promise in Gods word for their Salvation for we find not any promise for the salvation of those persons that are without the visible Church of Christ 3 If any shall object that God hath mercy on whom he will have mercy Rom. 9.18 And our Children may be elected for ought we know and consequently saved This is nothing to the purpose for still I demand what visible ground of hope you have in reference to your Infants if they die in their infancy more than wicked men have thus it may be said touching the children of Jews Turks Heathens some of them may belong to the Election of Grace the Children of the most wicked men may be elected for ought we know But we speak now of a revealed declared interest in the Covenant of Grace nor is Gods favour to believing Parents themselves a sufficient ground of Christian hope touching their Infants but as it is bottom'd upon the Covenant and promise of God made with them and their seed Gen. 17.7 Quest But where have godly Parents visible ground of hope may you say touching the salvation of their children that die in Infancy I answer 1 God hath assured us in his word that he will be merciful to the seed of the godly and that in opposition to the seed of the wicked on whom he will visit the sins of their Fathers That the seed of the Righteous are blessed that their children are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is his reward Psal 127.3,4,5 Here is visible ground of Christian hope in reference to our children if they die in Infancy or live to years of discretion unless they prophanely reject the grace of the Covenant as Jshmael and Esan did And the like may be said of visible professors that are baptized at years of discretion for if they Apostatize from God as many have done the Lord will cast them off and reject them 2 we have also visible ground of hope touching the salvation of our Infants from Christs tender and loving carriage towards Infants when he was upon earth He took up Infants in his Arms embraced and blessed them sharply rebuked his disciples for their churlishness towards them and declared that of such is the kingdom of Heaven Luk 18.15,16 O the tender compassions and bowels of our sweet Saviour He that was an Infant himself is the Head and Mediator of the Church and hath sanctified the state and age of Infancy Peter also tells us after the ascension of Christ that the promise is to us and to our Children Acts. 2.38,39 And the Apostle Paul saith that the children of a Believer are holy 1 Cor. 7.14 And doubtless the new Testament administration which we live under is as free merciful and gracious or rather more free and merciful in reference to Believers and their Infants than the administration of the old Testament was and is not here visible ground of hope God is love it self and often compares his love to the love and pitty of a tender-hearted Father or Mother towards the Child Numb 11.12 Isai 49.15 Psal 103.13 1 Thess 2.7 3 We find that some Infants were sanctified in and from the womb as Jeremiah and John Baptist and children are as capable of regeneration and salvation as grown persons We are as passive in our Regeneration or first Implantation into Christ as a little child and must receive the Kingdom of heaven as a little child we find also promises of salvation in Scripture made to Housholds Acts. 16.34 c. And Christ saith to Zacheus This day is salvation come to this house forasmuch as thou art a Son of Abraham Luk. 19.9 And we are sure that Infants are a good considerable part of the houshold 4 The Apostle Paul would not have Believers mourn excessively for their dead friends as those that are without hope 1 Thess 4.13 Be it their children that die in Infancy or any other The Apostle speaks of the dead in General and therefore it must needs include the Species of Infants Parents being more apt to grieve and mourn for their children than for any other And here Paul speaks of the hope of their glorious Resurrection for whom they mourn'd But now if our Infants do not visibly belong to the Covenant and Church of God we cannot have a well grounded hope touching their salvation but shall mourn for them as without hope if they die in Infancy 5 David comforteth himself touching his dead Child 2. Sam. 12.23 that he should go to him though the child was not begot in lawful Matrimony Now the meaning is not that David should be buried with the Child for what ground of comfort doth this afford but that he should be eternally happy with the child in glory And doubtless the like or greater ground of hope every faithful Parent hath for his Children begotten in lawful Matrimony who die in their Infancy We should likewise remember that children did appear and joyn with their Parents in standing Church ordinances as solemn fasting and prayer c. 2 Chron. 20.13 Deut. 29,10 The Children that sucked the Breast were to be gathered to the solemn Fast Joel 2.16 Which doth further evince and prove the visible Church-membership and Covenant-interest of believers Infants and that there is strong ground of hope that God will bless them and bless these Ordinances to them And if it be granted by out Brethren that the children of the Godly do visibly belong to the Covenant Church of God and that we have visible ground of hope concerning them there will be an end of the controversie about Infant-baptism amongst judicious and sober Christians seeing Baptism which is the seal of the Covenant and of Church-membership doth belong to all them that are visibly in the Covenant and Church of God For if they have visibly the grace of the Covenant which is the greater then they ought to have the visible seal of the Covenant which is the lesser I speak now of Baptism which is the first seal of Regeneration wherein we are meerly passive for as touching the other Sacrament it is required that every man should examine himself before he partake of it 1 Cor. 11.28 Though we say and can prove that the Infants of Believers are Church-members in respect of Gods Covenant and grant and ought to receive the seal of their admission yet they are not such compleat members in all respects as to capacitate them for â—ll Church ordinances and priviledges together â—ith their godly parents till such time as they â—hemselves profess their faith in the Covenant â—nd promises of God and engage themselves to God in their own persons when they come to riper â—ears Thus much of the third consideration The Fourth Consideration is this That it is the â—uty and hath been the practice of believing paâ—ents from time to time as we find in Scripture â—o take hold on the Covenant and to exercise faith 〈◊〉 the Covenant not only with reference to themâ—elves
