The following "Question" was asked by a member of the congregation at Grace Community Church in Panorama City, California, and "Answered" by their pastor, John MacArthur Jr. It was transcribed from the tape, GC 70-8, titled "Questions and Answers--Part 36."  A copy of the tape can be obtained by writing, Word of Grace, P.O. Box 4000, Panorama City, CA 91412 or by dialing toll free 1-800-55-GRACE. Copyright 2001 by John MacArthur Jr., All Rights Reserved.

Question

I came very late in life to understand this Lordship issue, and my question is really, How do respond to people who say as a very young child they were saved, and yet the church there does not even mention, other than...they don’t mention Lordship other than to say “Savior and Lord”? How can you respond to the person who’s grown up in that sort of an atmosphere?

Answer

Well, of course, I grew up in that atmosphere too. It’s very difficult. The first thing you have to understand is: salvation is a work of God, not necessarily visible to men in the actual transaction…it’s made known in the fruit. So, I don’t know precisely at what point in time a person becomes a Christian; I can’t know that. I can know when someone says, “I believe.” But, I don’t know whether that was really the moment or whether that was an initial step.

So, when you look at a child, as I said earlier, you want to encourage children to believe. I can look back in my life and I can honestly say there was never a time in my life when I did not believe. And every time, as a little kid, that somebody said, “Ask Jesus in your heart,” I can remember saying, “Jesus, please come in my heart.” I can remember that over and over: “In case you’re not there, please come in today.” You know? I mean, I did that as a kid. I’d go to camp, the guy would give a message, and just to be sure, you know, I’d say, “Lord, if you’re not in my life, please…” So, I’ve always affirmed and reaffirmed and reaffirmed my faith.

To be honest with you, I don’t know the point at which that transformation actually took place. I can look back in my life and say, well, there was always a love for God as far back as I can remember. There were times of disobedience, but I can look back to the times when I was eight, nine years old, particularly that period of time in my life--and say I began to have a tremendous sense of what was right and wrong--that was not only my parents, but was my own; I began to feel that in my heart. But, I don’t know how to identify that for each individual person--very, very difficult.

But, I do believe that there are a lot of folks who have looked back at a childhood point of belief and then lived a life that disregarded Christ, and then gotten their life straightened out at some point in time, and felt that they were saved as a child and just ignored it all those years, and went to some second commitment, when the truth is probably that they never were saved until that point in their commitment when they really came to grips with what it meant to submit to Christ. But only God knows that. That’s why the doctrine of election is such a wonderful doctrine. If He’s going to redeem you, He’s going to redeem you, and somewhere along that process God will work his saving work in your life.

Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "MacArthur’s Questions and Answers" by:

Tony Capoccia
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