My review of "Free Grace Doctrine Throughout History". By Valtteri Lahti. Free Grace Theology Central.
This 36-page article relates how the teachings of Free Grace theology are evident throughout church history. The article is titled "Free Grace Doctrine Throughout History". The author's name is Valtteri Lahti (from Finland). The article was apparently just uploaded to the Internet Archive late last year (December, 2024). I read it yesterday in full and I think it’s quite good, and at times excellent. The author makes a compelling case, and does a good job handling (and oftentimes refuting) objections. The article doesn’t delve into or address all tenets of Free Grace Theology; it mainly focuses on core Free Grace doctrines, e.g. salvation as a free gift, salvation by faith alone apart from works, assurance of salvation, eternal security, and rewards. I think the article could use further editing and a stronger conclusion (and/or concluding paragraph), but overall I was impressed by it.
I would also like to share my thoughts pertaining to the author's use of Matthew 5:19. I will copy and paste a comment that I left on his blog in regards to another article where he appeals to Matthew 5:19 in essentially the same way as he does here. Please note that I share this in the spirit of Proverbs 27:17, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." I said: I do like how you mentioned Matthew 5:19, although I haven't personally seen that specific verse used in direct connection with Free Grace Theology. But I think it is perhaps possible to employ it that way. It is at least something to consider. But one potential problem that I see with drawing that connection or applying it that way is related to the dispensational distinction or difference between Law and Grace. Namely, in Matthew chapter 5, Jesus is speaking in regards to the dispensation in which He lived, that is, the dispensation of the Mosaic Law (see Gal. 4:4). When Jesus mentions the kingdom in this context, that should not be equated with heaven. Because remember, if the Jews would have accepted Jesus as their promised Messiah, it would have ushered in the earthly kingdom then and there. (Remember that John the Baptist preached "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." That wasn’t the same as heaven. That was in reference to an earthly kingdom.) But since the Jews rejected Jesus as their promised Messiah, God temporarily set aside the nation of Israel in their unbelief and grafted in the Gentiles, "the wild olive branch" as the apostle Paul put it. The apostle Paul talks about this in Romans chapters 9-11. But my point is that in the context in which Jesus was speaking, “the kingdom” is the EARTHLY Messianic kingdom for Israel. It is now postponed until Jesus returns to the earth at His Second Coming (not at the Rapture of the church, but at His Second Coming to the earth at the end of the Tribulation) at which time He will then set up His 1,000 year rule and reign on planet earth, i.e. His Millennial Kingdom. In both instances, whether that kingdom would have been established at His first coming (cf. Gal. 4:4), or will be in the future at his Second Coming, those in that kingdom are both saved and unsaved. That is the important point to understand. So it’s not heaven, is my point. In Matthew 5:19, Jesus is talking about the earthly kingdom in which there will be both saved and unsaved present in it. Because in reference to the earthly kingdom and Christ’s 1,000 year reign, although everyone entering into that earthly kingdom will be saved, not everyone born to them will decide to trust Christ. We know this, for example, because at the end of Christ’s 1,000 year reign, it says in the book of Revelation that Satan will be released from the pit and will go out to deceive the nations, and many will follow him and rebel against Christ. So it will be similar to how it is today, in that there are both believers and unbelievers living amongst each other. The difference being that in the Millennial Kingdom, Christ rules with a rod of iron (cf. Psalm 2) and everyone in the kingdom will outwardly conform to the rules or face severe and immediate consequences. So my point is that in Matthew 5:19 when Jesus speaks of the kingdom, that is not directly referring to the church (which was at that time yet future, see Matthew 16:18), nor does it directly refer to church-age truth. I do think some of the same principles apply in both cases (to Israel and to the church), and thus your application is valid, but it is valid not primarily because of Matthew 5:19, but rather because the apostle Paul teaches a similar principle in his epistles to the churches: the principle of reward according to works. You rightly highlight some of these key texts, e.g. 1 Corinthians 3:14-15. But it’s important to remember that Israel’s inheritance is earthly, whereas the church’s inheritance is heavenly.
