The Baptism Debate | Theocast

The Baptism Debate and the Credobaptist Position

The baptism debate. Typically when I hear this I cringe because it's not really done. Well, there's a lot of straw men. We don't represent each other's side and it becomes heated and emotional. We don't want to do that today.

We want to talk about the differences and Where they stand biblically and then why Justin and I would hold to a position known as the credo baptist position the 1689 baptism view of Baptism. We most of all we pray that you're informed and encouraged.

We love our brothers who are pedo Baptist and we hope that comes out in this podcast. Stay tuned. If you're new to theocast, you may not have heard of this word. It's called pietism. You ever felt like the Christian life is a heavy burden versus rest and joy that you wake up.

Worrying about how well you're gonna perform instead of thinking about what Christ has done for you. It's dread versus joy really that's pietism. Pietism causes Christians to look in on themselves and find their hope not in what Christ has done but what they're doing and We have a little book for you.

It's free. We want you to download it and we're gonna explain the difference between pietism and what we call confessionalism. Reform theology. Really how it is that we walk by faith. Seeing the joy of Christ and when Jesus says come to me and I will give you rest.

What does that look like. You can download it on our website. Just go to theocast .org. Welcome to theocast encouraging weary pilgrims to rest in Christ. Conversations about the Christian life from a reform pastoral confessional law gospel.

Hey, listen, we just talked about Jesus and our goal is to remove the clutter off the gospel and then say What does Jesus mean by seek first the kingdom of God? We want to talk about that. Justin it's good to be here with you.

My friend your hosts today are Justin Perdue pastor of Covenant Baptist Church in Asheville, North Carolina. I'm John Moffitt. I am the pastor of Grace Reformed Church in Spring Hill, Tennessee and Justin there's a there's a conference you're putting on there might be still some spots available.

Go to covbap .org to hear the none other than Chad Byrd. That's right. Chad Byrd will be preaching the glories of Christ in Discipleship. Good stuff. Amen, and then if you haven't joined the community yet, there's a well over 1 ,200 people in there and having conversations Godly honoring Christ exalting advancing the kingdom kind of conversations.

Memes and meanness are not allowed but that doesn't mean we don't have some good discussions, you know, Justin I don't want to waste time. I also want to jump into this thing, man. We have a lot to talk about we do not have a long time to do it before I throw it to you.

I just want to say this the last three weeks. We've been talking about covenant theology the sync is between Baptist and Reformed or sorry Baptist and Presbyterian. Today is a high view. So if you were to say John and Justin, I'm gonna sit down with a cup of coffee.

Whatever and I'll say look. Just tell me in the next 30 minutes. What's the difference between the pedo version of baptism and the credo the Baptist versus Presbyterian? Just give me a high level. That's what this is today.

If you want more technical and you want it to be long and arduous leave us a comment in the links. Maybe we'll do something like that. But for today, this is a basic overview for someone who's like I don't really know what the differences are.

That's what we're gonna talk about today. So Justin I throw it to you my friend. Yeah, and not just that one of you baptize infants and one of you only baptize those who have professed faith. That is obvious on the face of it.

What we're getting at. Yes. The why tell me what's underneath that and I'll acknowledge this sadly in in many Baptist circles. We can say this as Baptists. There's not there's not a lot of good conversation about this actually there's a lot of.

Yeah, I don't know I think well-intentioned folks who are Credo Baptist almost by default and don't don't really think deeply about these matters and that's lamentable. That's that said let's let's pivot.

I want to begin first John. Exactly. I want to begin first by talking about the pedo-baptistic and pedo meaning infant baptism credo meaning Believer or believers baptism. Can I jump in? Yes, not not all infant baptism.

Just in the really the Presbyterian line, we will deal with other forms of it. So we're not gonna talk about the Catholic view. We're talking about the reformed. We're talking about in the reformed world right now.

We will acknowledge. Yeah, we will acknowledge maybe our Lutheran friends toward the end. But right now we're talking about the intermural debate amongst those who would claim to be reformed between Believers baptism those of us who would hold to a covenantal framework.

What I said a minute ago about Baptists not thinking deeply about baptism does not happen in the covenantal space as much. It's more in that kind of broad evangelical world. All right now that we've done all that.

