Separate Worship for Children?
By: Brian A. Yeager

    It is a fad in the body of Christ among liberal brethren for congregations to have a separate worship service for children.  The idea behind this fad is to allow the children to learn on their level how to worship God.  This may sound nice and would most certainly make it easier for parents to worship completely without interruption.  However, we cannot do things in the worship to God because it is more convenient, or even if it sounds good.  Denominations have been doing this for years and some in the Lord’s Church are now following their lead.

Can You Find Authority For It?

    The goal of this article is to study this topic and to find whether it is of God or men.  First, we must look for some Biblical examples of children being separate in the worship.  Upon looking for this practice by command, example, or inference we cannot find such a thing.  This should be enough for a God fearing Christian that wants to follow only the authority of the Bible.  Yet, there are many that do not care about Bible Authority.  They forget that such passages as (Revelation 22:18-19) exist.  This passage states that one cannot add or take from God’s word.  “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”  Our study should be able to end here for those who understand Bible Authority.  Those that understand Bible Authority know that if they cannot put their finger on a passage authorizing an action, then God has not given us permission to do it (Colossians 3:17).

Were Children Separated From Adults in the Bible?

    Both the Old and the New Testaments give a pattern that show children should not be removed from the adults when learning of God in worship.   Several passages here come to mind, and we are going to look at them.  (Deuteronomy 31:12-13) “Gather the people together, men and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of this law: And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.”  In this example there was a request that the children should be present to hear the word of God.   This is so that the children might learn the law, and fear God.  This passage would have stated men and women only had this been what the Lord would have wanted.

    (Matthew 14:21) “And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.”  In the feeding of the five thousand there were children present.  The children were there and were witnessing Christ and the miracles He used to teach.  The same occurred in the next example when there was four thousand fed.  (Matthew 15:38) “And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women and children.”  Jesus told his disciples to not forbid the children in our next example.   (Mark 10:13-14) “And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.”

    The last problem with this doctrine is that an adult would have to teach the children.  The adult then would not be present in the worship to God, nor would he be listening as some have to in a nursery, but would be having a split assembly.  This would violate God’s law.  (Hebrews 10:25) “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”  What kind of example would an adult be making to the children by leaving the saints to provide a baby-sitting service under the pretense of worship?

What About “Adult Bible Classes”?

Does this mean that we should not have adult bible classes?  Now, there are two different subjects there altogether.  When the saints assemble to worship they are to do so collectively (I Corinthians 11:20).  When saints come together to study there is a distinction made that the purpose for gathering is to study.  Why some brethren cannot see the distinction is beyond me.  Those same brethren that say there is no difference can see a difference between a personal study like Phillip and the Eunuch (Acts 8:25-39).  This was a study not an assembling of the church for corporate worship.  When the church assembles, as did the first century saints (Acts 20:7), there are to be no brethren breaking away from the assembly.

Conclusion

With all of the human traditions that continue to creep into the church we must be aware and able to defend the truth (I Peter 3:15 and Jude 3).  Christians need to understand why they do the things they do and not just allow practices to be traditions.  It is God we are to please and obey, not men (Acts 5:29).