Well all, I think I'm finally coming around to embracing paedo-baptism [insert credo- baptist groaning here] .

Yes, I like other reformed credo-baptists had once said I will not believe in paedo-baptism unless God opens my heart and eyes to see my error through the scriptures. For a while I listened to other paedo brothers and sisters detail their arguments and for awhile I made the same arguments I've heard my credo brothers and sisters make. But I've finally realized that the biggest hangup for me was the language in how the case for paedo baptism was communicated. I could not get over calling someone who is unsaved apart of the covenant community of believers because my understanding of what the new covenant signified was different.

My reasonsing looked something like this:
New Covenant = Christ
Christ = Salvation
Therefore to be in the New Coveanant was to be in Christ which meant a person was saved. Or to say it differently anyone who is not saved is not in Christ and is, therefore, not in the New Covenant.

I then realized the inconsistency of my reasoning when looking at the redemptive history throughout the scriptures, and acknowledging the continuity of both Old and New Testaments.

I won't go through the arguments, I'm sure we all know them very well. But it seems like the lightbulb finally turned on, and it all makes sense now . So I'd like to thank everyone here for the helpful debates and discussion on this topic, and for helping me to navigate through this difficult and sometimes touchy debate.

__________________
Nikki Edmond
Desert Springs Presbyterian Church (PCA)
Tucson, AZ
Principle and Practice Blog
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

That's wonderful news! I think Puritan Mind has a really good article on it.

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sarah
WI
OPC
My Pastor's Sermons: Mark Jenkins...he's awesome!!!

I used to be in your shoes. I was raised in a church tht taught paedo baptism but never embraced it. Eventually I came around after much prayer, study, and an open mind for the truth.

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Rev. Andy Eppard
Associate Minister
First Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Springfield, MO

It is encouraging to hear how you are seeking the truth as God reveals it through Scripture, and that God gave you faith to understand, believe and obey- that's a real sign of God working in your life! (That's directed toward the process more than the result here)

God the Holy Spirit truly will illuminate our understanding as we seek Him through His Word. Grace to understand, believe and obey.

I came to "accept" infant baptism long before being clearly convinced it was the biblical principle.

It helped to understand covenant community- that idea of covenant community. Children of believers have promises directed toward them in Scripture as benefit of being part of that covenant community.

The children of believers are "holy" not in the sense of automatically being saved, but in the sense of being set apart to a position of privilege- having at least one believing parent and having a covenant community of believers through which they would ordinarily hear the Gospel and have opportunity to be raised in the nurture and admonition in the Lord.

Those are privileges a child of nonbelievers ordinarily does not have.

It has also helped me to recognize that those who infant baptize also do believer's baptism. Hence, at a PCA church, for example, you might see an infant baptized and then an adult- the infant by profession of faith of a parent, the adult by their own profession of faith- on the same Sunday!

__________________
Scott
PCA
North Carolina


"Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)"
Hebrews 10:23

Wow, that is an awesome testimony and praise God for His illuminating your eyes.

__________________
Michael P Doyle
Waukesha WI
Member of http://www.cornerstone-pca.com/
Attending http://www.lampseminary.org/

Welcome to Paedo-World!

__________________
The man who is disposed to think of his sin as a great calamity, rather than as a heinous crime, is not likely either to reverence God or to respect His law. - John Kennedy, 1873
Meg
Blog
Member, Intown Presbyterian Church,PCA, Portland, OR

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

Reminds me of my conversion to paedobaptism about a Decade ago. Welcome to the World of Covenant Baptism!

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Wayne Whitmer
Member, Rio Rancho OPC
Albuquerque, NM

WOOOO HOOOOO!!! Now we can get married!!! Oh wait....I was gonna marry you anyway... well now we even mo compatible!!!

You joined the ranks of John Calvin, Jonathan Edwards, John Owen, Francis Turretin, yours truly and on and on and on the list goes of Christianity's greatest defenders!