We said all that we're just gonna laser focus. Here we go. I want to begin by articulating the reformed pedo-baptistic View in brief before we pivot to ours and then start talking about what baptism is so in the pedo understanding the Covenant of Grace was formally established with Abraham and The sign of the Covenant of Grace is circumcision.

That's what it was beginning with Abraham and that sign of circumcision is administered via households to all of the descendants of Abraham and Then moving forward carrying this, you know one Covenant of Grace and all scripture.

You know the old administration moving it into the new administration in the new covenant the Lord never repealed that household paradigm and so the sign of the Covenant of Grace in the new administration is baptism and It should be administered the same way ie via household just like circumcision was administered under the old administration.

That is the as I understand it. That is the pedo-baptistic presentation of why? Baptism is administered the way that it is given their covenantal framework. Now, what is our I'll jump in there to say I'll jump in there to say and the reason why there's silence and Nowhere in scripture to say to baptize children is because of that carryover.

They're saying well, there's no need to create clarity there exactly because God has always intended his children of believers to be in the covenant whether it's Administrated in the old or the new so there that's why there's a silence of saying you you should baptize your children.

Yeah, the assumption the default position is that children would receive the sign of the covenant. So then and our looted in the covenant community included with the community not just a story in that in that formal sense, right?

That's not having received a sign. They're a part of the community. All right our position to begin to talk about it is that we Understand that the covenant of grace while promised and revealed in the Old Testament was not formally established until Christ came.

We do not understand therefore that circumcision was the sign of the covenant of grace but rather was the sign of the covenant God made with Abraham pertaining to his physical offspring and the promises of land and descendants and kings and the like.

So what this means for us is as the covenant of grace is further revealed in the Old Testament and we get to the New Testament and the establishment of the covenant of grace in the New Covenant with Jesus there is Distinction and discontinuity and baptism is the sign of the covenant of grace period we don't understand that there was any other one, but that Baptism is the sign given to those who are a part of the covenant of grace who have experienced the New Covenant reality of Regeneration in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Professing faith in Christ repentance toward God in faith, right? That's how we understand Baptism and how we understand who The sign of baptism should be given to whom the sign of baptism should be given.

So I hope those differences at a most basic level are plain. But I want to John please add anything you want there before then we're gonna talk at length About what baptism is and then thereby who would receive it?

Yeah, I could go and we'll just go ahead and start there. I think your your introduction was great. Those are brief comments. Yeah. Yeah, so Justin I say this with jest and a smile on my face for those of you that are listening to on the podcast So many people who love us and for you know, because of preaching about Christ and talking about Christ.

They're just so thankful for what we're doing and the comment we often hear is like I'll just give it time. You know keep researching keep studying and Justin and I have you know, it's like, you know, we've been really, you know Proclaiming Reformed Theology for I can long time and It's not that Justin and I aren't Concerned or haven't done the research.

It's that this debate is not new. It's not part of a non-academic Conversation, you know, this really goes back to why the 1689 Was was they embraced? 97 of to 99 of the Westminster Confession and the Savoy Declaration.

But we're like hey we have some problems applying union with Christ to Baptism and so we're gonna make some adjustments here and they presented that so that's where we're at with this. Is that go ahead.

No, can I just say really quick? I don't I want I don't want anybody to misunderstand if people were to ask us What is baptism? I were probably say it's about ten times. What is baptism about it is about our union with Christ.

That's right here I say that yeah all the benefits and everything that comes from that yeah, and so that's that's where we're going with this is that when we think about the word baptism the way in which the New-testament describes so we can talk about the administration of it here in a minute.

Not the forum, but like who is it's been a straighter to but when we look at how scripture Reflects upon baptism the spiritual nature of it symbolized in the physical nature of it, right? You are always being faced with High power gospel moments, right?

That's what's just so complicated when we're talking about this sign is that it's symbolizing something, right? So like for instance We used this last week in the illustration of the burrito if I'm looking at a Mexican restaurant I'm sitting there and I see the picture of the burrito when it comes back out I'm expecting it to be the burrito right now half of it not the ingredients of it.

Not the shell. I'm expecting the whole thing. Everything was in the description. That's what I'm expecting. The sign should be a reflection of the substance of what it symbolizes. So what does Baptist symbolize?

