The Spiritual Condition of Infants

According to the Augustinian-Calvinist view, all people inherit from the first Adam both a sinful nature and his guilt. The result is that all infants are subject to the judgment of God against their nature before they knowingly commit any sinful actions. But is this the clear teaching of Scripture? Adam Harwood examines ten relevant biblical texts and the writings of sixteen theologians in order to clarify the spiritual condition of infants. Although no passage explicitly states the piritual condition of infants, each text makes contributions by addressing the doctrines of man, sin, the church, salvation. If this biblical-historical analysis exposes the traditional Augustinian-Calvinist view to be inadequate, then is it possible to construct an alternate view? Such a view should remain faithful to the biblical emphasis on humankind's connection to Adam and his sin but also recognize the guilt and condemnation of an individual only in the manner and time that God does in Scripture. This author makes a case that infants inherit from Adam a sinful nature but not his guilt and that each person is judged for his own sin. The sinful nature that infants inherit will eventually result in their becoming guilty by knowingly committing acts of sin. It is at that point that people immediately fall under God's judgment and condemnation. The Bible makes clear two requirements for guilt and condemnation: (1) people are condemned after they become responsible moral agents, and (2) know the difference between good and evil, they act out of their inherited sinful nature and commit sinful deeds. The author's conclusion is that those who die as infants, whether of believing parents or not, could not satisfy either of these conditions, and are therefore not held guilty by God.