Parent and Child Dedication is a beautiful family ceremony we choose to practice here at Crossroads!

It is a ceremony, meaning it is not expressly commanded in Scripture, although the heart of this ceremony, which is to follow Christ, certainly is commanded in Scripture (Deuteronomy 6; Proverbs 3:5-8; 22:6; Luke 9:23). In this ceremony, parents make a few significant statements with our church family:

1) Parents state understanding and acceptance of their responsibility to train their child(ren) to love and serve God. 

2) Parents consciously dedicate their child(ren) to God for Him to use whenever He wants and in whatever way He wants.

3) Parents covet the prayers and assistance of our Crossroads family to train their child(ren) in a way that pleases God.

As parents make this commitment, we ask the church family to respond in affirmation and agreement. 

To be clear, this ceremony is not a step toward salvation, as salvation comes by faith alone in the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross and in His resurrection (John 3:16-17; Romans 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-9). Therefore, it is not equivalent to infant baptism.  We believe the Bible teaches believers baptism, meaning one must first place their faith in Christ.  According to the Scriptures, water baptism is by immersion and is a step of obedience to be done after salvation as a public profession of faith in Christ and identification with Him.

Our desire is that every child who grows up at Crossroads will know they are created in the image of God and are deeply loved by Him.  Their value is found in this truth and not in the things of this world.  Furthermore, we desire every child to understand they are a sinner who desperately needs forgiveness and salvation only found through Jesus (John 3:1-21; John 14:6; Romans 3:10-12,23; Romans 6:23). Every person has eternal purpose found in living all of life to the praise of His glory (1 Corinthians 10:31; Ephesians 1-2).

We believe parents, who are the primary disciplers of their child(ren), and local church partner together in helping a child understand these truths.  Therefore, we have a core value in our ministry which is: “We value partnering with and equipping families as church and home blend together to influence the next generation toward authentic faith.”  May the Holy Spirit strengthen and equip us to fulfill this value.

If you would like to participate in Parent and Child Dedication, please let us know by clicking here.