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~ Charles Stephen Barribeau ~
Christ Presbyterian Church , OPC (They sing alot of Psalms!)
Original Westminster Standards (I need to study more...)
The Puritans were best! Also... I NEED TO READ MORE!!!
Philipians1:29(KJV) For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

Janesville, Wisconsin (In the fellowship of Bob Vigneault and Matt+Megan Meisberger)

Whoa...you're good.

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Andrew Thornquist My Photo Album
Calvinistic Baptist
Ukiah, California
To follow Christ was the best decision God made for me!

I've undergone the same change over the past few years (though I was never a fully convinced Credo, but I used to lean in that direction.)

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T W Hopper
Member, Presbyterian Reformed Church
Currently between churches since PRC closed here - attending Crossroads Christian Church.
Canberra, Australia.

Welcome to the dark side.

__________________
soli Deo gloria!
~Nicholas~ Ordained Pastor
Member, Fulton PCA; GPTS Student
Christians are like snow covered dung; it is the purity of the covering which the Father sees. -Luther-
There is nothing more ugly than a Christian orthodoxy without understanding or without compassion.
-Francis Schaeffer-

Great news! Please check your inbox for detail on the secret handshake.

My mother while Roman Catholic baptized my sister and I as children. I asked her why were we baptized and she told me that it is because we are her children and that the baptism was a sign of being part of God's people...plus if were to die this provided insurance. She had equal parts Reformed and equal parts RCC.

With that God was able to show me from scripture the continuation of his covenant. I praise God how he prepares our hearts, how he establishes our steps, and directs our ways.

Now you and Charlie need to get married and make some chillens! Video tape them being dunked....sprinkled...misted with a spray bottle at least.

__________________
Frank
Under Care
P.C.A.
Maryland

I heard about a parable before. A couple came to the U.S. to work, after a couple of years, they became U.S. citizens by application. They had a child in the U.S., and their child became a U.S. citizen immediately.

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Yigang Xu
Husband of Yele, Father of Anna (07/17/08)
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Free Church of Scotland (Continuing)
Bethesda, Maryland

"Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness. They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness: and the little hills rejoice on every side." Psalm 65:10,11

God bless you, Nikki and Charlie.

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Ivan R. Schoen, B.A., M.A., M.L.I.S.
Pastor of Maranatha Baptist Church (SBC)
Poplar Grove, IL, USA
http://maranatha-sbc.org

i'm still in the studying stage but the current is sucking me in...

in reality it is a big deal especially when you have a daughter whos an infant.

if we baptize her (and the credos are right) than we are profaning the holy sacrament and may prevent her from getting baptized when/if she really needs it.

if we don't baptize her (and the paedos are right) than we are denying our daughter the holy sacrament the sign and seal.

ugh... robert reymond is helping though...

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"Bible knowledge without repentance, will be but a torch to light men to hell. -Thomas Watson
United Through Christ
Ricky Heeb
Grace Reformed Church (RCUS) Lancaster, CA

Speaking as one who cheerfully baptizes believer's infants...

In your enthusiasm and congratulations, do recall that some of your own onlooking brothers and sisters are possibly a bit grim over the same circumstances.

One of our goals here on the PB is fostering true, Christian unity, despite this major divide regarding baptism.

Another is to encourage study of the Bible, and appreciation for our historic, creedal expressions of the faith.

It is NOT a PuritanBoard goal to drive people from a credo position on baptism to a paedo, or vice versa. That's not part of our mission.

It will happen that views change. Wherever we have disagreements, the arguments will influence the readers. This is inevitable.

But beware of sounding like you're crowing. Backslaps are appropriate when someone scores in a sports event. But when they adopt religious views that you happen to share, the appropriate response is reverence to the Revealer of every truth.

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Rev. Bruce G. Buchanan
ChainOLakes Presbyterian Church, CentralLake, MI


When posting friends, kindly bear those words of earthly wisdom in mind:
Oh, that God the gift would give us
To see ourselves as others see us.
--Robert Burns, 1786 (modernized) ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions? --

LOL . You're silly :P.