How can you guage or test that theory against the Word of God for infants?
I don't follow. I mean the Lord explains what He meant in His parable later in the chapter,
"Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty."
It doesn't matter what age we are, I mean does it matter if I'm 30 and hear the Gospel or if I'm 80 and hear the Gospel? The Gospel is the Gospel, whether I'm eight days, eight years, eighteen years, or eighty years old.
When we bring our children to the Lord in Baptism, they receive this precious word of God, and we make a pledge--indeed, the whole Church does--to raise them in the faith and the love of Christ. That's the same thing as if an adult is brought to baptism, and hears the word, we pledge as the Body of Christ ourselves to them.
Sometimes people initially receive the word in joy, but do not endure in it and fall away.
Sometimes the thorns and thistles of the world come and choke it out.
Sometimes these things happen, and later--like the Prodigal Son--they return (for Christ is a good stubborn Shepherd who chases after the one lost lamb).
Sometimes people receive the word, and it endures.
Our job isn't to know who is who and what is what--our task as the Church is to do as our Lord said, to preach His Gospel, to baptize, to be His Church. Sometimes people will stumble, sometimes people will fall away, sometimes people will leave for a while and return. Some are workers who came early in the morning, and some are workers who came late in the evening. Some are weak, some are strong, some are short and some are tall.
This Church, comprised of broken, battered, and forgiven fools (1 Corinthians 4:10, 1 Corinthians 1:21) belongs to Jesus and Jesus alone.
-CryptoLutheran