A59660:114
The church-membership of children, and their right to baptism according to that holy and…The church-membership of children, and their right to baptisme according to that holy and…
The church-membership of children, and their right to baptism according to that holy and everlasting covenant of God, established between Himself and the faithful ... cleared up in a letter, sent unto a worthy friend of the author ... / by Thomas Shepard ...The church-membership of children, and their right to baptisme according to that holy and everlasting covenant of God, established between Himself and the faithfull ... cleared up in a letter, sent unto a worthy friend of the author ... / by Thomas Shepard ...
Cambridge: printed by Samuel Green, 1663Cambridg: printed by Samuel Green, 1663
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Object. 5. If Children may be members, & yet not come to the Lords Supper: then it may come to pass that a whole Church may be a Church, and yet not have the Lords Supper, or ought not to have it.
Answ. 1. So there may, for a Church may be a true Church, & yet want the benefit of some one or more of Gods Ordinances, sometime Pastors, sometime Elders, sometime Seals.
Answ. 1. So there may, for a Church may be a true Church, & yet want the benefit of some one or more of Gods Ordinances, sometime Pastors, sometime Elders, sometime Seales.
2. A Church of professing Believers may degenerate, and turn profane, and sottish, and so have no just right to the Seals; and their Officers may leave them, and so have no use of the Seals: yet I suppose it is a Church of Christ still though degenerate, though unfit to enjoy Seals; will you therefore think the way of their Membership unlawful, viz. by professing their Faith? Because such a rare thing as this may happen? why then should you think the way of Children's Membership unlawful because of the like rarity in such a dark and gloomy state of them as you mention?
2. A Church of professing Believers may degenerate, and turn prophane, and sottish, and so have no just right to the Seales; and their Officers may leave them, and so have no use of the Seales: yet I suppose it is a Church of Christ still though degenerate, though unfit to enjoy Seales; will you therfore think the way of their Membership unlawfull, viz. by professing their Faith? Because such a rare thing as this may happen? why then should you think the way of Childrens Membership unlawfull because of the like rarity in such a dark and gloomy state of them as you mention?