the flesh made by hands; that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the common-wealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world.'

I shall conclude this discourse with some inferences.

Inf. 1. Great is the privilege of the covenant, and the benefits thereof, which God has thus appointed to be sealed. Seals are not used in small matters, but in those of great importance; how great then must those be which heaven seals?

2. Our gracious God has shewn great kindness to, and concern for the welfare and comfort of poor sinners coming to him through his Son. Though his word be firmer than heaven and earth, he remembers our frame, that we are guilty, and therefore fearful and suspicious creatures; and, for our ease, that we may the better trust him, has appointed seals of his benefits promised in his covenant.

3. Great is the sin of slighting the sacraments, and neglecting to pariake of them. God appended seals to the covenant of works, viz. the tree of life, and that of the knowledge of good and evil. He also appointed seals to the covenant of grace, under the old dispensation, and under the new too. So divine wisdom has seen them always necessary. What an affront to the wisdom and kindness of God, and his covenant, must the slighting of them then be?

4. Lastly, Great is the sin of abusing and profaning the sacraments, 1 Cor. xi. 27, Whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.' The unconverted profane the seals of heaven by setting them to a blank, where there is no covenant. The saints in a dead and sleepy frame do also profane them, while they are in no capacity to discern what they are appointed to represent, seal, and apply. O then use the sacraments in faith, according to Christ's institution, and seek his blessing upon them, that the benefits thereby sealed may become effectually yours.

THE NUMBER OF THE SACRAMENTS, AND THE NATURE OF

BAPTISM.

1 Cor. xii. 13.-For by one Spirit we are all baptised—and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

MATTH. xxviii. 19.-Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

THE first of these texts, as before explained, holds out the number of the sacraments of the New Testament; and from thence we may draw this doctrine, viz.

DocT. The sacraments of the New Testament are, baptism, and the Lord's supper.'

That this, and only this, is the number of the sacraments, we have the following evidences.

1. These were instituted by the Lord Jesus, and no more, Matth. xxviii. 19. and xxvi. 26-28. No other bear the stamp of divine institution. And none can shew any other holy ordinance instituted by Christ, wherein by sensible signs, Christ, and the benefits of the new covenant, are represented, sealed, and applied to believers.

2. These two fully answer the necessities of the saints in the case of sacraments. Two witnesses are sufficient to one deed, and the great deed and grant of the covenant are sufficiently witnessed unto by these. What more is there for God's elect to expect in this world, but these two things, that they receive life and nourishment, that they be taken into the covenant, and kept in it? Baptism is the sign of the one, and the Lord's supper of the other. The one is the sacrament of our ingrafting into Christ, and the other of our nourishment in him. And there is no special grace whatsoever, but what is signified and sealed by them.

3. The same was the number and nature of the ordinary sacraments of the Old Testament. They were no more but circumcision and the passover. And plain it is, that the New Testament dispensation is not more full of external rites and ceremonies than the Old one was. So that the Papists' seven sacraments compared with the two Jewish ones, must needs shew Popery to be vastly distant from the simplicity of the gospel. Circumcision was the initiating sacrament then, as baptism is now, signifying the putting off of the body of the sins of the flesh, Col. ii. 11; as baptism the washing of them away, Acts xxii. 16; the passover signifying Christ crucified,

1 Cor. v. 7; as the sacrament of the supper also, Matth. xxvi. 26. First they were to be circumcised, and afterwards to keep the passover; and so first to be baptised, and afterwards to communicate in the Lord's supper, but no otherwise. Circumcision was never reiterated, but the passover frequently.

4. Lastly, As the apostle, in our text, makes these two the bonds of Christian communion, and no more; so he reduces the extraordinary Jewish sacraments, in their uses and ends, to those of our two sacraments. The being under the cloud, and passing through the Red Sea, he calls their being baptised, 1 Cor. x. 2. Their eating of the manna, and drinking the water of the rock, he calls their eating of the same spiritual meat, and drinking the same spiritual drink, as we do in the Lord's supper, ver. 3, 4.

From this point I shall draw a few inferences,

Inf. 1. Good and gracious is our God to his church and people, under the gospel in a special manner, who has instituted two, and but two sacraments, and these easy and clear. Here we have enough for the confirmation of our faith of the promises; and we have no reason to say we are under a heavy yoke. Here none of our blood is to be shed, but Christ's blood is most clearly represented as shed for us.

2. The five sacraments which the Papists have added to our Lord's two, are but bastard sacraments, not the badges of Christ, but of Antichrist. These are, confirmation, penance, orders, marriage, and extreme unction.

Confirmation is the bishop's anointing of the baptised with chrism in the forehead, in the form of a cross, with this form of words, ‘I sign thee with the sign of the cross, and confirm thee with the chrism of salvation, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." This has no manner of divine institution, nor is it at all to be found in the scriptures; and derogates from the sacrament of baptism.