2 comments:
My review of "Free Grace Doctrine Throughout History". By Valtteri Lahti. Free Grace Theology Central.
This 36-page article relates how the teachings of Free Grace theology are evident throughout church history. The article is titled "Free Grace Doctrine Throughout History". The author's name is Valtteri Lahti (from Finland). The article was apparently just uploaded to the Internet Archive late last year (December, 2024). I read it yesterday in full and I think it’s quite good, and at times excellent. The author makes a compelling case, and does a good job handling (and oftentimes refuting) objections. The article doesn’t delve into or address all tenets of Free Grace Theology; it mainly focuses on core Free Grace doctrines, e.g. salvation as a free gift, salvation by faith alone apart from works, assurance of salvation, eternal security, and rewards. I think the article could use further editing and a stronger conclusion (and/or concluding paragraph), but overall I was impressed by it.
I would also like to share my thoughts pertaining to the author's use of Matthew 5:19. I will copy and paste a comment that I left on his blog in regards to another article where he appeals to Matthew 5:19 in essentially the same way as he does here. Please note that I share this in the spirit of Proverbs 27:17, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." I said: I do like how you mentioned Matthew 5:19, although I haven't personally seen that specific verse used in direct connection with Free Grace Theology. But I think it is perhaps possible to employ it that way. It is at least something to consider. But one potential problem that I see with drawing that connection or applying it that way is related to the dispensational distinction or difference between Law and Grace. Namely, in Matthew chapter 5, Jesus is speaking in regards to the dispensation in which He lived, that is, the dispensation of the Mosaic Law (see Gal. 4:4). When Jesus mentions the kingdom in this context, that should not be equated with heaven. Because remember, if the Jews would have accepted Jesus as their promised Messiah, it would have ushered in the earthly kingdom then and there. (Remember that John the Baptist preached "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." That wasn’t the same as heaven. That was in reference to an earthly kingdom.) But since the Jews rejected Jesus as their promised Messiah, God temporarily set aside the nation of Israel in their unbelief and grafted in the Gentiles, "the wild olive branch" as the apostle Paul put it. The apostle Paul talks about this in Romans chapters 9-11. But my point is that in the context in which Jesus was speaking, “the kingdom” is the EARTHLY Messianic kingdom for Israel. It is now postponed until Jesus returns to the earth at His Second Coming (not at the Rapture of the church, but at His Second Coming to the earth at the end of the Tribulation) at which time He will then set up His 1,000 year rule and reign on planet earth, i.e. His Millennial Kingdom. In both instances, whether that kingdom would have been established at His first coming (cf. Gal. 4:4), or will be in the future at his Second Coming, those in that kingdom are both saved and unsaved. That is the important point to understand. So it’s not heaven, is my point. In Matthew 5:19, Jesus is talking about the earthly kingdom in which there will be both saved and unsaved present in it. Because in reference to the earthly kingdom and Christ’s 1,000 year reign, although everyone entering into that earthly kingdom will be saved, not everyone born to them will decide to trust Christ. We know this, for example, because at the end of Christ’s 1,000 year reign, it says in the book of Revelation that Satan will be released from the pit and will go out to deceive the nations, and many will follow him and rebel against Christ. So it will be similar to how it is today, in that there are both believers and unbelievers living amongst each other. The difference being that in the Millennial Kingdom, Christ rules with a rod of iron (cf. Psalm 2) and everyone in the kingdom will outwardly conform to the rules or face severe and immediate consequences. So my point is that in Matthew 5:19 when Jesus speaks of the kingdom, that is not directly referring to the church (which was at that time yet future, see Matthew 16:18), nor does it directly refer to church-age truth. I do think some of the same principles apply in both cases (to Israel and to the church), and thus your application is valid, but it is valid not primarily because of Matthew 5:19, but rather because the apostle Paul teaches a similar principle in his epistles to the churches: the principle of reward according to works. You rightly highlight some of these key texts, e.g. 1 Corinthians 3:14-15. But it’s important to remember that Israel’s inheritance is earthly, whereas the church’s inheritance is heavenly.
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