make it coincide with the first appearance of spiritual life: only, since our Saviour says, "Except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God," it was assumed that those infants who, being elected, died in infancy, were regenerated, although, apparently, not through, or at Baptism[1]. And so the term "regeneration" came to be used for the visible change, or almost for "sanctification[2]," and its original sense, as denoting a privilege of the Christian Church, was wholly lost. Hence, also, it could not but follow that persons were (in this sense) regenerated, some before, some after Baptism; for since regeneration was taken to mean, partly, the first actual commencement of conscious spiritual life, partly that life in its subsequent development; then, since faith and repentance are the commencements of spiritual life, it was held that any one to whom God had given these, was also regenerate; and so also any pious Jew was regenerated, and if baptized, then regenerated before Baptism[3]. But this is not the scriptural usage of the term, and
- ↑ Institt. 4. 16, 17, 18. 21. In like manner, Beza, Act Collat. Mompelgard. "As to infants born in the Church, and elected by God, (as I said all may be presumed to be,) and who are to die before they obtain the use of reason, I should readily suppose, relying on the promise of God, that they by their birth are engrafted into Christ. But of others, what else can we decide, without the most evident rashness, than that they are then regenerated, when they have true faith given them through 'hearing?' Unless in some God put forth that extraordinary efficacy of His inspiration; but who can define this?" (Ap. Wits. l.c. §. 30.)
- ↑ Calvin makes regeneration rather the consequence than the cause of Christian sanctification. "We then," (he says, Institt. 4. 15. 6.) "obtain regeneration from Christ's death and resurrection, if, having been sanctified by the Spirit, we are imbued with a new and spiritual nature." Witsius (l.c. § 33.) notices this same confusion:—"Some theologians of great estimation contend that infants are baptized for a future sanctification, which, whether, and how, they distinguish from regeneration, I confess I do not clearly perceive."
- ↑ Thus even Witsius, though he notes the confusion made between regeneration and sanctification, argues that the passages in H. Scr. which seem to attribute remission of sins in Baptism, are not to be understood in their obvious sense, "because in adults regeneration, repentance, faith, (from which remission of sins cannot be separated for a moment,) are required before Baptism." So again he argues, "because many catechumens were