That's what we're going to talk about now. What does when we say the word baptism? What does it all? Encapsulate and so for us you can't just say union in Christ because a lot of people may not know what that means.

So let's unpack what is it to meet right in union with Christ, right? Yeah. Yeah, what is before before I start throwing some verses on this? Yeah, go ahead. What is baptism significant of like even the fact that it is a sign?

Well what is it a sign of and we are saying union with Christ and we're about to unpack all that that entails and John let's let's just go ahead and begin at Romans 6 if you want to unless you have yeah.

That's where you want to start go for it. Read it. No, I say grow. Yeah, I think Romans 6 would be great. So Romans 6 4 and 5 says we were buried therefore with him by baptism into death. In order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father we too might walk in newness of life.

So this is connected to our baptism for if we have been united with him in a death like his. We shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his and this is all connected to the symbolism of baptism.

So that's where we would say on a high level union with Christ is connected to baptism according to Paul. Yes, and Union with Jesus meaning in Paul's argumentation in Romans 6 and 7 the verse early verses of chapter 7.

Here's what he's saying. He is saying that we have been united to Christ in his death ie in Christ. We died to the law right the death that Jesus died is our death. So we've been united to him in that and the merits of his death are applied to us.

And also not only do we share in his death. We also share now in his resurrection life resurrection. That's the argument. That's right. Yes, and That's a significant thing in terms of even how Paul argues for The identity that the Christian now has and how he argues for sanctification in the Christian life.

Baptism is a key piece of that because remember the objection He's answering should we just sin that grace may abound by no means because we've been united to Jesus. We've been baptized into his death.

We now share it. We've been baptized into his resurrection life. And so things are different now for us than they were before. That's his argument and we've been set free from The power of the law to condemn us.

Right, and we have now been set free to serve God By the power of the Spirit that's significant. That's that's Romans 6 1 through about 7 6 right there. That's right so Just to kind of contrast this a little bit back.

Our pedo friends would say that when a child is baptized and infant is baptized They are brought into the covenant community to receive the benefits of the covenant community the covenant of grace the community that is there.

And so the question we always ask is okay, what? Benefits are they receiving because of verses like this creates a complication. It's not just a covenant community that's not how Paul describes it he says it this way this is Corinthians 1st Corinthians 12 13 for in one spirit We were all baptized into one body Jews and Greeks slaves and free and all were made to drink of one Spirit so it's not that there's it's a community of believers where you're gonna have believers and unbelievers Who have received the sign and we're waiting for them to reflect it in their confirmation of the faith.

He is saying the sign of baptism is symbolized in that we are one in body. They're all a part of and then this is important in one spirit. Yeah, right for in one spirit. We were all baptized into one body.

So are you saying and I know they're not. I know they're not saying this but this is why we as Baptists have a complication in this. Are you saying that when you give a child the sign of baptism that they are one in spirit with us?

And They are one in covenant, but they're not one in spirit and we were saying the New Covenant doesn't have languages of dual membership. They would never say it's dual membership. I say it's dual membership that you have some who have half the benefits and you have some who have all the benefits.

So I always ask my paedo friends What benefits are they lacking and they have to say that the indwelling of the spirit is not in them. Therefore they're not in the body. Therefore the SIM the sign isn't matching how Paul is describing it, right?

I'm just what's we can read some more passages and just keep expounding on these things. This is Colossians chapter 2 11 and following In him also in Jesus you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands.

By putting off the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. He's about to under explain that even more having been buried with him in baptism. So there's that language again in which you were also raised with him through faith and the powerful working of God who raised him from the Dead so there's that resurrection life again and you who were dead and your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh God made alive Together with him.

So there's that Regeneration indwelling of the spirit life in Christ having forgiven us all of our trespasses. Oh, we the forgiveness of sins. By canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands this he set aside nailing it to the cross.

So there we have the cross, you know in Christ's atoning work and everything he's accomplished for us is a piece of this and He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him.

So even the triumph of Christ over the principalities and powers in the cosmic darkness that reigns now. Even that is wrapped up in all of this. So you have a significant Spiritual realities of the circumcision of the heart which we would contend.

