Free Grace Theology is somewhere between Calvinism and Arminianism. Contrary to Calvinism, Free Grace Theology teaches that people can freely choose to be saved by putting their faith in Jesus Christ. Contrary to Arminianism, Free Grace Theology teaches that a saved person cannot lose their salvation—no matter what they do after they are saved.
This is the most disturbing part of Free Grace Theology. The Scriptures teach that people are saved by grace through faith alone (not by good works) but true faith is never alone: it is always accompanied by repentance and the production of good works. Free Grace Theology rejects this.
Reflecting upon one’s works diminishes the eternal nature of the saving work of Christ on the cross, since Christians, being in the flesh, can have both good and bad works throughout their lifetime. Consequently, if one has believed in Christ but upon examining his works, he concludes that he is not saved, what does this say about the power of Christ’s sacrifice to keep him? Was Jesus not able to save him completely? After all, faith is the only condition put forward in the Scriptures by which one receives eternal life.[1]
The proponents of Free Grace Theology teach that any insistence that a true believer also repents of his or her sins and produces good works is the same as saying that we are saved by faith and good works. A person is saved by grace through faith alone. The only proof that a person is saved is God’s promise that all believers receive eternal life as soon as they believe. Therefore, a person enters heaven simply because he or she chose to believe, even if he or she has never repented or produced good works.
Good works are done by the believer who wishes to be rewarded when we Christians are judged by Christ at the bema seat judgment (2 Cor. 5:10). In that case, the believer has become a disciple of Christ. That’s right: Free Grace Theology makes a distinction between believers and disciples. As Jody Dillow states, “Salvation is by faith alone and is totally apart from works. Works are condition for discipleship and not all Christians are disciples.”[2] All disciples are believers, but not all believers are disciples. Believers get into heaven but receive no rewards; disciples are given rewards after they get into heaven.
Zane Hodges, who is often cited as the founder of Free Grace Theology, teaches that discipleship is an educational process which “can be hard,” so hard that many Christians drop out of the process. “The simple fact is that the New Testament never takes for granted that believers will see discipleship through to the end. And it never makes this kind of perseverance either a condition or a proof of final salvation from hell.”[3] He interprets the warning passages in the Epistle to the Hebrews as a warning to not drop out of the educational process, not as warnings that it is possible to lose one’s salvation. He notes that Paul thought of himself as being in a race, but even he was not sure that he would finish it (1 Cor. 9:24, 26-27). “Again, there is no thought here of the loss of eternal life. Such a loss is impossible, as our Lord Himself made clear.”[4]
Hodges’ followers also teach that the believer who does not persevere to the end still gets into heaven. David R. Anderson says, “[E]ven for the believer that loses his way and does not persevere faithfully to the end of his life, God won’t let go of him. Only this kind of gospel is greater than all our sin.”[5] Charles Stanley, the late pastor of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, agrees: “Even if a believer for all practical purposes becomes an unbeliever, his salvation is not in jeopardy. Christ will remain faithful…. [B]elievers who lose or abandon their faith will retain their salvation, for God remains faithful.”[6] Thus, according to the proponents of Free Grace Theology, a person enters heaven simply because one day he or she chose to believe, even if he or she immediately becomes an unbeliever. To this, Clement of Alexandria, would say, “It is neither the faith, nor the love, nor the hope, nor the endurance of one day, but ‘he that endures to the end will be saved.’”[7] Did not Jesus say the same thing (Matt. 10:22)? So, for the sake of their doctrine, the Free Grace proponents are willing to contradict our Lord.
Much has been said and written about Free Grace Theology. YouTube has numerous videos defending and critiquing it. Free Grace Theology: 5 Ways it Magnifies the Gospel, edited by Grant Hawley, provides an explanation and defense of this theology. On the other hand, “Free Grace” Theology: 5 Ways it Diminishes the Gospel, by Wayne Grudem, and Christ the Lord: The Reformation and Lordship Salvation, edited by Michael S. Horton, provide insightful critiques of this theology.
