O Lord, who hast made them Thy children by adoption, bring them in Thy good time to thine everlasting kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Jews' custom was, when children were thirteen years old, and had learnt the law, &c., and their prayers, to bring them before the congregation, upon which they were declared sons of the precept, and were now to answer for their own sins, &c. This usage was so reasonable and necessary, that it is probable it had its origin from God Himself; as we are sure confirmation had from Christ. Bishops shall confirm in their visitation. Ministers shall prepare children for confirmation. Can. 61. Ministers shall give the names of such as are to be confirmed to the Bishop, and if the Bishop approve of them, he shall confirm them. See Rubrick after the Catechism. If you ask, where this is ordered, I refer you to the Acts of the Apostles. But if the sacred Scriptures were silent, the consent of all the world in this particular is instead of a command. Acts viii. 14. It appears from hence, that even in the Apostles' times, confirmation was necessary, as well as baptism, that persons might become complete members of the church, and partakers of the grace of Christ; and that these graces were conferred by peculiar hands; for though Philip had the power of miracles, yet he could not do that which belonged to a higher order :-So great a regard had the Spirit of God to order and discipline. As the Holy Spirit is present in our baptism to seal the remission of sins, and to infuse the seeds of Christian life; so is He present in confirmation, to shed further influences on those that receive it, for stirring up the gift of God bestowed in baptism, &c. 15. PRAYER AFTER CONFIRMATION. "And he laid his hands on them."-Matthew xix. O Holy Spirit of Grace! I make my humble supplication to Thee, in behalf of those Thy servants on whom I have this day laid my hands. Be Thou their wisdom, to give them the knowledge of religion; -their understanding, to know their duty;-their counsel, in all their doubts;-their strength, against all temptations;-their knowledge, in what belongs to the state of life in which Thy providence shall place them; their piety and godliness in all their actions; and be Thou their fear, all their life long, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. EXHORTATION AFTER IMPOSITION OF HANDS. You have this day publicly acknowledged and declared the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways, and keep His commands, and hearken unto His voice. And the Lord hath owned and received you to be His servants, and to reward you with eternal life and happiness, if you continue to serve Him faithfully unto your life's end. To enable you to do so, He hath given you His Holy Spirit, who will assist and govern you all your days, that you may be holy unto the Lord, and be for ever happy when you die. Take heed, therefore, that you do not grieve that Holy Spirit, nor force Him to forsake you, and leave you to yourselves, which will be the greatest judg ment that can befall you; for then the evil spirits will get power over you, and without a speedy repentance, and return to God, they will at last bring you to destruction both of soul and body. The only way to prevent this sad judgment is, to beg of God every day, to keep you from all wilful and known sin. For he that liveth in any known sin, the good Spirit of God will at last forsake him most certainly. When the Holy Ghost puts into your heart any good thought, or good purposes, or your conscience tells you that you have done, or are going to do, any thing that will displease a holy God, be assured it is the voice of God, and have a care of neglecting to hear, as you value your salvation. Lastly Remember to beg of God to direct and bless you in all your ways. And forget not this safe direction and rule:-That if you cannot have the confidence to pray for God's blessing upon any work you are about, or going to undertake, that work is unlawful, and will be unprosperous, and a curse, and not a blessing to you. ANOTHER EXHORTATION. The church, dear children, takes this way to convince you, that the service which we owe to God should be free and voluntary. You have promised with your own mouths, to serve God faithfully all your days. It behoves you, therefore, to have these promises always before your eyes, that you may remember and perform them; otherwise it would have been better for you that you had never been baptized-never been born. Your everlasting salvation or damnation depends upon your keeping or forgetting the promise you have made this day. Your duty, therefore, is to pray daily to God for grace and strength to fulfil the same unto your lives' end, that you may be happy for ever; which God grant, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. You are come into a very corrupt world; you will meet with very many temptations; you are naturally weak, and prone to evil continually; so that, without God's assistance, you are sure to be undone. "Which of you intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?"-Luke xiv. 28. You are much likelier to become apostates than good Christians, if you have not well considered, and understand, the faith and duties of Christianity. God stands in need of nobody's service in this |