Getting Jesus when you dont think you need Him

"Its was an awesome thing to see Hadleigh baptized on Sunday" said one who I grew up with at our former non-covenantal Baptist church. Hadleigh is Steph and I's first and only daughter. She is precious to us and we believe deeply that Christ loves her too. We believe that if she died today we could and would have absolute confidence that she will escape the Wrath she deserves and enter into the eternal expression of Grace. This, not on the basis of some extra-biblical notion that a child is not accountable for Adam's sin till they reach a certain level of maturity, but rather the biblical teaching that children of believers are 'holy' on the basis of their parent(s) faith.

Now, I'm not writing to defend the merits of infant baptism. Rather, to express some thoughts that began to surface when I received the aforementioned comment. She also graciously mentioned a sermon that I preached a couple weeks ago . I began to think... It's silly how I used to think I had preaching figured out back in the day. Now I'm just amazed at good preaching and wonder whether Ill ever get close. Similarly, I began to consider Hadleigh's baptism. It was truly one of the sweetest and most meaningful moments of my entire life. Yet, to enjoy and experience it with those who share my same non-covenantal upbringing is a ( somewhat gentle) reminder of my former disposition towards infant baptism. Its crazy. And its pure grace for God to take someone who had such an arrogant bent in regard to these things and order circumstances so I would receive what is so precious to me now.

Incidentally, those 'ordered circumstances' were some of the most painful and difficult times of my life. And that's what it took. The Gospel must be true. Because I would go through all that again and worse, just in order to watch Hadleigh be baptized into the Church and actually believe in tears that it means something.