A LETTER OR WORD OF ADVICE TO THE SAINTS Known or unknown.  
By Thomas Hickes, the elder.  
ALTIMUS SAPERE NOLI   depiction of man under tree 
London, Printed Anno Domini, 1653.   

A word of advice to the Saints known or unknown.  
I Thought it good, my loving brethren, whom I love in sincerity of heart, in and for Christ Jesus sake, and all the Saints universal and militant heat upon earth, and therefore I thought it good to speak a word of advice to the Saints out of the Word of God, which the true Saints will be willing to hear, about Baptising of Children, and the Sacrament of the Lords Supper, of the Baptism of Children.  
First, in the last Chapter of Saint Matthew, the nineteenth Verse: our Saviour commands his Apostles to go teach all Nations, baptising them in the Name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, a general command to all Nations, teaching them to observe all things that Christ Jesus commanded them now. Christ Jesus had taught them that they should not keep little children from him, he was displeased when they did; and he commanded them to be brought unto him, and he laid his hands on them, and blest them; and said of such is the kingdom of heaven: let us obey Christ Jesus command, and be charitable to the souls of our little children, and bring them to Christ's Congregations to be baptised and prayed for. The words of our Saviour Christ Jesus in the third of Saint John, the fifth Verse, Christ Jesus saith, Verily, verily I say unto you, Except a man be born of Water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. This verily, verily, of our Saviour should make the upright hearted Saints to be careful of the souls of their children, and to have them baptised and prayed for.  
Was the Lord about to kill Moses, for not Circumcizing his son, which was the Jewish covenant, and will not God be angry with you for neglecting the Covenant of Grace in the seventeenth Chapter of Genesis, the second Verse, And God said unto Abraham, thou shalt keep my Covenant therefore, and thy seed after thee in their generations, the tenth Verse. This is my Covenant which you shall keep between me and you, every male child among you shall be circumcised, and you shall circumcize the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a token of the Covenant between me and you, and he that is eight days old shall be circumcised, every man-child in your generations, he that is born in thy house, or bought with money of any stranger which is not of thy seed, he that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with money must needs be circumcised, and my Covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting Covenant: fourteen Verse. And the uncircumcized man child, whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people, he hath broken my Covenant. Now you see this heavy burden which was laid on the people of God before Christ, but now taken away by the Covenant of grace, the fifteenth of the Acts and the eleventh Verse, But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus, we shall be saved as well as they, now God forbidden, but that our Children should be within the Covenant of grace as well as we: Corinthians the seventh Chapter and the fourteenth Verse. Saint Paul faith, The children of Believers are holy: the second Commandment, God will show mercy unto thousands of them that love him and keep his Commandments. The hundred and second Psalm, the last Verse, the children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established for ever. The hundred and third Psalm, the seventeenth Verse, But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting, upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children.  
The Lord sanctified the Prophet Jeremiah from his mother's womb, and the Lord loved King Solomon when he was a child, in the 14 Chapter of the first Book of Kings, And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him, For he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him is some good things toward the Lord God of Israel. But again, observe the new covenant Hebrews the eighth Chapter, and the eighth Verse, Behold, the day is come saith the Lord, When I will make a new Covenant with the house of Israel, and the house of Judah the tenth Verse. For this is the Covenant that I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. Why, then let us have a care to have our children baptised, God's promise is to us and to our children. Our Saviour Christ Jesus shed both water and blood for our sins upon the cross, let us then bring our children to be baptised, and let the parents and the Congregation pray, that their sins of original guiltiness be washed away, and nothing doubting of the mercy of our heavenly Father in Christ Jesus, he called them unto him, and whosoever received the Kingdom of Heaven, must receive it as a little child, and so I leave of writing of this first Sacrament, desiring God to bless his good Word unto us.  
And now I come to write something of the Sacrament of the Lord Supper, of which I am confident, there are many thousands about this City of London, that have not received it this seven or eight years: this forceth me in love to write to the Churches of Christ Jesus, to remember them of these two Sacraments, which Christ Jesus hath left for our good to remember his death, until he come to judge the quick and the dead. It is a soul devouring sin to despise and undervalue the Sacrament of the Lords Supper.  
All the Families of God's people, the Jews were by God commanded to eat the Paschal Lamb, the twelfth Chapter of Exodus the third verse. This Paschal Lamb was but a type and figure of Christ Jesus the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the World. Christ is the living bread which came down from heaven, If any man eat of this Bread, he shall live for ever, and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the World, The sixth of Saint John the 52, 53. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you have no life in you. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. Who so eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day, 63 verse, It is the Spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing, the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life, in the 26 Chapter of S. Matthew, and the 26, 27 verses, and when they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed it, & broke it, and gave it to his Disciples, and said, Take, eat, This is my body, and he took the Cup, and gave thanks, and gave it unto them, saying, Drink ye all of it. For this is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for many, for the remission of sins, in Saint Luke the 22 Chapter, 19 and 20 verses, and he took bread and gave thanks, and broke it, and gave it unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you, This do in remembrance of me, likewise also the Cup after Supper, saying, This Cup is the New Testament, in my blood which is shed for you. The 14 Chapter of Saint Mark, the 22 and 23 verses, and as he did eat, Jesus took bread and blessed it, and broke it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat, This is my body, and he took the Cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave to them, and they all drank of it, and he said, This is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many, Christ Jesus hath shed his blood for many: then come dear brethren, to the table of the Lord Jesus with faith and repentance. Come to the Word of God preached by his Ministers, their lips will increase thy knowledge. Read the Word of God, and try your faith, pray with humility often. Use all God's Ordinances as well as one. Let the weak in faith come to the Sacrament as well as the strong, the Sacrament is a soul strengthening Ordinance, it is a growing Ordinance, it is an Ordinance if it be quickened with the spirit of faith, it seals and assures us of the forgiveness of all our sins, then let not housekeepers neglect it seven or eighe years together, but prepare themselves, and let not young men and maids stay till they are five and twenty years old, and never prepare themselves to receive the Sacrament, and so become sottish and foolish in spiritual things: therefore I humbly desire and request the Ministers and Overseers of Parishes and Churches to have a care of the souls of these people, some hath more than others, the Lord reward them, in S. Matthew the 20 Chapter and the ninth verse, Christ saith to his Ministers, Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as you find bring them to the Marriage: so those servants went out into highways, and gathered all, as many as they found both bad and good, and the Wedding was furnished with guests, and when the King came to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment. Christ knows best the wicked and ungodly men, let not us judge our brother where we have no witness, and do not know nothing ourselves. If sinful Zacheus, or sinful Mary Magdalen, will come to their Father with faith, love, and repentance; let us not be like the elder brother of the Prodigal son to grudge at it, Luke 15.28 verse. Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the water of life, and he that hath no money, come ye buy and eat, come buy wine and milk without money, and without price, Esay 50.1. Our Saviour Christ came to seek & save them that were lost, and there is joy in heaven of on sinner that repenteth, then let us forsake our sins, and seek out the communion of Saints, and mind heavenly rest and joy more than we have. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son for it, that whosoever believed in him might not perish, but have everlasting life and happiness: to the which everlasting life, the Lord God of his infinite mercy bring us through Jesus Christ. Amen.  
FINIS.