In a previous article1 it has been shown that in the New Testament, insistence is laid on the power of the word of God to produce in an individual that mental awareness of the divine will which is a necessary accompaniment of baptism into the saving name of Jesus. Belief from the heart and confession with the mouth are the premises which are laid down as essential if the act of baptism is to be acceptable to God. From this it follows that the practice of infant baptism fails to conform to the requirements laid down in the Scriptures; yet infant baptism continues to be widely practised among various religious denominations, and the attempt is sometimes made to justify it by reference to certain passages of Scripture. The aim of the present article is to look at some of the reasons advanced for and against infant baptism, and in particular, to endeavour to find the correct interpretation of the Scripture passages commonly cited in its support.
It is frankly admitted by many scholars that infant baptism finds no support in the New Testament. Typical of such admissions is that by Dr. N. P. Williams2 who writes: “It must be ad mitted that St. Paul, like the other New Testament writers, does not mention infant baptism, which may have been practised during the lifetime of the Apostles, but required five centuries in which to win universal acceptance by the Church. This consideration will not be regarded as a disparagement of infant baptism by those who believe in the Spirits guidance of the Church.” We have italicised the last sentence because it exposes the fallacy of the reasoning. The word of God was given by the influence of the Spirit (cf. John 14:16-18; 1 Corinthians 14:37.) What a preposterous suggestion, that the Spirit, having laid down in the first century, belief and faith as pre-requisites for baptism, should in the fifth century waive those conditions, and swing to the opposite teaching, that neither belief nor faith is needed, but an entire lack of appreciation of the ceremony need not be regarded as invalidating it!
Another modern scholar, C. D. F. Moule3 makes reference to an old work written in defence of infant baptism4 and comments: “The washing of regeneration (Titus 3:5) is applied to the total experience of conversion, and not specifically to baptism—still less to infant baptism. This is remarkable. It means that ‘baptismal regeneration’ as applied to infants, is simply not scriptural at all.”
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Author: N. L. Evans
Keywords: Infant baptism, Water baptism, Sprinking, Baptism necessary, Baptism necessary for salvation, Baptism saves, Baptism salvation, Water immersion, Immersion, Immersion water, Affusion, pedo baptism, paedo baptism, pedobaptism, paedobaptism, Baptism by pouring, Baptize by pouring, Pouring water, Baptism immersion, Baptize immersion, Baptize, Baptise, Baptist, Adult baptism, credobaptism, Infant sprinkling, Child baptism, Baptize children, Baptize infants, Sprinkling water, Sprinkle baptism, Water submersion, Submersion, Submersion baptism, Baptize submersion, believer's baptism, baptized in water, water baptized, water baptised, baptised in water, mikveh, ritual cleansing, washing, ritual washing, infants, children, children baptised, children baptized, Christen, Christened, Christening
Bible reference(s): Matthew 3:6, Matthew 3:7, Mark 1:5, Mark 16:16, Luke 3:3, Luke 3:7, Luke 3:12, Luke 3:21, Luke 7:30, John 1:25, John 1:31, John 3:22, John 4:2, Acts 2:41, Acts 8:12, Acts 8:13, Acts 8:16, Acts 8:36, Acts 8:38, Acts 9:18, Acts 10:48, Acts 16:15, Acts 16:33, Acts 18:8, Acts 19:3, Acts 19:5, Acts 22:16, Romans 6:3, Romans 6:4, 1 Corinthians 1:13, 1 Corinthians 1:14, 1 Corinthians 1:15, 1 Corinthians 1:16, 1 Corinthians 1:17, 1 Corinthians 10:2, 1 Corinthians 15:29, Galatians 3:27, Ephesians 4:5, Colossians 2:12, 1 Peter 3:21
Source: “Infant Baptism,” The Testimony, Vol. 18, No. 215, November 1948, pp. 379-83.
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