However, it seems to me that the critiques overlook the fact that the theology is based on at least two false assumptions. The first is that the proponents of Free Grace Theology assume that eternal life is a gift that is separate from God and Jesus Christ, which is why they can picture someone walking away from God and still have the gift of eternal life in hand. This is not true. As we saw in chapter 13, God is eternal life. And this life is in his Son: “And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:11-12). To have eternal life, we must have God and Jesus Christ. We must enter into a deep, intimate, marriage-like relationship with both God and Jesus Christ. Jesus himself said, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3). We enter into this relationship through faith, which means that we sever this relationship through unbelief.
This is why Charles Stanley is wrong. The believer who becomes an unbeliever does not retain his or her salvation. That person no longer has eternal life because that person no longer has a relationship with God and Jesus Christ.
The second false assumption is that the proponents of Free Grace Theology think that faith in Jesus Christ only gets you into heaven, which means that salvation only saves you from the lake of fire. Salvation actually saves us from what is sending us to the lake of fire: sin. This is why the person who truly believes in Jesus Christ turns away from sin and starts to do the good works. The proponents of Free Grace Theology reject this statement. They say that insisting that a believer proves his or her salvation by doing good works is the same as saying that the believer is saved by faith and good works.
The leaders of the Early Church, however, disagree with them. To be sure, they teach that we are not saved by good works, that we are saved by God’s grace through faith alone. Clement, the bishop of Rome, wrote,
All these, therefore, were highly honoured, and made great, not for their own sake, or for their own works, or for the righteousness which they wrought, but through the operation of His will. And we, too, being called by His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves, nor by our own wisdom, or understanding, or godliness, or works which we have wrought in holiness of heart; but by that faith through which, from the beginning, Almighty God has justified all men; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.[8]
Ignatius was born around 35 AD and died a martyr in 105 AD. He was a disciple of one or more apostles and became the bishop of Antioch. He wrote, “Let us not, therefore, be insensible to His kindness. For were He to reward us according to our works, we should cease to be.”[9]
Justin Martyr wrote,
For Abraham was declared by God to be righteous, not on account of circumcision, but on account of faith. For before he was circumcised the following statement was made regarding him: ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness.’ And we, therefore, in the uncircumcision of our flesh, believing God through Christ, and having that circumcision which is of advantage to us who have acquired it —namely, that of the heart—we hope to appear righteous before and well-pleasing to God: since already we have received His testimony through the words of the prophets.[10]
Irenaeus, the bishop of Lyon, wrote,
For He did not set us free for this purpose, that we should depart from Him (no one, indeed, while placed out of reach of the Lord’s benefits, has power to procure for himself the means of salvation), but that the more we receive His grace, the more we should love Him.[11]
These same men also knew that the ones who are truly saved will produce good works. Clement of Rome wrote, “Take heed, beloved, lest His many kindnesses lead to the condemnation of us all. [For thus it must be] unless we walk worthy of Him, and with one mind do those things which are good and well-pleasing in His sight.”[12] He also wrote,
How blessed and wonderful, beloved, are the gifts of God! Life in immortality, splendour in righteousness, truth in perfect confidence, faith in assurance, self-control in holiness! And all these fall under the cognizance of our understandings [now]; what then shall those things be which are prepared for such as wait for Him? The Creator and Father of all worlds, the Most Holy, alone knows their amount and their beauty. Let us therefore earnestly strive to be found in the number of those that wait for Him, in order that we may share in His promised gifts. But how, beloved, shall this be done? If our understanding be fixed by faith towards God; if we earnestly seek the things which are pleasing and acceptable to Him; if we do the things which are in harmony with His blameless will; and if we follow the way of truth, casting away from us all unrighteousness and iniquity, along with all covetousness, strife, evil practices, deceit, whispering, and evil-speaking, all hatred of God, pride and haughtiness, vainglory and ambition. For they that do such things are hateful to God; and not only they that do them, but also those that take pleasure in them that do them.[13]
Ignatius wrote, “They that are carnal cannot do those things which are spiritual, nor they that are spiritual the things which are carnal; even as faith cannot do the works of unbelief, nor unbelief the works of faith.”[14]
Justin Martyr wrote,
For, impelled by the desire of the eternal and pure life, we seek the abode that is with God, the Father and Creator of all, and hasten to confess our faith, persuaded and convinced as we are that they who have proved to God by their works that they followed Him, and loved to abide with Him where there is no sin to cause disturbance, can obtain these things. This, then, to speak shortly, is what we expect and have learned from Christ, and teach.[15]
