AboutWayne Tucker Expertise I will attempt an answer to any question you care to ask about the United Methodist Church, or any other matter of faith.
Experience I am an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church. I have been a pastor since January, 1988. I am a member of the Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. M.Div. Christian Theological Seminary, 1991
Hello! I hope you are having a great day! I am a youth and family minister at the Westside Church of Christ in Pearland, Texas and was just curious as to why the Methodist Church and others believe in infant baptism. I went to Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas as a Bible Major and received a degree in youth and family ministry and vocational ministry. I took various Bible Classes while there. Old Testament Survey, New Testament Survey, Book of Romans, Acts of the Apostles, Christian Home, Life of Christ, The Gospel of John (in Greek), the Pastoral Epistles, the Prison Epistles, etc. No where during my study of the New Testament did I find anything where it talks about infant baptism. All that I found on baptism is the following...
"When the People heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?'" Peter Replied, "Repent, and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins." Acts 2:37-38
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." Matt. 28:19
PLUS MANY MORE PASSAGES
We have 5 things to do in order to be saved:
Hear the Message
Believe - Hebrews 11:6, Acts 16:30-33, James 2:14-26
Repent - Luke 13:3, Acts 3:19
Confess - Rom. 10:9-10, Matt. 10:32-33
Be Baptized - Acts 2:37-41, Romans 6:3-4, I Peter 3:18-22
Also, I took New testament Greek while at Harding and the word baptism coems from the Greek word, Baptizo which means "to dip, to immerse, to plunge"
Also, where does the Bible talk about being confirmed years after the baptism?
Answer Chad,
If you are truly willing to learn, then I will give you our side. If all you are interested in is promoting your own polemic, then we will have no fruit from our discussion at all, though I delineate our arguments as clearly as possible.
Let's start from the end of your question and work our way back to the beginning. The Bible says very little indeed in any organized manner about how the Church is to be structured. Salvation and Church membership are two entirely different matters. Confirmation is not about salvation at all, and has nothing to do with baptism. Confirmation is simply a formalized process of disciple-making; one small step on a long journey. Confirmation gives each participant a foundation for further growth as a member of a congregation.
I took New Testament Greek while at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, and learned that baptizo is also used in the secular writings of the time to mean "to splash" and "to wet." Since we now know that the New Testament is not written in a special language, but rather in the vernacular of the day, these additional meanings must be considered.
Further, the Bible does not teach us one iota about the mode of baptism. Indeed, the oldest symbol for John the baptist is a shell, indicating pouring, rather than immersion. The oldest written record of instruction is such matters is a work called "The Didache." There we read that the minimum amount of water for a baptism was three drops; one each for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That little and any more will suffice. While we are on the subject, perhaps you would share with me what your tradition understands to be the meaning of John's statement that Jesus "will baptize (same word) you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." Note that the choice is "with" and not "in."
To a United Methodist, there is nothing at all that we must do to be saved. Salvation is by God's grace (ALONE!) and is accessed by us through simple faith (ALONE!). Therein lies one of the principle differences between your faith and mine. Your faith is based in your activities triggering God's gracious response toward you; and my faith is based in God's grace drawing me to respond. I rather doubt that God is greatly concerned about the order of events in a person's life, particularly events over which one has no control. Thus, I do not expect God to reject me from heaven because I was baptised before I confessed.
Surely in all your studies you learned how to use a concordance. If you will take the time to examine "baptism" and related words, you will find several other listings beyond Acts 2. Among them are the Phillipian jailer, who was baptised along with his entire household - which probably included small children. In his own account, Paul tells the church at Corinth that he baptised the household of Stephanus - which probably included small children. I do not know that small children were there, but neither do I know that they weren't.
The basis for what United Methodists do is four-fold. We look to Scripture, Tradition, Experience, and Reason. The tradition of the organized Church, as far back as we have record, has been to baptize infants. In the West, we do it by imposition, by sprinkling, or by pouring. In the Eastern traditions, they immerse infants - three times. I have seen it with my own eyes.
Peter makes it clear that baptism is not about the water on our skin, but about the change that God works in our hearts. If baptism is, as you say, a proper response to faith, then I still have no problem baptising infants. You might argue that an infant has no faith. I would argue that all an infant has IS faith. If an infant is lonely, it cries; and someone picks it up to hold it. If an infant is hungry, it cries; and someone feeds it. If an infant makes an uncomfortable mess, it cries; and someone comes and cleans it up. If an infant hurts, it cries; and someone comforts it. If this is not a perfect description of our status before God, then I don't know what is. All an infant has is faith. Not words, not reason, not plans; just faith. Does an infant know or understand what is happening at baptism? I don't know. If we do not baptize infants, then we are stuck with the awkward doctrine of "The Age Of Accountability," another phrase you won't find in scripture. But how many 13 year olds fully understand what it means to live the Christian life? How many 23 year olds? 33 year olds? That's what making disciples is all about.
For us, baptism is not about what WE do, or about what the baptised does, nor about the amount of water used. Baptism is about what God does. Through baptism we are initiated into the kingdom of God. That cannot happen early enough in today's world. I want God's hand in as many lives as possible in our public shools. I want God's hand in as many lives as possible in our neighborhoods, and on our streets. I want as many parents as possible remembering that their obligation is to raise their children in a way that will lead them to accept for themsleves the free gift of salvation that is already theirs in Christ. If baptism helps that happen, then so be it.
You asked. I hope this has helped your understanding of our position. If i have misstated your position, I beg your pardon and humbly ask to be corrected.
