Goal for tonight

We’re going to do a couple Ask Pastor Jake. And the reason why is because this first question I got by about three different people—three different handwriting—over the last couple months. And then the next one you guys gave, like I think seven, seven, maybe eight different people have asked it. So I did not want to let those just sit. And then what we’re going to do after I—I’ll get there when we when we get there.

So the first question, and I am so grateful for how many of you are dropping questions in the bucket, and I am aware that I’m, like, falling farther, further behind. I’m falling more and more behind as you guys ask more and more questions. But I’m grateful for the way that you guys want answers from the Bible and that so many of you guys, it seems like, really are asking questions like this one.

I want to pray, but I don’t know many prayers or I don’t know how to pray

And there was another one that just said, “I have a hard time praying. Can you help me?” Or like, “I don’t know what to say when I pray.”

And so what I love about that is that you know that you’re supposed to pray and that you’re coming and you’re saying, “Can you actually help me?” And even if you know this, even if you’re like, “I’ve been praying my whole life. I don’t need to listen to this question,” tune in. Be thinking about it. Is your prayer what it should be? What it could be? And if you are somebody who asked this question or wished that you had, know that you’re not alone.

You’re not the only person here who doesn’t know how to pray or feels maybe weird—feels like they’re faking it when you pray. And you’re in good company because do you know what the disciples asked Jesus when they were together with him? They actually at one point said, “Lord, teach us how to pray.” So this is a good question to ask. So let’s let’s try to answer it.

First, this question—this is the first one of many that was there. The question says, “I don’t know many prayers.” And I think that reveals something that maybe some of you fall into. Certainly, I know in a lot of religious traditions, prayer is thought of like a prayer that you memorize.

Maybe even the way that Jesus answered the question, “Lord, teach us how to pray,” and then he told them the Lord’s Prayer—that it turns into something that people memorize, or words, or “I want to pray like Pastor Smed,” or “I want to pray like that guy.” Or you think of it like a performance, or maybe it’s a set of words, or a way that you need to talk. And that is not what prayer is at the heart of prayer.

Prayer is just talking to God

And so when we think back to who God is, on the face of it, it is pretty crazy that we can talk to God. Think of who you are. How small you are. You’re a created person. I’m a created person. We’re one of billions alive on the earth right now for just a small time on earth. The Bible says, who are you? You’re like a mist that’s here for a moment then vanishes.

And think of who God is. He’s the eternal, uncreated, all-knowing, all-wise, all-holy God in whose presence, if we were to come, we ought to be incinerated. Right? Because not only are we small and insignificant, but we are sinners from birth and sinners by practice.

Why would God listen to us?

And who knows when Jesus said—when they said, “Lord, teach us to pray”—how did he start that prayer?

“Our Father.”

Think of that. That holy God whose name ought to be hallowed, whose name ought to be esteemed. How did Jesus teach his disciples to pray? What were the first words?

“Our Father.”

That’s not God’s title. He is God the Father. But for those who are his who are praying, we’re talking to God like a child talking to their loving father. And Jesus consistently helps his disciples see that when you have a need, you tell your dad, you tell your father. This father is all-powerful, all-holy, all-knowing.

But he’s also your dad. He’s your father. The Bible says that God’s put his Spirit in you that cries out “Abba,” which is sort of like the word “Daddy.” It’s a tender term.

And so when you have a need, just tell him. When you’re excited about something, tell him. When you’re scared, tell him.

And so we pray because God commands it and he invites it. We pray because it’s a relationship, because he’s our loving father and he wants to provide.

We pray, we pray because God uses prayer. In James, God says, “Why don’t you have what? Well, you don’t have because you don’t ask.” He wants us to ask. And then he gets glory when he gives it.

And so prayer is a great thing to do when you need something: “God, help me pass this test. God, get me safely to this place. God, I need help not sinning right now.” You could come up with a million things to ask.

But prayer is more than that. Prayer is more than that. In Ephesians 6, in verse 18, it says, “Pray at all times.”

Pray at all times

That means that prayer is more than just a prayer that you say, because God your father—he’s not only all-knowing, he’s not only all-powerful, he’s not only all-wise, but what else is he? He’s omnipresent.

He’s with you. He’s with us all the time. He is the most—like the most substantial reality in the world. You don’t see him, but he is more there than anything that you’ve ever seen. He’s more important than anything you’ve ever known.

And so we are as his children to pray at all times. But what would—And then in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, who knows what that verse says? That’s a good one to memorize. It just says, “Pray without ceasing.”