find one word or sylâ—…ble in the Scriptures that makes for the repeal â—…d abrogation of the Covenant-right and Church-membership of Believers children 3. Christ came not to put Believers and their chilâ—ren in a worse condition than they were before â—e that would not accuse the woman taken in â—dultery but asked her where her accusers â—ere John 8.10.11 Will he who is so comâ—…ssionate and tender-hearted cast all Infants â—…t of his visible Kingdom without accusation â—oubtless it is a far worse condition to be out of â—…e visible Church of God than in it For orâ—…narily what God may do in an extraordinary â—…y I question not there is no salvation to be had â—…tin the visible Church of Christ This is the family of Christ this is the house of God â—… Tim. 3.15 And the Lord is said to add to the Church such as should be saved Acts 2.47 And they that do not belong to Christs visible Kingdom are said to be Aliens and Strangers from thâ— Common-wealth of Israel and the Covenants 〈◊〉 promise having no hope and without God in thâ— world Ephes 2.12 4. The Kingdoms of thâ—… world shall become the Kingdoms of the Lord anâ— of his Christ Rev. 11.15 Which undoubtedly is meant of the visible Church of Christ in respect of visible Church-membership Ordinanceâ—… and Privileges and if so how can we otherwiâ—… think but that this Kingdom will include anâ— take in the Species of Infants as members thereof It is also prophesied Dan. 2.34.35 Thaâ— the little stone cut out without hands which 〈◊〉 meant of the visible Kingdom of Christ thougâ— it be small at first yet in the later days it shall become a great Mountain and fill the whole earth which certainly will comprehend the Infants 〈◊〉 Believers Yea and when the Jews are re-ingrafteâ— into the Olive tree their children shall be re-iâ—grafted with them and shall be as aforetime Roâ— 11.24.25 Jer. 30.20 By what I have alreadâ— said it is evident that the Covenant interest anâ— Church-membership of Infants is not abrogateâ— 5. If the children of Believers now should 〈◊〉 excluded from visible Church-membership anâ— interest in the Covenant they would be in â— worse condition than the very children of tâ—… Gentiles were before the coming of Chriâ—… For in the times of the Old Testament if aâ—… Gentile or stranger did accept the Covenanâ— and own the God of Israel not only he but his children also were admitted members of the Church and reckoned to belong to the Covenant and Kingdom of God But according to the opinion of our dissenting Brethren if now the Parent accept the Covenant he himself indeed shall be admitted but his Infant-seed shall not be admitted to a visible member-ship of the Church of Christ so that we are in a worse case in this respect than the Gentile Proselytes were in the time of the Old Testament 6. The Lord hath said Exod. 20. That he will shew mercy to thousands of them that love and obey him which certainly extends to the children of the Faithful so far as to admit and entitle them to a visible Member-ship of his Church Doth God take care of Oxen are the very hairs of our head numbered by him and will he not think you visibly own and bless the poor Infants of his people who are so dear to him 7. There are Gospel Prophecies and promises which relate to the children and Seed of the godly The Psalmist tells us that the Seed of the righteous are blessed Psal 37.26 I will pour out my Spirit saith the Lord upon thy Seed and my Blessing upon thine Offspring and they shall spring up as among the Grass Isaiah 44.3,4 The Lord speaking of his people in Gospel times saith that he will make an everlasting Covenant with them and their Seed shall be known among the Gentiles and their Offspring among the people all that see them shall acknowledge them that they are the Seed which the Lord hath blessed Isaiah 61.8.9 And again Chapter 65.17,18,19,20 The The Lord saith there shall be no more an Infant of days nor an old man that hath not filled his days for the child shall die an hundred years old but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed and verse 23. These are the seed of the blessed of the Lord and their off-spring with them It is also prophecied Isai 49.22 of the times of the Gospel how God will lift up his hand to the Gentiles and set up his standard to the people and they shall bring their sons in their Arms and their daughters shall be carried on their shoulders And is it not evident from these and the like Prophetical expressions in the holy Scriptures that there are external visible priviledges of the Covenant and Gospel of Christ belonging to the seed of the Godly which do not belong to others Thirdly Let us consider that whosoever denies the visible Church-membership and Covenant-interest of Believers Infants and holds that the Covenant of Grace doth not visibly belong to such Infants leaves Parents without any visible ground of hope touching the justification and salvation of their Children that die in Infancy I say visible ground of hope As for Gods eternal election or the will of his purpose this is a secret thing and secret things belong to God but revealed things belong to us and our Children Deut. 29.29 If we hold not that the species of Infants do visibly belong to the Covenant and Church of God It will then follow that there is no visible ground of hope concerning them No man woman or child doth or can appear to us to be a member of the invisible Church and mystical body of Christ unless it be declared by God in his word or else by the visible profession and conversation of the party that he or she belongs to the visible Church of Christ In the prosecution of this three things may be noted 1 That sound hope and charity are regulated and guided by Judgment they must be grounded upon the Rule of Gods word and our judgment must have some Scripture evidence to proceed on or else it is but rash and blind Now where there is not so much as an outward appearance or visibility of Church-membership there is no evidence for us to build upon and consequently no right judgment or well grounded hope If therefore the Infants of Believers do not so much as visibly and externally belong to the Covenant and Kingdom of God then they are not visibly in a state of Grace and Salvation and so there is no visible ground of our hope touching their salvation 2 Our hope must rely on a word of promise or else it is but vain hope it must have a word from God to bottom upon as you may see in these Scriptures Rom. 15.4.13 Eph. 2.12 2 Thess 2.16 1 Tim. 1.1 Heb. 6.18,19 1 Pet. 3.15 Rom. 4.18.20 Now take away the visible Church-membership and Covenant-interest of Believers Infants and there is no