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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41355	The marrow of modern divinity touching both the covenant of works, and the covenant of grace, with their use and end, both in the time of the Old Testament, and in the time of the New : wherein every one may cleerly see how far forth he bringeth the law into the case of justification, and so deserverh the name of legalist : and how far forth he rejecteth the law, in the case of sanctification, and so deserveth the name of Antinomist : with the middle path between them both, which by Iesus Christ leadeth to eternall life : in a dialogue, betwixt Evangelista, a minister of the Gospel, Nomista, a legalist, Antinomista, an Antinomian, and Neophytus, a young Christian / by the author, E.F. ; before the which there is prefixed the commendatory epistles of divers divines of great esteem in the citie of London ; whereunto is also added, the substance of a	Fisher, Edward, fl. 1627-1655.; Hamilton, Patrick, 1504?-1528. Patricks places.	1646 (1646)	Wing F997; ESTC R1839	130,516	286

by faith without the works of the law Rom. 3.28 No man is justified by the works of the law but by the faith of Jesus Christ And we believe in Jesus Christ that wee may be justified by the faith of Christ and not by the deeds of the law for if righteousnesse come by the law then Christ dyed in vain Gal. 2. No works make us unrighteous If any evill works make us unrighteous then the contrary workes should make us righteous but it is proved that no good works can make us righteous therefore no evill works can make us unrighteous if we be believers Works then make us neyther good nor evill It is proved that works make us neither righteous nor unrighteous therefore no works make us either good or evill for righteous and good are one thing and unrighteous and evill another Good works make not a good man nor evill works an evill man but a good man bringeth forth good works and an evill man evill works Good fruit maketh not the tree good nor evill fruit the tree evill but a good tree beareth good fruit and an evill tree evill fruit A good man cannot doe evill works nor an evill man good works for a good tree cannot beare evill fruit nor an evill tree good fruit A man is good before he doe good works and evill before he doe evill works A good man is known by his good works and an evill man by his evill works yee shall know them by their fruits for a good tree beareth good fruit and an evill tree evill fruit a man is likened to a tree and his works to the fruit of the tree If works make us neither righteous nor unrighteous then it maketh no matter what we doe I answer If thou doe evill it is a sure argument that thou art evill and wantest faith if thou doe good it is an argument that thou art good and hast faith for a good tree beareth good fruit and an evill tree evill fruit yet good fruit maketh not the tree good nor evill fruit the tree evill so that man is good before he doe good works and evill before he doe evill works Faith maketh the good tree and incredulity the evill tree such a tree such fruit such a man such works for all things which are done in faith please God and are good works and all that are done without faith displease God and are evill works Whosoever believeth or thinketh to bee saved by his works denyeth that Christ is his Saviour for how is he thy Saviour if thou mightest save thy selfe by thy works or wherefore should he have died for thee if any works might have saved thee Now seeing that he hath paid the debt thou needest not pay it neither indeed couldst thou pay it but shouldest be damned if his bloud were not but sith hee was punished for that thou shalt not bee punished Finally hee hath delivered thee from thy condemnation and all evill and desireth naught of thee but that thou wilt acknowledge what hee hath done for thee and beare it in minde and that thou wouldest helpe others for his sake both in word and deed even as hee hath holpen thee for naught and without reward O how ready would men bee to help others if wee knew his goodnesse and gentlenesse towards us hee is a good and a gentle Lord and doth all for naught therefore let us follow his steps So that I doe not say that believers should doe no good works but I say men should not doe good works to the intent to get the inheritance of heaven through good works for if we believe we shall get remission of sins or the inheritance of heaven through works wee believe not to get the same for Christs sake neither doe we believe the promise of God that they are given us freely and so we make God a lyar for God sayth thou shalt have the inheritance of heaven for my Sons sake thy sins are forgiven thee for my Sons sake but thou sayst it is not so if thou think to win them by thy works Thus you see that I condemne not good works but the false trust in them for all the works wherein man putteth any confidence are therewith poysoned and become evill Wherefore thou must doe good works but beware thou doe them not to deserve any good through them for if thou doe thou receivest thy good not as the gift of God but as a debt to thee and makest thy se●fe fellow with God because thou wilt ta●e nothing of him for naught Presse not th●rfore to the inheritance of heaven through ●he presumption of thy good