What Is Free Grace Theology?
10 Key Distinctives of Traditional Free Grace Theology
1. The FREE gift of eternal life (Jn. 3:16, 4:10; Rom. 6:23; Rev. 22:17)
2. The eternal security of the believer (Jn. 10:28-29; Rom. 8:31-39)
3. The clear gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24; 1 Cor. 15:3; Eph. 2:8-9)
4. The invitation to believe in Christ apart from works (Jn. 20:31; Acts 16:31; Rom. 3:21-28, 4:5)
5. The difference between salvation and discipleship (Matt. 11:28-29, 16:24; Jn. 8:31)
6. The importance of rewards as a motivation for godly living (2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Jn. 8; Rev. 3:11)
7. The distinction between justification and sanctification, faith and works (Rom. 1-8)
8. The Bible alone vs. man’s traditions / the reformer’s teachings (Matt. 15:9; Mk. 7:7; Col. 2:8)
9. The understanding of repentance as a “change of mind” (Isa.46:8, LXX; Heb. 12:17)
10. The assurance of the believer is based first and foremost on the promises of God, as opposed to the believer’s walk (Jn. 5:24, 6:47; Rom. 10:17; Heb. 6:19; 1 Jn. 5:13)
Please note: The Bible verses cited above are for illustrative purposes; they are not exhaustive lists.
Just to clarify, when I said "10 Key Distinctives" I'm saying that each point is distinct from some other view somewhere (we could say that point #8 is distinct from Roman Catholicism, for example). In other words, I'm not saying that each point is the sole possession of traditional Free Grace Theology, but rather each point is a distinctive or a characteristic of it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, some Free Grace people might dispute point #9 about understanding repentance as a "change of mind". So I'd like to clarify that in regards to #9, I'm referring specifically to the traditional FG view of repentance (i.e. the view of Lewis Sperry Chafer, J. Vernon McGee, Charles Ryrie, etc.), not the "harmony with God" FG view of repentance.
—J. PERREAULT