confident) according to the light set forth by Christ and his Apostles, I will now, in drawing to a conclusion, distinctly wind up the argument. I will then leave the case to the decision of all those who are both rationally and spiritually Christians, who have no sectarian and pharisaical pride to indulge, but who, from comparing the tenets of the Church of Eng land with the plain language of Scripture, are willing, with unprejudiced understandings, to discern what is the important truth. Be it recollected, that in the time of Abraham, all male children were, by the Divine command, circumcised; and in the time of Moses, the whole body of the Jews, men, women, and children, were baptized. When Circumcision and Sacrifice were abolished, our Saviour reserved the form of Baptism, and ordained that to be the initiatory seal, or sign, of the new covenant under the Gospel, to all who should be his Disciples, and who were, by a right reception of this ceremony, so far reinstated in the favor and sight of God, that nothing but want of future faith and future good conduct, would prevent their finally entering into the kingdom of Heaven. Thus Baptism was substituted for Circumcision, as the indispensable mode of admission to Christianity, and his own all-sufficient sacrifice rendered animal sacrifice, vain and futile. St. Paul calls Baptism the Circumcision of Christ; and, with respect to the jewish Baptism of proselytes, who were baptized unto Moses, it is worthy observation, that they called such an one's Baptism his New Birth, or Regeneration, or being born again. The ancient Christians, also, very commonly called Baptism by the name of sanctification. Adult Baptism very rarely occurs in the Church of England. I have already stated, that an adult coming to the ceremony without any faith in its efficacy, and without repentance for sins which he has com mitted from his birth to that period, cannot, in common sense, be supposed to be regenerated by that ceremony. The reasons for his being rejected from being a partaker of the New Birth, are plain and evident: he comes to the font insincerely and hypocritically, and it is impossible to suppose that God will bestow any especial and spiritual benefit on an unbelieving hypocrite. Such an adult, therefore, is not regenerate, because he is baptized only with water, and not with the Spirit. Christ declared both to be necessary, and the Church of England never separates the outward and visible sign from the inward and spiritual grace. If the latter does not accompany the former, it is then indeed a mere opus operatum, and not a Sacrament. Setting, therefore, aside the case of the Baptism of adults, in the statement I shall now finally make, I shall consider the effect of Baptism on infants. The effect then is retrospective; it refers to original sin, from the corruption of which the baptized infant, when the ceremony is rightly administered, is always purified, and receives at that period the pardon of God, and is restored to his favor. He is born again to a new covenant, that of the Gospel: but according to that covenant, he must have a firm faith in all the Doctrines of the Christian religion; he must endeavour sincerely to obey the commands of Christ as his king, as well as rely on his merits and sacrifice alone for his eternal salvation. As the infant was "by nature born in sin, and a child of wrath," and has been made, by Baptism, "a child of grace," yet this privilege may be forfeited; the grace of God may have been bestowed in vain. I will conclude, then, by offering up to Almighty Ger myself, and for every baptized person in the world, the following prayer, in the words of our collect for Christmas Day. O Almighty God, grant that we, being |
