Episode Details

Episode 6 of the Christ for Us Bible Study Podcast discussing biblical arguments for infant Baptism by Rev. James Preus. You can read the outline to this Bible Study at Christforus.org. 

#InfantBaptism #Baptism #Bible #Biblestudy #Theology #Lutheran #Baptist #Pentecostal #Anabaptist 

Intro and closing music: Wachet Auf, Ruf Uns Die Stimme BWV 645, setting by J. S. Bach, Noncommercial Use

Many protestant groups in America reject infant Baptism, such as the Baptists, Pentecostals, and so-called non-denominational churches. I would like to explain from Scripture why Christians should get their babies baptized.

Before we can address whether babies should be baptized, we need to understand what the Bible teaches about grace. Grace is a free gift (Romans 3:24; Ephesians 2:8-9), God’s undeserved love for us. While most Christians will recognize this as referring to the salvation won by Jesus’ innocent suffering and death, which made payment for our sins, grace also refers to God’s work of conversion. The Bible makes clear that because of our sinful condition (original sin) with which we are born, we cannot choose God or accept Jesus as our Savior, unless God Himself draws us. Faith itself is a gift from God, given by grace. Faith is not something human beings can achieve by their own strength or reasoning. Adults are not more capable than children to believe in Jesus. Saying babies cannot have faith is equal to saying that God cannot give faith to babies.

•  “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 16:17
• “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.” John 6:44
• St. Paul makes clear that by nature people cannot accept the Gospel by their own reason, but the Holy Spirit reveals it to them through God’s Word.  “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person cannot accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2:12-14
• “No one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:3
• St. Paul states that we are born dead in sin and incapable of following God until He makes us alive. “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—.” Ephesians 2:1-5
• Those who reject infant Baptism will often emphasize the importance of being born again. Being born again is essential to being saved; however, being born again is not our work, but God’s Work. Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. … Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of Spirit is spirit.” John 3:3, 5-6 That which is born of flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:7-8), so a person cannot have faith in God unless God causes him to be born again. The sinful flesh cannot cause itself to be born again of the Spirit.
• “But to those who did receive Him