For many infant-leaning churches, while the base level of relationship signified in baptism has reverted back to its roots found in circumcision, the saving effects of the cross must still find expression somewhere, somehow. This need is driven by the clear and unequivocal sacrifice made on our behalf at Golgotha. We remember that God the Father Himself made darkness descend upon the earth in testament to the gravity of what was happening. (Mt 27:45) Here, He would do the unthinkable: assign the sin of man upon His own being in order to satisfy the holy demands of justice. The subsequent pain ..read more

“Mama, what did the pastor mean when he said all that stuff about faith in Jesus?” “He was just saying that you must believe in Him to be saved and become a part of His body here on earth – the Church.” “So when I believe I can join?” “No, you’re already a member.” “I am?” “Yes, you were baptized into the Church as a little baby.” “I was?” “Yes, you were.” “But Mama, if I’m already in the Church, why do I need to believe?” “Just because you’re a part of His body doesn’t mean you’re sav …well, look, you’re a member that’s all you need to know right now.” Although ..read more

Historically, the use of circumcision to undergird baptism was a shrewd way for the Reformers in sixteenth century Europe to transition the people away from Papal rule. After all, subjection to the Pope of Rome had been taught as the way to salvation for countless generations, and to remove one’s allegiance from the Roman order was also taught the surest way to hell. Consequently, establishing a new church order outside the sanction of the Pope took a fair degree of finesse and tact, lest the people be stretched between the established religious order and these “radical” Reformers to the break ..read more

“Let there be no mistake, the line of cleavage between the two sides is traced by the manner, more or less faithful, in which one respects the biblical data concerning circumcision as a sacrament of the covenant of grace.” These words from theologian Pierre Marcel in his bold book “The Biblical Doctrine of Infant Baptism” speak to us as a kind of testament of its own on the divergent ways one can regard circumcision. They are true words, for here is the exact place where the great divide in the church occurs. The previous essays have addressed these individual paths, where each side has sought ..read more

In our last installment, we touched upon the way circumcision was generally allowed to skip the type-fulfillment model that would tend to render its principles obsolete for us as New Testament Christians. In many churches, it is instead given a crucial level of involvement over the question of who is eligible for baptism, where the older covenant can operate unhindered in ways that support infant participation in powerful ways. Drawing on the example of circumcision that was mandated in the Old Testament, infant-leaning churches claim a rock-solid foundation for their practices. However, this ..read more

There are a great many things parents need to provide for their children, food, shelter and clothing being the most obvious. Yet love, nurture and instruction are perhaps even more important, for while the first set of responsibilities only ensures their basic survival, the latter set ensures that they live well. For we who are believing parents however, there is another layer of responsibility that comes with the territory – Christian evangelism. Here is the place we recognize that while many people in the world attain all the needed components of a “successful” life, the spiritual realm ..read more

In the historical and ongoing debate about what it means to be in covenant relationship with God, there lies a fundamental difference in the way we as Baptists view the rite of baptism versus other denominations. In order to more fully understand the rationale behind infant inclusion that is practiced by so many, there lies a need to examine the primary focus baptism is given within churches that wet the head of newborns. In the last article we saw that, generally speaking, there are different levels of relationship to God in churches that rely on circumcision in administering baptism. One lev ..read more

For many Christians, the local gathering of fellow churchgoers they interact with every Sunday serves to form the limits of the spiritual horizon when it comes to the practices and forms of the church. Here, individual mindsets tend to conform around the way that particular congregation operates as it goes about the business of being a unique expression of Christ’s body. Everything from the hymns that are sung to the scenes depicted in the stained glass windows speak a subliminal message that every member takes in on a weekly basis as the routine of worship imprints itself upon the collective ..read more

When God uttered the words in Genesis that there would be a “Seed” from the woman that will crush the head of the serpent, believers from all ages have recognized the saving character wonderfully embedded in this passage. Indeed, Christ would utterly defeat Satan at the cross, where His costly sacrifice renders null and void all the accusations that can be launched against us. But who among us would consider this obscure reference the last word on the subject of our redemption? A vast amount of further material was necessary to explain the need for a man hanging upon a wooden post with a simpl ..read more