And let those who are not found living as He taught, be understood to be no Christians, even though they profess with the lip the precepts of Christ; for not those who make profession, but those who do the works, shall be saved, according to His word: “Not every one who saith to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. For whosoever heareth Me, and doeth My sayings, heareth Him that sent Me. And many will say unto Me, Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk in Thy name, and done wonders? And then will I say unto them, Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity. Then shall there be wailing and gnashing of teeth, when the righteous shall shine as the sun, and the wicked are sent into everlasting fire. For many shall come in My name, clothed outwardly in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly being ravening wolves. By their works ye shall know them. And every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down and cast into the fire.”[16]
And Irenaeus wrote,
And for this purpose did the Father reveal the Son, that through His instrumentality He might be manifested to all, and might receive those righteous ones who believe in Him into incorruption and everlasting enjoyment (now, to believe in Him is to do His will); but He shall righteously shut out into the darkness which they have chosen for themselves, those who do not believe, and who do consequently avoid His light.[17]
… those who believe God and follow His word receive that salvation which flows from Him. Those, on the other hand, who depart from Him, and despise His precepts, and by their deeds bring dishonour on Him who made them, and by their opinions blaspheme Him who nourishes them, heap up against themselves most righteous judgment.[18]
Now the law has figuratively predicted all these, delineating man by the [various] animals: whatsoever of these, says [the Scripture], have a double hoof and ruminate, it proclaims as clean; but whatsoever of them do not possess one or other of these [properties], it sets aside by themselves as unclean. Who then are the clean? Those who make their way by faith steadily towards the Father and the Son; for this is denoted by the steadiness of those which divide the hoof; and they meditate day and night upon the words of God, that they may be adorned with good works: for this is the meaning of the ruminants. The unclean, however, are those which do neither divide the hoof nor ruminate; that is, those persons who have neither faith in God, nor do meditate on His words: and such is the abomination of the Gentiles. But as to those animals which do indeed chew the cud, but have not the double hoof, and are themselves unclean, we have in them a figurative description of the Jews, who certainly have the words of God in their mouth, but who do not fix their rooted stedfastness in the Father and in the Son; wherefore they are an unstable generation. For those animals which have the hoof all in one piece easily slip; but those which have it divided are more sure-footed, their cleft hoofs succeeding each other as they advance, and the one hoof supporting the other. In like manner, too, those are unclean which have the double hoof but do not ruminate: this is plainly an indication of all heretics, and of those who do not meditate on the words of God, neither are adorned with works of righteousness; to whom also the Lord says, “Why call ye Me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say to you?” For men of this stamp do indeed say that they believe in the Father and the Son, but they never meditate as they should upon the things of God, neither are they adorned with works of righteousness; but, as I have already observed, they have adopted the lives of swine and of dogs, giving themselves over to filthiness, to gluttony, and recklessness of all sorts. Justly, therefore, did the apostle call all such “carnal” and “animal,”—[all those, namely], who through their own unbelief and luxury do not receive the Divine Spirit, and in their various phases cast out from themselves the life-giving Word, and walk stupidly after their own lusts: the prophets, too, spake of them as beasts of burden and wild beasts; custom likewise has viewed them in the light of cattle and irrational creatures; and the law has pronounced them unclean.[19]
According to nature, then—that is, according to creation, so to speak— we are all sons of God, because we have all been created by God. But with respect to obedience and doctrine we are not all the sons of God: those only are so who believe in Him and do His will. And those who do not believe, and do not obey His will, are sons and angels of the devil, because they do the works of the devil. And that such is the case He has declared in Isaiah: “I have begotten and brought up children, but they have rebelled against Me.” And again, where He says that these children are aliens: “Strange children have lied unto Me.” According to nature, then, they are [His] children, because they have been so created; but with regard to their works, they are not His children. For as, among men, those sons who disobey their fathers, being disinherited, are still their sons in the course of nature, but by law are disinherited, for they do not become the heirs of their natural parents; so in the same way is it with God,—those who do not obey Him being disinherited by Him, have ceased to be His sons.[20]
With these statements, the Scriptures agree. Free Grace Theology correctly teaches that we inherit the kingdom of God (enter heaven) by faith alone. It also correctly teaches that all Christians will stand before the bema seat of Christ to receive rewards based on what we did here on earth. Jody Dillow, therefore, concludes, “The Bible teaches that there is a dual-inheritance: One inheritance by faith alone (entrance into heaven, the salvation-inheritance) and one which comes to us by faithfulness of life (the reward-inheritance).”[21] The reward-inheritance is earned by the disciples for their works. The salvation-inheritance (inheriting the kingdom of God) is a gift given to all believers. Works have nothing to do with it.
