Commiffion and Authority. The Article fays alfo, that the Sacraments are " effectual, "becaufe of Chrift's Inftitution and Promife: If fo, then take away the Cause, and their effectuality will ceafe. The Čause of their being Effectual, is Chrift's Inftitution and Promife; His Inftitution [of Go ye] is wanting, when an Unauthoriz❜d Perfon attempts to Baptize, (St. Matt. xxviii. 19. and Article 23 of the Church of England) His Promife is alfo here no ways concern'd, for, that [Lo I am with you always, &c.] was made only to Authoriz'd Perfons, (St. Matth. xxviii. 19.) confepuently the Uncommiffion'd Baptizer has neither Chrift's Inftitution, nor his Promife, and therefore his Miniftration being deftitute of thefe, has not the Caufe fufficient to make it effectual by this 26th Article of our Church; and the unavoidable Confequence of this is, that fuch his Miniftration is in its own Nature ineffectual, and therefore Null and Void, because deftitute of the Cause which makes Good and Valid.

S. IX. The 27th Article of the Church of England defines Baptifm to be "not only 66 a Sign of Profeffion and Mark of Diffe66 rence, &c. but also a Sign of Regeneration or New Birth, whereby, as by an Juftrument, they that receive Baptifm rightly,

are

"are grafied into the Church, the Pro"mifes of Forgiveness of Sin, and of our A"doption to be the Sons of God, &c. are bi"libly Sign'd and Seal'd;" and in her moft Excellent Catechifm fhe teaches, that a Sacrament is a "Pledge to affure" us of Inward Spiritual Grace, confequently, that, Baptifm (which is a Sacrament) is a Pledge or Earnest given us, to affure us of thofe infinite Bleffings before spoken of in the 27th Article. This Illuftrates the Reafon of the Church's Affertions in her 23d and 26th Articles; for, hereby She neceffarily gives us to understand, that, to the Effential Adminiftring of Chriftian Sacraments there must be something fufficient to give them the true Value and Worth of an Inftrument vifibly Sign'd and Seal'd betwen God and us. Something, that may give them the true Power and Virtue of God's Pledge or Earnest to us, that we fhall be partakers of his unfpeakable Graces and Favours. This Something, can be no other, than ei-` ther God himfelf, or his Lawful Attorney, fent by him to act in his Stead; for, Signing and Sealing, and giving of Pledges can never be validly done by any, but ei ther the Principal, who Covenants with us directly, or by his appointed Agent, whom he fends to Covenant with us in his Stead. And there is no other conceivable Reveal'd Way,

Way, under our present Chriftian Dispen tion, for God vifibly to Sign and Seal to us, and give us an outward Visible Pledge to affure us of, his Grace and Favour, but by by means of his Commiffion'd Substitutes,

and therefore 'tis the Church's Doctrine in this 27th Article, and in her moft admirable Catechism, that Men must be vested with the Divine Commiffion to Baptize, because, without fuch a Commiffion, Bap tifm is not a Sign, Seal, and Pledge on God's Part, and therefore not the Baptifm which he Inftituted, Confequently no Chriftian Baptism, and if so, then utterly Invalid.

S. X. Again: In the 37th Article, our Church fays, "We give not to our Prin"ces the iniftring either of God's "Word, or of the Sacraments, "that only Prerogative, &c.

but

that

"they fhould Rule all Eftates and Degrees " committed to their Charge by God, whe"ther they be Ecclefiaftical or Temporal, and "and reftrain with the Civil Sword the "Stubborn and Evil Doers.

The Church by this Expreffion, We give not to our Princes, &c. is to be understood to mean, We attribute not to our Princes, or we believe not that our Princes have, the Power or Authority of miniftring either God's Word or

the Sacraments.

That She is to be under

ftood

ftood in this Senfe, is plain, by what fol lows in the Article; for, 'tis not to be fuppos'd, that She gives Princes the Prerogative of Ruling, &c. that Prerogative they have, without any Gift from her; She only defigns to teach us, that fhe believes Princes have fuch a Prerogative

So

that the Church informs us in this Article, That our Princes themfelves, Have not the Power of miniftring the Sacraments: Now, this could not be true, if Lay-Chriftians, as fuch, had that Power; because, a Man's being a Prince, do's by no means deprive him of any Power he had as a Lay-Chriftian, before his Promotion to that Dignity; therefore, fince our Church do's believe, and her Belief is True, that our Princes have not the Power of Miniftring Sacraments: She neceffarily includes all other Lay-men to be deftitute of this Power,

otherwife, inferior Lay-Chriftians, are, as fuch, Superior in Spiritual Power, to their Lay-Chriftian Sovereigns, which is abfurd;

and therefore, 'tis the Belief of our Church, that Princes and other Lay-Chriftians, attempting (without Authority) to adminifter Sacraments, do not minifter them; for if they do minifter Sacraments, then the miniftring of the Sacraments is in their Power, which is contrary to the Article; and therefore, any unauthoriz'd Atany

tempt

tempt of theirs to minifter the Sacraments is in the Sense of this Article, a Null and Void Miniftration.

6. XI. Thus we have feen what the Church has taught us by her Articles; viz. That to the Adminiftration of the Sacraments, their Inftitution, which is the only Law that appoints Effentials, requires this Effential, that the Administrator of them, and therefore of Baptifm, be lawfully Call'd and Sent, Article 23d.

That the Efficacy, or Validity of the Sacraments, and confequently of Baptifm, is founded upon the Commiffion which the Adminiftrator has receiv'd from Chrift, Article 26th.

That the Miniftration of the Sacrament of Baptifm is a vifible Signing, Sealing, and giving to us a Pledge on God's Part, and therefore neceffarily requires, that it be done either by God himfelf, who is the Principal; or elfe by one Authoriz'd by him to act therein, as his lawful Attorney, (Article 27th, and Church Catechifm.)

Laftly, That even our Princes, and therefore no other unauthoriz'd Lay-man whatfoever, has this Commiffion to minifter any Sacrament, Article 37th; and confequently, that when any fuch unauthoriz❜d Perfon attempts to Baptize, he is

no