works for if thou doe thou shalt fall as Lucifer fell for his pride FINIS Gen. 3.24 Gal. 5.1 2 Pet. 2.19 Burton Me●a● pag. 8. Portis apertis paradisum intrasse Tom. 1. Tit. 3.9 1 Cor. 4.21 Gal. 4.18 Act. 21.20 1 Tim. 1.17 Rom. 3.27 Gal. 6.2 Bal on the Cov. of grace p. 9. Com. pla eng p. 118. Lev. 18.5 Gen. 2.17 Ames med Eng. p. 48. Com. pla p. 31. Downham on Just. p. 443.465 Bal on the Covenant p. 6. Walker on the Covenant p. 39. Bal on the Covenant p. 5. Calv instit fol. eng p. 8. Eccl. 7.27 Basting cat p. 9. Vrsin cat p. 517. Calv inst p. 190. Col. 3.10 Eph. 4.34 Treat of effectuall Cal. p. 20. or thereabouts Hugo Gr●● defens fid p. 71. Lightfoot miscela p. 282. Reynolds on Ps. ●● p. 403. Reynolds on Psal. 110. p. 405 ●ibbens on Gen. p. 77. Bal on the Cov. p. 11. Reyn. on Psal. 110. ● 406. Ps. 16.11 Walker on the Covenant p. 89. M. Slat on the 2● Cov. Deut Pathw p. 304. Reynolds on Psal. 110. pag. 406. C●l Instit. p. 81. Reynolds on Ps. 110 p. 406. Rom. 5.12 Cal. Iustit p. 106 107 Goodwin Trium Faith p. 85 Pemble vind fid p. 99. Seven gold cand p. 3. Basting Cat. p. 10. Vrban Reg. in ch ser. to Ema●s p. 12. Chos Ser. p. 9. Com. pla p. 14. Reynolds on Ps. 110 p. 407. Lightfoot miscela p. 183. Ibid. Com. pla p. 13. Hos. 13.9 Bolton true boun p. 135. Vrsin cat p. 112. Vrsin cat p. 112. Cal. Instit. p. 117. Bolton true boun p. 133. Rom. 5.6 Rom. 8.2 Lightfoot miscela p. 282. Tindal path to holy scrip p. 378. 2 Tim. 1.9 Eph. 3 11. Rom. 1.2 Gal. 4.4 Reynolds on Ps. 110. p. 407 408 Williams 7 gold can p. 319. Hooker ●ouls just p. 177. Cal. Instit. p. 117. Reynolds Psal. 110. p. 408. Ibid. Ames med p. 74. Th. Goodw. Christ set forth p. 75 Ainsworth on the text Goodw. Christ set forth p. 75 Ps. 40.7 8 Cal. Instit. p. 117. Hookers souls just p. 174 Goodwin Christ set forth p. 83 84. 1 Cor. 15 47. 1 Cor. 15.58 Bal of the cov p. 289 Ibid. p. 287 208. Gen. 3 1● vers 15. Vrban Reg. on Christs sermon to Ema●● Ainsworth Lightfoot miscela p. 186. V●ug meth on Bib p. 15 Walker on Cov. p. 59. Gibben●

of it or being at all affected with it so far are wee from comming out of it And if the Lord be pleased by any means to open our eyes to see our misery and we doe thereupon begin to step out of it yet alas wee are prone rather to goe backwards towards the first Adams pure estate in striving and strugling to leave sinne and performe duties and doe good works hoping thereby to make our selves so righteous and holy that God will let us into Paradise againe to eat of the tree of life and live for ever and this we do untill we see the flaming sword at Edens gate turning every way to keepe the way of the tree of life Is it not ordinary when the Lord convinceth a man of his sin eyther by means of his Word or his Rod to cry after this manner O I am a sinfull man for I have lived a very wicked life and therefore surely the Lord is angry with mee and will damne me in hell ô what shall I do to save my soule And is there not at hand some ignorant miserable comforter ready to say yet doe not despayre man but repent of your sins and aske God forgivenesse and reforme your life and doubt not but he will be mercifull unto you for hee hath promised you know that at what time soever a sinner repenteth of his sins hee will forgive him And doth hee not hereupon comfort himself and say in his heart at least ô if the Lord will but spare my life and lengthen out my days I will become a new man I am very sorry that I have lived such a sinfull life but I will never doe as I have done for all the world ô you shall see a great change in me believe it And hereupon he betakes himself to a new course of life and it may be becomes a zealous professour of Religion performing all Christian exercises both publike and private and leaves off his old companions and keeps company with religious men and so it may be goes on till his dying day and thinks himselfe sure of Heaven and eternall happines yet it maybe all this while is ignorant of Christ and his Righteousnes and therefore establisheth his own Where is the man or where is the woman that is truly come to Christ that hath not had some experience in themselves of such a disposition as this if there be any that have reformed their lives and are become Professours of Religion and have not taken notice of this in themselves more or lesse I wish they have gone beyond a legall Professour or one still under the covenant of works Nay where is the man or woman that is truly in Christ that findeth not in themselves an aptnes to withdraw their hearts from Christ and to put some confidence in their owne works and doings if there be any that do not find it I wish their hearts deceive them not Let me confesse ingeniously I was a professour of Religion at least a dozen yeeres before I knew any other way to eternall life then to be sorry for my sins and aske forgivenesse and strive and endeavour to fulfill the Law and keepe the Commandements according as Master Dod and other godly men had expounded them and truly I remember I was in hope I should at last attain to the perfect fulfilling of them and in the mean-time I conceived that God would accept the will for the deed or what I could not doe Christ had done for me And though at last by meanes of conferring with Master Thomas Hooker in private the Lord was pleased to convince me that I was yet but a