I'll just briefly say this now Baptism is not the fulfillment of circumcision the fulfillment of circumcision is the circumcision of the heart. Which is regeneration in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Which is what's talked about in Colossians 2 and then you it's wild that in three or four verses you have all of these principles of circumcision of Christ. You have being buried with him in baptism raised with him through faith and then also Being made alive together with Jesus having our sins forgiven Through the work of Christ on the cross like all of that is right there in the language about baptism and this is all couched in being alive in Christ in Colossians chapter 2 and Then talking later as Paul will about the old way of life the old man and then the new way the new man.

Putting off putting on right? So it's we have to take all that into consideration in terms of how the Apostle is reasoning in his letter to the Colossians. Significant significant stuff. Yeah, it is. Well, not only that is that Christ then becomes I mean the great high priest on who's interceding on our behalf.

Yeah, so does the great high priest fail? Right, and it says he never fails, right? So is he interceding on our behalf because this is the question that often at the Baptist and Presbyterians like so you do you let?

Your children pray to God and Just how dare how dare you and I'm like, well, he's you know, I'm not gonna get into that. Well, I want to I want to grab a little bit of the priest language here. There's a an amazing book by a friend of mine by the name of Doug Van Doren wrote called waters of creation.

I'll put it in the notes highly recommend you reading this because he helps make a wonderful connection between the benefits of baptism. So when John is in the waters of baptism and he's baptizing for the baptism repentance.

The John the Baptist John the Baptist they've been following false gods. He's saying you need to return to you know. Turn to Yahweh for the Messiah is coming and Jesus comes and he says behold the Lamb of God who takes away this into the world and he steps into the water and He's Jesus says to him John baptize me and John's like no.

No, no, you you need to baptize me, right and listen to how Jesus responds to him. This is Matthew 3 15 and Jesus answered him. Let it be. So now for thus It is fitting for us to fulfill for us the two of us to fulfill all righteousness.

Mm-hmm. I love how Matthew writes this about John then he consented. Yeah, right. He's like well He stopped arguing why because at that moment John understood something that was about to happen and the argument that's being made here is that Jesus is being baptized according to Levitical tradition that he is going to be baptized to fulfill all righteousness.

He has to be baptized By an ordained priest who John is and when he does he becomes the great high priest. He has to be of the age of 30. He has to be called which we already know that He said I'm sitting here by the father.

He has to be 30 years old and immediately after receiving the sign of baptism by an ordained priest he starts the role of priesthood and Later on Jesus turns the tables over, you know. It goes in and cleans up the the temple as a high priest is supposed to do.

The priests come to him and they're sitting on the steps and they said but what authority are you doing this like who says you could claim to be the priest here and He asked them one question by what authority does John baptize?

So he's he's saying I am a priest and I'm ordained and I have the right to do this because I have fulfilled righteousness. I've done everything that's required of me to be the priest and John can attest to that.

The reason why we're making this connection is that this concept of priesthood is brought over into the New Testament. Peter talks about this. We are part of the royal priesthood and we are we are priest a kingdom of priests which was promised in the old.

We would become a kingdom of priests. So we are going to be in acting. We're going to be Representing Christ our great high priest to the world as a kingdom of priests. What does it say? We're living stones, right?

We're temples. We're this is important language. Those who are a part of the covenant community are Housing the Spirit of God, this is why he says you're living temples, but what I think is interesting is how Paul you ends up using this language and He says that in Galatians 327 He says for as many of you as were baptized into Christ and have put on Christ.

That's priestly language. Christ had the authority to bring and give you pre to make you priests because he is the great high priest. Therefore and then he says you've put on Christ. We've put on his robes.

We've put on his righteousness. That's he says fulfill all righteousness, right? And there is Zechariah 3. That's absolutely right. Argument we're making being closed is that estimates? Exactly so the argument we're making is that The role of being a priest of the royal priesthood.

Being a temple that's indwelled by the Spirit is all connected Ephesians to baptism, that's right. So I have a hard time giving the sign of baptism to anyone who would not first meet the requirements of it just like Jesus didn't receive the sign of Entering into the priesthood until all requirements were met all righteousness was met.

That baptism is not the baptism is not connected to circumcision. The baptism is connected to the reflection of our priesthood and the union that we have in Christ. And so all of these pictures union with Christ.

Buried in the likeness of his death raised with his resurrection and priesthood are all the symbols. They're all connected to it. Not half of them. Not some of them, but all of them are connected in baptism.

