Your Children Are Reborn Through Baptism

Do you believe in zombies?  You know- “the living dead”?

While I don’t believe in “the living dead” in the sense of all those zombie apocalypse movies and TV shows, I do believe that the living dead roam the world.  In fact, I believe I once was one.  I believe that I was born that way until I was rescued from that awful existence.  And I believe my kids were born in that dreadful state and needed rescue just like me- through Holy Baptism.

God tells us that every person conceived and born into this world is infected by sin. David admitted that awful truth when he said, “Surely I have been a sinner from birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:5)   Sin has been passed down generation to generation from the original sinner- Adam; and the apostle Paul reminds us the infection is deadly.  “Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12)   

So your children come into this world as the living dead. They are physically alive, but spiritually they are dead- cut off by from the living God and life in him by the sin in them. They will physically die one day, and deserve to spend eternity in the state of eternal death or separation from God that is hell.  But God is merciful and loving.  And that is why he did this for us:  “When you were dead in your sins…God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations (God’s commands), that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13,14)  The apostle Paul tells us that God did this for us through our baptism into Jesus Christ:  “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:5-7) Through baptism, your kids are brought from death to life.  They are spiritually reborn as God’s forgiven children and heirs of eternal life in heaven by his grace in Christ.  What a blessing!

Most parents don’t have a clue that their babies are spiritually dead.  Their little limbs move, their eyes open and close, their little mouths emit soft coos (and sometimes deafening cries!). Their flesh is rosy and warm.  They look so alive!  So what moms and dads focus on is the physical welfare and safety of their babies.  They make sure their little ones can’t hurt themselves in their cribs.  They get the right car seat for their baby.  They handle their baby very carefully.  They make sure that baby is getting proper nourishment.  They bundle their little bundle of joy to keep her warm when it is cold outside.  The chief focus on the physical and earthly life of their child continues throughout childhood as mom and dad provide shelter, food, clothing, education, opportunities to develop skills, and material things for their comfort, pleasure, and benefit.

But you are different.  Through the word of God you see your baby is spiritually dead in sin and needs to be rescued and given life.  You believe God when he says he works that miracle through baptism, so you bring your children to God in baptism.  You rejoice that your little child is spiritually reborn by the power of the Holy Spirit in baptism, and now has new and eternal life in Christ.  You see that your most important responsibility and privilege is teaching your children about Jesus so that, through the Spirit’s work in the Word of God, your children can continue in their new life through faith in Christ and one day- with you- inherit eternal life.