proud Pharisee and to shew mee the way of faith and salvation by Christ alone and to give mee as I hope a heart in some measure to embrace it yet alas through the weaknesse of my faith I have been and am still apt to turne aside to the covenant of works and therefore have not attained to that joy and peace in believing nor that measure of love to Christ and man for Christs sake as I am confident many of Gods Saints do attain unto in the time of this life the Lord be mercifull unto mee and increase my faith And are there not other though I hope but few who being enlightned to see their misery by reason of the guilt of sin though not by reason of the filth of sinne And hearing of justification freely by grace through the redemption which is in Jesus Christ do applaud and magnifie that doctrine following them that doe most preach and presse the same seeming to be as it were ravished with the hearing thereof out of a conceit that they are by Christ freely justified from the guilt of sin though still they retain the filth of sin these are they that content themselves with a Gospel knowledge with meere notions in the head but not in the heart glorying and rejoycing in free grace and justification by faith alone professing faith in Christ and yet are not possessed of Christ these are they that can talke like believers and yet do not walke like believers these are they that have language like Saints and yet have conversations like Devils these are they that are not obedient to the Law of Christ and therefore are justly called Antinomians Now both these paths leading from Christ have been justly judged as erronious and to my knowledge not onely a matter of 18 or 20 years agoe but also within these three or foure years there hath been much a doe both by preaching writing and disputing both to reduce men out of them and to keep them from them and hot contentious have been on both sides and all I fear me to little purpose for hath not the strict professour according to the Law whilst he hath striven to reduce the loose professour according to the Gospel out of the Antinomian path intangled both himselfe and others the faster in the yoke of bondage and hath not the loose professour according to the Gospel whilst he hath striven to reduce the strict professour according to the Law out of the legall path by promising liberty from the Law taught others and been himselfe the servant of corruption For this cause I though I be nothing have by the grace of God endeavoured in this Dialogue to walk as a middle-man betwixt them both in shewing to each of them his erronious path with the middle path which is Jesus Christ received truly and walked in answerably as a means to bring them both unto him and make them both one in him And oh that the Lord would be pleased so to blesse it to them that it might be a means to produce that effect I have as you may see gathered much of it out of known and approved Authours and yet have therein wronged no man for I have restored it to the right owner again in the margent some part of it my manuscripts have afforded me and of the rest I hope

justified by faith it is a very needless thing for him to endevour to keep the law and to do good works Evan. I remember Luther sayth that in his time there were some that did reason after the like manner if faith say they do accomplish all things and if faith be onely and alone sufficient unto righteousnesse to what end then are wee commanded to doe good deeds we may go play us then and work no working at all to whom hee makes an answer saying not so ye ungodly not so And there were others that said If the law do not justifie then is it in vaine and of none effect yet is it not therefore true saith he for like as this consequence is nothing worth money doth not justifie or make a man righteous therefore it is unprofitable the eyes doe not justifie therefore they must be plucked out the hands make not a man righteous therefore they must be cut off so is this nought also the law doth not justifie therefore it is unprofitable we do not therefore destroy and condemne the law because wee say it doth not justifie but we say with Paul the law is good if a man do rightly use it and that this is a faithfull saying That they which have believed in God might be carefull to mayntaine good works these things are good and profitable unto men Neo. Truly Sir for mine own part I do much marvell that this my friend Antinomista should be so confident of his faith in Christ and yet so little regard holinesse of life and keeping of Christs commandements as it seemes hee doth for I give the Lord thanks I doe now in some small measure believe that I am by Christ freely and fully justified and acquitted from all my sins and therefore have no need eyther to eschew evill or do good for feare of punishment or hope of reward and yet me thinks I finde my heart more willing and desirous to doe what the Lord commands and to avoid what hee forbids then ever it was before I did thus believe surely Sir I doe perceive that faith in Christ is no hinderance to holinesse of life as I once thought it was Evan. Neighbour Neophytus if our friend Antinomista do content himself with a meere Gospell knowledge in a notionary way and have run out to fetch in notions from Christ and yet is not fetcht in by the power of Christ let us