know or can’t yet trust in, can a little kid believe? If you don’t have enough knowledge to be able to explain what the Bible means or even to know where to find a verse, maybe you’re thinking, “Maybe I don’t know enough to be saved.”

Let me tell you: faith does not have to be—let me use another big word—sophisticated. It doesn’t have to know a lot to be real.

The Simplicity of Faith

There was a really famous theologian—probably one of the most influential theologians of the last century. He preached over 400 famous sermons, taught all around the world, wrote really big books—lots of them, some really famous ones on theology.

Towards the end of his life, one of his students asked him, “What do you think is the most profound thing?” He had said a lot of profound things. People liked how he sounded really smart, using big words and backing them up with long paragraphs and books. They asked him, “What’s the most profound piece of theology you’ve ever contemplated?” This guy spent his whole life studying.

Do you know what he said? I love it because I think it’s true. He said, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”

If you think about that, it’s so simple that a three-year-old could trust that in a really simple way. You’re a sinner and you need a Savior. Jesus is that Savior. God loves you and died for you.

There’s a lot missing there. There’s a lot that needs explanation. But a little kid can know that they’re a sinner—even if they don’t know everything that sin means. They know they need a Savior—even if they don’t know everything they need to be saved from. They can trust Jesus, His death and resurrection. They can know that Jesus died and was raised.

So even if that child can’t explain it well, or you can’t explain it well, or quote the Bible verse it comes from—even if you’ve never been tested or theologically educated—you can be saved. You don’t have to know a lot to trust in Jesus, but you still have to trust Him.

Knowledge Alone Isn’t Enough

Let me tell you something maybe more surprising than the fact that little kids can be saved: there are a lot of people who know a lot—maybe even know the entire Bible—who can explain things, theological things, that I haven’t even begun to think about or you’ve never heard of. They can quote almost every Bible verse and explain it in very complicated theological terms—and they don’t trust Jesus.

Jesus said this of the Pharisees. He said, “You search the Scriptures”—think about that—these Pharisees, many of them memorized the whole first five books of the Bible. Think of how long that would take. And He says, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life, and yet you refuse to come to Me that you may have life.”

Let the Little Children Come (Matthew 19:13–15)

I want you to open your Bibles to Matthew 19—Matthew, the first book in the New Testament—all the way to chapter 19.

Jesus was teaching lots of deep theology. Lots of adults were all around. The people who thought they were really important were listening to Jesus, arguing with Him. The disciples were standing around Jesus, and little children, verse 13, were brought to Him so that He might lay hands on them and pray.

The disciples rebuked the people. The disciples had the wrong view—the children weren’t important enough. “We’ll wait for them to get older so that they can understand what Jesus is talking about and be important enough to come.” But what did Jesus say?

“Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” Listen to this. In Luke 18:17, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

So, like a child would receive the kingdom of heaven: the child hears the gospel, believes it, and simply receives it. If you don’t believe like that, you can’t get in.

What It Means to Come Like a Child

Think about that. The kingdom—this is what John MacArthur says about it—the kingdom, or heaven, where God is forever, is populated by only two kinds of subjects: little kids, and those who come trusting like little kids, with a trusting and humble attitude.

What do I mean by trusting like little kids? There’s a childlike trust and humility. When you’re a kid—think about how you were at three, four, five—maybe really young, when you were scared. You might not even have been able to explain why you were scared, but there was a simplicity, an openness, a dependency.

What was there? A lack of trust in yourself.

Think about last week’s lesson: Who did the Pharisee trust in? Himself. Who did the tax collector trust in? God and His mercy. Remember that? That’s the distinction between kids and really mature people who have lots of big thoughts and words and trust in themselves.

Let me encourage you: you are not too young to be saved. Today is the right time. Don’t wait until you’re older, more trusted, more knowledgeable, or have more opportunities to trust God.

Not Praising Ignorance—Why Learning Still Matters

Jesus isn’t praising a lack of doctrine. If that’s true, why does it matter that you learn? Jesus isn’t saying, “Don’t know much or don’t think deeply.” He’s saying, “Be really trusting, be humble, be dependent.”

What do kids do when they’re vulnerable—when there’s darkness, a storm, or danger? I loved it when my kids were so little, and they’d get scared and run to jump in my arms and say, “Dad…” I can think of some really sweet examples with my daughter over there. She was scared and just wanted to be held by Daddy.

That’s the way Christians are in the face of sin, in the face of things they’re afraid of. When I am afraid, what does the psalmist say? “When I am afraid… I will trust in You, in God, whose word I praise.” That’s Psalm 56:3.

So we’re supposed to add knowledge to our faith. You don’t have to know a lot to become a Christian, but God’s word specifically says: grow in grace and grow in knowledge, because without knowledge you can be led astray, fall into false doctrines, or fall away from the faith.

Second Peter says this at the beginning of the book: add knowledge to your faith. Make every effort to supplement your faith with knowledge. Study, know these things. You don’t have to know them to be saved, but saved people will want to know them and will respond to the knowledge that’s in the Bible—not with pride, not by starting to trust in themselves, but by trusting God more and more.

That’s why we pray. What do we pray? We say it every week when we open up the Bible. We don’t get knowledge just to know it. You have to listen and understand it. But what’s the T of LUBOT? Trust.

What do kids do? They trust in Jesus.

So, add knowledge—but don’t wait until you know enough. Don’t say, “Am I old enough for my faith to count?” or, “I have to know enough, like an adult.”

What if you still mess up a lot? It’s okay. Your faith saves not because of how strong or knowledgeable it is, but because of who your faith is in—it’s in Jesus. Growth comes later. You’ll learn about that today. That’s called sanctification.

Faith for All Ages—And Next Steps

New believers don’t have a mature faith yet. That faith will be tested and it will grow. But you know what? The faith of a three-year-old can be saving faith. The faith of a sixth grader can be saving faith.

So, absolutely, if Jesus returns and you have faith—even a faith that doesn’t know much more than, “I need a Savior, and Jesus is that Savior”—if it’s a faith in Jesus that’s real, you will be saved, whether you die or if Jesus returns.

So, let’s go to our groups. We’re going to learn today about what salvation is. One more instruction: I want everybody to open up their Bibles as you go through the verses and put your eyes on them so you know for yourself where the truth comes from.