Children as Church...

We are in the process of reworking our Constitution and Bylaws at Cornerstone and have bumped into a previously held rule that prohibits children under the age of 18 from voting in congregational business sessions. I have not previously seen this prohibition in any Southern Baptist Church of which I have been associated.

The rationale for not allowing children to vote seems to run in two primary streams of argument:

• #1--Children do not have the mental development or maturity to cast a vote.


• #2--Large families would have increased influence in church decisions through their children.

I can appreciate both of these arguments as rational and reasonable. However, we must ask some other questions in order to make a sound spiritual decision based upon the biblical record.

Question #1--Does the Holy Spirit indwell all believers including children?

Question #2--Are there biblical examples of God speaking to and through children?

Question #3--Should we be concerned with mental development or spiritual development?

Question #4--What would Jesus do?

I'll be posting over the next several days the answers that I am finding to these important questions.