Baptism is a cleansing. This water doesn’t wash away dirt, it washes away sin. Not because we whisper a secret spell over the water to make it magical. Rather, because this water is authorized and sanctified by Christ to perform such a weighty task of cleansing us from sin.
This child, no matter how cute, has the seed of sin in him. Opportunities will soon arise for him to act on those sinful desires. What we do here is apply a sign, which Jesus gave us, that promises that every sin he’ll ever commit is washed away. Not because God turns a blind eye. But when a child of God walks with God they look in faith to Christ to wash away all their sins, as He promised He would do. The waters of our baptism promise each of us, that God, through Christ, washes away our sin.
So welcome our brother to Jesus Christ…