Is infant baptism from the Bible?

LISTEN!

If my 1 year old comes to me and says "DADDY I've been convicted of sin, regenerated, justified and declared righteous by God, i have repented of my sin, turned from my wicked ways and now declare JESUS as my LORD, God and Savior and want to be baptized" I WILL NOT STAND IN HIS WAY!

 

Acts 2:38-39 ---> Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself."

St. Peter references the Prophet Joel in this sermon, who said the coming of grace upon God's people includes "the little ones, and them that suck at the breasts." (cf Joel 2:16) Do you know any adults who are referred to as children or little ones and who still nurse, those who "suck at the breast"?

Children are baptized because the kingdom of God does not have an age requirement...

Matthew 19:14 ---> But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”


Do you force your children to live outside of your house until they are old enough to profess membership in your household? I would hope not. So too Christians do not keep their children from the household of God. Thus entire households were baptized in Apostolic times, which included children. (e.g. Acts 16:15, 1 Cor. 1:16) This is the regula fidei.

 

They don't need to. Baptizing an infant is making that baby a child of God with the washing away of the "original sin" we are all born with. The orthodox Christian Church's (Catholic and Eastern Orthodox) rightly use the authority given to them by God to proclaim this action. There are more than enough passages in the scriptures to validate infant baptisms.

 

Very well said! Our friends here even disagree with their Protestant brethren such as Lutherans and Anglicans on this one. Most of their ideas about faith matters never came into existence for some 1600, 1700, or 1800 years, completely disagreeing with the original renegades. That's how far out from the mainstream they are.

 

POST # 2 TONGUE IN CHEEK OF COURSE.

 

I believe the Bible teaches believers baptism by immersion that doesn’t save you, but rather symbolizes the death of the old man and birth of the new.

However, I believe Luther argued that just because an infant can’t respond to the gospel in a way that we can understand, doesn’t mean the child cannot respond in a way God can understand. John the Baptist was filled with Holy Spirit while in the womb.

peace to you

 

What I find ironic is they insist on immersion while at the same time admitting the very act is nothing but an empty ritual! If it's nothing but an empty ritual, what difference does the volume make? It does nothing but get you wet according to their theology.

 

John the Baptist called for repentance and emersion baptism in preparation of the coming Messiah. Jesus commanded repentance, and his disciples performed emersion baptism upon believers. Christ Jesus himself required John the Baptist to emersion baptize him.

So under what authority did emersion baptism cease? It surely did not cease by command anywhere in the New Testament. And under what authority, did baby sprinkling, thoroughly absent repentance, begin?

If emersion was what the Lord himself and his disciples practiced, who am I to practice something different?

 

Non Baptist Reformed would disagree with you!
I agree with you on believers baptism, but what is more important to me is just what does one see water baptism accomplishing? For Baptismal regeneration would be a heresy! Infant baptism in Reformed church to me not biblically correct, but is just wrong!

 

Faith in Jesus and having the Holy Spirit in you the moment you believe makes one a Christian, not getting dunked, sprinkled, or immersed by itself!

 

Its as Jesus said about Himself, though he needed not to do it, "it fulfilled righteousness", as one was obeying God to have it down!

 

Baptismal regeneration:

---> "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." (Romans 6:4)

---> "He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

Here is Ananias instructing St. Paul about it...

“Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.” (Acts 22:16)




Baptism is salvific ---> "Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ..." (1 Peter 3:21)


Luther on baptism ---> "This is the simplest way to put it: the power, effect, benefit, fruit, and purpose of baptism is that it saves. For no one is baptized in order to become a prince, but as the words say, ‘to be saved.’ To be saved, as everyone knows, is nothing else than to be delivered from sin, death and the devil, to enter into Christ’s kingdom, and to live with him forever." (Martin Luther, Large Catechism)


Baptism is only efficacious because of the blood of Christ. This is why St. John repeatedly connects the blood of Christ with water...

"But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water." (John 19:34)

"This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." (1 John 5:6-8)


Anti-sacramentalism is at its root an anti-Incarnational error.

 

There is NO effectual Grace imparted by God towards us apart from that Cross, and the 7 sacraments of grace are heretical in nature, as that system denies the suffiency of that Cross!

 

Baptism is efficacious only because of the Cross. Here is St. Paul explaining...

---> "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." (Romans 6:4)

St. Paul tells you the reason baptism regenerates (gives us newness of life) is because of Christ's passion, death and resurrection.


St. John goes to great detail to explain it wasn't just blood Christ shed on the Cross...

---> "But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water." (John 19:34)

He continues on and references the prophet Zacharias in verse 37. See here, which continues on to this. This makes no sense in Baptist theology.


Furthermore, the Apostle writes...

---> "This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." (1 John 5:6-8)


Anti-sacramentalism is at its root an anti-incarnational error. Try as you may to rid Christianity of the Sacraments, but in Christianity, matter...matters.

 

Both peter and paul used water baptism as showing to us its in Jesus we are saved, thru and by faith in Him, as that water baptism symbolizes that truth!

 

I'm beginning to think the stereotype that Protestants know the Scriptures is false. Here is St. Paul stating baptism gives you "NEWNESS OF LIFE" and here is St. Peter stating baptism "SAVES YOU"...

St. Paul ---> "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." (Romans 6:4)

St. Peter ---> "Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ..." (1 Peter 3:21)


And here is our Blessed Lord ---> "Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.'" (John 3:5)

 

same paul would ask you, 'did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed, or when you were dipped/dunked?"

 

Here's St. Paul's answer ---> "For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit." (1 Cor 12:13)


Echoing the words of St. Peter on Pentecost ---> "And Peter said to them, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.'” (Acts 2:38-39)


This is Christianity 101.

 

Paul is speaking of the Baptism in and of the Holy Spirit in that passage, not water baptism, and peter was saying that be baptized into the source of your remission of sins, Jesus Himself!