An Odd Couple

The thought occurred to me, as it sometimes does, that there is a similarity between the Lutheran position on infant baptism and the Arminian position in decisional regeneration. If you have been reading the comments of prior posts, you may have a headache. Buy you also may have noticed many of the arguments of the pro-Luther party were lobbed in the general direction of the pro-Arminius constituency. I did observe something peculiar as I looked at the scorched remains of the Arminian straw man. He looked vaguely familiar.

Like I’ve noted before, there is a strange kinship between errors that, on the surface, seem to oppose one another. The antinomian is just as focused on the law as the legalist. One runs from the law, the other to the law, but for the sake of the law, they both do run.

The Lutheran and the Arminian have a strange kinship in regards to the sovereignty of God in salvation while they firmly deny the resemblance. Neither truly believes that God has the absolute freedom to choose who will be saved. Both believe it to be unjust and unfair for God to chose to show mercy on some and not others, to one degree or another. Whereas the Arminian applies this to all mankind, the Lutheran applies this to children. Both think they can do something to make God save someone. One calls sinners to the “altar” in the front of the church to make a decision while the other sprinkles water on a babies head. Both positions think that their actions will move God to save and both will call it grace. Both sides will get upset when you point out that this is a work, and both positions will say these things are done in faith. But when you boil it all down, making a decision is a work, and so is baptizing babies. What precedes faith will determine if you truly believe in grace. An odd couple.

The wreckage of decisional regeneration is no different than that of infant baptismal regeneration. In both instances a well meaning adult convinces a child that they are saved. The child takes their word for it and moves on, walking (or crawling) in darkness. A church full of false converts, nominal Christians who have taken the word of someone that they were baptized and believed the report that they repented of their sins and trusted in Christ. Do many later come to saving faith? Sure. Do many die in their sins trusting in the words of men assuring them that their decision saved them, or their baptism saved them? Sadly, yes.

Faith is substantive. True, living, God given faith awakens the dead spirit to life, opens the blind eyes to sight, and causes the dead sinner to see the kingdom of God and come to Jesus Christ. The Lutheran can parse words all day long, but an unconscious infant does not have faith, as faith is defined by the Bible (Hebrews 11:1). How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg? He has four - calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it so. Redefining faith may help a well meaning parent or pastor to sleep at night, but it does not change God’s Word, nor does it regenerate the soul of the deceived.

This is an emotional issue, especially for parents of young children, like myself. If there were something I could do to save my children, I would do it - but it would do them no good to impose upon them a religious ritual that has no power to save and lie to them in order that I might feel better. The well meaning Arminian will do the same. They will ask the child if they love God and want to go to Heaven and then ask if they love Jesus and then tell them they are saved. This makes the parents rejoice, for  a season, until they wonder why their teenager is cooking meth in the back yard instead of at Bible study.

My children are in God’s hands. Salvation is of the Lord. I tell my kids of the gospel daily. We have daily family worship and daily Bible reading. I pray for the salvation of my children. I do all that the Lord has required of me,all that I can do and their souls are in His hands - and there is no other place that I would rather they be. I desire nothing more than to see my children walk in the truth, but I cannot change the leopard's spots in family worship and only God’s grace can give a heart of flesh, faith, and true repentance. I preach the gospel, I call them to repentance - but their souls are not in my not in my hands, not in the hands of the church, but in the Hands of God.

Does Titus 3:5 Teach Baptismal Regeneration and Support Infant Baptism?

In case you have missed the fun.
Part 1
Part 2

 The book of Titus is a pastoral epistle, penned by Paul to instruct the Gentile minister on the work of pastoring a church. Chapter three, to which we have our present controversy, begins with the charge to Titus to preach that Christians are not to be subversive rebels, but live gently and meekly in this present evil world. We didn't always live a holy life, because we used to be foolish and disobedient, serving our lusts and pleasures. We used to be the hateful ones, living in hate, speaking hate, and hating one another (3:3). Christians are to live a life to the glory of God – a way that is contrary to the world, and a way that is contrary to our old lives. We also see a radical shift in worldviews. We used to believe one way and we used to do things a certain way, a wicked way, an evil way. Now, we don’t. How did that happen? How did we get from hateful and hating to gentle and meek?

Titus 4-7 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 

 Not by our works, but by God’s work. We did not change ourselves but God changed us. Not because we are good, but because He is merciful. Not because of our work, because of His work. Not by decisions, water, church membership or any other thing we did, but he saved us by a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, through Jesus Christ. We are not justified by baptism, but by Grace. Verses 8-12, show us that because of the work of God in salvation, we are urged to maintain good works. We do not do good works in order to be saved, but because we are saved, we do good works. One problem those that baptize infants have is applying faith and repentance to the unconscious infant. Our text illustrates repentance – turning from sin unto Christ. The thrust of the passage is we are saved from our evil ways unto good works. Something that actually happens on account of the new birth. This does not happen with the infant. Indeed, we are born into sin, but does the infant repent of the depraved nature and confess that he is born in guilty in Adam, before he is able to know his own name?

Baptism is something God commands that we do. Our text, very clearly is telling us this washing has nothing to do with our works. Baptism is a work that we do in obedience to the Lord's command to be baptized. It is an act of obedience of the church to baptize believers. It is a good work, a righteous work to follow the Lord in baptism. But...

 (5) Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; (6) Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour 

Verse 5 makes it clear that it has nothing to do with our works that we are saved, but we do good works because of the good work of God in us. Titus 3:8 tells us that those who have believed are to do good works, not those who have been baptized. The washing and renewing are Divine acts of the Holy Spirit of God. The same is found in 1 Cor 6:9-11 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God?..... And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. We were sinners, God cleaned us by His blood, now we are different. This verse has nothing to do with baptism. We are born again by the power of God. God using the instrument of His Word in regeneration.

The only other time the word "washing" appears in the New Testament is in Ephesians 5:26, in which, speaking of the church, says God will "sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of the water by the Word.” It is the Word of God used to “wash” the sinner from the filth and defilement of sin. In fact, the Word of God is the instrument of God the Holy Spirit in salvation (James 1:18; Gal 3:1-2). 

1Pe 1:23-25  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.   For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:   But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

The same eternal Word that is preached is the gospel that is preached and believed. We evangelize by preaching God's Word. If God is pleased to use His Word to quicken a dead sinner to life, He will do so. Salvation comes by faith in Christ, through the preaching of the gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation. We are not born again by the power of baptism, but of the incorruptible seed, by the Word of God. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17), not by the water. I believe it is incumbent upon those who believe this verse refers to Baptism to prove it. It is assumed this washing refers to baptism; however, since the whole of scripture teaches we are saved by Grace through faith, not by baptism, and that regeneration is a work of the Holy Spirit by His Sovereign will, not by the will of priest and parent. The sad thing is that those that baptize their babies lie to their children and tell them that they are saved because of what they did for them by having them baptized. 

 There is a twofold operation of the Holy Spirit in salvation, namely cleansing and renewal. Cleansing from the defilement of sin and the new birth. What does wash away our sins? The precious blood of Christ; Hebrews 9:22; Hebrews 12:24; Heb 9:13-14 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

Faith, which is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen, comes by hearing the Word of God. You cannot have faith without an object of hope and a conviction of the reality of the unseen. None of which applies to the infant. Repentance means to turn. No infant has ever repented of their sins upon their baptism. Infant baptizers get around this by redefining the words hearing, faith, repentance, and the Word. The Bible can mean anything if you get to define what the words mean.

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Please keep the comments on topic. If you want to discuss THIS post and THIS passage, well by all means, comment away. 


Thanks.