The Word is a spoken means of touching life with grace. While one can respond to the Word privately, Baptism is a community event that involves a public response. By baptizing infants, Lutherans underscore the truth that Baptism is always an act of God's grace and that where God's Word is active, there faith will grow. By baptizing adults, Lutherans affirm that Baptism is not independent of the message about Jesus as God's Word, but that faith is an important human response to grace. Grace, not faith, creates the relationship with God.
Faith is the response dimension of the relationship.
To emphasize both grace and faith, Lutherans baptize groups of persons of varying ages. Lutherans are serious and sincere about making disciples. It is always God's Word with the water and our trust in that Word under the tutelage of God's Spirit that gives life. For this reason, Lutherans do not press the new beginning that Baptism signifies on adults. We prefer to invite inquirers to explore what being a Christian might mean for them before being baptized.