A discourse proving the divine institution of water-baptism wherein the Quaker-arguments against it are collected and confuted : with as much as is needful concerning the Lord's supper / by the author of The snake in the grass.

A PREFACE.

AS Baptism is putting on Christ, giving up our Names to Him; being Admitted as His Disciples; and a Publick Profession of His Do∣ctrin: So the Renouncing of our Baptism, 〈…〉〈…〉 as Publick a Disown∣ing of Him; and a Formal Apostasy from His Religion.

Therefore the Devil has been most busie in all ages (but has pre∣vailed most, in our latter Corrupt times) to Prejudice Men, by many false Pretences, against this Divine Institution. Having been able to perswade some quite to throw it off, as Pernicious and Hurtful: Others to think it on∣ly Lawful to be done, but to lay no great stress upon it, and so use it, where it is Enjoined, as a thing Indifferent. Others deny it to Infants, upon this only Ground, That they are not suppos'd Capable of being Admitted into the Covenant of God, which He has made with Men: For, if they are Capa∣ble of being admitted into the Covenant, there can be no Reason to deny them the outward Seal of it.

But this being Foreign to my present Ʋndertaking, which is to De∣monstrate to the Quakers the Necessity of an Outward or Water-Baptism, in the General (for as to Persons capable of it, we have no Controver∣sie with those who deny it to All) therefore, I have not digress'd into ano∣ther Subject, which is, that of Infant Baptism, in the following Discourse.

I. Yet thus much I will say of it, in this place, That Infants are Capable of being admitted into the Covenant, and therefore that they cannot be Excluded from the outward Seal of it. The Consequence the Baptists cannot deny. And that they are Capable, I thus prove. They were Capable under the Law, and before the Law, of being admitted as Members of the Covenant in Christ to come, made with Abraham, by the Seal of Circumcision, at the Age of Eight Days: And therefore there can be no Reason to Exclude them from the same Privilege, to the same Covenant, now that Christ is come; unless Christ had debarr'd them from it: The Law standing still, as it was, where He has not Alter'd, or Fulfill'd it. But He has not debarr'd them. Nay; on the contrary, He has yet further confirm'd their being within the Covenant. He called a Lit∣tle Child, (Mat. xviii. 2, 3, 5.) and set him in the midst of His Apostles; and Proposed him as a Pattern to Them, and to all Adult Christians. And said, That none should enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, except those who should become as little Children. And that whoever did Receive a Little Child in His Name, did Receive Christ Himself. And (ver 10.) in Heaven, their Angels (saith Christ) do always behold the Face of my Father which is in Heaven. And therefore He bids us Take heed that we despise not one of these Little Ones; by which term tho Adult Persons are sometimes meant, yet in the Texts before quoted, it is expresly apply'd to Little Children. And what greater Despising of them can be, than to Reject them as no Members of Christ's Body, and consequently unworthy of the outward Seal of His Covenant?

Christ was displeased with His Disciples (Mar. x. 14.) for hindring young Children to be brought unto Him. And will He be pleased with the Baptists for the same thing? He took the little Children up in His Arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them. Did He Bless those who were not Capa∣ble of being within His Covenant? He said, Of such is the Kingdom of God, (which is a term our Saviour us'd, to Express the Covenant of the Gospel) Are they not then within the Covenant of the Gospel? The Apostle says, that where either of the Parents is a Christian, (1 Cor. vii. 14.) the Children are Holy: That is, within the Covenant of Christ. And pursuant to this, when any man was Converted, his Children were Baptized with himself. This is the mea∣ning of what we read so often in The Acts, that such a Man was Baptized with his Houshold. And it was the Custom before with the Jews, that when they ad∣mitted any man as a Proselyte to their Religion, they Baptized his Children with himself. Let this suffice for the present. And Proceed.

