On November 29, 2016 By Steve Jeffery In Theology 1

Look away if you’re easily offended…

I recently overheard a conversation between a father and his young daughter at Emmanuel that made me laugh so hard I asked their permission to share it with you.

They kindly agreed.

It was one of those moments that all parents are familiar with, when you suddenly understand the reason why God has ordained praise from the mouths of children and infants – they have a way of getting to the point that most of us adults wouldn’t think of, largely because we’d be worried about offending someone.

(That was your warning, incidentally: if you’re fragile, easily offended, or otherwise in need of theological Safe Spaces, please look away now.)

Just a bit of background: The father was trying to explain to his daughter why some of their dear Christian friends go to churches where children (like the daughter in the conversation) wouldn’t be allowed to receive the Lord’s Supper.

Here’s a rough transcript of what they said:

Daughter: So, why couldn’t children receive the Lord’s Supper?

Father: It’s a bit tricky, but the Elders would probably say you’re not old enough. Not yet, anyway.

Daughter: Not old enough? How old is “old enough”? Is there some magic age or something, like, do you have to be 21 years and 3 months and 6 days?

Father: Er… no, not quite. There’s not normally a fixed age. The Elders would just use their judgment.

Daughter: Oh. Why don’t they just make a judgment that birth is old enough?

Father [shifting uncomfortably in his seat]: Well, they couldn’t really ask a newborn baby what she believes, could they? So they would say they can’t be sure whether you’re a proper Christian.

Daughter [looking increasingly incredulous]: What?! Not a proper Christian?! But if you’re in a Christian family, and your parents are raising you as a Christian, and you’ve been baptized, how can the Elders say you’re not a proper Christian?

Father [swallowing hard … he can probably see where this is heading]: I think they’d probably say that baptism doesn’t really mean anything.

[At this point there was a brief silence.]

Daughter [eyebrows raised innocently]: I think our friends should go to a church where baptism does mean something.

About the Author / Steve Jeffery

Steve is the Minister of Emmanuel Evangelical Church in London, England. He co-authored Pierced for Our Transgressions (IVP, 2007), a defence of the doctrine of penal substitutionary atonement, and The Cross (10 Publishing, 2012), an introduction to the message of the cross. He has lectured and debated in a variety of settings including universities and conferences in the UK, Europe and America. He has appeared on Premier Christian Radio and BBC Radio 4’s Beyond Belief, and he blogs at www.northlondonchurch.org. He and his wife Nicole have three children. His other loves include jazz, coffee, cricket, chess, scotch whisky, and Jonathan Edwards.