When should children be baptized and/or allowed to take the Lord's Supper?

With regard to converted children, my conviction entirely agrees with that of some trusted brethren I have consulted. First, one should be quite clear as to the conversion of the child, because children are without hypocrisy; so sensitive are they, and subject to the influence of impressions, that they sincerely believe they feel all, and do indeed feel what is at work around them. But if they have been actually and apparently converted, we should by no means persuade them to break bread. Let that arise naturally in their hearts, and if they desire to do so, ascertain if they are capable - of course, as a child - of discerning and acknowledging in it the body of the Lord; not to drive them away, but that they may do it with spiritual insight and true faith and understanding. It is not to be expected of them that they should explain everything like theologians, but that they should understand it is with you a matter of faith from the heart, and realisation of the broken body. If they are actually in the care of believing parents, there is not so much danger. If they have much intercourse with the world, it is well to be assured of their firmness. One must remember that they have not yet been tempted and tested by the allurements of the world; and there lies the danger, supposing that they are really in Christ. It often happens, that what they have longed for while subject to influence exercised over them without feeling the check, becomes subsequently a hateful check and nothing else, and they abandon what later on perhaps they would have longed for. Hence the importance of that of which I have already spoken - that they should be in the company of Christian parents, by whom they may, as time goes on, be guarded and brought up before the Lord, that they may be cared for in a Christian way. Invariably, so soon as they are in active life, the world and lusts come in, besides the hope of a future in the world to tempt them. But if the work is deep, conscience secures their apprehension of the Lord's supper, especially if the parents are faithful, and the children are accustomed to care of every kind. Or if there is proved faithfulness in the child, then nothing hinders their breaking bread. It is by no means a question of right, but of that which is altogether best for those that according to the will of God are under the government of others.

With regard to converted children, my conviction entirely agrees with that of some trusted brethren I have consulted. First, one should be quite clear as to the conversion of the child, because children are without hypocrisy; so sensitive are they, and subject to the influence of impressions, that they sincerely believe they feel all, and do indeed feel what is at work around them. But if they have been actually and apparently converted, we should by no means persuade them to break bread. Let that arise naturally in their hearts, and if they desire to do so, ascertain if they are capable - of course, as a child - of discerning and acknowledging in it the body of the Lord; not to drive them away, but that they may do it with spiritual insight and true faith and understanding. It is not to be expected of them that they should explain everything like theologians, but that they should understand it is with you a matter of faith from the heart, and realisation of the broken body. If they are actually in the care of believing parents, there is not so much danger. If they have much intercourse with the world, it is well to be assured of their firmness. One must remember that they have not yet been tempted and tested by the allurements of the world; and there lies the danger, supposing that they are really in Christ. It often happens that what they have longed for while subject to influence exercised over them without feeling the check, becomes subsequently a hateful check and nothing else, and they abandon what later on perhaps they would have longed for. Hence the importance of that of which I have already spoken - that they should be in the company of christian parents, by whom they may, as time goes on, be guarded and brought up before the Lord, that they may be cared for in a christian way. Invariably so soon as they are in active life, the world and lusts come in, besides the hope of a future in the world, to tempt them. But if the work is deep, conscience secures their apprehension of the Lord's supper, especially if the parents are faithful and the children are accustomed to care of every kind. Or if there is proved faithfulness in the child, then nothing hinders their breaking bread. It is by no means a question of right, but of that which is altogether best for those that according to the will of God are under the government of others.

p175 Dearest J Leslie, - Most thankful am I that your dear child has confessed Christ. At her age it is an anxious thing, as the world has not yet tried their faith; but I do not see that we have any title to keep them out when we have no doubt that they are Christ's. I should put these things before her, tell her where my anxiety was as to her taking on her publicly the profession of His name - only guarding against producing any distrust of His love and perfect grace - before I brought her case before others with a view to her breaking bread; and make it a serious thing with her; but of course, if she be Christ's, she has her title there, and there is the place where the care and nurture of Christ ought at least to be found. This of course will also fall much on you and Mrs.-. May the Lord keep her in lowliness and close to Himself, that the flesh and the world it belongs to may not strengthen itself by growing years, but the contrary.

You ask, “If you found a young person who gave you the fullest assurance he was saved, enjoyed peace with God, enjoyed fellowship about the things of Christ, and whose conduct at home showed the power of it, if such an one expressed a desire to come to the Lord's table, would you receive him or would you keep him outside for a length of time if he were only 13 or 14 years old?” Most assuredly, we would gladly receive such an one and not keep him outside for a single hour. What has the question of years to do with the divine life? How old was Samuel when he first knew the Lord? or Josiah? or Timothy?

Ques.—Several of our children have confessed faith in Christ as their Saviour, but as yet have not received water baptism. They desire to be with us at the Lord’s table. Does Scripture forbid their being received before being baptized?

p418 [F B Wride] MY DEAR BROTHER, - I have no doubt at all, that a person, who never has been baptised, ought to be, before they break bread. If a person be inside without one's being aware of it, or even were dying, or only waiting the possibility of doing it, one might bear and wait, but it is clear that in scripture they came in externally by baptism. I have baptised a great many Quakers' and Baptists' children who never had been and when I found unbaptised persons breaking bread, spoken with them, though then waiting till they saw clear. But it is not order. I look at it as the orderly entrance among Christians - the company God has upon earth. I think from scripture the children of those within have the privilege to be brought in; "Of such is the kingdom of heaven:" and they are holy, not unclean as the children of a Jew who married a Gentile. The being a member of the body is through the baptism of the Holy Ghost. But precepts are given to children, and they are to be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Having been once thus admitted, they cannot be admitted over again. But I never seek to persuade any one of children's baptism. The only commission to baptise was to the twelve to baptise Gentiles (not Jews), and it went from resurrection not ascension; they were (to) disciple nations and baptise them. This they afterwards left to Paul, who tells us he was not sent to baptise; though clearly it was not abrogated.

