Life of William Phips, Biography · Section 9
SECT. 9.
BEHOLD the great Things which were done by the Sovereign God, for a Perſon, once, as little in his own Eyes, as in other Men's. All the Returns which he had hitherto made unto the God of his Mercies, were but Preliminaries to what remain to be Related. It has been the Cuſtom in the Churches of New-England, ſtill to expect from ſuch Perſons, as they admitted unto conſtant Communion with them, That they do not only Publickly and Solemnly Declare their Conſent unto the Covenant of Grace, and particularly to thoſe Duties of it, wherein a particular Church-ſtate is more immediately concerned, but alſo firſt Relate unto the Paſtors, and by them unto the Brethren, the ſpecial Impreſſions which the Grace of God has made upon their Souls in bringing them to this Conſent. By this Cuſtom and Caution, though they cannot keep Hypocrites from their Sacred Fellowſhip, yet they go as far as they can, to render and preſerve themſelves Churches of Saints, and they do further very much Edifie one another. When Sir William Phips was now returned unto his own Houſe, he began to bethink himſelf, like David, concerning the Houſe of the God, who had ſurrounded him with ſo many Favours in his own; and accordingly he applied himſelf unto the North Church in Boſton, that with his open Profeſſion of his hearty Subjection to the Goſpel of the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, he might have the Ordinances and the Priviledges of the Goſpel, added unto his other Enjoyments. One thing that quickned his Reſolution to do what might be in this Matter expected from him, was a Paſſage which he heard from a Miniſter, Preaching on the Title of the Fifty Firſt Pſalm: To make a publick and an open Profeſſion of Repentance, is a thing not miſ-becoming the greateſt Man alive. It is an Honour to be found among the Repenting People of God, though they be in Circumſtances never ſo full of Suffering. A famous Knight going with other Chriſtians to be Crowned with Martyrdom, obſerved, That his Fellow-Sufferers were in Chains, from which the Sacrificers had, becauſe of his Quality, excus'd him; whereupon he demanded, that he might wear Chains as well as they. For, ſaid he, I would be a Knight of that Order too; There is among our ſelves a repenting People of God, who by their Conſeſſions at their Admiſſions to His Table, do ſignalize their being ſo; and Thanks be to God, that we have ſo little of ſuffering in our Circumſtances. But if any Man count himſelf grown too big to be a Knight of that Order, the Lord Jeſus Chriſt Himſelf, will one Day be aſhamed of that Man! Upon this Excitation, Sir William Phips made his Addreſs unto a Corgregational-Church, and he had therein One Thing to propound unto himſelf, which few Perſons of his Age, ſo well ſatisfied in Infant-Baptiſm as he was, have then to Ask for. Indeed, in the Primitive Times, although the Lawfulneſs of Infant-Baptiſm, or the Precept and Pattern of Scripture for it, was never ſo much as once made a Queſtion, yet we find Baptiſm was frequently delayed by Perſons, upon ſeveral ſuperſtitious and unreaſonable Accounts, againſt which we have ſuch Fathers as Gregory Nazianzen, Gregory Nyſſen, Baſil, Chryſoſtom, Ambroſe, and others, employing a variety of Argument. But Sir William Phips had hitherto delayed his Baptiſm, becauſe the Years of his Child-hood were ſpent where there was no ſettled Miniſter, and therefore, he was now not only willing to attain a good Satisfaction of his own Internal and Practical Chriſtianity, before his receiving that Mark thereof, but he was alſo willing to receive it among thoſe Chriſtians, that ſeemed moſt ſenſible of the Bonds which it laid them under. Offering himſelf therefore, firſt unto the Baptiſm, and then unto the Supper of the Lord, he preſented unto the Paſtor of the Church, with his own Handwriting, the following Inſtrument; which becauſe of the Exemplary Devotion therein expreſſed, and the Remarkable Hiſtory which it gives of ſeveral Occurrences in his Life, I will here Faithfully Tranſcribe it, without adding ſo much as one Word unto it.