That’s not what Jesus said.
When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, “Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me’” (Matt. 25:31-36).
The goats, of course, do not inherit the kingdom but are sent into the everlasting fire (v. 41). Jesus ends the parable by saying, “And these (the goats) will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (v. 46).
Notice the word “for” in verse 35. The sheep inherit the kingdom because they did all of these good works. The sheep go into eternal life because they did all of these good works. The goats do not inherit the kingdom because they did not do all of these good works. The goats go into everlasting punishment because they did not do all of these good works. As Keith Green, a Christian singer during the 1980s, said in his song, The Sheep and the Goats, “And my friends, the only difference between the sheep and the goats, according to this scripture, is what they did, and didn’t do!!” Or as Justin Martyr said, “…each man goes to everlasting punishment or salvation according to the value of his actions.”[22]
Jesus, of course, is not contradicting the doctrine that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works. Nor is he contradicting all of the times that he said that eternal life is obtained by believing in him. He is saying that the true faith produces good works. The good works of the sheep are proof that they had put their faith in him. Therefore, they get to inherit the kingdom.
On one occasion, the people asked Jesus, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” His answer was, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (John 6:28-29). In other words, if you believe in Jesus, you will do the works of God.
Picture, if you will, a lamp. The cord is plugged into the wall, so electricity, which represents God’s grace, is always available to the lamp. Turning on the switch allows the electricity to flow through the light bulb, just as putting faith in Jesus allows God’s grace to flow through us. The light bulb produces both heat, which cannot be seen, and light, which can be seen. So, too, putting faith in Jesus produces both salvation, which cannot be seen, and good works, which can be seen. The light is proof that the switch has been turned on, just as good works are proof that we have put our faith in Jesus. The lack of light is proof that the switch has not been turned on. A person can claim all he wants that the switch has been turned on; the lack of light says otherwise. The lack of good works is proof that one has not put his or her faith in Jesus. A person can claim all he wants that he has put his faith in Jesus; the lack of good works says otherwise. This is precisely what James means when he says, “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? …But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:14, 18).
Because of the word “profit” in verse 14, the proponents of Free Grace Theology want to say that James is only talking about getting rewards: the good works which are motivated by faith will save the person from losing his rewards. He is not talking about the faith that saves us from the lake of fire. This is only one example of how they twist the Scriptures to make them fit their doctrine.
Gen. 15:6 says, “And he (Abram) believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” Jeremy Edmondson says this verse proves “God’s righteousness has been made known apart from works.”[23] In other words, Abraham’s faith was the saving faith, the faith that lets the believers enter heaven, the faith that gives the believers eternal life. This is the salvation-inheritance faith, not the reward-inheritance faith. But James says that there is more to this story.
But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only (James 2:20-24).
Abraham’s saving faith was perfected by his works. Yes, he was declared righteous apart from works because of his faith, but that righteousness obtained by faith then produced good works. That is how he proved that his faith was not dead.
Paul also said that professing faith in God is not enough. Speaking of unbelievers, he said, “They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work” (Tit. 1:16). Those who truly know God will prove it by the good works which they do. This is why Paul also says that God will render “eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality” (Rom. 2:5-7).
Then there is this warning in the Epistle to the Hebrews: “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). This warning seems to say that if we do not do the work of pursuing holiness, we will lose our salvation. However, the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews knows that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works; therefore, we do not lose our salvation by the works which we do or do not do. What the writer is implying is if we are not pursuing holiness, if our hearts do not desire to be holy as God is holy, if we do not want to do the good works which a holy Christian would do, then we are not saved.
