little ones by your side, their hearts may perhaps have been touched with
the love of God; still, they are not old enough to make a personal
profession, so they too must be left outside...For the present you must
leave them where they are and come in by yourselves.’ One may
reasonably demand very stringent proofs before accepting this as a fair
representation of the sort of welcome Christ offers to parents who come
to his door bringing their children with them. Surely it is more consonant
with all we know about him to suppose that his welcome will be more
ample in its scope, and will breathe a more gracious tone. Surely it would
be more like the Good Shepherd to say, ‘Come in, and bring your little
ones along with you. The youngest needs my salvation; and the youngest
is accessible to my salvation. You may be unable as yet to deal with them
about either sin or salvation, but my gracious power can find its way into
their hearts even now. I can impart to them pardon and a new life. From
Adam they have inherited sin and death; and I can so unite them to myself
that in me they shall be heirs of righteousness and life. You may without
misgiving bring them to me. And the law of my house requires that the
same day which witnesses your reception into it by baptism must witness
their reception also’” (The Church, by Professor Binnie, D.D.).
- BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD only mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15:29. This
expression as used by the apostle may be equivalent to saying, “He who
goes through a baptism of blood in order to join a glorified church which
has no existence [i.e., if the dead rise not] is a fool.” Some also regard the
statement here as an allusion to the strange practice which began, it is said,
to prevail at Corinth, in which a person was baptized in the stead of others
who had died before being baptized, to whom it was hoped some of the
benefits of that rite would be extended. This they think may have been one
of the erroneous customs which Paul went to Corinth to “set in order.” - BAPTISM, JOHN’S was not Christian baptism, nor was that which was
practised by the disciples previous to our Lord’s crucifixion. Till then the
New Testament economy did not exist. John’s baptism bound its subjects
to repentance, and not to the faith of Christ. It was not administered in the
name of the Trinity, and those whom John baptized were rebaptized by
Paul (Acts 18:24; 19:7). - BAPTISM OF CHRIST Christ had to be formally inaugurated into the
public discharge of his offices. For this purpose he came to John, who was
the representative of the law and the prophets, that by him he might be