testified the truth, and that his command is eternal life, we must, therefore, hear his voice and obey his word; if not, we actually show that we do not believe, but that we reject his counsel and word, and are ungrateful towards him, for his love.

I know well, that many of you will say: We were once baptized in the name of God, and with that we are satisfied. To which we reply: If you fear God with all your heart, and acknowledge that his word and ordinances are just and good, you must be judges yourselves whether you are baptized in the name, or against the name of God. It is true that the adorable, high name of God was pronounced over you, but not otherwise than it is pronounced over church-bells, chapels, altars, consecrated water, tapers and palms. All anti-christian idolatry and abominations, are performed under the semblance of the divine name; although they are not done by virtue of but against his name, (Exod. 20,) for they are done contrary to his word and will.

My beloved reader, reflect well upon these words, and judge them by the word of the Lord, and you will find that your baptism is instituted and invented of men, without the command of God, and must be accursed of God, who will himself rule and govern his church. (Gal. 1.) Would you rejoice in the promise and be partakers of the church of Christ, you must believe the word of the Lord, be obedient to, and follow his counsel, will and ordinances. But if you refuse, and follow your own, and not the Lord's counsel and will; you cannot comfort yourselves with any scriptural promise. For he that believeth not, says Christ, is already condemned. (John 3.)

Therefore, do no longer comfort yourselves with such vain comfort, and say, we have been once baptized. You are still unbelievers, rebellious and unclean. Your whole life is earthly and sensual, and your baptism is anti-christian, and is without the sanction of the word of God. Therefore, awaken, repent, believe in Christ, seek, fear and love God with all your heart, then the word of the Lord and his unction, will teach you what is proper for you to do in this matter. And say not, as some do, I will renounce the church and idolatry; I will serve my neighbor, &c.; but I do not wish to be baptized.

O you blind men! Do you think that the Lord is pleased with your staying away from the church, or with your alms, or any thing of the kind, if you reject his counsel and word? No! no!! He desires your obedience, but no sacrifice, (1 Sam. 15.) He desires the whole heart, the entire man. With him, neither church nor alms will avail, neither words nor deeds, as long as you are unrenewed. For in Christ Jesus, says Paul, neither circumcision, nor uncircumcision availeth anything, but faith

which worketh by love, (Gal. 5) and a new creature, (Gal. 6) and the keeping of the commandments of God, (1 Cor. 7.)

And whosoever is renewed in Christ and born of God, he liveth no more, as Paul says: but Christ lives in him, (Gal. 1.) In all his ways he conforms to the word of the Lord, for the powerful, active faith constrains him to all obedience, and to every good work. But where this new principle is not, there fair words may indeed be, but in truth, nothing else than unbelief, disobedience, presumption, and perverseness.

I hereby entreat and admonish you, beloved reader, not to be so obstinate against the Lord, and say: what can water avail us? But do reflect that Christ Jesus himself was baptized, (Matt. 3) though he was without sin, and in his mouth guile was not found; (1 Cor. 1,) yea, righteousness himself, the way, the truth, and life, (John 4.) Say then, what could water avail Christ, who was all in all things? The disciples at Ephesus were re-baptized of Paul, because they knew nothing of the Holy Ghost, although they were baptized with the baptism of John, (Acts 19.) If Christ himself was baptized, who was without sin, (Matt. 11) and others were re-baptized of Paul, who were baptized with the baptism of John, which was also from heaven? Why do you then despise the Lord's baptism, you miserable, poor sinners, who were baptized without knowledge and faith, with the baptism of the dragon and the beast?

Cyprian, the martyr, with his council, in Africa, resolved that those who were baptized of heretics, should be re-baptized with the christian baptism, and they, therefore, maintained that heretical baptism could not be the baptism of Christ. Reflect a little, kind reader, who they were that baptized you; of whom they were sent; what kind of faith they had; what kind of lives they led; with what doctrine and usages you were baptized. If you will seriously reflect thereon, I hope by the grace of God, if you desire the true peace and liberty of conscience, you will soon be aware that you never knew either the external or internal baptism, much less received it.

Behold, beloved reader, here you have the true foundation and scriptural instructions of the baptism of Christ, and an explanation of the baptism of Antichrist.

Pray the Lord, the Most High, for a sound and clear understanding, that you may know the right and blessed truth, might believe and in the fear of the Lord, faithfully observe all things. Quit all useless disputing and gainsaying; for whosoever will dispute and gainsay with the determination to remain in the broad way, will ruin his soul, and will never walk honestly, and with a good conscience before God; and he will always find occasion to dispute and wrangle.

Therefore, do examine, believe, and obey the word of God, with a sincere and devout heart, and be not deceived by fair speeches under disguise, and you will certainly obtain the sure ground of the saving truth, and the consoling promise of grace. The Lord Jesus grant, and give you his grace thereto, Amen.

THE LORD'S HOLY SUPPER.

You know, beloved sirs, friends and brethren, that every where much is written, preached and said concerning the Lord's supper. But with what knowledge, in what manner, with what faith, love, peace, and unity, they celebrate it, is evident. It is true, the Lord commanded, in the New Testament, the breaking of bread, or the last supper, but not to be celebrated as you do. Your Lord's supper is common to all, no matter who they are; the avaricious, the proud, the gay, drunkards, wranglers, idolators, debauchees, whoremongers, and rogues, celebrate with you. It is also used in an abominable, offensive, pompous, hypocritical and idolatrous manner; and besides, it is dispensed by such ministers, who, in truth, seek but the world, honor, ease, to serve their flesh and body, alas! as may be seen in many places.

