Reformed Covenanter
Cancelled Commissioner
... Oh how much better is it for their own peace and their Children’s profit to plead the Covenant, to Instruct, Correct, Admonish, Counsel, Comfort and encourage their Children in the ways of God, and use their utmost Endeavour to make them God’s Children: an Ancient thus writes, God commands Parents to hoard up Discipline, not Money for their Children, things of a perpetual not perishing nature: what a base and sordid thing is it to prefer a Swine to a Son! to provide for a Beast and cast out a Child! and yet most Parents bestow more care of their Cattel than of their Children’s Souls: they give their Children nature, but deny them nurture:
Yea they propagate corruption to them, but do not travel over them till Christ be formed in them: they glory in being Fathers of their Flesh, but cry not to the Father of Spirits for the best life in their Children’s dead Souls: they promise at their Baptism, to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, but know not what that meaneth, and have no heart to learn, that they may teach:
Oh what account will these perjured Parents give another day? Remember God will call you to account, what Answer will you give, when he shall Say? where is the Child’s Soul, that I committed to thy trust? what care hast thou taken of it? where are thy Tears, Prayers, Groanings, Earnings of Bowels for thine own Bowels? didst thou not know that thy Child had a Soul? that its Soul was polluted with Sin? that it must be born again not only of Water but of the Spirit: or could not be Saved? that though I was to be the Efficient cause, yet thou must be the Instrument to begin and carry on this Work, and hast thou struck one stroke in this work by faithful endeavours? ...
For more, see Oliver Heywood on the Christian’s concern for his children’s salvation.
Yea they propagate corruption to them, but do not travel over them till Christ be formed in them: they glory in being Fathers of their Flesh, but cry not to the Father of Spirits for the best life in their Children’s dead Souls: they promise at their Baptism, to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, but know not what that meaneth, and have no heart to learn, that they may teach:
Oh what account will these perjured Parents give another day? Remember God will call you to account, what Answer will you give, when he shall Say? where is the Child’s Soul, that I committed to thy trust? what care hast thou taken of it? where are thy Tears, Prayers, Groanings, Earnings of Bowels for thine own Bowels? didst thou not know that thy Child had a Soul? that its Soul was polluted with Sin? that it must be born again not only of Water but of the Spirit: or could not be Saved? that though I was to be the Efficient cause, yet thou must be the Instrument to begin and carry on this Work, and hast thou struck one stroke in this work by faithful endeavours? ...
For more, see Oliver Heywood on the Christian’s concern for his children’s salvation.
