Baptism and Sports Jerseys: An Argument for Infant Baptism

"For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy." 1 Corinthians 7:14

I have a good friend from many years ago who is working through the issue of infant baptism with his wife.  A noble endeavor for sure.  I pointed him to this verse and argued that this very brief passage assumes infant baptism.  That's a pretty bold claim, but I'll try and make my case for it. 

Are your children Christians?  Some might say no.  In fact a well known Baptist theologian once argued that his children were not Christians and that they, like everyone, needed to repent and believe the gospel if they will be saved.  That means (God forbid) that if that man's children were to die that they would be damned.  Now most Baptists will say that there is some sort of age of accountability and that God doesn't send children to Hell before they've reached it, but the I'm not sure I've ever seen that in scripture.  Instead I've seen this.  "But as it is, they (the children of believing parents) are holy." 

St. Paul says that not only is the nonbelieving spouse of a Christian sanctified by the believing spouse, but that belief of the believing spouse also makes the children holy.  In other words, and to borrow a phrase from Augustinian theology, the faith of the parent is imputed to the child in question.  This is why Anglican's baptize children!  Its also why the parents take on the baptismal vows for the children.  Their vows and their faith is imputed to the child. 

So we can ask the question again.  Are your children Christians?  According to St. Paul they are.  In some way.  That's not to say that they are promised eternal life just because their parents believe the gospel.  They still have to do their own believing and receive the benefits of the promise by faith on their own.  But objectively speaking they are to be considered Christians in terms of the covenant.  "For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” Acts 2:39. 

So then we as Anglicans believe baptism for the infant to be a deposit in which they must draw on later in life.  What is offered to them in the gospel is truly given to them in the sacrament, but they must actually participate in that sacrament every day of their life to receive the benefit found there in.  If they do not they are to be considered apostate, but their covenant membership is still established in the rite of baptism. 

Furthermore, we Anglicans believe, that baptism is a means of grace.  Or in other words...  The way in which the Holy Spirit works in our lives to create and nurture faith.  So when a child receives the sacrament of baptism, they aren't just getting their heads wet.  No...  They are actually being born again and regenerated.  Not in the sense of some sort of magical transubstation of the soul, but rather objectively.  Their identity then is found in their baptisms and that identity if nourished with word and sacrament (preaching and communion) then they will grow in a lively faith. 

I use sports as an analogy to explain this.  Another friend of mine recently had a baby.  One of the first picture of the baby was taken of him in a sports jersey.  His dad is going to raise him to bear allegiance to his team.  So the child from day one will be surrounded with the paraphernalia of that team and will be nurtured to grow into a fan of that particular sports team.  Its not apart of that child's identity.  He was clothed in the teams jersey. 

My friend will also at some point have his child baptized.  Not only will he be clothed in the jersey of his team, but he'll also be clothed in the righteousness of Christ.  This is really just parenting 101.  You give your children their identities.  They don't form on their own.  At least they aren't supposed too.  So then if you want your child to be a pagan you raise them that way.  But if you want them to be a Christian...  Then you need to raise them that way and it starts on day one. 

Now of course there are objections to this.  What about the people who come to faith later in life without having been baptized?  That's been answered.  The word, like baptism (which is water mixed with the word) is a means of grace.  God uses it in the lives of pagan men, women and children to bring about the work of regeneration that he works in baptism for the children of the believing spouse.  The difference of course couldn't be more clear.  In one case the person is a pagan receiving the word for the first time and in the other the child is a Holy one, a Christian, growing up in the nurturing presence of the community of faith and the Holy Spirit. 

So if you are a Christian, is your child one too?  St. Paul seems to think they are, and if that's true, who are you to deny them what God freely offers.  "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” -Jesus.