it is to rely on him, to put our truft in him, as one that is able to fave fuch as come unto God through him.

15. In the words we are to obferve, the encou ragement that is given, to engage to a compliance with this direction: and this is twofold, particu lar, thou shalt be faved; and more general, and thy house, In the

Fint, We have two three things, worthy of our notice, (1) The thing that is promifed, and that is falvation, the very thing that the man was feeking. (2.) The order in which it is to be had; believe in the Lord Jefus, and thou shalt be faved. (3.) There is the certain connection betwixt the one and the other; thou shalt bes faved, if once thou believe. Where, by the by, we cannot but take notice of the different influence of the Arminian doctrine of juftification, and that of the apoftless doctrine, upon the comfort of awakened finners. Had Paul faid to him, Believe on the Lord Jefus and if ye shall hold out in faith to the end, then ye shall be faved; if ye hold your will right, then all fhall be well. If, I fay, the apoftle had made his propofal fo, the poor man might have lien ftill upon the ground, and trembled all his days; fince this would have given him, at best, but a may be, for his eternal falvation, and efcape froin eternal mifery. But here there is a ground for prefent and abiding comfort; Believe on the Lord Jefus Chrift, and thou shalt be faved. The

Second branch of the encouragement is general, and thy boufe fhall be favéd.. Which is not fo to be understood, as if hereby it were promised that their falvation' should abfolutely depend upon his belief: for his faith could not fave them; fince the feripture is express, that he that believeth not, eve

ry

ry particular person who doth not believe, shall be damned; and upon the other hand that every particular perfon that believes fhall be faved, tho' there fhould not one more believe. But the meaning of the words I fhall offer to you shortly thus: when it is added, and thy houfe, this expreffion imports, (1.) That all his houfe had need of falvation, as well as himself. One might poffibly think, as for that rude fellow, who treated the fervants of Chrift fo ill, he has need to be faved; but his innocent children are guilty of nothing that can endanger their eternal happiness; but hereby the apostles intimate that they needed falvation as well as he. (2.) It imports the commonnefs of this direction; as if the apoftles had faid, This direction is not fuch as is peculiar to foch great, notorious, and flagitious finners as thou hast been; but it is the common road wherein others walk toward happiness: there is one way for you and your houfe to be faved in. (3.) It imports the extent of this remedy: as if they had faid, This, is not only fufficient to reach and benefit you; but it is fuch as may reach all in your houfe, and they may have the fame advantage as ye may have. (4.) It imports the certainty of falvation to them upon the fame terms. As if the apoftles had faid, And let thy houfe believe in the Lord Jefus Chrift, and they likewife fhall be faved. (5.) It imports this much, That hereby, his family fhould obtain fome special advantages in order to their fal vation.

1

Now because I design not to speak any more of this part of the text, I fhall here mention fome of thefe advantages, which the jaylor's children or houfe had by his faith, and confequently which the children of every believer has by the faith of

their parents. Amongst many fuch advantages the few following ones are remarkable. (10) Hereby fuch children are taken in within the covenant; for the promife, fays the apostle, Acts ii. 39. is to you and to your children,and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God Shall call. They are allowed hereby to have their names particularly mentioned in the promise. This is the advantage which church members have beyond others, who are not yet taken within the covenants, nor admitted to thefe ordinances which are a badge of their reception. The gospel call fays in the general to all, If ye believe yé fhall be faved but it, as it were, names every one that is baptized, and fays in particular to him, Oman, thou who art taken within the covenant, I fay to thee, as it were by name, Thou shalt be faved, if thou believes and this is much more confirming than the other. (2.) The children of real believ ers have this advantage, That they have their pa rents pleading for them at the throne of grace, which many times has availed much, in order to their falvation, though the Lord fees not meet al ways to hear parents in behalf of their children. If he did always fo, then poffibly it might prove à fnare both to them and to their children, and might lead them into a dangerous miftake, as if God's grace were not fo free as it is; but that many times they are heard this way, is encouragement enough to engage all parents to pray for their children. (3.) The children of godly parents have their counfel and inftruction, which is of ufe to engage them to religion, and to bring them to acquaintance with Chrift: and of how much influence this is, the wife man tells us, Train up a child in the away he should go, and when he is old, he will not

depart

depart from it, Prov. xxii. 6. that is, ordinarily he will not do fo. (4.) The children of believing parents, they have their parents good exam ple; and this many times has more influence than precept and inftruction: hence it is that we find the apoftle Peter exhorting wives to a holy walk, that their unbelieving hufbands might be won by their converfation. Ye wives, fays he, be subject to your own husbands, that if any obey not the word, they alfo may, without the word, be won by the converfation of the wives, while they behold your chafte converfation coupled with fear, r Pet. iii. 1, 2. Faith made visible in a holy walk, has a most attracting and engaging appearance; it is beautiful to an high degree. (5) Hereby children likewife have the advantage of the ordinances, which are the means of falvation. Godly parents will take care both to bring their children to the ordinances, and to bring the ordinances to them. (6.) To add no more to this purpose, the children of believers have this advantage as they are theirs, that God has a particular refpect to them; which we find him expreffing upon feveral occafions to the children of his fervants.

Since, as I faid before, I defign not to return a gain to this part of the ver. I cannot but apply this truth, That the children or houfe of a believer has great advantages by his believing in order to their falvation. And this I fhall do in a few words to four forts of perfons, (1.) Believers. (3.) Their children. (3.) Unbelievers. (4.) Their children.

To the first fort I fay only a few words. O be: lievers, is it fo that your children as well as ye yourselves have fo many advantages in order to their falvation? Then, (1.) Blefs the Lord who has given you faith, which not only is the spring

of

of innumerable advantages to yourfelves, but al fo entails fo many upon your very houses. (2.) Blefs the Lord, and be thankful for the extent of the covenant; that it is fo wide as to reach not only yourselves, but even your children. It had been much mercy had God given you your fouls for a prey, though he had never given you the leaft profpect of mercy to your offspring. (3) Take care that your children lofe none of these advantages by your negligence: fome of them, as ye have heard, are of fuch a nature that depends not only upon the being of grace in the parents, but upon its exercife. If ye live not holily, and tenderly before them, ye may lay a stumblingblock in their way, which may coft you dear. The negligence of fome godly parents this way, hath been heavy to them, when they came to die, and fometimes even before. (4.)Do not quarrel God, or repine, if after all your children fhall fall fhort of falvation. If ye have acquit yourselves faithfully, then ye have and may have peace, though they prove final mifimprovers of their own mercies, Chrift has no where promifed that they fhall be all faved: the word of God gives a contrary account of the matter; Jacob have I loved, and Efau have I hated, Rom. ix. 13.

Secondly, Are there here any who are the children of believers? Then to fuch I fay, (1.) Ye have great advantages, and therefore have an eminent call to thankfulness. Blefs God that ye have religious pas rents. Many have found it not a little relieving to them in their ftraits and fears, that they could fay, that they were early devoted toGod by their parents, and that they had early access to know God, and had prayers early put up for them. (2.) Reft not upon these advantages; for your parents faith will

not