Dr. Jonathan Edwards On
Infant Baptism
Part 1
Jonathan Edwards on Infant Baptism
A brief excerpt taken from his discourse on
the halfway covenant.
When I speak of members
of the visible church of Christ, in complete standing, I would be
understood of those who are received as the proper immediate subjects of
all the external privileges Christ has appointed for the ordinary
members of his church. I say ordinary members, in distinction from any
peculiar privileges and honors of church-officers and rulers. All allow,
there are some that are in some respect in the church of God, who are
not members in complete standing, in the sense that has been explained.
All that acknowledge infant baptism, allow infants, who are the proper
subjects of baptism, and are baptized, to be in some sort members of the
Christian church, yet none suppose them to be members in such standing
as to be the proper immediate subjects of all ecclesiastical ordinances
and privileges: but that some further qualifications are requisite in
order to this, to be obtained, either in a course of nature, or by
education, or by divine grace. And some who are baptized in infancy,
even after they come to be adult, may yet remain for a season short of
such a standing as has been spoken of; being destitute of sufficient
knowledge, and perhaps some other qualifications, through the neglect of
parents, or their own negligence, or otherwise, or because they
carelessly neglected to qualify themselves for ecclesiastical privileges
by making a public profession of the Christian faith, or owning the
Christian covenant, or forbear to offer themselves as candidates for
these privileges; and yet not be cast out of the church, or cease to be
in any respect its members: this, I suppose, will also be generally
allowed… It was also requisite, that such a distinction should be made
in the question, to avoid lengthening out this discourse exceedingly,
with needless questions and debates concerning the state of baptized
infants; that is needless as to my present purpose. Though I have no
doubts about the doctrine of infant baptism, yet God’s manner of
dealing with such infants as are regularly dedicated to him in baptism,
is a matter liable to great disputes and many controversies, and would
require a large dissertation by itself to clear it up, which, as it
would extend this discourse beyond all bounds, so it appears not
necessary in order to a clear determination of the present
question.
…infant baptism
requires nothing visible in its subject, but a relative fitness or
federal holiness, the formalis ratio of infant membership,
accruing from God’s charter of grace to his church, taking in the
infant seed with the believing parent. |
|

Back to the
Covenant Theology
|