With a Child or Without

3/28/2001

….It looks like I’m found in a serious problem and I need your desperate help. You see, I’m now married for almost three years and our family still does not have any child and it seems we shall not have any forever as the doctors says my uterus is feared damaged. Now my worry is; I was reading 1Timothy 2 yesterday and one of the verses on this paragraph says a woman will be saved through child bearing. Now in my case what will happen, is there any need for me to be in the Lord, I worried please try to help me…

Dear sister, we do care for you here in the United States—we will be praying for you!

You should know that the Scripture you speak of was speaking of larger issues than an individual’s salvation. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive”? You can see that ADAM represents mankind to God, as sinners, so that we are ALL judged WITH Adam, because of Adam’s sin (and then our own). But in JESUS, by believing in Him and trusting HIM for His Blood and His Forgiveness and our Hope for the future (not trusting in ourselves or what we can do or not do)—ALL who Trust Him will be “made ALIVE!” And so you can see that Adam REPRESENTS all men as a tribe, and JESUS represents all who COME TO HIM (1Pet.2:4) as their Savior.

Now here is the part that refers to your question. In the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve were thrown out for not trusting and obeying God, and believing the liar—the devil—there was a “curse” pronounced by God, as punishment to the man and the woman. Men would have to “work by the sweat of the brow” in order to feed themselves and their families. It would not be an easy life for the man any longer, since man did not trust God and obey God and keep his place in the Garden, where everything was provided. ALSO, women would now have great pain in childbirth, as Paul said. This is part of the curse of our disobedience to God. It is as if Paul said (and God HAS said this!), “Children will be kept safe through spankings and discipline.” Does that mean that we should spank a newborn baby? No, of course it doesn’t mean that! Does that mean that a baby cannot be saved, since he or she has not been spanked? No! Of course it doesn’t mean that. It simply means that the OVERALL PROCESS that God has planned for mankind includes 1) men working by the sweat of the brow, 2) women who are giving birth to children will experience pain, and 3) children who disobey and need instruction will need discipline. It is a GENERAL statement for men and women and children.

Your salvation is based on YOUR TRUST AND LOVE OF JESUS, ALONE! And, of course, if you love Him, you’ll obey Him too! BUT, sister, you have nothing to worry about regarding this matter of child bearing. It would be an honor to endure this pain for Him, but it has nothing to do with your salvation and the Blood of Jesus, which alone can save. It is a very honest question, and we’re grateful that you care so much! But it is simply the same as God saying to the man, “You must now work by the sweat of your brow, as your discipline. It will help you to see your rightful place on this planet, until I come for you.”

We hope this helps! In the Love of Christ Jesus…