In "the ministration of public baptism of infants," after various prayers and the reading of the Gospel, the minister addresses the godfathers and godmothers on this wise: "Dearly beloved, ye have brought this child here to be baptized; ye have prayed that our Lord Jesus Christ would vouchsafe to receive him, to release him of his sins, to sanctify him with the Holy Ghost, to give him the kingdom of heaven and everlasting life. Ye have heard also that our Lord Jesus Christ hath promised in His gospel to grant all these things that ye have prayed for: which promise He, for His part, will most surely keep and perform. Wherefore, after this promise made by Christ, this infant must also faithfully, for his part, promise by you that are his sureties (until he come of age to take it upon himself), that _he will renounce_ the devil and all his works, and constantly believe God's holy word and _obediently keep His commandments_. I demand, therefore, Dost thou, in the name of this child, renounce the devil and all his works, the vain pomp and glory of the world, with all covetous desires of the same, and the carnal desires of the flesh, so that thou wilt not follow nor be led by them? _Answer_: I RENOUNCE THEM ALL." Again: "Wilt thou obediently keep God's holy will and commandments, and walk in the same all the days of thy life? _Answer_: I WILL." Both the above vows the children, when come to years of discretion, deliberately and solemnly take upon themselves, as may be seen by reference to "The Order of Confirmation." Thus we have, in the first place, people vowing and resolving, on behalf of unconscious infants, to "renounce the world, the flesh, and the devil," and to keep all God's commandments, all the days of their life; and, in the second place, we find those children, in due time, placing themselves under the weight of those awful vows; and all this, moreover, as a necessary condition to the fulfilment of Christ's promise. That is to say, if they allow aught of the world, the flesh or the devil to adhere to them; or if they fail in the faithful keeping of _all_ God's commandments, then they cannot be saved, but must, so far as they are concerned, inevitably be condemned. In short, salvation is here made to depend on a covenant to which man makes himself a party. Christ is represented as willing to do His part, provided always that man accomplishes his; but not otherwise. In other words, there is an "_if_" in the matter, and, as a consequence, there never is, and never can be, the certainty of salvation; yea, there can only be the constant terror of eternal condemnation hanging over the soul; that is, if there is any thought about the matter at all.