Burgess - Houston-Packer Collection BT715 .B85 1652

S s c T. XII. Of WhealCalling. heart. The tearsof the hearers are thepraifes of the Preacher. z. Their defrre and enquire, what Aalhl+edo that we may be raved 1 Then is ourMiniftery bleffed, when it puts you upon thefe feribus Queftions. When yougo home, What fhall I do to befaved ? I amout of the way, my finne is difcovered, thisSermon hath told me of all theevil that ever I did : Oh what (hall I do tobe faved i Now thatwhich is the fecond wonder in this Chapter is The Number of thoíe Perlons that wereconverted at thistime its faid, ver.4r. Thatthey Were about threethoufand. Here is one to be admired more then the Heathen Orpheus, thatcould makebeafts follow him, and tame their natures; for ignorant and prophane enemies , even a great multitude imbrace Chrift, Here is Peter catching of men, as once he did fifh, and the net is fo full, that it is ready tobreak. In thenext place, You have Peters Advice and Collard, direfting them into the way of Salvation; wherein confider a two-fold duty; r. Repent. 2. Be baptized, with the Objeft, Into the name of Chrif! ; This sloth not exclude the other perlons. 3. You have a two-fold encouragement ; r. From the benefit fealed in Ba- ptifm, Remion offins. 2. A gracious EffelhGod would vouchfafe to them, Ye /ball receive the holyGhoff. And my Text is brought inas a reafon, why they mould repent and be baptized, andhope for remiffionof fins, For the Premile es to roes, &c. Which words arediligently to be opened, becaufe of tome late Queftions ariingabout Infant- Baptifm, that are flatted hence. In them you may obferve, Themercy fpoken oforpublifhed, The Premile. z. The Subject, and that is in a three-fold enumeration, To you, viz. the Jews to whom then he preached. a. TheirChildren. 3. To thofe that are afar off, .t steazto&. Some underftand it ofplace afar offfrom the Countrey of ?idea ; Some of the time to come, be- caufe its r+s tsaap2v, To thegenerations thatare to come. To be lure itsmeant of theGentiles, who in other places arePaid To beafar off. And therefore you have o this explained in the fall expreffion, Even as many as God(hallcall. Now firft fetusconfider, What is meant by the Promife. Thole that would elude this place fopregnant for baptizing of Infants of believers, becaufe the promife is made to them, fay, Its meantofextraordinary gifts, filch as thofe mi- raculous giftsfpoken of. But this is veryabfurd, becaufe r Cor. rq. all thatdid believe had not thofe extraordinary gifts, All did not fpeakwith tongues, all had not thegift of healing!. z. Its againli experience, for if the promife of thefe extraotdinary gifts be made tobelievers, then why have theynot all extraordinarygifts that thusex- pound it ? Why do they not fpeak in the Hebrew and Greek tongues? And 3. Verf..r6. The promifeofthefe extraordinary gifts is Paid to befulfillcd at that time, and therefore not to beexpectted at any other time. By the promife therefore which fometimesloin the ungular, and fometimes in the plural, Pro- mites, becaufeof the many good and fpiritual things promifed therein, we are tounderftand the Covenant ofgrace, wherein Godpromifeth to be the God of believers, and their feed; for that which was made to Abraham, letting afide fome perfonal priviledges, is made to every believer. Now in this Covenant is contained Pardonof finne, and all other mercies, which Baptifm fealeth ; and that this is the meaning, is plain, Chap.;.25. Ye are the children of the Prophets, andof the Covenant God made Withstirfathers; So the promife here, is that gra- cious Covenantof God, whereby he offers grace to thofe that do accept it; now thofethat accept it arefucb as are inwardly fanllified , and chefe have the inward Covenant as well as the outward adminiftrationof it. But fecondly, Others do only outwardlyaccept of it, and profeffe their obedience to it, not inwardly regenerated, and thefe onely have the external Covenant, and a right to Church-priviledges, beingdeftituteof the faxing benefit by them t So that this

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