The Sign of Baptism as Union with Christ

Hey guys real quick. Some of you are listening to this and it's encouraging to you, but you have questions. So, where do you go? How do you interact with other people who have the same questions and share resources?

We have started something called the Theocast community. We're excited because not only is it a place for you to connect with other like-minded believers. All of our resources there past podcast education materials articles all of its there and you can share it and ask questions.

You can go check it out. The link is in the description below. So what is back? What does baptism signify? It signifies our union with Christ by faith are being grafted into him the remission of our sins being brought into like you said this people of Christ who are a royal priesthood and it it means.

That everything that is Christ is now ours. To be united to him and grafted into him and all the benefits of his death and resurrection. I mean, this is the language our confession uses in chapter 29 paragraph 1 on baptism.

And we affirm it and we think it's biblical. Big deal that everything that's Christ is now ours and baptism signifies that and so what does that mean? It means that we've been forgiven of our sins. It means that we've been absolved of our guilt means that we have been declared righteous as he is righteous.

It means that we have been united to him in resurrection life and our bodily resurrection. Therefore is now certain like all of these things are massive in their significance and how we are a part of his people.

We are now living stones. We're being built into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit, right? All of that is signified in the waters of baptism and so it only makes sense then John that Given our understanding of covenant theology and then even giving our understanding of what baptism signifies in the words of the New Testament that we would administer baptism then to people who have experienced that new covenant reality of regeneration in dwelling of the Spirit faith in Jesus.

Repentance toward God in faith, right? Those are the people that would receive the sign. And we would not be administering it the way that our our paid-off friends do. Right, and that's why we would say both sacraments is you know.

One symbolized or about union with us being brought into the family in union with Christ. And then the second is sustained in Christ right through the exactly the the initiatory one Baptism you'd be about our union with him being grafted in and then yes the ongoing nourishment and sustenance.

That is demonstrated to us in the supper, and we would agree. Very I mean we would agree pretty much wholeheartedly holistically with our Presbyterian and Reformed friends on the supper. Baptism is where we differ.

Yeah, that's right. So John do you want to talk a little bit about? Some of the problem passages so to speak do we want to get into any of those and just yeah, I would say. Yeah, I would say this is what we justin and I just gave you is our biggest arguments of like this is why.

These are the biggest holes in the. If you're gonna ask me to give the sign over to a child, I would have to say that child is now degenerate. That's the only way I can come to a conclusion. Is that if I'm giving them the sign and the benefits of the sign.

That the moment I give that child baptism that they they have Christ and all the benefits of Christ including his union his resurrection. The spirit that lives within him. He's there now a great high priest.

I guess we can conscience do that. That's right. Yeah, I can't do that. The only way we can do that is by what we see in the New Testament is that that sign was offered to those? Who by faith put their faith in Christ demonstrating the spiritual baptism?

They had received followed by the physical baptism of that of the spiritual nature. So that being said Go ahead. We do just briefly I think we should acknowledge Ezekiel 36 Jeremiah 31 just super quick before we move into other texts so our understanding of Ezekiel 36 where the Lord says he's gonna remove our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh and put his Spirit within us.

We understand that's a new covenant promise. So there's that indwelling peace. That's significant. But then in Jeremiah 31 where the Lord says that all of the members of this new covenant that he's making.

It's not like the old one. It's a new covenant and everybody who's a part of it will know him and will have his law written on their hearts. So we understand then and then the forgiveness of sins is entailed.

We understand that's about the new covenant also. So again, every person who's a part of the new covenant ie the covenant of grace established knows the Lord has the law of God written on his or her heart has his or her sins forgiven and Has been given the Spirit of God to indwell Him or her.

So again this this has implications for who we would baptize. That's right. There we go. So that being said one of the things that when we have these conversations or you've seen these debates in the past.

You would say well, what about all of the examples in the New Testament of infant baptism? So we thought we would go ahead and say well I we think our greatest argument is the one we just made that you have to create a duality.

There's either those who have half covenant membership and those who have full and. Then you I guess you get into full membership once you become a faith. We just don't see the language in the New Testament.

You don't see where it says. Well, some of you have been baptized and some of you have those benefits. You just it's not there and I know that's an argument from silence and and what does it mean? What does it mean for a person to have Christ as his or her mediator?

