Because of the preciousness of a young life, most Churches arrange a special service for infants. Some regard it as a form of dedication of the child to the Lord. It is a perfectly Biblical act to bring a child for God's blessing, and the relevant chapters are all found in the synoptic Gospels, Matthew 19, Mark 10 and Luke 18. When they are all summarised they read like this. "They brought little children, young children, infants, to Jesus that He might put His hands upon them, touch them and pray. Then Jesus said, 'Suffer the children to come to Me, for of such is the Kingdom of heaven'. And He took them into His arms, laid hands on them and blessed them."
It has been asked whether it is right for non‑Christian parents to bring their children for such a ceremony. I think it would be necessary in the first place for the Minister to visit them and ascertain where the parents stood in relation to spiritual things. That in itself could prove helpful, and although they have not made a commitment themselves, I do not think it should preclude asking God to bless the child. Usually they will have had connections with the Church at some previous time and may be related to a member.
The service can be followed up by the giving of a dedication certificate which can be given prominence in the child's bedroom. A periodic visit can be made from the Church and a card sent on its birthday. The parents can be reminded that they are expected to send the child to the Sunday school at the appropriate age. By adopting such methods the whole matter can be used as an evangelistic project.
If we perused the above‑mentioned Bible verses carefully, we would find no mention of the child being dedicated to the Lord or His service, nor were any promises exacted from the parents. The simple motivation seemed to have come from a genuine desire for Jesus to bless the child, whatever that meant, and it must have meant something good, and as we shall see, the Jewish community had a very high concept of the Divine blessing.