So, does that mean you’re just always going around, “God, there’s a give me this, give me that, give me that. God, you’re so holy. You’re, you’re, you’re muttering to yourself so nobody can talk”? It obviously doesn’t mean that.

But if you’re praying at all times, like are you—you just, you know, when you’re walking around school or you’re walking around on a vacation or you were walking around camp with a friend and you’re just walking and you see an animal in a tree, what would you say? You say, “Hey, do you see that?” Right? You just—you know this person’s with you and you’re enjoying life together and you’re telling that person what you see, except for the one with you. This God is the one who made that beautiful sunset, the one who made the animal that you just saw.

And you get to worship him. You can just say, “God, you made that. Thank you.” Or, “God, I’m scared and you’re here and I know that you care. God, I’m sad and I know that you care. Can you give me joy in you? God, I’m tempted.” Right? Jesus said that: “Keep us from temptation.” “God, I’m having a hard time forgiving.” You see how you go through life and you’re more aware of God than anybody else, and you just talk to him.

Can you open your Bibles to Acts chapter 4?

While you turn there, I want you to—I’m going to say: when Jesus was teaching the disciples to pray in Matthew 6, he said, “When you’re praying, do not use meaningless repetition, thinking that you’re going to be heard for your many words.”

And then he says, just talk to your father about all the things in your day, all the things that you need—praying for his glory, asking for help, asking for things. And it’s not about the words that you say, but about the heart of faith behind them.

So, so here in Acts 4, I’m going to have you look at verse 25. Acts 4—verse 20—but we’re actually going to back up to verse 23. So what had just happened was the disciples, the apostles who had been arrested, were told no more. They were threatened and told no more preaching, no more teaching.

And what did they do in verse 23? When they were released, they went to their friends and they reported what the chief priests and the elders had said. And what was their response together when they heard it? They prayed. Look at this prayer. Have you ever prayed like this?

They said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and earth and the seas and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, ‘Why did the Gentiles rage and the people’s plot in vain?’

‘The kings of the earth set themselves, rulers were gathered together against the Lord and his anointed. For truly in this city were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate along with the Gentiles and the people to do whatever your hand and plan predestined to take place.’”

That was a lot of words. Let me summarize what he said. The disciples came together and they prayed and they said, “God, you made everything. You’re in control.”

Why do people fight against you? What today in this very city where we were just persecuted—the people came together to crucify Jesus.

Did they ask for anything?

What did they do? They told God things about him that God already knew, and they used Scripture to do it.

So, so this is actually another good example of how to pray. Pray, ask God for things. Confess sins to him. Be thankful. But also just tell God who he is.

Express faith. Express faith. When you’re having a hard time, when you’re scared, like the disciples were here, what did they do? They told God who they knew he was. “God, you’re in control. God, you are in control over people when they’re sinning.”

And then they asked in verse 29. They said, “God, grant us boldness to speak your word.” They could have just said, “God, help us pray or help us be bold.” But what did they do when they prayed? They just reminded themselves. They worshiped God through their words. They reminded God of who he was.

And so, there is a lot to this answer. And we’re going to actually be learning more about prayer in the future. But the main thing I want you to know about how to pray is it doesn’t matter how you pray. It doesn’t matter the words you pray.

Pray about everything. Ask God for things. Talk to him about your day. Even just read Scripture back to him saying, “God, I know this is true about you. Make it affect my life.”

Make a habit of praying all day, every day, throughout the day. Not with long, long phrases, but even just a thought, a word here. Something good happens—make your first response, “Thank you.”

You need—yeah—regardless of what comes, make God your most fundamental reality, your most real thing in the world, and talk to him constantly.

I think that’s the answer. It’s just pray. Talk to your father because you know he loves you and cares for you.

All right. This one—we got this, I think, seven or eight different ways, and I think it was different handwriting every time. So, it seems like it’s on your mind.

What happens to babies if they die? What about miscarriages and abortions?

And I think that this is probably because we’ve been talking about salvation. We’ve been talking about how we’re born into sin, how we’re dependent on God’s grace, and how we’re only saved by grace through faith.

We learned up at camp, you guys asked the question, “What about those who’ve never heard the gospel?” And the Bible says that they’re without excuse.

So, what about babies? What happens when they die?

And I have to say: the Bible—there’s questions that the Bible answers directly. And there’s questions where God gives us enough light, enough information to trust him, but not enough detail to satisfy our every curiosity.

And so I, I have to say the Bible doesn’t answer this question directly

It doesn’t answer this question. I can’t go to a verse where it says, “Here is what happens to babies when they die. Here’s the age where things change.” It doesn’t.

