Baptism
A Sign of Faith
You are invited to baptize your children
 
Why baptize children who have yet to embrace the faith?
by Pastor Tae
Some may wonder why we baptize infants and children who are so tiny and unable to express their own faith.
Yes, it is true that infants cannot exercise personal faith. We all believe that. It's not that we believe that Presbyterian babies are smarter and more able to believe! Babies simply cannot express their own faith.
But consider what baptism is. It is a sign of faith. The question that comes to a focus is: can a sign of faith be given to someone who cannot exercise faith? The answer is a surprising "yes."
 Remember that Abraham was commanded to give a sign of faith to his children before they were able to exercise their own faith. I am talking about circumcision. Read Genesis 17:11 and Romans 4:10-11. It was clearly given to infants as a sign of faith though they could not believe on their own.
And as we come into the New Testament, we see that baptism now functions as a faith sign in the same way that circumcision did in the Old Testament. This is made clear in
Colossians 2:11-12
11 In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ,
12 having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
Here in Colossians, Paul talks about circumcision in spiritual terms. See how naturally and effortlessly he switches the imagery from circumcision to baptism, making it clear that baptism has now replaced circumcision.
So, if the sign of faith was given to infants in the OT period, then the sign of faith should be to infants in the NT period within which we live.
Now, this does not mean that the infants are saved. But it does mean that they are spiritually privileged children who are blessed to be in a believing family and that God does in fact do good works through the believing family.
Once the baptized children reach an "age of understanding" (which can be different for each child), they are invited to confirm their faith as a way of confirming the faith act (of baptism) that was initiated by their parents when they were babies. At this point, they will be held accountable for their faith. This confirmation does not require a re-baptism. This is a verbal confirmation in the presence of the congregation.
And so, parents ought not delay but bring their children before God to be baptized.
It is God's invitation to dedicate your children to Him.
You are invited
Much more can be said...
Hope this helps
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