his Glory and Service. So that whenfoever we do not lay out ourselves to the utmost of our Power for Him, it is downright Sacrilege, 'tis robbing GOD of that which is more properly His, than any Man in the World can call any thing He hath his own.

Having therefore thus wholly furrender'd and given up myfelf to GOD, fo long as it fhall pleafe His Majefty to intrust me with myfelf, ito lend me my Being in this lower World, or to put any thing elfe into my Hands, as Time, Health, Strength, Parts, or the like, I am refolved, by his Grace, to lay out all for his Glory. All the Faculties of my Soul, as I have given them to Him, fo will I endeavour to improve them for Him; they fhall ftill be at his moft Noble Service; my Underftanding fhall be his, to know Him; my Will his, to chufe Him; my Affections his, to embrace Him; and all the Members of my Body fhall act in fubfervency to Him.

And thus having given myself to GOD on Earth, I hope GOD, in a fhort time, will take me to himself in Heaven; where, as I gave myself to Him in Time, He'll give himself to me unto all Eternity.

ARTICLE X.

I believe that as GOD entered into a Covenant of Grace with us, fo bath he figned this Covenant to us by a double Seal, Baptifm and the Lord's-Supper.

As the Covenant of Works had two

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Sacraments, viz. The Tree of Life, and The Tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil; the first fignifying and fealing Life and Happiness to the Performance, the other Death and Mifery to the Breach of it: So the Covenant of Grace was likewife fealed with two typical Sacraments, Circumcifion, and the Paffover; the former was annexed at GOD's first making his Covenant with Abraham's Perfon, the other was added at his fulfilling the Promises of it to his Seed or Pofterity, which were therefore ftyl'd, The Promised Seed. But these being only Typical of the true and fpiritual Sacraments that were afterwards to take place upon the Coming of the Meffiah, there were then, in the fulnefs of Time, two other Sacraments fub

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ftituted

ftituted in their ftead, viz. Baptism and the Supper of the Lord. And these Sacraments were both Correfpondent to the Types by which they were reprefented.

As to the firft, viz. Circumcifion, whether I confider the Time of conferring it, or the End of its Inftitution, I find it exactly anfwers to the Sacrament of Baptifm, in both these respects. For as the Chil dren under the Law were to be Circumcis'd in their Infancy, at eight Days old; fo are the Children under the Gospel to be Baptiz'd in their Infancy too. And as the principal thing intended in the Rite of Circumcifion, was to initiate or admit the Children of the Faithful into the Jewish Church; fo the chief defign of Baptifm now, is to admit the Children of fuch as profess themselves Christians into the Church of Christ. And for this reafon I believe, that as under the Old Teftament Children had the grant of Covenant-Privileges, and Church-Memberhip, as really as their Parents had; fo this Grant was not repealed, as is intimated, Act. 2. 39. but further confirmed in the New-Teftament, in that the Apostle calls the Children of believing Parents Holy, 1 Cor. 7.14. which cannot be understood of a real and inherent, but only of a relative and covenanted Holiness, by

vertue of which, being born of Believing Parents, themselves are accounted in the number of Believers, and are therefore called Holy Children under the Gofpel, in the fame fenfe that the People of Ifrael were called a Holy People under the Law, Deut. 7. 6. and chap. 14. 2. 21. as being all within the Covenant of Grace, which, through the Faith of their Parents, is thus feal'd to them in their Baptifm. Not that I think it neceffary, that all Parents fhou'd be endu'd with what we call a faving Faith, to entitle their Children to thefe Privileges (for then none but the Children of fuch who have the Spirit of Chrift truly implanted in them wou'd be qualify'd to partake of the Covenant) but even fuch who, by an outward historical Faith, have taken the Name of Christ upon them, are, by that means, in Covenant with GOD, and fo accounted Holy in refpect of their Profeffion, whatever they may be in point of Practice. And if they are themselves Holy, it follows on course, that their Children must be so too, they being efteemed as parts of their Parents, till made' diftinct Members in the Body of Christ; or, at least, till they come to the use of their Reason, and the improvement of their Natural Abilities.

And therefore tho' the Seal be changed, yet the Covenant-Privileges, wherewith the Parties ftipulating unto GOD were before invefted, are no whit alter'd, or diminifhed; Believer's Children being as really Confederates with their Parents in the Covenant of Grace now, as they were before under the Jewish Adminiftration of it. And this feems to be altogether neceffary, for otherwise Infants fhould be invested with Privileges under the Type, and be depriv'd of or excluded from them, under the more perfect accomplishment of the fame Covenant in the thing typified, and fo the Difpenfations of GOD's Grace would be more ftraight and narrow fince, than they were before the Coming of our Saviour, which I look upon to be no less than Blafphemy to affert.

And, upon this ground, I believe it is as really the Duty of Chriftians to Baptize their Children now, as ever it was the Duty of the Ifraelites to Circumcife theirs; and therefore St. Peter's Queftion, Can any man forbid water, that thefe fhould not be baptized, who have received the Holy Ghaft as well as we, Act. 10.47. may very properly be apply'd to this Cafe. Can any one forbid Water that Children fhould not be Baptized, who are in Covenant with the moft High GOD as well as we?

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