And I want to guard myself from saying more than the Bible says, but not less than I believe that the Bible implies. And I want you not to have your hope in the answer to this question.

Some of you guys may have lost siblings in this way. Some of you and your parents may have to struggle with the reality of losing a child—maybe in utero, maybe shortly after birth.

I know that all of you know somebody to whom this applies. And where I want you to take comfort first and most isn’t, “I know exactly the way that God deals with babies. And I know all of the ins and the outs.”

But here’s what we do know. And this is not a copout. This is actually more helpful. This is more true than—and probably more helpful than—if I said, “You know what? I know exactly how this works.” It’s that we can trust God.

I hope that that rings, that you’re like, “Yes, we can.” If I say, you know, we can trust that God is good. He is just and he does right. And so it’s a very good place for us to be in to just trust God.

And this applies to not just this situation. There’s so many things in your life where you face a very difficult trial and you might ask why, God? How is this going to end?

And you know what? The Bible doesn’t tell you.

The Bible leaves us in so many situations in life where we don’t know the why. We don’t even know the what. I think in this one we actually do. I think we can come to some conclusions that are helpful. But in so much in our life, we are left in a place where we just say, “God, I trust you.” And that is a very good place to be.

Deuteronomy 32:4 says, “The Rock—God. His work is perfect. All his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity. Just and upright is he.” God will always do what’s right for the right reasons. We can trust him.

Let’s walk through scriptural logic

So, but but let’s let’s go and back up and say, what could we figure out from the Bible to answer this question? What if the Bible were to give us pointers? There’s no verse that says, “When babies die, this happens.”

But I think we can back up and get some pointers and figure out at least—I’m going to tell you why I believe that when a baby dies, they’re in heaven. Why I believe that if a baby dies in utero, if there’s an abortion, or if they die shortly after birth, or when they’re very, very young—and even, even probably those who are born without minds that are able to develop well enough to believe—why I think that those individuals do receive God’s grace.

It’s not because I think there’s a verse, but let’s walk through scriptural logic. And I’m going to defend my position.

First off, it’s not because we’re sinless. They’re sinless. We’re all born with a sinful nature, right? And it says that in Romans 5:12: through one man sin came into the world and death through sin, and death spread to all men, upon which all men sinned.

We are all born descendants of Adam, with the exception of Jesus. Right? We’re all born with a sinful nature except for Jesus. None of us are righteous. Babies are not righteous, clean slates, but they’re fallen descendants of Adam—spiritually dead like the rest of mankind.

But the Bible never says that God judges people for their sinful nature. God judges people for their sin, right? And so humans that live out their sinful nature, what do they do? We talked about this. I talked about this in the Q&A. They suppress the truth. They don’t honor God.

Even people who’ve never heard of Yahweh, never heard of Jesus, never heard the gospel—they know what’s right in their heart. They have a conscience and they don’t follow even that. They all sin against who God is.

And they all even know God, it says in Romans 1, in a very real way, and they suppress the truth and they refuse to give thanks to him. They refuse to honor him.

So people are judged. People go to hell because they reject God. Because they sin against God willfully because they were all born dead. Right? We are born dead to God spiritually and they live that out in sin.

And so can a pre-born or a newborn—right? We’re made in the image of God from the moment of conception. That doesn’t happen when you come out of your mom. That happens inside your mom.

You are a person.

But can pre-borns, newborns, young kids know God and reject him? I think the argument from Romans 1 through 6 is that we’re judged for the sin that we do that comes out of the sinful nature, not judged for the sinful nature itself.

So, but babies also don’t merit salvation, right? Babies aren’t born righteous. They’re not born holy. They’re not born with what they need to stand before God. So, what does that mean?

I think we’ll get to that in a second. At what point—at what point, maybe—do they, if you can say a pre-born baby can’t sin? I think, and maybe can a newborn baby sin? They say “mine,” right? They certainly aren’t born holy. They aren’t born doing selfless things. They start from a very early age living out their fallen nature.

Deuteronomy 1:39

But in Deuteronomy 1:39, this is helpful. It was the people in the land—remember in the Exodus, the people get out of Egypt and they’re in the wilderness and they just sin against God. And as a result of that—of their grumbling, of their unbelief—God says, “You’re not allowed to. This generation will not enter the promised land.” So remember, they had to wait for that generation to die out.

