Free grace theology
Free grace advocates believe that good works are not necessary to merit (as with Pelagianism), to maintain (as with Arminians) or to prove (as with most Calvinists) salvation, but rather are part of discipleship and the basis for receiving eternal rewards (unlike in Hyper-Grace).
[5] Free grace theologians emphasize the absolute freeness of salvation and the possibility of full assurance that is not grounded upon personal performance.
[6][7] Thus, Free Grace theology allows for the salvation of an individual despite moral failings, although the disobedient Christian will face divine discipline.
[10] According to Ken Wilson, Augustine of Hippo criticized unnamed individuals who held to the view that one is saved by faith alone and that God's future judgement for Christians only consisted of temporal punishment and reward; hell was out of question.
[11][12] Jody Dillow quoted the 6th-century writer Pseudo-Chrysostom as holding the view held by some free grace theologians that the one who does not obey will be in the kingdom but not "reign" with Christ.
[13] The doctrines of Sandemanianism concerning salvation, which were popularized by the non-comformist Robert Sandeman (1718 – 1771) and the Baptist preacher Archibald McLean (1733–1812) have often been compared to the modern Free Grace movement.
[17][18] Free grace views on topics such as the assurance of salvation and eternal rewards were also found very commonly among early Dispensationalists; this includes James Hall Brookes and C. I. Scofield, who argued for every believer's right for absolute assurance of salvation, but many of them still held to a soft form of the perseverance of the saints.
The debate surfaced when John McArthur's book The Gospel According to Jesus generated a strong response from proponents of free grace theology.
The first to respond against the views of McArthur was Charles Ryrie, who wrote the book So Great Salvation where he articulated free grace theology.
The debate was reignited in the 21st century when Wayne Grudem wrote against free grace theology, leading to a renewed interest in the topic.
[23][24][16] Around the 1990s, Hodges began to articulate what has been called the "crossless gospel", which – although often seen as a derogatory term – is the belief that one must only believe in Jesus' promise of eternal life to be saved; knowledge of the substitutionary atonement is unnecessary for salvation.
This evolved into the crossless gospel controversy in 2005, when the Grace Evangelical Society officially declared its stance on faith to include only Jesus' promise of eternal life to the one who believes, causing many members to leave.
[68] A number of opponents of free grace also graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary, including Darrel Bock[69] and Daniel Wallace.
In his later years, Hodges controversially argued that the inclusion of Jesus' promise of eternal salvation was a necessity for proper evangelization.
A person could also become a Christian by believing in someone named Jesus for eternal security, while rejecting that he is God and Savior from sin by his death and resurrection.
[84][85] A number of people who write the Independent Baptist newspaper "Sword of the Lord" also hold to a Free Grace understanding of salvation.
[97] Free grace writers generally agree that good works do not play a role in meriting, maintaining, or proving eternal life.
More moderate free grace theologians still affirm that faith will necessarily lead into good works, although it may not be outwardly evident or last to the end of one's life.
Free grace theologians have generally held one of three views on repentance:[16][104] A major number of free grace theologians, including: Harry A. Ironside, Lewis Sperry Chafer, Charles Ryrie, Walvoord, Pentecost, Charlie Bing, and others have taught that repentance (Ancient Greek: μετᾰ́νοιᾰ metanoia) should be treated as a change of mind not as a turning from sin or sorrow for sin.
[16] Free grace theologians put a heavy emphasis on the doctrine of eternal rewards, which are determined in the judgement seat of Christ.
The view that individuals will have differing degrees of reward depending upon their service is based on an interpretation of Paul's words in his first epistle to the Corinthians, in which he references being saved "through fire".
[116] There are some differences among free grace theologians as to the role of good works as results of salvation due to their respective interpretations of the Epistle of James.
Most such as Bob Wilkin, Zane Hodges, and Joseph Dillow, among others hold that the one who possesses "dead faith" – as mentioned James 2:17 – is not a false convert, in this view the word "dead" refers to a faith that is not profitable in this life nor in the judgement seat of Christ, but does not imply false conversion.
[122][clarification needed] By contrast, Charles Ryrie, though being a free grace theologian, believed that faith naturally leads into good works, interpreting James to refer to eternal salvation.
In their view, the believers who lived a carnal lifestyle will have to spend 1000 years in "outer darkness", being a literal but temporal place of torment.
[115] Modern free grace theology is typically, but not necessarily, dispensational in its assumptions regarding the philosophy of history and in terms of its networks and affiliations.
All free grace advocates agree that assurance of spending eternity with God is based on the promise of scripture through faith alone in Jesus Christ and not one's works or subsequent progression in sanctification.
The Dallas Theological Seminary sums up the general consensus of free grace theology in Article XI of its doctrinal statement, in reference to assurance:[134] We believe it is the privilege, not only of some, but of all who are born again by the Spirit through faith in Christ as revealed in the Scriptures, to be assured of their salvation from the very day they take Him to be their Savior and that this assurance is not founded upon any fancied discovery of their own worthiness or fitness, but wholly upon the testimony of God in His written Word, exciting within His children filial love, gratitude, and obedience (Luke 10:20; 22:32; 2 Cor.
Theologians such as Charles Ryrie, Charlie Bing, and Jody Dillow view the object of faith as the person and work of Jesus Christ.
