We have all heard the warning: “Make sure you read the fine print.” We are told to do so whenever we enter into any agreement—for example, when we sign a contract. 

My wife just experienced an example of the need to read the fine print when she received an email. She was told that her birthday was approaching, and a company offered her a free facial. That was the title of the email.  

I have never had a facial, and I have no idea what one costs, but that’s certainly a good deal. Who wouldn’t want a free facial? 

The email gave the address of the company and described the benefits of a facial. All my wife needed to do was make the appointment, show up at the appointed time, and bring her identification. 

But at the end of the email, there was some additional information, written in much smaller letters. It said that to receive the “free” facial, my wife had to pay for a massage. 

I don’t know how much a massage costs. If I had to guess, the massage would be much more expensive than a facial. I am confident that the business was not going to lose money if anyone received a “free” facial in exchange for paying for a massage. I know one thing for sure. The facial was not free. The fine print made it abundantly clear. 

In the theological world, there is a lot of fine print. Gospel tracts and theological books often say that eternal salvation is absolutely free, a gift that springs from the grace of God and that is ours by faith alone. We are reminded of the cry of the Reformation: Only faith! 

Preachers say the same thing. We receive emails from various religious organizations with the free offer of salvation from the lake of fire.  

But if we listen to the rest of the sermon, or read further in the commentaries and emails, we will find the fine print. They tell us, in effect, that salvation is not free. It is not really a gift. It is not actually by grace through faith alone. 

Arminian publications and preachers say that if you don’t have good works, God will take away your salvation. You hear and read this message in all Pentecostal churches, as well as in most charismatic and Methodist churches. There are many other examples of this kind of fine print. 

Lordship Salvation teachers also claim that eternal salvation is a free gift, given by faith alone. But if you listen to what they say after speaking about that offer, you will hear their fine print. Before you receive this free gift, you have to make Jesus Lord of your life. You have to leave your sin behind. Even if you believe that you’ve received this free gift, it turns out that the requirements for being sure you received it are actually ongoing. You have to continually do good works and examine yourself to make sure you are sufficiently holy. If you don’t do these things, you didn’t really receive the gift.  

Calvinist teachers also offer people the free gift of eternal salvation. They love to proclaim the Reformation slogan of “faith alone.” But they add a great deal of fine print. The gift is only for those chosen by God. They invite you to receive it, but if Christ did not die for you, it doesn’t matter what you believe. Like Lordship Salvation teachers, they say you must do good works until the end of your life in order to see whether you’re one of the lucky ones. Even on your deathbed, you will have some doubt as to whether you possess the free gift. 

Evangelical churches and seminaries are full of Lordship and Calvinist preachers and professors. Those who attend them, or read the literature that comes from them, often say that eternal life is free. But they haven’t read the fine print. 

Maybe paying for a massage and getting a “free” facial is a great deal. I don’t know. But I know that the facial is not free. 

The same thing is true of the bait-and-switch that happens all the time in the theological world. The offer of “free” eternal life if we do enough good works, if we are chosen by God, if Christ died for us, and if we don’t sin too badly, might sound like a good deal. But let’s not kid ourselves. That offer of eternal life is not free.  

All of us have been frustrated by an offer of something “free” when we discover the fine print. We have probably accused those who made such an offer of being guilty of false advertising. We should feel the same way towards those who offer us salvation from the lake of fire as a free gift, only to then add some costly requirements. 

The Lord does not engage in such false advertising. He says that eternal salvation is free (John 3:16; 4:10-14; 6:47; 11:25-26; Eph 2:8-9). There is no bait-and-switch, with hidden costs added before or after one receives it.  

An email from Jesus Christ would be: “He who believes in Me has eternal life.” No fine print would follow.