And then if you look at Deuteronomy 1:39, God says that the young ones who are alive during the rebellion in the wilderness are allowed to enter the promised land. And he gives a reason. He says, “As for the little ones, your children who today have no knowledge of good or evil, they shall go in there, and to them I will give it, and they’ll possess it.”

So it seems like at least in this situation, God’s not holding those little kids accountable in the same way that he’s holding the adults accountable. So is there an age of accountability or a level of accountability and development? Maybe. The Bible doesn’t say how God deals with that, but at least in this case.

And then we see David when his baby dies

Right? The baby—we see that in 2 Samuel 12:15–23. David’s fasting and saying, “God, don’t—don’t take him. This baby’s very sick—God, don’t take him.”

And then when the baby dies, he stops mourning. When he’s asked why, he says, “I shall go to him and he will not return to me.”

So he knows the baby’s dead, but he has hope. It expresses at least David’s confidence that there will be a real reunion. This isn’t the Bible’s teaching on the topic. There isn’t a “so we know that all babies go to heaven” there, but it says that I think at the very least we see that this is a real biblical example of a believer expressing hope about a deceased infant.

It would only be by grace

So, if babies aren’t holy, if they’re not righteous, but maybe they don’t sin in the same way as adults, how would they not be in hell? How would they possibly be in heaven? And it would only be by grace.

Salvation is always by grace through Christ. It’s never earned innocence, right? We know that by Ephesians 2:8–9. By grace you’ve been saved. It’s not the result of works.

Acts 4:12 says there’s salvation in no one else. There’s no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. So if a baby is saved, it’s not because they deserved heaven, but it’s because Jesus saves by grace.

The issue is they can’t be saved by grace through faith, right?

So, we’re left in this situation where we know who God is. I think we have pointers and we can trust him, and we can say that babies can be only saved by grace, but they can’t be saved by grace through faith.

So, I’m sort of back to that spot that there might be a better answer than this, but this is my best effort at working through all that the Bible says. There’s actually a little bit more, but we’re out of time.

A lot of what the Bible says—and I’m back to the spot where I can say, “God, I trust you. The God of all the earth shall do right. God is trustworthy.”

God will judge rightly. Like Abraham said, “Far be it from you to put the righteous to death with the wicked. Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”

So I don’t sit here standing in judgment and saying, “God, it makes sense for me for you to do this for all these reasons.” I just say, “God, you’re God. I’m not. And if this was something I needed to know, you would have explained it in more detail.”

And so for me, it’s a really good example, a good opportunity for me and for you when you’re faced with this question or maybe another really, really hard question that you wish you had an exact answer to, for you to say, “God, I’m okay not knowing. You’re God and I’m not and I trust you and I know that you will do right.”

But for all of you, this doesn’t apply

All of you are at an age and all of you do have knowledge and all of you will be held responsible to stand before God and honor him as God. Give him thanks and say, “God, I do not have what I need to stand before you. I do not have what I need to escape your just wrath.”

And so every single person here has to turn to Jesus as their only hope, as their only Savior, saying, “God, I need a Savior. God’s given you a mind that works.”

And he loved you, and he gave himself in Christ for you. And you’re hearing my words now. Do not harden your heart.

Do not harden your heart, but turn to him so that you can enjoy him. So that he can give you grace through faith.

And so I hope that that may not feel like the answer you were hoping I’d give, like, “Hey, here’s the verse that tells you what happens.” But but I know we can trust God.

So now I have a question for you. You guys asked me a couple questions. I worked, I worked hard, try to try to come up with a biblical answer. But I have a question for you, and here’s my question.

Have the biblical lessons you learned at camp, have they had an effect on you this week?

We had a lot of fun. We also had some really good teaching. Have the lessons that you learned at camp, have they had an effect on you this week? You had camp on the weekend. You came down. You started your week on Monday.

You chose who you would be influenced by and how you would influence others. You chose for whom you would live and why.

Did the biblical lessons you learned at camp have an effect on your friendships and influences? How? And so what I want to do is go to your discussion groups and look back on your week. And if it did, praise God. And if not, you know what? We have a chance this week to start anew and say, “All right, all those verses we put on the posters, I emailed those to your parents.” You can ask them to print them.

Post them in your bathroom. Put them in your wallet. Put them on your door. Start memorizing them. I want you to to think really fast. Just remind yourself of the outlines. The first two lessons—the first one on Proverbs that Jackson taught, and then the Jonathan and David—that godly friendships have a like-mindedness, be marked by sacrificial love, steadfastness, and encouragement.

And then Psalm 1: that your influences will determine whether your life will be happy or blessed, wasted or eternal.