II. When Rebellion had fully compleated it self, in the Murther of the King, 1648. It soon spawn'd a multifarious Schism of 30 or 40 different Reli∣gions in England, at the same time, of which Catalogues were then Printed, most of all these threw away Baptism: And threaten'd an immediate and total Over∣throw of the Christian Religion, in this Island. But, by the great Mercy of God, the Restauration of the Church, with the King, 1660. has extinguished the very Names and Memory of these, all but 4 or 5 of the Principal Sects. The Presbyterians, (Mother of all the rest) Independents, Ana-baptists, Quakers, and Muggletonians. I am told of some Sweet-singers, got up of late. But they are yet inconsiderable. They may Increase, and all the rest Revive, if warm'd by a Plenitude of Indulgence. The Socinians, or Unitarians, are already got very high, who make nothing of the Sacraments, but as In-effectual Forms. So think the Deists, who pretend to higher Quality than these. And the Lati∣tudinarians will quarrel with none of these. All Deists are Latitudinarians; and, tho' they despise Baptism, and all Reveal'd Institutions, yet they can submit to them, because they are Established by Law, as they would to any thing else, ra∣ther than lose a Penny, or their Ease. But the Quakers and Muggletonians have (more sincerely) Rejected Baptism, as not allowable, because they think so.

III. The Presbyterians, Independents, &c. do indeed use Baptism; but as a thing so indifferent, that many of them will suffer a Child to dye without it, ra∣ther than Baptize it Privately, or not upon a Sermon or Lecture-day, or before Sermon, rather than after it; And an Instance can be given, since this late Esta∣blishment of Presbytery in Scotland, of a Child who dyed in the Church, in Ser∣mon-time; but the Minister suffered that, and the repeated Requests of the Pa∣rents, rather than go out of his wonted method of Baptizing after Sermon, he thought Baptism so little material!

But the People being us'd to a greater veneration of Baptism, under the Episco∣pal Administration, and taking the Presbyterian contempt of it somewhat uneasi∣ly, the Presbyterian Ministers there, to instruct them better, had publick Preach∣ments, all over the Nation, to shew the no Necessity of the Outward or Water-bap∣tism. I will not say the ENGLISH Presbyterians go so far; they are one Degree further from the League & Covenant. I hear that they do now Administer Bap∣tism PRIVATELY, in and about London. Which the Independents do still Refuse, (I have it from some of themselves) let the case be never so urgent, even tho' the child should dye without it, before one of their Sermon or Lecture-days. As for the other Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, I hear that some Independent Congregations in London are come to use it Monthly. And the Presbyterians more frequently than they us'd to do; or than they do in other places. The frequency of Communion in the Episcopal Churches, in some manner forcing them to it, that their people might not think themselves more neglected by them, than others are. But their own Incli∣nation, and the Value they have for this Sacrament will better appear by their Be∣haviour while they had the Power in their own hands; and could Dictat to others, instead of Following or Complying with them. And during their Government in the late Revolution, tho' they did not down-right (as the Quakers) declare War against it, & Extripate it at once; yet they plainly seem'd to have had a design to have Inch'd it by Degrees out of the world, as far as it was in their power, by letting it fall into Dissuetude, that so it might be Forgotten, & Dye. And they had almost Effected it, among those Ʋnhappy People that were led by them. For from the Birth of their Covenant, A. D. 1638. they had not this Sacrament in many Parishes in Scotland, some for 10, some for 12, some for 15 years; which was almost their whole Reign. And in the Indulg'd and Conniv'd at Parishes to the Year 1683. many per∣sons (who were not Debarr'd for any Exception against them) some of 50, 60, 70, and 80 years of Age, never receiv'd this Sacrament once in their lives: This I know from certain Information. And since their present Establishment in this Revolution, their neglect of this Sacrament is likewise Notorious. Four Years after which, viz. in the year 1693. it had not been Administred in Edenbrugh; & but once a year, at the most, since. We may imagine then how it has been observed in the Country Parishes.

