z. All that were baptized did profefs to Believe in God the Father, Son and HolyGhoft, and devoted themfelves to him, with profeffion of Repentance for former fins, and renouncing the Lofts of the Fiefh , the World and theDevil, profeffing to begin a new and holy life, in hope of everlafting glory. 3. This form of Baptifmal Covenanting and Profeffion begun with Chriftianity ( and called our Chriftening, or making us Chriftians. ) bath been propagated anddelivered down to us to this day, by a full and certain tradition and teftimony and lefs alterations than the holyScriptures. 4. The Apoftles were never fuch formalifts and friends to ignorance and hypocrite, as to encourage the baptized to take up with the faying Elbelieve in the Father, Son andHolyGboft ] without teaching them to underftand what they faid. Thereforeundoubtedly they expoundedthofe threeArticles: And that expofition could be no other in fenfe than the Creed is. And when Paul reciteth the Articles ofChrift, t Cor. r 5. and mentioneth the Form offound words, we may be fure that they all gave the people One unchanged expofition as to the fenfe: Chriftianitywas one unchanged thing. . g. Though 1 am not of their mind, that think the twelve Apofiles each -one made anArticle of the Creed, or that they formed and tyed men to juft the very fame fyllables, and every word that is now in the Creed ; yet that they flill kept to the fame fenfe, and words fo expreffing it, asby their variation might not endanger the corrupting of the faith by a new fenfe,. is certain from the nature of the cafe, and from the Agreementof all the antient Creeds, which were ever profeffe8 at baptifm, from their dayes., that cited by me ( Append. to the Reformed Paftor) out of Ire- -new, two out ofTertalliun, that ofMarcellus inEpiph'aniüss, that expoun- ded by Cyril, that in Raffinas, the Nicene, and all mentioned by Whet' and veins agreeing thus far in fenfe5 And no one wasbaptized without theCreed profeffed. 6. As Chrift himfelf was the Author of the Baptifmal Creed and Co= venant, fo. the Apoftles-were the Authors of that Expofition which they then ufed and taught the Church to ufe : And they did that by the Holy Ghoft as muchas their inditing of the Scripture. .7. Therefore the Church had a Summary and Symbol of Chriftianiry (.asI faid before) about twelve yearsbeforeany Book of the NewTefta- ment was written, and about fixty fix years before the whole was writ- ten : And this of Gods own making : which was ever agreed on , when many Books of the New Teftament were not yet agreedon. 8. Thereforemen were then to prove the truth of the Chriffian Relì- pion, by its proper Evidences and Miracles, longbefore they were to prove that every word ( or anyBook) of the NewTeftament was the infallible. perk & Word ofGod. 9. Therefore we muft 1tí11 follow the fame Method, and take Chrifts Miracles tobe primarily the proof of the ChriftianReligion, long before the NewTeftament Books were written. tc. Therefore if a man fhould be tempted to doubt of the certainty of this or that Book, words or reading, it followeth not that he mull therefore doubt of theChriftian Faith. r r. A thoufand Texts of Scripture may be not known and underftood, byone that is Juftited : but all the Baptifmal Articlesand Covenantmutt be underftood.competently by all that will be faved. t z. Thofe Church-Tyrants, Dogmatifts or fuperfäitious ones, who deny the fufficiency of this Tell and Symbol (made by Chrift and his Spirit ) to
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