Understanding Salvation in Light of 1 Corinthians 3:15

Is it possible for a Christian to have done no good works in their life here on earth and yet still be eternally saved? What does the Bible say about it? One Bible verse that sheds light on this subject is 1 Corinthians 3:15. In 1 Cor 3:15 the Apostle Paul writes, "If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire." In context, Paul is describing what could happen at the Judgment Seat of Christ if a Christian has done no good works: he or she "will be saved, yet only so as through fire." The fire is not purgatory, but rather is the purifying effect of God's judgment as He tests the quality of each believer's work.

I'd like to consider a statement by Zane Hodges on the reality of salvation that deals with the relationship between works and belief that may be perplexing to some, especially as it relates to 1 Corinthians 3:15. The particular statement by Hodges that I'm referring to is when he says,

"Of course, there is every reason to believe that there will be good works in the life of each believer in Christ. The idea that one may believe in Him and live for years totally unaffected by the amazing miracle of regeneration, or by the instruction and/or discipline of God his heavenly Father, is a fantastic notion—even bizarre. We reject it categorically."[1]

While many Free Grace advocates wouldn't agree with Hodges on everything, we must be careful not to go to the other extreme of discarding everything he ever said because he may have been (indeed was!) wrong in some areas. That would be foolish! As the saying goes, "Even a broken clock is right twice a day." In regards to the statement by Hodges that I quoted above, several things can be noted. First of all, Hodges doesn't say it's impossible for a Christian to live their whole life without doing any good works; rather, he says the idea is "fantastic" and "bizarre." In other words, biblically it's possible, but it's not the norm (or at least it should not be the norm) and it's not what God wants (see Rom. 6:1, NLT; Eph. 2:10, NKJV).

The key to reconciling Hodges' view with Paul's statement in 1 Cor 3:15 is to notice that Hodges qualifies his statement when he says, "The idea that one may believe in Him and live FOR YEARS totally unaffected by the amazing miracle of regeneration...is a fantastic notion—even bizarre." So Hodges is NOT talking about "deathbed conversions" (as Charles Ryrie does in his book So Great Salvation). That would be a different situation. In a "deathbed conversion," a person accepts Christ as Savior but then has no time to do good works because he dies soon after getting saved. Bob Wilkin affirms: "I, too, do not believe that any believer dies with zero good works done during his time as a believer unless he believes in Christ immediately before dying."[2] Wilkin expresses the same idea elsewhere when he says: "FGT [Free Grace Theology] teaches that regeneration does result in some good works in all who live some length of time after the new birth. (Obviously if someone died at the very moment of the new birth there would be no time for any good works to be done.)"[3] So again, Hodges and Wilkin are NOT talking about "deathbed conversions" or, in other words, people who die immediately or very soon after trusting in Christ for salvation. According to Hodges and Wilkin, Christians who die immediately after getting saved may have done no good works! And that is how to reconcile their statements with what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:15. To be clear, I'm not saying that Paul is exclusively referring to "deathbed conversions" in 1 Corinthians 3:15. Rather, I'm showing that the qualification of time in Hodges' and Wilkin's statements is the key to understanding them in light of that passage. That's how to reconcile the statements with each other so there is no contradiction. Personally, I wouldn't narrow down Paul's statement in 1 Cor 3:15  to exclusively "deathbed conversions". But that's how to reconcile the statements by Hodges and Wilkin with what Paul says in 1 Cor 3:15. I'm simply pointing out that there is no inherent contradiction between the claims made by Hodges and Wilkin and the teaching of 1 Corinthians 3:15; the positions can be fully reconciled. This is important to understand because what it means is that Hodges and Wilkin agree in principle that there can be Christians with no good works, "saved yet so as through fire"!

ENDNOTES:

[1] Zane Hodges, "Are Good Works Necessary for Assurance?" (GES News, March 1, 1993), emphasis his.

[2] Bob Wilkin, "Are Some Believers Fruitless?" (GES Blog, October 30, 2025). Editor's Note: I do not necessarily agree that some believers are "fruitless". For more information see my article "A Free Grace Understanding of Fruit vs. Works" (FGFS, July 29, 2025).

[3] Bob Wilkin, "Does Free Grace Theology Diminish the Gospel? A Review of Wayne Grudem's 'Free Grace Theology': Five Ways It Diminishes the Gospel, Part 1" (September 1, 2016).