pitty him pray for him and in the mean time I pray you know that true faith in Christ is so far from being a hinderance from holinesse of life and good works that it is the onely furtherance for onely by faith in Christ a man is enabled to exercise all Christian graces a-right and to performe all Christian duties a-right which before he could not As for example before a man believe Gods love to him in Christ though he may have a kind of love to God as he is his creatour and preserver and gives him many good things for this present life yet if God do but open his eyes to see what condition his soul is in that is if he do but let him see that relation that is betwixt God and him according to the tenour of the conant of works then he conceives of him as an angry Judge armed with justice against him and must be pacified by the works of the law whereunto he finds his nature opposite and contrary and therefore hee hates both God and his law and doth secretly wish and desire there were neyther God nor law and though God should now give unto him never so many temporall blessings yet could hee not love him for what malefactour could love that Judge or his law from whom he expects the sentence of condemnation though he should feast him at his table with never so many dainties But after that the kindnesse and love of God his Saviour hath appeared not by works of righteousnesse that he hath done but according to his mercy hee saved him that is when as by the eye of faith he sees himselfe to stand in relation to God according to the tenour of the covenant of grace then he conceives of God as a most mercifull and loving Father to him in Christ that hath freely pardoned ●nd forgiven him all his sins and quite released him from the covenant of works and by this means the love of God is shed abroad in his hart through the Holy Ghost which is given to him and then he loves God because he first loved him for as a man seeth and feeleth by faith the love and favour of God towards him in Christ his Son so doth he love again both God and his law and indeed it is impossible for any man to love God till by faith hee know himself loved of God Secondly though a man before he believe Gods love to him in Christ may have a great measure of legall humiliation compunction sorrow and griefe and be brought down as it were to the very gate of hell and feele the very flashings of hell fire in his conscience for his sins yet is it not because hee hath thereby offended God but rather because he hath thereby offended himself that is because hee hath thereby brought himselfe into the danger of eternal death and condemnation but when once he believes the love of God to him in Christ in pardoning his iniquity and passing by his transgression then he sorrows grieves for the offence of God by the sin reasoning thus with himselfe and is it so indeed hath the Lord given his own Sonne to death for me who hath been such a vile sinfull wretch and hath Christ borne all my sins and was hee wounded for my transgressions ô then the working of his bowels the stirring of his affections the melting and relenting of his repenting heart then he remembers his own evill ways and his doings that were not good and loaths himselfe in his own eyes for all his abominations and looking upon Christ whom he hath pierced he mournes bitterly for him as one mourneth for his onely sonne thus when faith hath bathed a mans heart in the bloud of Christ it is so mollified that it quickly dissolues into the teares of godly sorrow so that if Christ doe but turn and look upon him ô then with Peter hee goes out and weeps bitterly and this is true gospel mourning and this is right evangelicall repenting Thirdly Though before a man doe truly believe in Christ he may so reforme his life and amend his ways that as touching the righteousnesse which is of the Law he may be with the Apostle blamelesse yet being under the covenant of works all the obedience that he yields to the Law all his leaving of sin and performance of duties all his avoyding of what the law forbids and all his doing of what the law commands is begotten by the law of works of Hagar the bond-woman by the force of self-love

believer and creates and infuseth into him new principles of actions so that what a treasure of all graces Christ hath stored up in him faith dreyneth and draweth them out to the use of a believer being as a conduite cocke that watereth all the herbs in the garden yea faith doth apply the bloud of Christ to a believers heart and the bloud of Christ hath in it not onely a power to wash from the guilt of sin but to clense and purge likewise from the power and stain of sin and therefore sayth godly Hooker if you would have grace you must first of all get faith and that will bring all the rest let faith goe to Christ and there is meeknesse patience humility and wisdome and faith will fetch all them to the soule therefore sayth he you must not look for sanctification till you come to Christ in vocation Nom. Truly Sir I doe now plainly see that I have been deceived and have gone a wrong way to worke for I verily thought that holinesse of life must goe before faith and so be the ground of it and produce and bring it forth whereas I doe now plainly see that faith must goe before and so produce and bring forth holinesse of life Evan. I