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
→
Journal Articles
→
Book Reviews
→
Lordship Salvation and the Gospel of the Grace of God

Lordship Salvation and the Gospel of the Grace of God

Posted in Book Reviews

Lordship Salvation and the Gospel of the Grace of God. By Joel Finck. Rapid City , SD : Grace Bible Church , 1998. 83 pp. Paper. No price.

The Free Grace movement is housed under a pretty big tent. Finck represents Free Grace believers, who are sometimes referred to as Ultra-Dispensationalists. (Finck actually calls himself a mid-Acts Dispensationalist.)

In a nutshell the author suggests that the gospel for today is found exclusively in Paul’s epistles. He feels that Lordship Salvation more or less correctly understands the gospel by which OT people and people in the early stages of Acts were regenerated. The problem with Lordship Salvation is that they are caught up in the way of justification in another dispensation.

Thus verses in the four Gospels, Hebrews, James, 1-2 Peter, Jude, 1-3 John, and Revelation are all out of consideration for how one is born again in this age. Finck does a good job of explaining how he understands a representative number of texts.

Within Paul’s epistles, Finck typically adopts the positions advocated by Zane Hodges, Jody Dillow, myself, and other Free Grace writers. I was pleasantly surprised to see that he adopts a new view of 1 Cor 15:2, one that I’ve held for some time but have not published yet. He suggests the salvation mentioned there is experiential salvation, that is, being spiritually healthy (pp. 36-37).

Those seeking in-depth exegesis will not find it in this book. Neither will they find any interaction with Lordship Salvation writers. However, those seeking a clear and easy to follow defense of the Free Grace position from an irenic Ultra-Dispensationalist will love this book.

One other thing I liked about this book is that the author doesn’t duck the tough questions. He suggests, for example, that OT saints weren’t eternally secure until they died, and that they didn’t actually get eternal life until they died, that is, if they died still in faith (pp. 73, 79).

Hopefully readers can overlook the fact that four times (by my count) he mistakenly uses the term Armenians when he means Arminians (pp. 70-71).

I will warn the reader, however, that it is disturbing to see a Free Grace person argue that what we must do to have eternal life is not found in the Gospel of John (pp. 17-18, 75-76). This book is not for the person who is new to the faith. Personally I feel if we abandon the primacy of the Gospel of John in anchoring our view of what one must do to have eternal life, then our movement is in trouble. I appreciate the fact that others like Finck disagree. And I’m glad they are in our camp. But I hope the majority position in our camp continues to be that John’s Gospel is the place to start when determining your view of the saving message. And I also hope we continue to hold that justification has always been by grace through faith apart from works.

This is a fascinating book. I highly recommend it.

Robert N. Wilkin
Editor
Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society
Irving , TX

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • 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.

Cart

Recently Added

March 20, 2023

1 Peter–Part 01–1:1-2 Introduction

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Ken Yates, Philippe Sterling and Bob Wilkin are introducing a short study about the New Testament book of...
March 20, 2023

Is Everlasting Life Everlasting?

Chris from West Virginia asks an important question: I found myself Googling, “What is eternal life in Greek,” and stumbled upon a Quora forum where...
March 17, 2023

How Should One Define the Phrase “Belief in Jesus”? What is Saving Faith?

Welcome to Grace in Focus radio. Today, Bob Wilkin, Steve Elkins and Ken Yates answer a question about the nature of saving faith. What does...

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
  • A Free Grace Primer: The Hungry Inherit, The Gospel Under Siege, and Grace in Eclipse $20.00 $12.00
  • Hebrews: Partners with Christ $22.00 $15.00
  • Here Walks My Enemy: The Story of Luis (Hardcover) $13.95 $5.00
  • Absolutely Free, 2nd Edition $20.00 $12.00
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