IV. The Presbyterians in the North of Ireland, are a Sprig of the Scotch Covenant Transplanted thither: Which in that change of Soile, has taken deep Root, and spread Intolerably. And the Bishop of Derry, in his late Clear and Rational Discourse concerning the Inventions of Men in the Worship of God, And Two following Admonitions, has made it fully appear, That not One in Ten of them do ever Receive this Sacrament in the whole Course of their Lives: And the rest very rarely, even now since this last Revolution. And in the Former Re∣volution of 41, he gives Ʋndenyable Instances, that in several Churches, even in Dublin, after the turning out of the Episcopal Ministers, the Lord's Supper

had not been Administred till the Restauration, 1660, that is, in some Churches for Ten, in some for Twelve Years together.

V. These Presbyterians in Dublin, and in the South and West parts of Ireland, were sent from England, and had learnt the Contempt of this Sacrament there. Where, even in Ox∣ford, it was not Administred in the whole University, from the Ejection of the Episcopal Clergy, in the Year 1648. to the Restauration in 1660, as is observed in the Antiquit-Oxon. So that the Quakers have only taken that out of the way, which the Presbyterians had worn into Dis-use.

VI. And from all these Enemies, and the subtle Insinuations which they have broached in Prejudice of Christ's Holy Institution of Baptism, and likewise of the Lords Supper (for both are slightedly the same Persons, and upon the same Grounds) it is to be feared, that seve∣ral, even of the Church of England, have been wrought, tho' not into a Dis-use, or downright slight, yet into a less Esteem and greater Indifferency as to these Holy Sacraments than they ought; and consequently receive less Benefit by them; much less than if their Knowledge, and their Faith were better rooted, and more sublime. Nay, there is not any Degree of Indif∣ferency, but what is Culpable, in this Case; and may bring a Curse with it, instead of a Blessing: for, whatsoever, especially in Religious Worship, is not of Faith, is sin. And according to our Faith, it is to us, in all our Performances of Religion.

VII. For all these Reasons, tho' this Discourse was wrote wholly on Behalf of the Quakers, yet, I hope, it will not be un-useful to many others, to see the strong Foundation, Great Ne∣cessity, and In-estimable Benefits of Baptism and the Lord's Supper, when Duly Admini∣ster'd, and Receiv'd with Full Faith and Assurance in the Power and Love of God, that He will not fail to assist His own Institutions, when we approach unto them, with sincere Re∣pentance, and undoubting Dependance upon His Promises. And many of the Objections hereafter answered, tho' used by the Quakers, to Invalidate BAPTISM, are likewise insisted on by several of the Sects, which I have named above, to Lessen and Disparage it. In which sense, the following Discourse, tho' it respects the QUAKERS Chiefly, yet not them Only, for it contains the joint Arguments of all the several sizes of the Opposers, or Contemners of Baptism.

VIII. But as to the immediate Occasion, which engaged me in this Work, it was upon the Account of a particular Person, who had been Educated from his Childhood in the Quaker Principles, and Communion. And the Objections which are here considered against Baptism, are these which, at several conferences with other Quakers, to whom that Person brought me, were insisted upon. At l••ngth, after more than Twelve Months consideration of this single Point, and diligently Reading over, and weighing every particular, which Rob. Barclay had wrote, in his Apology, against the Outward, or Water Baptism, it pleased God so to open the Eyes, and perswade the Heart of this Gentleman, that, having Informed himself in the true Principles of the Christian Religion, as contained in our Church Catechism; he has lately with great joyfulness, and satisfaction, Received the Baptism of Christ, as Admini∣stred in the Church of England. And it was his Desire, that this Discourse (tho' wrote for his Privat Ʋse) might be made Publick, in hopes, that it may have the like Effects upon others, as it has had upon himself, by the great Mercy of God. And I knowing several others who have of late been Convinced and Baptised, in the same manner, as this Gentleman; I have not Resisted his invitation to contribute my Mite towards the Recovery of so many Thousand souls as now for 46 years, have thrown off the Sacraments of Christ's Institution: and there∣by, as one main Cause, have lest the Substance, even Faith in the Blood of Christ, outwardly shed for our Salvation, as I have else-where shewn. The Lord accept my mean Endeavours; and make them Instrumental to His Glory, and the Salvation of Souls. Amen.