Acts 2:38

Observe, 1. St. Peter exhorts them to repentance. But did they not repent already? were they not now pricked at their hearts? and will the apostle add grief to grief, and pain to smart? Know, that the apostle advises them to join to their legal sorrow, evangelical repentance, such as is attended and accompanied with owning Christ to be the true Messias, with believing in him with desire and hope of pardon from him.

Where, by the way, observe, That St. Peter prescribes. dose of the same physic for them, which he had very lately taken himself with good success, when upon his hearty sorrow he obtained pardon for denying his Lord and Master, He went out and wept bitterly. Matthew 26:75 No sermons are so sovereign and so successful as those which proceed from the minister's personal and comfortable experience. St. Peter presses upon his auditors the doctrine of repentance, which he himself had practiced.

Observe, 2. Upon their repentance, their owning of, and believing in Christ, he directs them to be baptized in his name, and then they should be capable of the gifts of the Holy Ghost; even of those miraculous gifts which they no saw and admired in the apostles.

Learn hence, That baptism is. solemn ordinance and sacred institution of Jesus Christ, which is not to be administered to any out of the Christian church, till they profess repentance and faith in Christ, and sincere obedience to him, Repent, and be baptized every one of you.

Observe, 3. The argument which the apostle uses with them, by way of encouragement, to persuade them to repent and be baptized: for, says he, The promise is unto you and to your children: To you, Jews of the seed of Abraham, and to your seed, as shall be called by the preaching of the gospel to profess faith in Christ, and subjection to him. Where, by the promise, is meant the gracious covenant of God, whereby he offers pardon and peace to such as will accept them.

Now this acceptance is twofold;

1. Cordial; which intitles. person to all the benefits of the covenant, temporal, spiritual, and eternal.

And, 2. Professionally only; whcih intitles. person and his seed to church privileges only.

Hence learn, That when God takes believing parents into covenant with himself, he takes also their children or seed into covenant with himself likewise. And if so, then the seal of the covenant, which is baptism, ought to be applied to them. It is evident, that under the Old Testament, children were in covenant with God, as well as their parents.

And do we anywhere find that ever they were cast out under the gospel?

The apostle doth not say, The promise was unto you and to your seed; but still it; for otherwise children would be in. worse condition under the gospel of Christ, than they were under the law of Moses; but surely the privileges of the gospel are not straiter and narrower than those of the law.

Observe, lastly, How St. Peter closes all with an exhortation to his auditors, to save themselves from that untoward generation; that is, from the Scribes and Pharisees, that sour sort of men, who desperately and maliciously opposed Christ and his gospel, and by their authority and example, kept people from embracing the only way of salvation revealed by Jesus Christ.