Grace Evangelical Society

P.O. Box 1308, Denton, TX 76202
  • About
    • Home
    • Beliefs
    • Staff
    • Board of Directors
  • Resources
    • Grace in Focus Blog
    • Grace in Focus International Blogs
    • Grace in Focus Radio
    • Grace in Focus Magazine
    • Free eBooks
    • Journal of the GES
    • Book Reviews
    • Partners in Grace Newsletter
    • Audio Messages
    • Videos
    • Email Subscription
    • Bookstore
    • Online Tracts
  • Store
    • Main Page
    • On Sale
    • Return Policy
    • Your Cart
    • Your Account
  • Events
  • Connect
    • Contact Us
    • Free Grace Church and Bible Study Tracker
    • Free Grace Jobs
    • Ministry Links
  • Donate
    • One Time Donation
    • Monthly Donation
    • Your Account
  • Search
Home
→
Blog
→
Who Is Free Grace, According to GES? 

Who Is Free Grace, According to GES? 

September 2, 2022 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Free Grace Theology, John 4:10, the gift and the Giver

Another good question that resulted from a recent post at the GES Facebook page was this: “Who, according to GES, can be termed Free Grace?”

The GES view of what Free Grace Theology (FGT) is and who holds to it is different from the views of many who use that same terminology.

I will compare and contrast two different views of FGT.

Both agree that all who believe in Jesus have everlasting life that can never be lost. We agree that eternal security is true, even without perseverance. We view the warning passages in the New Testament not as warnings about hell, but as warnings about temporal judgment and missing out on ruling with Christ in the life to come. We interpret many of the so-called problem passages in the same way.

Those are many areas of agreement.

“But wait,” as the TV pitchman says, “there’s more.”

The areas of disagreement among those who profess to hold to FGT are major as well. I’ve chosen three to discuss.

The nature of saving faith. GES suggests that saving faith is simple persuasion. We are comfortable calling it mental assent. Many who profess FGT say that saving faith includes a willful component, an emotional component, and an intellectual component. They do not believe that saving faith is simple persuasion.i

The precise object of saving faith. GES understands the Scriptures to teach that one must believe in the gift of God and the Giver of the gift, as the Lord Jesus said in John 4:10. Compare John 3:16; 5:24; Eph 2:8-9; Rev 22:17. Others, however, who profess FGT, say that one need not believe in the gift of God. One simply needs to believe in the Giver of the gift. They specifically say that irrevocable salvation is the result of saving faith and not the object of it.ii

The spiritual condition of Catholics and others who hold to works salvation. One ramification of the preceding point is that many who profess to hold to FGT believe that most people in Christianity are born again. They suggest that Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and works salvation Protestants are all born again. Since they view belief in the gift of God as a sanctification issue, not a justification issue, they suggest that all who believe in Jesus’ deity, death, and resurrection are born again even if they do not believe in the irrevocable salvation He promises.iii

Those three differences are so significant that the areas of commonality are not sufficient to have one label that covers both groups. One has a small tent. The other has a large tent.

__________

i See, for example, D. R. Anderson, F. Chay, J. Dillow, J. P. Tanner, and K. Wilson, A Defense of Free Grace Theology: With Respect to Saving Faith, Perseverance, and Assurance, ed. by Fred Chay (NP: Grace Theology Press, 2017), pp. 69-71. A heading on p. 69 reads, “Faith Is More Than Intellectual Assent.”

ii See, for example, C. Bing, “Does John’s Gospel Demand Belief in Eternal Security for Salvation?” GraceNotes no. 79.

iii See, for example, D. R. Anderson, “Is Belief in Eternal Security Necessary for Justification?” Chafer Theological Seminary Journal 13 (Spring 2008): 47-59, and K. Wilson, Heresy of the Grace Evangelical Society (NP: Regula Fidei Press, 2020), pp. 133-34. See also the article in note 2.

Subscribe by Email

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
Bob_W

by Bob Wilkin

Bob Wilkin (ThM, PhD, Dallas Theological Seminary) is the Founder and Executive Director of Grace Evangelical Society and co-host of Grace in Focus Radio. He lives in Highland Village, TX with his wife, Sharon. His latest books are Faith Alone in One Hundred Verses and Turn and Live: The Power of Repentance.

If you wish to ask a question about a given blog, email us your question at ges@faithalone.org.

Cart

Recently Added

March 28, 2023

1 Peter–Part 07–5:12-14 Conclusion

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Ken Yates, Philippe Sterling and Bob Wilkin are concluding a short study of 1 Peter. What does it...
March 28, 2023

Day One After Cataract Surgery 

Four years ago my Ophthalmologist told me that it was time. But I checked with my Optometrist, and he said no. But in the past...
March 27, 2023

1 Peter–Part 06–5:1-11 Epilogue

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Ken Yates, Philippe Sterling and Bob Wilkin are winding down an excellent short study of the NT book...

Grace in Focus Radio

All Episodes

Listen to Stitcher

Listen on Spotify

Grace In Focus Magazine

Grace In Focus is sent to subscribers in the United States free of charge.

Subscribe for Free

The primary source of Grace Evangelical Society's funding is through charitable contributions. GES uses all contributions and proceeds from the sales of our resources to further the gospel of grace in the United States and abroad.

Donate

Bookstore Specials

  • The Road to Reward, 2nd Edition $9.95 $5.00
  • Absolutely Free, 2nd Edition $20.00 $12.00
  • A Free Grace Primer: The Hungry Inherit, The Gospel Under Siege, and Grace in Eclipse $20.00 $12.00
  • Here Walks My Enemy: The Story of Luis (Paperback) $6.95 $3.00
  • Here Walks My Enemy: The Story of Luis (Hardcover) $13.95 $5.00
Grace Evangelical Society

(940) 270-8827 / ges@faithalone.org

4851 S I-35E Suite 203, Corinth, TX 76210
P.O. Box 1308, Denton, TX 76202

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube