Selected quad for the lemma: saint_n
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A63778
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A discovrse of baptisme its institution and efficacy upon all beleevers : together with a consideration of the practice of the church in baptizing infants of beleeving parents and the practice justified / by Jer. Taylor.
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Taylor, Jeremy, 1613-1667.
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1653
(1653)
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Wing T316; ESTC R27533
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53,917
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65
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he fulfilled the Law making it up in full measures of the Spirit By these steps Baptism passed on to a divine Evangelical institution which we finde to be consigned by three Evangelists Goe ye therefore and teach all Nations baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost It was one of the last Commandements the Holy Jesus gave upon the earth when he taught his Apostles the things which concerned his kingdome For he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved but Unlesse a man be born of Water and the holy Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdome of Heaven agreeable to the decretory words of God by Abraham in the Circumcision to which Baptism does succeed in the consignation of the same Covenant and the same Spiritual Promises The uncircumcised child whose flesh is not circumcised that soul shall be cut off from his people he hath broken my Covenant The Manichees Seleucus Hermias and their followers people of a dayes abode and small Interest but of malicious doctrine taught Baptism not to be necessary not to be used upon this ground because they supposed that it was proper to Iohn to baptize with water and reserved for Christ as his peculiar to baptize with the holy Ghost and with fire Indeed Christ baptized none otherwise He sent his Spirit upon the Church in Pentecost and baptized them with fire the Spirit appearing like a flame but he appointed his Apostles to baptize with water and they did so and their successors after them every where and for ever not expounding but obeying the praeceptive words of their Lord which were almost the last that he spake upon earth And I cannot think it necessary to prove this to be necessary by any more Arguments For the words are so plain that they need no exposition and yet if they had been obscure the universal practise of the Apostles and the Church for ever is a sufficient declaration of the Commandement No Tradition is more universal no not of Scripture it self no words are plainer no not the Ten Commandements and if any suspicion can be superinduced by any zealous or lesse discerning person it will need no other refutation but to turn his eyes to those lights by which himself sees Scripture to be the Word of God and the Commandements to be the declaration of his Will But that which will be of greatest concernment in this affair is to consider the great benefits are conveyed to us in this Sacramnet for this will highly conclude That the Precept was for ever which God so seconds with his grace and mighty blessings and the susception of it necessary because we cannot be without those excellent things which are the graces of the Sacrament 1. The first fruit is That in Baptism we are admitted to the Kingdome of Christ presented unto him consigned with his Sacrament enter into his Militia give up our understandings and our choice to the obedience of Christ and in all senses that we can become his Disciples witnessing a good confession and undertaking a holy life and therefore in Scripture {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} and {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} are conjoyn'd in the significations as they are in the mystery it is a giving up our names to Christ and it is part of the foundation of the first Principles of the Religion as appears in S. Pauls Catechism it is so the first thing that it is for babes and Neophytes in which they are matriculated and adopted into the house of their Father and taken into the hands of their Mother Upon this account Baptism is called in antiquity Ecclesiae janua Porta gratiae primus introitus sanctorum ad aeternam Dei Ecclesiae consuetudinem The gates of the Church the door of Grace the first entrance of the Saints to an eternall conversation with God and the Church Sacramentum initiationis intrantium Christianismum investituram S Bernard calls it The Sacrament of initiation and the investiture of them that enter into the Religion and the person so entring is called {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} and {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} one of the Religion or a Proselyte and Convert and one added to the number of the Church in imitation of that of S. Luke {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} God added to the Church those that should be saved just as the Church does to this day and for ever baptizing Infants and Catechumens {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} they are added to the Church that they may be added to the Lord and the number of the inhabitants of Heaven 2. The next step beyond this is Adoption into the Covenant which is an immediate consequent of the first presentation this being the first act of man that the first act of God And this is called by S. Paul a being baptized in one spirit into one body that is we are made capable of the Communion of Saints the blessings of the faithful the priviledges of the Church by this we are as S. Luke calls it {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} ordained or disposed put into the order of eternal life being made members of the mystical body under Christ our Head 3. And therefore Baptism is a new birth by which we enter into the new world the new creation the blessings and spiritualties of the Kingdome and this is the expression which our Saviour himselfe used to Nicodemus Unlesse a man be born of Water and the Spirit and it is by S. Paul called {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} the laver of Regeneration for now we begin to be reckoned in a new Census or account God is become our Father Christ our elder Brother the Spirit the earnest of our inheritance the Church our Mother our food is the body and blood of our Lord Faith is our learning Religion our imployment and our whole life is spiritual and Heaven the object of our Hopes and the mighty price of our high Calling And from this time forward we have a new principle put into us the Spirit of Grace which besides our soul and body is a principle of action of one nature and shall with them enter into the portion of our inherirance And therefore the Primitive Christians who consigned all their affairs and goods and writings with some marks of their Lord usually writing {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} Iesus Christ the Son of God our Saviour they made an abbreviature by writing onely the Capitals thus {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} which the Heathens in mockery and derision made {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} which signifies a Fish and they used it for Christ as a name of reproach but the Christians owned the name and turned it into a pious Metaphor and were content that they
Repentance are required to Baptism since the first is wholly nothing and infirm upon an infinite account and the second may conclude that Infants can no more be saved then be baptized because Faith is more necessary to Salvation then to Baptism it being said He that believeth not shall be damned and it is not said He that believeth not shall be excluded from Baptism it follows that the doctrine of those that refuse to baptize their Infants is upon both its legs weak and broken and insufficient Upon the suppositions of these grounds the Baptism of Infants according to the perpetual practise of the Church of God will stand firm and unshaken upon its own base For as the Eunuch said to Philip What hinders them to be baptized If they can receive benefit by it it is infallibly certain that it belongs to them also to receive it and to their Parents to procure it for nothing can deprive us of so great a grace but an unworthiness or a disability They are not disabled to receive it if they need it and if it does them good and they have neither done good nor evill and therefore they have not forfeited their right to it This therefore shall be the first great argument or combination of inducements Infants receive many benefits by the susception of Baptism and therefore in charity and in duty we are to bring them to Baptism 1. The first effect of Baptism is That in it we are admitted to the Kingdome of Christ offered and presented unto him In which certainly there is the same act of worship to God and the same blessing to the children of Christians as there was in presenting the first-born among the Jews For our children can be Gods own portion as well as theirs and as they presented the first-born to God and so acknowledged that God might have taken his life in Sacrifice as well as the Sacrifice of the Lamb or the Oblation of a beast yet when the right was confessed God gave him back again and took a Lamb in exchange or a pair of Doves So are our children presented to God as forfeit and God might take the forfeiture and not admit the babe to the Promises of Grace but when the presentation of the childe and our acknowledgement is made to God God takes the Lamb of the World in exchange and he hath paid our forfeiture and the children are holy unto the Lord And what hinders here cannot a creeple receive an almes at the Beautiful gate of the Temple unlesse he goe thither himself Or cannot a gift be presented to God by the hands of the owners and the gift become holy and pleasing to God without its own consent The Parents have a portion of the possession Children are blessings Gods gifts and the Fathers greatest wealth and therefore are to be given again to him In other things we give something to God of all that he gives us all we doe not because our needs force us to retain the greater part and the less sanctifies the whole but our children must all be returned to God for we may love them and so may God too and they are the better our own by being made holy in their presentation whatsoever is given to God is holy every thing in its proportion and capacity a Lamb is holy when it becomes a Sacrifice and a Table is holy when it becomes an Altar a House is holy when it becomes a Church and a man is holy when he is consecrated to be a Priest and so is every one that is dedicated to Religion these are holy persons the others are holy things and Infants are between both they have the sanctification that belongs to them the holiness that can be of a reasonable nature offer'd and destin'd to Gods service but not in that degree that is in an understanding choosing person Certain it is that Infants may be given to God and if they may be they must be for it is not here as in goods where we are permitted to use all or some and give what portion we please out of them but we cannot doe our duty towards our children unless we give them wholly to God and offer them to his service and to his grace The first does honour to God the second does charity to the children The effects and real advantages will appear in the sequel in the mean time this Argument extends thus far that Children may be presented to God acceptably in order to his service And it was highly praeceptive when our blessed Saviour commanded that we should suffer little children to come to him and when they came they carried away a blessing along with them He was desirous they should partake of his merits he is not willing neither is it his Fathers will that any of these little ones should perish And therefore he dyed for them and loves and blessed them and so he will now if they be brought to him and presented as Candidates of the Religion and of the Resurrection Christ hath a blessing for our children but let them come to him that is be presented at the doors of the Church to the Sacrament of Adoption and Initiation for I know no other way for them to come Children may be adopted into the Covenant of the Gospel that is made partakers of the Communion of Saints which is the second effect of Baptism parts of the Church members of Christs Mystical body and put into the order of eternal life Now concerning this it is certain the Church clearly hath power to doe her offices in order to it The faithfull can pray for all men they can doe their piety to some persons with more regard and greater earnestnesse they can admit whom they please in their proper dispositions to a participation of all their holy prayers and communions and preachings and exhortations and if all this be a blessing and all this be the actions of our own charity who can hinder the Church of God from admitting Infants to the communion of all their pious offices which can doe them benefit in their present capacity How this does necessarily infer Baptism I shall afterwards discourse * But for the present I enumerate That the blessings of Baptism are communicable ro them they may be admitted into a fellowship of all the Prayers and Priviledges of the Church and the Communion of Saints in blessings and prayers and holy offices But that which is of greatest perswasion and convincing efficacy in this particular is That the children of the Church are as capable of the same Covenant as the children of the Jews But it was the same Covenant that Circumcision did consign a spiritual Covenant under a veil and now it is the same spiritual Covenant without the veil which is evident to him that considers it thus The words of the Covenant are these I am the Almighty God walk before me and be thou perfect I will multiply thee exceedingly