remember a man who was much enlightened in the knowledge of the Gospell sayth there be many that thinke that as a man chooseth to serve a Prince so men choose to serve God so likewise they think that as those who doe best service do obtain most favour of their Lord and as those that have lost it the more they humble themselves the sooner they recover it even so they think the case stands betwixt God and them whereas sayth hee it is not so but clean contrary for hee himselfe sayth Yee have not chosen me but I have chosen you and not for that we repent and humble our selves and doe good works hee giveth us his grace therefore wee repent humble our selves doe good works and become holy the good thief on rhe crosse was not illuminated because hee did confesse Christ but he did confesse Christ because hee was illuminated for sayth Luther the tree must first be and then the fruit for the apples make not the tree but the tree maketh the apples so faith first maketh the person which afterwards bringeth forth works therefore to doe the Law without faith is to make the apples of wood and earth without the tree which is not to make apples but meer fantacies wherfore neighbour Nomista let me intreat you that whereas before you have reformed your life that you might believe why now believe that you may reform your life and doe not any longer worke to get an interest in Christ but believe your interest in Christ that so you may work and then you will not make the change of your life the ground of your faith as you have done and as Master Culverwell sayth many doe who being asked what caused them to believe they answer because they have truly repented and changed their course of life Ant Sir What thinke you of a Preacher that in my hearing said he durst not exhort nor perswade sinners to believe their sinnes were pardoned before he saw their lives reformed for feare they should take more liberty to sin Evan. Why what should I say but that I think that Preacher was ignorant of the mystery of faith for it is of the nature of soveraign waters which so wash off the corruption of the ulcer that they coole the heat and stay the spreading of the infection and so by degrees heale the same neither did he know that it is of the nature of cordials which so comfort the heart and ease it that they also expell the noxious humours and strengthen nature against them Ant. And I am acquainted with a professor though God knows a very weak one that sayth if he should believe before his life be reformed then he might believe and yet walk on in his sins I pray you Sir what would you say to such a man Evan. Why I would say with Doctor Preston let him if he can believe truly and doe this but it is impossible let him believe and the other will follow truth of beliefe will bring forth truth of holinesse for who if he ponder it well can feare a fleshly licentiousnesse where the believing soule is united and maryed to Christ the law as it is the covenant of works and Christ are set in opposition as two husbands to one wife successively whilst the Law was alive in the conscience all the fruits were deadly Rom. 7 5. but Christ taking the same spouse to himselfe the law being dead by his quickning spirit doth make her fruitfull to God and so raiseth up seed to the former husband for materially these are the works of the Law though produced by the Spirit of Christ in the Gospell Ant. And yet Sir I am verily perswaded that there be many both Preachers and professors in this City of the very same opinion that these two are of Evan. The truth is many Preachers stand upon the prayse of some morall vertue and doe invaigh against some vice of the times more then upon pressing men to believe but sayth a learned writer it will bee our condemnation if we love darknesse rather then light and desire still to be groping in the twy-light of morality the precepts of morall men then to walke in the true light of divinity which is the doctrine of Jesus Christ and I pitie the prepostrous care and unhappy travail of many well affected who study the practice of this and that vertue neglecting this cardinall and radicall vertue as if a man should water all the tree and not the root faine would they shine in patience meeknesse and zeal and yet are not carefull to stablish root themselves in faith which should maintain all the rest and therefore all their labour hath been in vain and to no purpose Nom. Indeed Sir this which you have now sayd I have found true by mine own experience for I have laboured and endevoured to get victory over some corruptions as to overcome my dulnesse and to performe duties with cheerfulnesse and all in vain Evan. And no marvell for to pray to meditate to keep a Sabbath cheerfully to have your conversation in Heaven is as possible for you your selfe to doe as for Iron to swim or for stones to ascend upwards but yet nothing is impossible to faith it can naturalize these things unto you it can make a mole of the earth a soule of Heaven wherefore though you have tryed all morall conclusions of proposing promising resolving vowing fasting watching and self-revenge yet get you to Christ and with the finger of faith touch but the hem of his garment and you shall feele vertue come from him for the curing of all your diseases Wherefore I beseech you come out of your self unto Jesus Christ