By Hayden Bray
Recently I have been trying to better understand the viewpoints of grace people who oppose the Focused Free Grace position. I have been reading the material of, and sometimes interacting with, a couple of these individuals in an online Free Grace discussion group. These men were once bona fide, card-carrying members of GES. Now they disagree. They are not united in their understanding of what it means to believe that Jesus is the Christ. However, they are united in their contention that one need not believe in Jesus Christ for anything, much less His promise of everlasting life. I have found our interactions unconvincing. However, the experience has prompted me to better refine my own understanding of what I believe and why.
What distinguishes Free Grace theology from other Christian schools of theological thought is the belief (1) that everlasting life is a free gift that cannot be lost, received by belief alone in Jesus Christ alone for that life, apart from works of any kind (e.g., repentance [turning] from sin), (2) that assurance of salvation is based upon Jesus’ promise to the believer and not upon the believer’s works, behaviour, or experiences, and (3) that believers are accountable before God for the way they spend their lives and will receive rewards or shame at the Judgement Seat of Christ and blessings or chastisement in this current life.
However, there is a debate within the broader Free Grace movement over the content one must necessarily believe in order to be born again. On one end of the spectrum it is argued that an individual need not believe in Jesus Christ for anything at all. On the other end, one must believe in Jesus for something other than everlasting life (initial forgiveness, initial salvation, initial justification), and one must believe a shopping list of essential truths. The Focused Free Grace position is that it is essential that one believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life.
As Biblicists, we must yield to what Scripture, properly understood, teaches us on the subject. When it comes to soteriology, the doctrine of salvation, it is prudent to go to the only book of the Bible specifically written to save unbelievers. The purpose statement of John’s Gospel tells us that John’s reason for recording Jesus’ ministry and teachings is to persuade the unbelieving reader to believe that Jesus is the Christ, and that by believing (that Jesus is the Christ), the reader will have everlasting life in His name (John 20:30-31). This raises the question: What does it mean to believe that Jesus is the Christ? Fortunately, Jesus gives us the exact definition in John 11:25-27:
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I have come to believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world” (NASB, emphasis mine).
The Christ is the One who guarantees everlasting life to whoever believes in Him. Therefore, to believe that Jesus is the Christ is to believe in Him for everlasting life and to be assured that you possess the life that Jesus promises believers.
The Gospel of John is abundantly clear that the individual who believes in the Gift-Giver for the gift, that is, in Jesus Christ for everlasting life, has that life as a present possession that can never be lost (John 4:10; see also John 3:16; 5:24; 6:47). It is foreign to John’s Gospel that one must understand substitutionary atonement or believe a list of historical facts (cf. 1 Cor 15:1-11) to receive the gift.
The motivation to broaden or dilute the content that must be believed in order to be born again is well-meaning. For if the Focused Free Grace position is correct, which it is, most confessing Christians (including Catholics, Orthodox, many Protestants, and the Cults) presently lack assurance of everlasting life and therefore are not currently believing that Jesus is the Christ. If they have never had assurance of everlasting life in Jesus, then, sadly, they have never been born again. This should come as no surprise, for Jesus said, “…narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life and there are few who find it” (Matt 7:14). Most people, even in Christianity, find it difficult to believe that God’s incredible gift to humanity is absolutely free and that the only way to obtain it is to simply take Jesus at His word.
We, as grace believers, should be careful to follow the pattern of evangelism that is set for us by Jesus, the perfect Evangelist. We must take care not to come up with our own formulas and verbiage, lest our message differ from His.
Do you, reader, believe that Jesus is the Christ? That is, are you persuaded that whoever believes in Jesus for everlasting life has that life, which can never end and can never be lost? If you do, then, like Martha, you have the joy of knowing that you have His life now and forever. I’ve found that knowledge to be highly encouraging and motivating.
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Hayden is a husband, father and student of the GES Seminary. He facilitates a focused free grace small-group where he lives in Brisbane, Australia. All are welcome. You can contact him at hlbray91@gmail.com.
