3. I proceed to observe, that such present remission, as I have hitherto been speaking of, is ordinarily conferred in the Sacrament of Baptism, where there is no obstacle on the part of the recipient. Even the Baptism of John, upon repentance, instrumentally conveyed remission of sins: much more does the Baptism of Christ. "Except 66 a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot "enter into the kingdom of God." This implies, that Water-baptism, ordinarily, is requisite to remission, and consequently is an ordinary means of conveying it. But there are other texts more express: "Repent, and be bap❝tized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for "the remission of sins--the promise isto all that "are afar offp," &c. Ananias's words to Saul are very remarkable; "Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy "sins 9:" words too clear and express to be eluded by any Socinian evasions. And so are those other words; "Christ also loved the Church, and gave himself for it; "that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing "of water by the word." The same doctrine is again taught by St. Paul, where he speaks of the "putting off "the body of sins, by the circumcision of Christ s;" by Christian circumcision, that is, by Baptism. The same thing is implied in our being "saved by the laver of re"generation," and "saved by Baptism "," and having "hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience." It is in vain to plead against remission of sins in either of the Sacraments, on account of their being considered in the recipient as single acts: for since it is certain fact, that such remission is conferred in and by Baptism, there must be some fallacy in that kind of reasoning, whether we can espy it or not, and it can be of no weight against plain n Mark i. 4. Acts ii. 38, 39. r • John iii. 5. 4 Acts xxii. 16. Ephes. v. 25, 26. Compare Pearson on the Creed, Article x. p. 556. Defence, p. 269, &c. * Tit. iii. 5. See Dr. Wall, Hist. of Inf. Bapt. part i. c: 2. and certain fact. But I have hinted in my introduction, and elsewhere, where the error and misconception of such reasoning lies and I shall only add here, that if a king were to send out his general letters of pardon for all submissive offenders, who, after renewing their bonds of allegiance, would come and take out their pardon in certain form, it would be no objection to the validity of their pardon, as conveyed by such form, that the submitting to it was but part of the condition, and not the whole, so long as it presupposes every thing besides. I may note also, by the way, that no just objection can be made against the general notion of God's conferring pardon by the ministry of men, since it is certain that he does it in the Sacrament of Baptism, which is administered by the hands of men commissioned thereunto. Having thus dispatched the three previous propositions, preparatory to what I intend, I now proceed directly to the subject of the present chapter, which is to show, that God confers remission of sins in or by the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, as well as by the Sacrament of Baptism. The analogy which there is between the two Sacraments, considered as Sacraments, is itself a strong presumption of it; unless there were some very good reason to be given why remission should be granted there, and not here. The once granting of remission is no argument against repeating and renewing it, time after time, if there may be any new occasion for it, or if frequent renewals may add more abundant strength and firmness to what was before done, either for greater security or greater consolation. It may be said, perhaps, that Baptism was necessary to give any person a covenant-right to pardon upon repentance, but that when a man is once entered into covenant, then repentance alone suffices, and there is no longer need of submitting to any other public, solemn form of remission, as an instrument of pardon. I allow, there is not precisely the same need; and yet I will not presume to y See above, ch. viii. p. 210. `maintain that there may not be great need, notwithstanding. It is one thing to say, that remission is given in the Eucharist, as well as in Baptism; and another to say, that the Eucharist is as necessary to remission, as Büptism. Baptism may be the first and grand absolution; and the Eucharist may be only second to it: the Eucharist may be an instrument of remission, but not the prime or chief instrument. I am aware that it was St. Austin's doctrine, (and, I think, of the Schools after him,) that baptismal remission looks not only backwards to sins past, but forwards also to future transgressions, and has its federal effect for remission of sins repented of, all our lives long. But yet that consideration never hindered him, nor others of the same sentiments with him, from believing, that remission of sins is granted in and by the Eucharist a, as well as by the other Sacrament. Only, they might think, that Baptism is éminently and emphatically the Sacrament of rèmission, and the other, of spiritual growth; one is more peculiarly the instrument of justification, while sanctificătion is the eminent privilege of the other. Nevertheless, justification and sanctification, though distinct in notion, are yet so closely connected in the spiritual life, that they commonly go together, and so whatever tends to increase either, increases both. And though it is certainly trué, that the Gospel covenant promises remission upon repentance, yet receiving the Communion, as it is an article of z Sic, inquam, hoc accipiendum est, ut eodem lavacro regenerationis et verbo