THEOLOGICAL DANGERS OF INFANT BAPTISM
1. Infant Baptism Undermines the Biblical Order of Repentance and Faith Preceding Baptism
Scripture consistently portrays baptism as following personal repentance and faith (Acts 2:38; Acts 8:12; Acts 18:8).
Baptizing infants, who are incapable of conscious faith, reverses this order and confuses the meaning of baptism.
2. Infant Baptism Obscures the Symbolism of Union with Christ
Romans 6:3–4 teaches that baptism symbolizes being buried with Christ and raised to new life.
Infants have not died to sin or been united with Christ through faith, and therefore cannot meaningfully portray this reality.
3. Infant Baptism Encourages False Assurance of Salvation
Many baptized as infants grow up assuming they are Christians simply because of that ritual.
This is a dangerous deception, giving spiritual comfort where there has been no regeneration or personal trust in Christ.
4. Infant Baptism Confuses the Nature of the Church
The New Testament Church is composed of regenerate believers (Acts 2:41–42).
Infant baptism introduces unregenerate members into the visible church, weakening the church’s purity and witness.
5. Infant Baptism Misapplies Old Covenant Signs to the New Covenant
Paedobaptists argue that baptism replaces circumcision.
But circumcision marked a national covenant, while the New Covenant is spiritual and inward (Jeremiah 31:33–34; Hebrews 8:10–11), reserved for those who know the Lord.
6. Infant Baptism Implies That Grace Can Be Conferred Apart from Faith
While paedobaptists often deny baptismal regeneration, the practice often leans toward sacramentalism.
This implies that grace can be conveyed by ritual, apart from the heart's response of faith and repentance.
PRACTICAL DANGERS OF INFANT BAPTISM
1. Infant Baptism Weakens Evangelism Within the Church
When people presume their children are Christians because they were baptized as infants, the need for evangelizing them is diminished.
Instead of calling them to repentance and faith, they are treated as already saved.
2. Infant Baptism Leads to an Unconverted Church Membership
Many churches who practice infant baptism do not require a credible profession of faith for membership.
This results in carnal, worldly churches, filled with those who have never been born again.
3. Infant Baptism Blurs the Gospel Message
The act of baptizing without repentance and faith undermines the gospel call to believe in Christ.
It promotes a form of godliness without its power (2 Timothy 3:5).
4. Infant Baptism Encourages Ecumenical Confusion
Since infant baptism is practiced in both Catholic and many Protestant churches, it is often used to argue for broader unity.
This may result in a disregard for essential truths of the gospel, including justification by faith alone and the necessity of regeneration.
5. Infant Baptism Dilutes the Witness of Believer’s Baptism
The powerful testimony of a new believer publicly identifying with Christ is diminished when baptism is treated as a mere tradition.
The church loses its visible proclamation of the gospel through baptism.
6. Infant Baptism Entrenches Tradition Over Scripture
Many who practice infant baptism do so not because of careful exegesis, but because of inherited tradition.
This trains Christians to value historic customs over the clear teaching of God’s Word.
SUMMARY
Infant baptism is not a harmless tradition. It strikes at the heart of the gospel by confusing regeneration, repentance, faith, and church membership. The call is to uphold Scripture alone as the final authority, to preserve the purity of the church, and to clearly proclaim the necessity of personal conversion through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
(The above article was AI generated.)