Since so many of you are so zealous about the Lord's supper, but not according to the scripture, as you shall hear; for your table is more the devil's table than the Lord's, (1 Cor. 20.) I would, for Jesus' sake, that you would in the true fear of God, reflect and enquire whom, why and wherefore, the Lord instituted, ordained and left, this his supper, in the church, so that it may prove to you a living and an effecting sign; that it might be impressed upon, and bring to your mind the Lord's abundant kindness, the peace, the love, and union of his church, the communion of his flesh and blood; and that you may die to unrighteousness, and every other ungodly work; to live to righteousness and godliness: and renounce the devil's table; and that you may sit down at the Lord's table in the church of Christ, with true faith, and unfeigned love, as pious, penitent and regenerated.

Thus saith Paul: I have received of the Lord, that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he brake it and said: Take, eat, this is my body, which is broken for you, this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner, he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the New Testament in my blood, this do ye as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me. (1 Cor. 11.)

Here you have Paul's explanation of the words of the Lord's Supper, instituted by Jesus Christ, (Matt. 26; Mark 14; Luke 22;) concerning which words, the learned taught and disputed much; and alas, some of them, through their idolatrous misunderstanding, if we may call it such, and not pride, disputed at the expense of much innocent blood; and what holy Paul says, (Rom. 1,) concerning them is fulfilled. Professing themselves to be wise, they become fools. For they disputed most about the sign, which avails little, but they touched not the thing signified which avails much. In my opinion, they are indifferent what the qualification of the guests or communicants should be in order to sit with Christ at his table, to celebrate this holy sacrament.

There is not a single word in the scriptures, that should give cause for dispute concerning the visible and tangible sign: The spiritual judge all things spiritually, (1 Cor. 2.) For whatever that may be in the substance, it can be handled, seen and tasted. But it is more important for us to perform as much as we can, in our weakness, what is signified-the thing which is set forth to all true and Christian believers.

On this account, we will not trouble the well meaning and pious reader, with jarring, fruitless disputing, as the learned do; but we only desire, by the help and grace of the Lord, by the power of the divine word, to point out to you, for whom, and why Jesus left and ordained this supper, so that we do not prefer the visible sign to the reality of the thing signified, and depart from the truth to images.

To come to a right and profitable understanding of the Lord's Supper, what it is, why, and wherefore it was enjoined, four things in particular must be observed.

In the first place, we must take heed that we do not as some who make the visible, perishable bread and wine, the Lord's real flesh and blood; to believe this, is contrary to nature, reason and scripture; yea, it is open blasphemy of the Son of God, abomination and idolatry. But as Israel had to hold the passover annually, according to the command of Moses, to commemorate that the Almighty God, the God of Abraham, of Isaac and Jacob, did signally deliver them in passing over, and sparing their first born, when he slew the first born of the Egyptians; and by his strong hand and outstretched arm, gloriously redeemed, and rescued them from the iron furnace of Egypt and the dread tyranny and dominion of Pharoah, according to the word of his promise, (Exod. 15,) and hence the paschal lamb is called the Lord's passah, that is, passover, (Exod. 12.) The sign for the reality, for the lamb was not the passover (leap over) although so called, but it only typified the

passover, as said. So in the Eucharist, the bread is called the body, and the wine the blood of the Lord. (Mark 16; Luke 24; Acts 1; Rom. 8; Eph. 4; 2 Pet. 3.) I say the sign is put for the reality, the thing signified or typified, not that it actually is the real flesh and blood of Christ; for with that he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of his father, immortal, and unchangeable, in eternal majesty and glory; but it is a memorial and type that Jesus Christ the Son of God has redeemed us from the power of the devil, from the dominion of hell and eternal death, by offering up an immaculate sacrifice, -his innocent flesh and blood, and has triumphantly led us into the kingdom of his grace, (Heb. 10,) as he himself says; (Luke 22.) This do in remembrance of me.

In the second place, it is to be observed, that there is no greater evidence of love, than that one suffers death for another, as Christ says: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Since this holy sign is only a memorial of the Lord's death, and since death is the greatest evidence of love, as said, we are therefore, reminded, when we are at the Lord's table, to eat his bread and to drink his cup, that we not only show forth and remember his death, but also all the glorious fruits of divine love, manifested towards us, in Christ; namely, that God, in the beginning, made man after his image-placed him in Paradise, and made all creatures subject to him, (Gen. 1, 2.)

And when he was beguiled of the serpent, he was comforted with the promise of a coming Conqueror and Saviour, Jesus Christ. That God sent Moses and the prophets, who sedulously practised the law, and directed to the promised Christ and his kingdom. That Christ Jesus, according to the promise of the Scriptures, finally appeared in this world, a true man, born of the Virgin Mary, (Matt. 1, 2; Luke 1; John 1.) That in much misery, affliction and labor, he preached the saving and gracious word to the house of Israel-sought the lost sheep, and brought them to their true Shepherd, (Matt. 18; Luke 15.) Who has pacified and reconciled us before the Father, through his painful death and precious blood, (Eph. 2; Col. 1, 2,) as he himself says; For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3.)

Oh! the great, wonderful unsearchable and incomprehensible love of God, He did not send into this unfriendly world an angel, a patriarch, or a prophet, but his eternal ALMIGHTY WORD, his ETERNAL WISDOM, the brightness of his glory, in the form of sinful flesh, (Rom. 8,) and made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Cor. 5.)