sanctificationis, omnia prorsus mala hominum regeneratorum mundentur, atque sanentur: non solum peccata quæ omnia nunc remittuntur in Baptismo, sed etiam quæ posterius humana ignorantia vel infirmitate contrahuntur. Non ut Baptisma quotiens peccatur totiens repetatur; sed quia ipso quod semel datur, fit, ut non solum antea, verum etiam postea quorumlibet peccatorum venia fidelibus impetretur. Quid enim prodesset vel ante Baptismum pœnitentia, nisi Baptismus sequeretur, vel postea, nisi præcesserit? Augustin. de Nupt. et Concupisc. lib. i. p. 298. tom. x. edit. Bened. Conf. Sam. Ward. Determ. Theolog. p. 57. Vossius de Baptism. Disp. vi. p. 277. Turretin. Institut. Theolog. tom. iii. p. 460, &c. Hesychius, of the fifth century, expressed it thus: Virtus præcedentis baptismatis operatur et in ea, quæ postea actà fuerit, pœnitentia. In Levit. lib. ii. p. 118. ■ Vid. Augustin. de Peccat. Mer. et Rem. lib. i. cap. 24. Christian obedience, is included in the notion of repentance, making a part of it, as often as we may and ought to receive. But besides that, as repentance alone, without a continual application of the great atonement, is of no avail upon the foot of the Christian covenant, nor can be accepted at the throne of grace; the least that we can say of the expediency of the Eucharist, in that respect, is, that it amounts to a public, solemn, certain application of Christ's merits, for the rendering our repentance acceptable, (which no other service except Baptism does,) and therefore it is a service carrying in it the liveliest assurance, and the strongest consolation, with respect to that very remission promised upon our serious repentance. Baptism once received may perhaps justly be supposed to carry in it the force of such continued application all our lives after: but yet it was not for nothing, that God appointed another Sacrament, supplemental to Baptism, for carrying on the same thing, or for the more effectual securing the same end. It is further to be considered, that if the Eucharist includes in it (as shall be shown in its place) a renewal of the baptismal covenant, it must of course be conceived to carry in it a renewal of baptismal remission also and remission, on God's part, is a kind of continued act, always growing, always improving, during the several stages and advances of the Christian life. Besides, if Divine wisdom, among other reasons, has superadded the solemnity of Baptism to repentance, in order to fix the repentance more strongly, and to render it accepted, as also to make the pardon therein granted the more affecting and memorable; it is obvious to perceive how the solem b Justificatio et sanctificatio sunt actus quidem perpetuus, in quo et Deus semper donat, et homo semper recipit. Tota itaque vita homo fidelis poscit remissionem peccatorum, et renovationem sui: tota item vita utrumque impetrat. Habet ante, sed consequitur tum conservationem tum incrementum ejus quod habet. Omnibus credentibus opus, ut tum fides tum gratia fide percepta foveatur, alatur, augeatur. Omnibus igitur credentibus et verbi, et sacramentorum adminiculo opus est, &c. Vossius de Sacr. Vi et Effic. p. 252. nity of the Eucharist is fitted to serve the like purposes; and is therefore the more likely to have been intended for another public and sensible application of the merits of Christ's death, and a channel of remission, succedaneous to Baptism, in some views, and so far serving instead of a repetition of it. But whether we are right or wrong in these and the like plausible reasonings upon the analogy of the two Sacraments, or upon their common, or distinct uses, yet if we can prove the fact, that the Eucharist really is an instrument of remission, or a Gospel form of absolution, we need not then concern ourselves much about the rationale of the thing: our positive proofs will be sufficient without it. This then is what I shall now proceed. to, following the light of Scripture and antiquity. 1. That remission of sins is ordinarily conferred in the Eucharist, follows undeniably from the doctrine of 1 Cor. x. 16, as explained in the preceding chapter of this work. For if we are therein partakers of Christ's death, with the fruits thereof; and if the atonement be one of those fruits, and indeed the first and principal; and if remission follows the atonement, wherever it is truly applied; it is manifest from these considerations taken together, that remission is conferred, or (which comes to the same) "By the same reason that it came to be thought needful to make use of "sensible means to convey or assure to mankind God's pardon and grace 66 upon their first conversion to Christianity, by the same, or a greater reason, it must be judged to be so, to make use of the like sensible means to convey or assure the same grace and pardon, after men have in any measure forfeited the interest they had in the other. "state "By the same reason again, that it came to be thought needful to exact "of us sensible declarations of our renouncing the errors of our unconverted -by the same, or a greater reason, must it be judged to be so, to "exact of us the like sensible declarations, after we have, by our disobedience, departed from, and prevaricated our former ones." Towerson on the Sacrament, p. 158. The author here resolves the reason of granting remission by the Eucharist, into the expediency of sensible means to testify repentance on man's part, for sins committed after Baptism, and for the greater solemnity of granting pardon, on God's part. Which appears to be a very just account of it, in part, or it is, at least, a sufficient answer to objections drawn from the rationale of the thing. |