For Christian parents, few concerns are more pressing than the salvation of their children. I’ve know many parents who struggle to know if their kids are saved. In this post I want to share my best advice for parents. Please feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
How Can I Tell If A Child Is Saved?
The truth is simple to say but hard to accept. We can’t be 100% certain until we get to heaven. A person’s relationship with God is deeply private and too easy to fake. This is especially true for kids who want to earn their parents approval. But we can look for evidence of conversion in a child’s life.
The first and best evidence is the child’s statement of believe in Jesus. Has the child said they trust Christ for salvation and is seeking to follow Him. Once that is the case, here are some more things we should encourage and try to discern:
- Does the child show a growing love for God?
- Does the child demonstrate love and concern for others?
- Does the child have a growing appreciation for God’s grace?
- Is the child learning to pray and spend time alone with God?
- Does the child have a sense of their own sinfulness?
- Does the child demonstrate new spiritual desires?
- Does the child continue in their faith over time?
For more great questions, check out this post from Justin Taylor’s blog listing questions to ask your child about their spiritual development.
This is not an exhaustive list, but it’s a starting point. My concern is always to encourage kids to take steps of faith toward God. Even if they seem very young, I urge them to trust Jesus Christ as much as they are able.
How Do You Know If A Child Is Saved?
The comment section below is open for you to share your thoughts. What things would you add to my list? What are some resources that you have found helpful on this topic?
More Children's Ministry Ideas
How Do You Teach Kids To Be Saved?
This post launches a new feature called Children’s Ministry Think Tank. I have asked several friends in children’s ministry to join the project....
Lesson: When Jesus Was A Child (Luke 2:41-52)
Children’s Church Lesson: Jesus at Age 12 Text: Luke 2:41-52 Learning Objectives: After this lesson . . . Children will demonstrate knowledge of Jesus’...
When A Child Writes A Letter To God
My friend and fellow Children’s Minister Glen Woods has written a touching article titled When A Child Writes To God. He reminds us of...
Two Things Every Child Needs To Know About God
We know we love ‘em. We know we want them to know and love Jesus. We know that Jesus loves them; he gathered the...
13 Bible Stories You Must Teach Every Child
The average children’s Bible has about 100 stories. The real Bible has many more. Every story matters. But what are the basic stories kids...
{ 2 trackbacks }
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Great post Tony. I really appreciated your list and the link to Justin Taylor’s article as well. The only think I can think of that I might add is whether or not the child shows a hunger for God’s Word. As a child this can take all kinds of forms. I know that in some kids I can see not just a desire to hear the story but to understand how it fits into the bigger picture.