The question then is, are children entitled to be received? are believers? Believers, clearly, if they have not yet been; if they have, they cannot be again. But supposing they have not, they are clearly received by baptism; and, in an ordinary way, at the beginning, those in received the Holy Ghost, as said in Acts 2, and may be seen in Acts 8. Can children, or are they to be left out where Satan rules? Scripture, I believe, gives a Christian parent a title to bring them to Christ, but this can only be now scripturally by death as baptism figures it, for "that which is born of the flesh is flesh." If baptism be the reception of children where the Holy Ghost is, and where they can be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and taught to obey, which till they are Christians as to position they cannot be, the question is, Is a christian parent obliged to leave his child outside with the devil, or allowed to bring him in where the Holy Ghost and the care of God's house is? Scripture tells one that children of a christian parent are holy, have a right to be admitted, are not as children of a Jew who had married a Gentile unclean, that is, unfit to be admitted among God's people, but holy. I know it is said the husband was so too. It is not true where the sense is looked to. The Jewish husband was profaned not profane, could not be profaned if he had been: it is what is holy that is profaned, nothing else can be. Now it is grace, and the unbeliever is "sanctified," not holy; the child is "holy". The Lord Himself has said, "Of such is the kingdom of heaven." It is said, Why not give them the Lord's supper? Because that is the sign of the unity of the body, and it is the baptism of the Holy Ghost that forms that. Baptists always reason instead of going to scripture. I have no difficulty with Baptists who think they have never been baptised; of course they ought to be. They have never been regularly admitted among Christians on earth; they may be of the body (as Cornelius) by the baptism of the Holy Ghost, but they have never been formally admitted to the house on earth, the place where the Holy Ghost dwells.

Two things are added: What can the children do? and, What good does it do them? The children do nothing: grace acts towards them. No one is brought nigh by doing. Baptists may think so. Scripture speaks of grace. They are consecrated to Christ and brought to God, but as ordered with the sign of death and resurrection - the more significant because they have not yet actually sinned. The good done to them is that they are brought within, into the house where the Holy Ghost dwells, to be brought up, etc. I admit there is no commandment to baptise infants, nor is there to baptise believers, and there is no commandment to be baptised at all. But the Baptist notion of baptism, and all that he grounds on it, is unscriptural. And the scripture will have infants received. They that receive them receive Christ, and of such is the kingdom of heaven, and the child of a believing parent is holy. I do not doubt for a moment that children dying are received as saved into heaven. (See Matt. 18.) It is monstrous to think they cannot be received by the church on earth. It is said, why not give them the Lord's supper? Because that is the symbol of the unity of the body, and they are not of that till baptised by the Holy Ghost.

As regards children, my object is not to argue, but to shew the nature of baptism. I believe that 1 Corinthians 7:14 especially authorises it, not to speak of Mark 10:14. (compare Matt. 18 and Eph. 6:1.) The boundaries of the assembly of God and the world have been so broken down and both intermingled, that the fact of the Holy Ghost being in the assembly (not in the individual here), and Satan in the world is eclipsed by the state of things; but it was not so at the beginning, and the word of God abides. The question as to children is not are they converted, but are they to be left in the devil's dominion, or brought where the Holy Ghost dwells, to be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord? But assuming it to be done bonâ fide, done according to the "one faith," I should leave every person to his own conscience. It is sometimes argued, Why not give them the Lord's supper too? The answer is simple, It is the sign of the unity of the body, and it is by one Spirit we are baptised into that. (1 Cor 12:13.) The Lord's supper gives the sign of that unity, as spoken of in Ephesians 4:4, as baptism of outward position in Ephesians 4:5

But there is something much more positive than this. If a Jew married a Gentile, the wife was to be sent away and the children were to be rejected as "unclean," and not admitted into the house of God by circumcision. This question arose when one parent was converted, and instead of the Jew being relatively profaned, though still a Jew, so that his child was unclean, the heathen or Jew was relatively sanctified, so that the child was holy - not intrinsically, of course, but relatively, so that he would be received among the people - "else were your children unclean, but now are they holy." People have talked of their being legitimate, but this has nothing to do with it: the Jewish principle brought out in Nehemiah is perfectly clear. It is said, Why then not give them the Lord's supper? The Lord's supper is symbolic of the unity of the body, and it is by one Spirit we are baptised into one body; hence, I apprehend, it is he who is made really partaker of the Holy Ghost who can be properly partaker of the Lord's supper. Now, I admit that there is no command for infants to be baptised: it would suppose a moral effect. But there is none for adults - there is to the apostles, to go and baptise the nations they had brought into discipleship: and households are spoken of in scripture. We know it was the habit and thought of those sent. I am told that Christianity is the opposite of this in its nature. This is true as regards individual salvation. But I do not think introduction into "the house" the same thing as that. If one parent be converted, they are, it seems to me, entitled to that, and unjustly deprived of it, if it is refused to them. This thought was soon lost, and individual salvation connected with it and the new birth.