Apart from faith in him. And then what does that mean? For an individual who is baptized but may never profess faith. But those are significant questions that have to be answered. We have hard questions to answer as well.

I don't listen know is that in our in that we're not God and It's not like we're saying we infallibly only baptize true professors. That obviously can't be done because we can't see the hearts of men.

We're taking people at their word. That's right. So this is why we faith. But this is why we practice church discipline if someone professes Christ and then proves to have a false profession. Then we have to church discipline them.

That's why it's there. And so yeah, yes, there are times where even John says they went out from us because they were not of us. Well, that's that's because there's gonna be false teachers false professors and deceivers.

All right. So what about household? What about household baptisms in the book of Acts? Let's start there. So they're saying to see these are examples of where an entire households were baptized because of the I don't think we're one person.

Yeah, there's a couple of there's an article I'll put in here by Tom Nettles. I think is fascinating. He goes through all of them and it kind of works through each one exegetically to explain them. I'm not gonna go through those but I think Justin we need to acknowledge them in whole.

There's a couple of problems when we have Household baptisms. Okay, I'll bring up one and I know you have one you could bring up one of the issues that you're having. Is that when we execute that we're allowing children to be receiving the sign.

And including them in the household. But when it says that the household provided a meal the household rejoiced. The household then went out and did this we're not assuming that the infant wasn't part of the meal preparation a part of the rejoicing or part of going out of the house as is indicated in these passages because.

Well, that would be weird. I think the author is giving a general idea of this is what's happening. But when it comes to the receiving of baptism, we include them in these households. And so I think Tom does a really good job explaining this in that section of kind of exposing the error that's in there it's just an interesting observation how we are.

When we're trying to include something we will say yes. They were included in the baptism, but they weren't included in the rejoicing or are we saying they were included in the rejoicing huge. Yeah, let's let's let's examine two of the most well-known just to discuss them one one observation That could be made in general is.

There is a kind of argument from silence. That's often made By our our pedo-baptistic friends that the assumption is nobody else came to faith Other than the individual who is preeminent in the account.

That's an argument from silence and that's just an observation. That's right. Yeah, so Acts chapter 10 Cornelius is a famous one. Yep so Peter obviously has received a sign from the Lord that that nothing is unclean right and most fundamentally.

That means the gospel needs to go to the Gentiles most fundamentally and so Peter goes into a Gentile household Cornelius's household and preaches the gospel and then what's interesting about that account is that verse 44 and following while Peter was Still saying these things the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word so the Spirit falls on everybody and The believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on The Gentiles for they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God then Peter declared.

Can anyone this is significant here? Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have? So there's a receipt the falling of the Spirit and the receiving of the Spirit for everybody who heard the word is.

Actually what's stated there? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. And then they asked him remain to remain for some days. The other one. Do you want to comment on that one at all John?

I just think that it's interesting how he did connect the Holy Spirit in dwelling with baptism. Yeah agree. Agree and how the spirit fell on everyone who heard the word and how they had received the Spirit just as the Apostles had.

Pretty if you want to be consistent and say that the the infants believed. I mean, I guess that's how you can be consistent there. All right. So then the Philippian jailer, okay is another one act 16.

This is a very famous one as well. You people know the the story how Paul and Silas are miraculously freed. From from jail the jailer wakes up and is terrified and Paul says you don't need to be afraid and so Paul says believe in the Lord Jesus and you'll be saved you and your household.

All right. So does that mean that by your faith? Your household is saved or does that mean that you and your household will believe in Jesus? That's a legit question to ask then verse 32 They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.

So they preached the word to everybody. That's right. And then it says and He took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds and he was baptized at once he and all his family everybody. Who had heard the word?

I mean, so again, it's it's interesting that everybody hears the word and then everybody is baptized. Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them and he rejoiced along with his entire household.

That he had believed in God now. Everybody's rejoicing like let's not build our our understanding of this passage on that one phrase that he had believed. It's like okay, he's rejoicing but everybody else is too.

Why are they celebrating? Unless they have seen that this is good, you know, and that so those are just our Observations on a couple of passages that are often levied against us in terms of hey guys household baptism is a pattern in the New Testament meaning the baptism of infants who obviously are incapable of faith and That's our response to a couple of those passages there.