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change their ground; they must either go forwards or backwards. They have already conceded so much to the members of other denominations, that, if they would preserve the least shew of consistency, they must either concede more, or withdraw what they have granted. They have most unreasonably and capriciously stopped, and fixed their encampment where no mortal before ever thought of staying for a moment. They have already made such near approaches to the great body of those whom we deem unbaptized, as places them at an unmeasurable distance from the letter of the apostolic precedent, though in perfect harmony with its spirit; while they preposterously cling to that letter, as the reason for refusing to go an inch farther. They remain immovable, (to change the figure,) not because they rest on any solid basis, but because they are suspended betwixt the love of the brethren, and the remains of intolerance; just as Mahomet's tomb is said to hang betwixt two magnets of equal powers, placed in opposite directions.

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The Scottish baptists (as I have been informed) act consistently. Conceiving, with Mr. Kinghorn, that immersion, on a profession of faith, is a necessary introduction to the christian profession, they uniformly abstain from a participation in sacred offices with the members of other societies, and, without pretending to judge of their final state, treat them on every occasion as men, whose

religious pretensions are doubtful. Whoever considers the import of the following passage, will be surprised Mr. Kinghorn should feel any hesitation in adopting the same system. "It is granted," says our author, "that baptism is not expressly inculcated as a preparative to the Lord's supper; neither is it inculcated as preparative to any thing else. But the first act of christian obedience is, of course, succeeded by the rest; and the required acknowledgement of our faith in Christ, in the nature of things, ought to precede the enjoyment of the privileges which arise from faith."*

By the first act of christian obedience, he unquestionably intends the reception of baptism; and the meaning of the sentence turns entirely on the word first. He designs to assert, that such is the prescribed order of religious actions that unless that ordinance is first attended to, every other performance is invalid; that whatever it may be in itself, not occupying its proper place, it cannot lay claim to the character of a duty. We should be extremely concerned at imposing a false construction on his words; but if this is not his meaning, we despair of discovering it. But if our interpretation is just, unless we can conceive of a religion availing for eternal life, in the total absence of duties, it is equivalent to asserting,

* Baptism a Term of Communion, p. 30.

that none besides our denomination possess truereligion. He expressly tells us every other duty must succeed, that is, must come after, baptism, which, with respect to pædobaptists, is impossible on our principles; whence it necessarily follows, that while they retain their sentiments, they are disqualified for the performance of duty. The only conceivable method of evading this conclusion, is to make a distinction, and to affirm, that though baptism ought, agreeably to the institution of Christ, to precede the other branches of religion, yet that when it is omitted from a misconception or mistake, the omission is not of such magnitude as to prevent their being accepted. But should our author explain himself in this manner, he will not only coincide with us, but his argument for strict communion will be relinquished. Having acknowledged that "the connexion between baptism and the Lord's supper is not more directly marked in scripture, than between that ordinance and any other duty," were he now to make a distinction in favour of the sacrament, and confine the disqualification to that particular, he would be guilty of an express contradiction. Nor are his words susceptible of such an interpretation. The assertion he makes is in the form of a general proposition; which is, that all the duties of christianity must succeed baptism, in

* Baptism a Term of Communion, p. 30.

contradiction to going before it; and the disqualification for the Lord's supper, which he represents the pædobaptists as lying under, is inferred solely from the consideration of its constituting a part of those duties.

Thus much for the duties; let us next hear what he says of the privileges of christianity. Baptism, which he styles "the required acknowledgement of our faith in Christ," he tells us,

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ought to precede the enjoyment of the privileges which arise from faith." They ought to precede, but do they in fact? Is it his opinion that all other sects, as a punishment for their disobedience in one particular, are left destitute of the spiritual immunities which flow from faith? If it is not, it behoves him to reflect on the presumption of such a mode of speaking, which is little less than arraigning the wisdom of the great Head of the church, who dispenses his favours in a manner so different from that which he ventures to prescribe. Should he reply, that Jesus Christ, as a Sovereign, is at liberty to act as he pleases, but that we are under an obligation of adhering to the settled order of his house, it is easy to perceive that this evasion is neither consistent with truth, nor sufficient to establish his consistency with himself. Are not his partizans in the daily habit of exhibiting towards the members of other societies, tokens of their fraternal regard, of inviting them to every branch of christian fellowship,

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short of admission to the sacrament? Will they deny that the communion of saints, even in the absence of that institution, is an important privilege?

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In the next place, to represent the bestowment of spiritual blessings on the great body of the faithful, through the lapse of fifteen centuries, whose salvability, it is confessed, is capable of demonstration from scripture; to speak of this, as an extraordinary and extrajudicial procedure, is to confound the most obvious distinctions.

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The terms of salvation, which are, radically, faith and repentance, are clearly propounded; in the word of God; and surely it will not be doubted that multitudes out of the pale of our sect, have exhibited such proofs of their possessing these qualifications, that their enjoyment of the divine favour is not to be ascribed to a secret economy, similar to what has been conjectured by some to extend to virtuous pagans. Where revelation is silent, it becomes us to copy its reserve; but in the present instance, so far is this from being the case, that few propositions are more susceptible of proof from that quarter, than that an error, with respect to a positive rite, is not fatal; whence the necessary inference is, that the bestowment of God's favours on such as labour under that imperfection, is a known part of his conduct: that it is not only his intention so to act, but that he has taken effectual care to inform us of it; not,

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