Of C'Jod's government, 17o. Noman mutt afcribe any thing to his own Faith or Holinefs in thefeat degree, which is proper to, 1. Gods Mercyor Grace. 2. To Chrift, or his Righteoufnefs or Merits. 3. Or to the Covenant : not any thing but its proper part : And that mutt begranted it. 171. It is a vain Frûion in them that think our Right to yuft(cation or Impunity, and ourRight to Salvation, have not thefame caufes and conditions, but that our own Repentance andobedience is a condition of our Right tosalvation, but not to Impunity or forgivenefs. Whereas our very Yuflification is a juftifyingof our Right to salvation, and the fame Covenant giveth them conlunttly on the fame conditions. 172. But our Right toboth as begun, bath lefs for the condition than our Right to them as continued and perfetIed. For our believing- confent to the Baptifmal-Covenant putteth us into immediate Right to all the benefitsof the Covenant whichwe are then capable of but not to all that we(hallbemade further capable of hereafter g we are pardoned, and fhould be glorified, if we prefently died : But as we have more Grace to receive, fo we havè more Duty toperform as a means, yea a condition,of obtaining it . What right the Cove- 1.73. This,( over -lookt bymany) is.much to be confidered, both as nantgiveth to the after- to the cafe o Infants baptized, and theAdult. Many wonder thàt the helps and degrees of Children of godly Parents prove oft fo bad, as if by the:Baptifmal- Grace. Covenant they had received nothing from God. But the Synod of Dort, Art. I. 4. 17. well concludeth thatgodly Parentshave no cantle to doubt of the Eleclionor salvation of their Children dying in Infancy, they beingholy and inthe fame Covenant with their Parents. But the continu- ance of Gods Grace bath a continued condition andmeans tobe ufed on our part. The condition which the Covenant requireth to an Infants frfl yuilifecation, is, [that he be theChild ofa true Believer, by himdedi- cated toGod]. Andas the frfi Condition is to be found in the Parent (or Owner) fo mutt the Condition of continued Grace as long as the Child continuethan Infant. And that is thecontinuance of the Parents Faith, and his faithful performance of his promife made to educate his Child in the way of God : But if the Parents fbould prefently both turn Infidels, and fo educate their Child, andgive him up as the yoni- maries are, to an Infidel toeducate, I know God may neverthelefs give him Grace above his Promífe ifhe pleafe ( foraBenefaáor as, fuch is free) : but I know of no affurance ofit by Promífe. For in Baptifm both Parties were obligedfor the future, and not one only. And if when the Child cometh to theufe of Reafon he wilfully rejelt and refift Gods Grace, and breakhis Covenant,he forfeiteth Gods furtherGrace. And I have noted, i. That moli Children which I have feenvery early wic- ked,- havebeen fuch whole Parents grofly neglelied their Duty and Covenantas to aholy "prudent careful Education of them ; as if God mutt needs rave their Children, becaufe they were the Children of Be. lievers, who thus betrayed them. 2. And thole that were well educa- ted by their Parents, ufually (hew hopeful figns at firtt, till their own lufts grow up, anddeceive, and overthrow them. Thenature of the mutual Covenant, and the fad experience of the cafe of many baptized Children, makethme incline to this Opinion ; which I do not peremp- torily affert, but humbly propofetabetterjudgmentswith fubmiffion: But whatever we fay of the Parents, I doubt not but to the perfon at age, future benefits have future conditions. 174. Though Gods Decree is that his Eleá (ball perfevere, yet I conceive (with fubmiffton to better information) that the Baptifmal- Covenant
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