What Does the Bible Say about Kids?
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One of the most important ways God invites people to participate with Him in the world is to be a part of creating a new life. Rather than make each person from dust, God made His creation to perpetuate itself.
Everyone enters the world as a baby, going through a phase of growth called childhood. It is a special time of life, where the parents shape their child, teaching them in the ways they should go, and the child becomes their own unique person, called to serve the Lord in a way He intended. The Bible makes it clear that children are a blessing. Whether adults are called to be parents, to foster, or to invest in children in some other unique way, kids are part of God’s plan for individuals and humanity as a whole. God works through kids to bless their parents, and to demonstrate the blessings of simple faith.
Bible Verses about Kids
The relationship between parent and child serves as an example of God’s relationship with people. Humans need to learn, grow spiritually, and must be shaped through love and discipline. Kids are full of energy, but are inclined to sin because of their fallen nature, and must be guided by their parents in the right way. Parents also grow spiritually through the experience of raising children, whether biological or adopted.
While raising children can be difficult, it is a great source of blessings and joy. There are many verses in the Bible that reflect the truth of raising children, as well as show how much God loves kids.
Genesis 1:28 “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”
Psalm 127:3-4 “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth.”
Psalm 139:13-16: “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”
Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Proverbs 23:13-15 “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. If you strike him with the rod, you will save his soul from Sheol. My son, if your heart is wise, my heart too will be glad.”
Isaiah 54:13 “All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.”
Ephesians 6:1-4 “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ (this is the first commandment with a promise), ‘that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.’ Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”
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Who Were Some Important Kids in the Bible?
While it seems that God mostly worked through adults, there were times recorded in the Bible where the Lord saw fit to use kids for His purposes. Many theologians speculate that David was an adolescent when he stood up to Goliath. Josiah became one of the great kings of Israel who tore down idols and re-established worship of the one, true God when he was only eight years old! His story is chronicled in 1 Kings. Samuel was dedicated to service to the Lord as a baby, and became one of God’s great prophets.
Children also served as examples of faith, used by Jesus to illustrate what it looks like to trust in God, unaffected by the world. The Lord can use anyone for His purposes, just like He used David, Josiah, and Samuel.
How Did Jesus Feel about Kids?
When Jesus came to earth, He came to bring redemption to the world through His death and resurrection. He also came to serve as an example for how people ought to treat one another, and how to love. During His ministry on earth, the Lord did not just give sermons and perform miracles for adults. He raised children from the dead, healed them from disease, and cast demons out from them. His love for children was particularly evident during several times recorded in the Gospel. During one teaching session, the disciples asked Him who would be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. His response was to highlight the innocence and simple faith of children:
“And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:1-6).
Children trust, and their faith is not necessarily reliant on excessive proofs. Jesus encourages this kind of faith. He also warns that being responsible for harming or corrupting a child, poisoning their lives with sin, is a great sin. In the next chapter the Bible records, “Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’ And he laid his hands on them and went away” (Matthew 19:13-15). Jesus extended great love for children during His earthly ministry, and continues to do so while He is in Heaven at the right hand of the Father.
A Prayer for the Kids in Your Life
Holy Father,
Thank you for filling the world with children to bring joy and excitement to the world, as well as to remind us of what it was like to have faith without over-thinking everything. Lord, I lift up the kids in my life, both related to me and those who I know through church and through friends. Bless them with wisdom as they grow. Keep them safe from harm. If there is a way that I can be a blessing to the kids in my life, please reveal it to me. Show me how to be a good example for them, and send them other adults to be godly lights in their lives. Guide them in the way they should go, and reveal to them Your purposes for their lives in Your timing.
In the name of Jesus Christ,
Amen.
Sources
The Child in the Bible. Edited by Marcia J. Bunge. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.
Flynn, Shawn. Children in the Bible and the Ancient World. Taylor & Francis, 2019.
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Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.