Discuss Poythress’ position on “indifferentism and rigorism” and their relation to baptizing small children.

Poythress argued for a view that allowed for earlier and earlier baptism through his articles in an attempt to bring the credo-baptist view or one who believes in believers’ baptism to a padeo-baptist view or one who believes in infant baptism. He slowly moves his reader from one to the other.

The indifferentism view Poythress takes is to define a person who believes in infant baptism erroneously. This is a view that we baptize and forget about it, that once a person receives this sign and seal of union with Christ that they are automatically saved and regeneration is assumed. The fatal error here is that there is no real reason for the person to remain living a life that seeks after Christ and their lives will not be marked by true faith in Christ, but in a baptism that ultimately condemns them to a covenant cursing. Since the covenant blessing of baptism is salvation, is ever-lasting life, is union with Christ, then we can not be indifferent by showing our lack of concern for this amazing gift of grace.

Unfortunately, many have strayed too far into the other direction and shown a legalistic view of baptism that would only allow baptism when regeneration can be proven. The heart of this view is attempting to prevent the covenant cursing and to take faithfully the charge of the church to keep the keys of heaven, but it does so at grave peril to what baptism actually stands for and against. The rigorist view wants absolute assurance of regeneration, of saving faith, so that only those who show it can be a part of the visible church by proving their membership to the invisible church.

However; Jesus Christ himself commands that baptism should be a perpetual action of the church as they make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:18). Every family that is a part of the covenant has children that they are raising as disciples of Christ and thus these children should be baptized. And the Apostles of Christ follow this command in practice when Peter proclaims baptism for the forgiveness of sins as a sign for those that believed and their children (Acts 2: 38-39). We cannot afford to be indifferent, callous, uncaring, and slothful regarding baptism in the covenant family and in our own lives; nor can we afford to be rigoristic and legalistic, fencing the covenant community beyond what Christ and scripture allows. By baptizing small children we are showing the continuity of the Old Testament church with the New Testament church and we are shining the light of the gospel into the hearts of those participating in our communion and those watching our familial relationship with God and one another in the body of Christ.

Related Articles:
Indifferentism and Rigorism in the Church: With Implications for Baptizing Small Children
Linking Small Children With Infants in the Theology of Baptizing