John,

Nominalism is not merely found in Reformed circles. If your question is why so many covenant children do not go on with the Lord, I believe the primary reason is that we parents do not nurture our children as well as we ought.

If a child professes heresy or has a lifestyle that is incongruent to his profession of faith in Christ, such should be disciplined. Also, if a person will not proactively profess Christ there might be cause to discipline him. In other words, we mustn’t allow covenant children to grow into non-confessing adults without disciplining them.

And finally, YES, “Unless we received Christ Jesus by faith and repentance, our covenant standing will go for naught.”

In His Grace,

Ron