Qualifications for Communion in Vol I of the Works - Edwards - III - Part II continued

Required readingInquiry Concerning Qualifications for Communion in Vol I of the Works by Jonathan Edwards (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Section II and III of Part II.

My summary.

Today, Edwards teaches in Section II that it is the duty of God's people thus publicly to own the covenant; and that it was not only a duty in Israel of old, but is so in the Christian church, and to the end of the world; and that it is a duty required of adult persons before they come to sacraments.  Edwards proves his point with various Scriptural examples of people swearing and professing the name of the LORD.

Then in Section III Edwards examines the way people can own the covenant of grace internally and externally.

What grabbed me

I appreciated the reference to these texts for the importance of confessing God as God: 'Another remarkable place wherein it is plainly foretold that the like method of professing religion should be continued in the days of the gospel, is Isa. xlv. 22-25. "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else: I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear: surely shall one say, In the Lord have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come:—in the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory." This prophecy will have its last fulfilment at the day of judgment; but it is plain, that the thing most directly intended is the conversion of the Gentile world to the christian religion. What is here called swearing, the apostle, in citing this place, once and again calls confessing; Rom. xiv. 11.—"Every tongue shall confess to God." Philip. ii. 10.—"That every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." Which is the word commonly used in the New Testament, to signify making a public profession of religion. So Rom. x. 9, 10. "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart, that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved: for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Where a public profession of religion with the mouth is evidently spoken of as a great duty of all Christ's people, as well as believing in him; and ordinarily requisite to salvation; not that it is necessary in the same manner that faith is, but in like manner as baptism is. Faith and verbal profession are jointly spoken of here as necessary to salvation, in the same manner as faith and baptism are, in Mark xvi. 16. "He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved." And I know no good reason why we should not look on moral profession and covenanting with Christ, in those who are capable of it, as much of a stated duty in the christian church, and an institution universally pertaining to the followers of Christ, as baptism.'

If you will not confess Christ, your very silence speaks volumes about the state of your heart.

Next week's reading

Read Section IV, V and VI of Part II.

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.