The Source of the Baptism Debate | Ep. 10

On this episode of the Reasonable Theology podcast we tackle an important question:

“Why do Presbyterians baptize infants (paedobaptism) while Baptists only baptize professing believers (credobaptism)?”

Rather than present the arguments that each side give for their position, I want to help you understand the reasons behind the two positions.

As we’ll see, baptism is not the central difference between Baptists and Presbyterians. Instead, the different conclusions reached on this issue are the result of different understandings of God’s covenants.

These denominations hold to their different views of baptism because they have come to different conclusions regarding the covenants of Scripture—specifically the Covenant of Grace and the New Covenant.

In this episode we’ll discuss:

Why understanding the Covenant of Grace and the New Covenant is crucial for understanding the baptism debate
How the Presbyterian view of these covenants lead to their views on baptizing believers and the infant children of believers
How the Baptist view of these covenants lead them to baptize only professing believers
Why comparing the Westminster Confession of Faith and the London Baptist Confession is useful in understanding the two positions

Listen to this episode on a separate page