If you were to search the New Testament, you would not find a clear example of infant baptism. One might wish to assume that infants were among the 3,000 baptized on Pentecost in Acts 2:41, or among the “households” baptized in Acts 16:15 and 16:33, but this is by no means sure. The prevalence of belief, confession, and repentance in the Acts accounts of conversion argues that the subject of the “one baptism” (Eph. 4:4) must be a person old enough to grasp the concept of sin, to understand that in Jesus there is salvation, and to make a commitment to Him. Indeed, many denominations that practice infant baptism have created an additional stage, “Confirmation,” to be completed before “First Communion,” to train pre-teens in the doctrines they couldn’t comprehend before being presented for infant baptism, as well as to re-introduce the element of personal choice.
If infant baptism doesn’t come from the Bible, where does it come from? It is brought in to address the problems created by another doctrine called Original Sin in the Catholic tradition, modified a bit to Total Hereditary Depravity in the Reform tradition (though the Reform view does not require infant baptism to fix).
Original Sin
“Original Sin” says that when Adam sinned in Eden, the guilt of sin tainted the souls of every human that would ever be born.
“Born with a fallen human nature and tainted by Original Sin, children also have need of the new birth in baptism to be freed from the power of darkness and brought into the realm of freedom of the children of God… The Church and the parents would deny a child the priceless grace of becoming a child of God were they not to confer baptism shortly after birth” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1250-52; 403).
“Infants … unless regenerated unto God through the grace of baptism are born to eternal misery and perdition” (The Council of Trent).
Though a baby may be sweet to gaze upon, Original Sin teaches that his soul is doomed. Baptism is required to remove the stain of Adam’s sin.
Few false teachings are totally bonkers; likewise, Original Sin is not without basis. Human beings are certainly depraved. David poetically said, “I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5); though compare Deut. 1:39, Isa. 7:16. Anyone who has raised children knows that selfish disobedience comes at an early age (though we might not call this conscious “sin” quite yet).
Still, Original Sin and its ramifications are contradicted by Scripture. Jesus said that adults must “become like children” (Matt. 18:1-6, 19:14), models of godly innocence.
Children become actual sinners later, as they learn the difference between right and wrong, and choose to do wrong (1 John 3:4). “God made men upright, but they have sought out many devices” (Eccl. 7:29).
I do wish the Bible had spelled out when one reaches “the age of accountability” but perhaps this is different for all. Each person shares in Adam’s condemnation not because Adam is his great-grandfather (Ezek. 18:4) but “because all sinned” (Rom. 5:12) just like Adam did. Spiritual guilt does not come to us as a genetic disease, but rather as a decision to reject God and His righteousness.
Why Not Just Baptize Babies?
Baptism is more than the water. Just because a person eats a grape jelly-on-matzo sandwich for lunch doesn’t mean that he is partaking of the Lord’s Supper. Only when he eats the symbols with faith, for the purpose of remembering Jesus’ sacrifice, does he partake. Likewise, just because a person gets wet does not mean that he is experiencing Christian baptism.
Baptism is a person’s faithful response to the preaching of the gospel, “not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience” (1 Pet. 3:21). Through baptism, a person is buried with Him into His death, and raised up to new life (Col. 2:12). Baptism is a spiritual rebirth (John 3:1-8), that puts away the old man of sin and creates a new man in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). It includes belief (Mark 16:16) and confession (Rom. 10:9).
Simply put, sinners get saved, children are safe. Sadly, few individuals who are baptized as babies ever come to realize that they have never really been baptized, in faith, with the “one baptism,” for the remission of their sins.
—John Guzzetta