While the Rapture will be a joyous occasion for everyone in Christ, it will open the door to God's judgment for those who are not. What does this mean for babies and young children? We have it on the authority of Scripture that God judges a child differently than He judges an adult. Those too young to understand the consequences of their choices are considered innocent and will be spared from judgment—whether at death or the Rapture.

Here are three reassuring reasons for believing Jesus will rapture babies and young children with mature believers.

God's Character. One of God's names in the Bible is "Father" (Romans 8:15). This title gives us an indication of how He regards the helpless and innocent among us. In the book of Deuteronomy, we find the Lord preventing an unbelieving generation of Israelites from entering the Promised Land while their children were exempt from that penalty (Deuteronomy 1:39). Other verses refer to young children as "innocents," indicating God treats their naïve sinful desires differently from the willful sinfulness of mature individuals (Jeremiah 2:34, 19:4).

God treats the naïve sinful desires of children differently from the willful sinfulness of mature individuals.

As Psalm 145:9 says, "The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works." God's goodness and mercy will not allow Him to hold someone responsible for a decision they cannot make. The blood of Christ will cover children who are too young to understand the Gospel message.

Salvation's Condition. God's plan of salvation is a gift that we choose to accept or reject. Anyone who recognizes right from wrong has reached the age of accountability, meaning God will hold them responsible for their actions. Small children do not understand what they must do to be saved (Acts 16:30-31), so they are protected from judgment for sin by the blood of the Lord.

Think of it this way: When a teenager defiantly says "No!" to his parent, the result will be discipline. But when that teen's two-year-old sister says "No!" the consequences will be different. Instead of punishment, the two-year-old will receive patient correction and instruction; her parents will teach her about having respect for their authority—something a teenager should already know. In other words, there is a difference in accountability between a young child and an older child or adult.

The age of accountability varies from person to person.

The age of accountability varies from person to person. Until a child understands what Christ's sacrifice on the cross means to them personally and realizes their sin and guilt before God, the blood of Christ covers them. This principle also applies to those who, while they are mature physically, have never matured mentally. They may be in an adult's body, but their mind is comparable to a child's.

Christ's Compassion. In the Gospels, Jesus' love for young children is evident on more than one occasion. When Scripture refers to His interactions with children, it often uses "little" to highlight His tender compassion toward little ones (Matthew 19:13-14; Mark 10:13-14; Luke 18:16). Indeed, His declaration to "Let the little children come to Me" refers to the infants and babies people brought to Him.

It could not be clearer: Jesus is not willing for little ones to be lost.

The most emphatic statement appears in Matthew 18:14, where Jesus says, "Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish." It could not be clearer: Jesus is not willing for little ones to be lost. When the Lord raptures His Church, He will carry the babies and young children to heaven.

For those of us who have reached the age of accountability, the object is not only to go to heaven but to take as many people with us as we can. Share the Gospel, teach children, build one another up, strengthen one another, encourage those who are fallen, and reach out to those who are hurting. The Lord charges us to "Occupy till I come" (Luke 19:13, KJV). This could be the day! We have an urgent responsibility to live out the truth and share it with as many people—young and old—as we can.