John’s writings also demonstrate that the true faith produces good works. Jesus said in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” We have eternal life if we know God. How do we know that we know God? “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3-4). Keeping his commandments is proof that we know God and, therefore, have eternal life. We can come to the same conclusion through another chain of passages. How else do we know that we know God? “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). We know that we know God when we love one another, that is, since we are all the children of God, when we love the children of God. How do we know that we love the children of God? “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments” (1 John 5:2). To have eternal life, we must know God. To know God, we must love his children. To love his children, we must love God AND keep his commandments. In short, keeping his commandments is proof that we know God and, therefore, have eternal life. Free Grace Theology cannot get around these chains of passages. True faith gives us eternal life and produces good works, which is defined as “keeping God’s commandments.” If our faith does not produce good works, then it has not given us eternal life, either.
Will we keep his commandments perfectly? Not in this lifetime. We will fail, perhaps more often than we will succeed. This is why Free Grace Theology rejects using good works as proof that we are saved. Measuring good works is too subjective to be meaningful, according to them. Charles Bing wants to dismiss using good works as proof of salvation by asking, “How many good works does a person need to demonstrate to be sure of salvation?”[24] That is the wrong question. The Scriptures tell us that God has prepared good works for each and every one of us (Eph. 2:10), but which works and how many works God requires will vary from person to person. So, the question is not “How many?” but “Is the person doing the works which God has given that person to do?” And, “Is the person making progress? Is the person running the race that God has set before him or her?”
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:1-2).
The righteous runs the race with endurance and if the righteous falls, the righteous gets back up and runs again, and again, and again, looking to Jesus for help, until the righteous crosses the finish line. The wicked never gets there. Neither does the so-called believer who never does good works.
But laying aside the sin which so easily ensnares us and running the race with endurance until one wins is the very definition of repentance. Repentance is the commitment to turn from sin, to start doing the good works, to start obeying God’s commandments, to get back up when one has fallen, to keep pressing on until the battle is won. This is why repentance and good works always accompany true faith. This is also why Clement of Alexandria says, “…it is the will of God that he, who is obedient to the commands and repents of his sins should be saved….”[25]
The two assumptions upon which Free Grace Theology is based are, therefore, false. We obtain eternal life only through a deep, intimate, marriage-like relationship with God and Jesus Christ. We enter into this relationship through faith in Jesus Christ. If we turn to unbelief, we sever this relationship and lose eternal life. But if we stay in this relationship, we will love God, love his children, and keep his commandments. Good works do not produce salvation, but salvation does produce good works.
[1] Jeremy Edmondson, “Free Grace is Returning to Scripture as Our Sole Authority,” in Grant Hawley, editor, Free Grace Theology: 5 Ways it Magnifies the Gospel, 2023, p. 41.
[2] Jody Dillow, “Free Grace Interpretations Have Great Explanatory Power,” in Hawley, pp. 165-166.
[3] Zane Hodges, Absolutely Free: A Biblical Reply to Lordship Salvation, Grace Evangelical Society, Kindle Edition, p. 74.
[4] Hodges, p. 76.
[5] David R. Anderson, “Foreword,” in Hawley, p. 15.
[6] Charles F. Stanley, Eternal Security, Zondervan, Kindle Edition, pp. 92-93.
[7] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2, p. 600.
[8] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 13.
[9] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 63.
[10] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 245.
[11] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 478.
[12] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 11.
[13] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 14.
[14] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 53.
[15] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 165.
[16] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 168. Justin is citing Matt. 7:21; Luke 13:26-28; Matt. 13:42; Matt. 7:15, 16, 19.
[17] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 468.
[18] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 511.
[19] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 534.
[20] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, pp. 524-525. Irenaeus is citing Is. 1:2 and Ps. 18:44 (both from the Septuagint).
[21] Dillow, p. 166.
[22] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, p. 166.
[23] Edmondson, p. 44.
[24] Charles Bing, “Full Assurance Produces Godly Living,” in Hawley, p. 92.
[25] Schaff, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2, p. 363.