The Firſt of God's making me ſenſible of my Sins, was in the year 1674. by Hearing your Father Preach concerning, the Day of Trouble near. It pleaſed Almighty God to ſmite me with a Deep ſence of my miſerable Condition, who had Lived until then, in the World, and had Done nothing for God. I did then begin to think What I ſhould Do to be ſaved? and did bewail my Youthful Days, which I had ſpent in vain: I did think that I would begin to mind The Things of God. Being then ſome time, under your Father's Miniſtry, much troubled with my Burden, but thinking on that Scripture, Come unto me, you that are weary and heavy Laden, and I will Give you Reſt. I had ſome Thoughts of Drawing as near to the Communion of the Lord Jeſus as I could, But the Ruines, which the Indian Wars brought on my Affairs, and the Entanglements which my following the Sea, laid upon me, hindred my purſuing the welfare of my own Soul, as I ought to have done. At length God was pleaſed to ſmile upon my Outward Concerns. The various Providences both Merciful and Afflictive, which attended me in my Travels were ſanctified unto me, to make me Acknowledge God in all my Ways. I have Divers Times been in Danger of my Life, and I have been brought to ſee that I owe my Life to Him that has given a Life ſo often to me: I thank God, He hath brought me to ſee my ſelf altogether unhappy, without an Intereſt in the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, and to cloſe heartily with him, deſiring Him to Execute All His Offices on my Behalf. I have now, for ſome Time, been under ſerious Reſolutions, that I would avoid whatever I ſhould know to be Diſpleaſing unto God, and that I would Serve Him all the Days of my Life. I Believe No man will Repent the Service of ſuch a Maſter. I find my ſelf unable to Keep ſuch Reſolutions, but my Serious Prayers are to the Moſt High, that He would enable me. God hath done ſo much for me that I am ſenſible, I owe my ſelf to Him; To Him would I give my ſelf, and all that He has given to me. I can't expreſs His Mercies to me. But, as ſoon as ever God had ſmiled upon me, with a Turn of my Affairs, I laid my ſelf under the VOWS of the Lord That I would ſet my ſelf to ſerve His People, and Churches here unto the Ʋtmoſt of my Capacity. I have had great Offers made me in England; But the Churches of New-England were thoſe, which my Heart was moſt ſet upon. I knew, that if God had a People any where, it was here: and I Reſolved To Riſe and fall with them; neglecting very Great Advantages for my Worldly Intreſt, that I might come and enjoy the Ordinances of the Lord Jeſus here. It has been my Trouble, that ſince I came home I have made no more Haſt to get into the Houſe of God, where I deſire to be: Eſpecially having Heard ſo much about the Evil of that Omiſſion. I can Do little for God, but I deſire to Wait upon Him in His Ordinances, and to Live to His Honour and Glory. My being Born in a part of the Country, where I had not in my Infancy enjoyed the Firſt Sacrament of the New-Teſtement, has been ſomthing of a Stumbling Block unto me. But though, I have had Profers of Baptiſm elſewhere made unto me, I Reſolved rather to Deferr it, until I might enjoy it in the Communion of theſe Churches, And I have had awful Impreſſions from thoſe Words of the Lord Jeſus, in Matth. 8.38. Whoſoever ſhall be aſhamed of me, and of my Words, of him alſo ſhall the Son of Man be aſhamed. When God had Bleſſed me with ſomething of the World, I had no Trouble ſo Great as this; Leſt it ſhould not be in Mercy; and I Trembled at Nothing more than being put off with a Portion here. That I may make ſure of Better Things I now offer my ſelf unto the Communion of this' Church of the Lord JESUS.
Accordingly on March 23. 1690. after he had in the Congregation of North-Boſton given himſelf up, firſt unto the Lord, and then unto His People, he was Baptized, and ſo Received into the Communion of the Faithful there.