Stick to the Plan: Why Simple Testimonies are Glorious

This Lord’s Day, immediately after our worship service ends, many people of the church will head to the lake. The point will not be to cool off, though this stretch of days resting in the low 90s certainly invites such a thing. We will gather around the shore and watch as four young people pass through the waters of baptism. Two more will follow in several weeks.

The act is a powerful symbol, though it is not merely symbolic. These baptisms are “watery graves,” the kind of funeral where you are allowed to laugh and make shouts of joy. We are glad the old versions of these young saints are dead and buried. At baptism, we welcome the true versions of these people, the living versions, the versions that are inseparably united to the Savior, Jesus. The old has gone. The new has come.

How did these young people get to the water? “Their parents drove them, of course.” That’s not what I mean. I am asking how they arrived at the point at which their faith became evident. First, there is the theological answer. They all, at a time in recent history, came to see their sin as heinous and Jesus as wonderful. Their young hearts were stony and dead, but then were made into flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit. They were regenerated, and their trust was placed in Jesus. Now, anyone can crack open a systematic theology book and give the answer I just gave. How is anyone saved? “Well,” we answer in our most astute tone, “Let me tell you how salvation works.” That’s all really good stuff - terribly important - but we must acknowledge that no instance of salvation happens in a vacuum. God uses means to achieve his ends, and when it comes to the salvation of people, God has an ordinary plan that needs no improvement. These plans have been used since ancient times, and they remain the pattern until Christ returns.

Ephesians 6:1–4
[1] Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. [2] “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), [3] “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” [4] Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (ESV)

For the Old Covenant counterpart, you can also go read Deuteronomy 6:1-7. The point is that God has always provided instruction to parents regarding how they might raise their children rightly. By “rightly” I mean raising them to become believers in the one, true God. Why would God give such instruction if his intent was not to save many (or even most) of them? Succinctly, here is the normal pattern of salvation God gives to families:

God commands parents to raise their children according to the Bible with the hope (and even expectation) that they will believe and follow after God themselves.

Immediately a need for clarification arises.
“Are you saying all children in Christian homes will be saved?” No, I’m not, and no, they aren’t.

I am not saying that God gives an absolute guarantee of salvation for all children raised in Christian homes. I have known many faithful parents who labored on behalf of their children only to watch them walk away from every gospel influence at their soonest convenience and ability. What I am saying is that God has laid out a normal pattern for families to follow. Families must follow this plan, and they should not be surprised when God’s faithfulness wins out more often than not.

All six of our people being baptized have been raised by parents who cared about their souls, and that matters. Most importantly, the parents didn’t just care in theory or behind closed doors, but their care for the children and their desire to obey God’s plan took shape. The shape was simple, subtle, and consistent.

They sang simple songs to their babies, hoping that even the three words, “Jesus loves me” would take some kind of root.

They sat their squirming toddlers on their laps, struggling to get through a short Bible story before nap time.

Once they could read for themselves, the children were given their very own Bibles. Night after night they sat for family worship (or “devotions”). They often had questions that dad and mom couldn’t answer.

They learned about sin and its consequences. Each time they stole a treat or kicked a sibling, their parents saw not just an opportunity for correction, but a pulpit to declare the gospel.

All the while, their parents did one of the most profound services to their children they could ever render: they brought them to church. These children’s earliest memories consisted of the melodies of the great hymns of the faith. They looked up at dad and mom coming to the Lord’s Table. They heard the “amens” from enthusiastic believers in the rows around them. They learned that the Bible is a treasure and that the people of God are indispensable.

Dad and mom did all these things for their children imperfectly, but the point is that they did them, and God used their faithfulness to bring about the glorious end of regeneration in these children.

Are we thrilled? Yes! Are we surprised? Not really.

I know that evangelism to the stranger still has to happen. None of this is in opposition to that reality. Some conversions happen in dark and uncharted jungles. Some conversions happen on the dirty streets of wicked cities. Many, many conversions happen at the dining room table after a child hears the glories of calvary from his parents for the 300th time.

Let’s stick to the plan. We are called to preach to gospel to everyone, and that proclamation begins with the people who sleep in the next bedroom. Our hope for our community in North Idaho should be that, through simple and glorious testimonies like these, the gospel not only lasts in this place, but grows from generation to generation until Christ himself returns to make all things new. This is what we work for. This is what we expect. It will happen one baptism at a time.