| Philip taught the eunuch about Jesus and about baptism as they rode along in the eunuch's chariot. When they came to some water, the eunuch asked to be baptized. When the eunuch confessed his faith, Philip baptized him. This passage is descriptive for baptism (i.e. describing what Philip did in the case of the eunuch). It is not prescriptive (i.e. a command of God teaching us what we must do in the case of every baptism). Following the example of Scripture (cf. also the jailer of Philippi, Acts 16:31ff.) we teach adults about Jesus and about baptism before we baptize them. Since little children are sinful, since they can believe, and since they are included in the "all nations" that Jesus taught us to baptize, we follow the example of Scripture and baptize them when their parent or guardian requests baptism for them (cf. Lydia had her whole household baptized, Acts 16:15; the jailer of Philippi had his whole family baptized, Acts 16:33). The promise of forgiveness in baptism is not just for adults but also for their children, as Acts 2:39 tells us.
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