Penance is repentance, discovering itself by external evidences. The matter of this pretended sacrament, they say, lies in contrition of heart, auricular confession, and satisfaction; the form of it in absolution by the priest, as a judge, pardoning their sin, not ministerially, only declaring it. But here is no visible sign at all, necessary to contradistinguish the sacramental signs from the word. No sign at all is administered to the penitent; no promise annexed to a sensible sign here: therefore no sacrament. Besides auricular confession is not instituted at all by the Lord. And judicial pardon is blasphemous, ministerial declaration of pardon being only competent to ministers, John xx. 23.

Orders is the ordination of church-officers; which is instituted,

but not to be a sacrament, it having no promise of saving grace annexed to it. 1 Tim. iv. 14. speaks not of saving grace, but of the official gift, viz. authority to preach.

Matrimony has nothing of a sacrament in it, since it has no visible sign appointed by Christ, no promise of saving grace annexed to it, and is common to all the world as well as the church. It is misgrounded on Eph. v. 32. where their corrupt translation reads a great sacrament.

Extreme unction is the priest's anointing the eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, hands, reins, and feet of a person thought to be at the point of death, with olive-oil, consecrated by a bishop, using these words, By this holy oil, and his tender mercy, God forgive thee all thy sins.' It is built on Jam. v. 14. where the miraculous cure of diseases is spoken of.

3. See the bent of corrupt nature in meddling with God's institutions, the abominations of Popery, and the great mercy of our deliverance from it. We can never be enough thankful to God for the reformation from that grand apostasy, idolatry, and superstition. We ought to hold firmly what we have attained, and stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, that we be not again entangled with any yoke of bondage. Let us steadfastly adhere to all the ordinances and institutions of our Lord Jesus Christ, and vigorously oppose, in our respective stations and places, all deviations from the same, from whatever quarter they may come, or under whatever specious pretexts they may be introduced or recommended. To the law and to the testimony let us bring them; and receive and practise nothing in the worship and service of God, but what is enforced with a Thus saith the Lord. member the extreme danger of all usages and tained in or authorised by the written word; from the heart abhor them.

And let us ever reinnovations not conand therefore let us

In the second text we have the institution of baptism. And herein consider,

1. The ordinance itself; baptising in the name of the holy blessed Trinity. This is expressly instituted by Jesus Christ: Go ye therefore, and baptise, &c.

2. The administrators of baptism; ye apostles, and your successors, in teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded. And lo I am with you alway even to the end of the world.'

3. The subjects of baptism; all nations which are taught Gr. discipled, made disciples of Christ. First, they are to be discipled, and then baptised.

The doctrine of the the text is,

DocT. 'The sacrament of baptism is instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ.'

To open the nature of this sacrament, let us consider,

1. The signifying thing in it.

II. The signifying action.

III. The particular uses and ends of baptism.

IV. The subjects of baptism, or those to whom it is to be administered.

V. The efficacy of it.

VI. The necessity of it.

VII. Deduce a few inferences.

There

I. Let us consider the signifying thing in this sacrament. is a fourfold baptism spoke of in scripture. (1.) The baptism of light, which is taken for the doctrine, Acts xviii. 25. (2.) The baptism of blood, which is martyrdom, Matth. xx. 22, 23. (3.) The baptism of the Spirit, which is the pouring out of the Spirit, Matth. iii. 11. (4.) The baptism of water, which is baptism properly so called. So,

The signifying thing in baptism is water, Acts viii. 38, 39. Eph. v. 26. And there is no matter as to the water, whether it be fountain water, or river-water, providing only it be pure clean water, Heb. x. 22. And it is an abominable practice of the Papists to add oil, salt, and spittle, to the water in baptism.

Here I shall shew,

1. What is signified by the water in baptism.

2. What is the resemblance betwixt water and the thing signified by it.

First, What is signified by the water in baptism?

1. The blood of Jesus Christ, Rev. i. 5.

2. The Spirit of Jesus Christ, Tit. iii. 5. Isa. xliv. 3.

Secondly, What is the resemblance betwixt these? There is a sweet resemblance betwixt water, and the blood and Spirit of Jesus Christ; the due consideration whereof shews the excellency of the grace exhibited in baptism.

1. Water is a common thing, to be had freely by all those who take it it is what the poor as well as the rich have access to. So the blood and Spirit of Christ are free to all who will receive the same offered in the gospel, Isa. lv. 1. Christ is not a sealed and closed, but an open fountain, for souls to wash in, Zech. xiii. 1. Cant. ii. 1. And however unclean one be, he is welcome to this water, 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10, 11.

2. Water is a cleansing thing, taking out spots, stains, and de