Answering Common Objections To Free Grace

Since the gospel was first preached, people have objected to the Free Grace teaching that people are saved by the unconditional grace of God through faith alone in Jesus Christ. Often, objections come from misunderstanding the nature of God's grace and what Free Grace teaches. Sometimes objections are merely parroted from others without much thought. Here's how to address the common objections to Free Grace teaching about salvation.

Objection 1: Free Grace Is Easy Believism.

• No one purposely teaches that believing is easy. The truth is, it isn't always easy to believe. Easy means without difficulty. For many, it is difficult, not easy, to believe. For example, it is not easy to believe   . . . that my sinfulness deserves eternal separation from God.
    . . . that God loves me in spite of my sin.
    . . . that God would send His Son to die in my place.
    . . . that Jesus Christ paid for all of my sins over 2000 years ago.
    . . . that Jesus Christ rose from the dead and now lives.
    . . . that Jesus Christ would offer me eternal life as a free gift.

• It may not be easy to believe, but it is simple to believe. Simple means singular, as in there is only one condition for salvation: believe in Jesus Christ as Savor.

• How difficult is John 3:16, Acts 16:31, and many other verses that say we must only believe to be saved? We must not add to the Scriptures more than they say.

• Why would God make it difficult? The "God of all grace" 1 Peter 5:10 wants all people to be saved 1 Tim. 2:4. He does not make salvation a test of commitment, obedience, or endurance. Christ died for the world John 3:16 and paid for all sins John 1:29 and 1 John 2:2. If God gave up His Son for us, why wouldn't He give us everything else we need for our salvation, beginning with a simple condition: believe Rom. 8:32?

Objection 2: Free Grace Believes A Person Can Reject Jesus As Lord But Still Be Saved.

• No one teaches that a person can reject Jesus as Master but believe in Him for salvation. This is an unfair criticism based on inference. It would be contrary to logic to believe in Jesus as Savior but reject Him as Lord and Master. Free Grace simply teaches that believing in Jesus as Savior is a separate issue from committing to Him as Lord and Master.

• Jesus must be the Lord God to be Savior. Free Grace affirms the deity of Jesus Christ and His position as Lord of all. Only as Lord can Jesus offer an eternal sacrifice, eternal life, and an eternal priesthood.

• There is a difference between Christ's objective Lordship and our subjective response. Jesus is Lord whether one submits to Him or not, just as the President of the United States is president of all citizens, even those who do not support and submit to him.

• Mastery is not the issue in salvation; salvation from the penalty of sin is. Anyone who comes to Jesus as Savior from sin is eternally saved. That begins a lifetime process of learning to submit to Him as Master.

Objection 3: Free Grace Does Not Teach That An Unbeliever Must Turn From Sins (Repent) To Be Saved.

• This charge is true if repent is defined as turning from sins, because that would add human effort.

• Many or most Free Grace people believe that repentance means a change of heart or mind. Believing in Jesus Christ as Savior implies a change of heart or mind about something (e.g., one's need, who Christ is, what Christ did, what Christ promised).

• If one must turn from all sins, how would anyone know when that is fully achieved? We all have ongoing sinful desires, we all continue to sin occasionally, and we are not conscious of all our sins.

Objection 4: Free Grace Believes A Saved Person Does Not Have To Show Evidence of Good Works, Which Is Contrary To James 2:14-26.

• No one says this. Rather, Free Grace teaches that good works can be evidence but not proof of salvation. Probably all Free Grace teachers agree that all believers have good works. However, these works cannot always be seen so it is impossible to use them as final proof of salvation.

• This criticism has no validity unless good works is first defined. Non-Christians do good works in the sense of good deeds, but a good work in God's sight is obedience to God that glorifies Him by doing His will in His power. Only God can know this about one's works.

• If works can prove salvation, then we must ask how many works, how often, and how long? There is no objective standard that answers these questions; it is up to the subjective opinion and partial knowledge of another's conduct and motives by the one passing judgment. No one can judge these things except God. Believing in the objective reality of the Lord Jesus Christ as one's Savior can be known by the believer.

• James 2:14-26 is not discussing salvation from hell. In the context, James is telling his saved readers how to be delivered (saved) from the uselessness of faith that does not work. Faith that does not help others is useless to those in need and useless in the assessment of the believer's life at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

Objection 5: Free Grace Leads To False Assurance of Salvation.

• Only salvation by grace through faith (a conviction or persuasion that something is true) allows one to have full assurance, because it is based on objective realities—Christ's death as payment for sin, His resurrection for life, and the veracity of His promise to save those who believe.

• Salvation that depends on good works or commitment cannot give full assurance because one's conduct and commitment are never perfect. Only 100% perfection could allow one to have full assurance.

• Full assurance comes from believing objective truth that never changes, whereas subjective human performance and feelings always change.

Objection 6: Free Grace Leads To License To Sin.

• This is a misleading charge based on conjecture more than reality. Rarely can the critic give an example of someone who uses grace as an excuse to live licentiously. The objector should be asked to cite examples.

• Believers normally respond to grace by obeying and serving God, not sinning against Him. When a believer appreciates what God's love and grace have done for him, the natural response is gratitude reflected in godly behavior. While examples of those who see grace as an excuse to live licentiously are rare, examples of those who see grace as a reason to obey and serve God are overwhelmingly abundant.

• This objection is answered conclusively in Romans chapters 6-8 which explain that God's grace gives believers a new life, a new position, and a new power to live righteously.

• Grace trains us to live righteously Titus 2:11-13; we do not earn grace by living righteously Titus 3:5. Training to live a godly life is a lifetime process for every believer.

• Believers are held accountable for how they live. Those who teach Free Grace also teach responsibility and accountability. At the Judgment Seat of Christ, all believers will have to give an account of how they lived. They will be rewarded in this life and in eternity or suffer the loss of rewards Rom. 14:10 and 2 Cor. 5:10.

Objection 7: Free Grace Theology Cheapens Grace By Not Requiring Commitment & Good Works.

• Grace cannot be cheap—or costly—because it is absolutely and unconditionally free Rom. 3:24 and Rom. 11:6.

• Requiring commitment and good works at the front end or at the back end of the gospel is contrary to grace, which makes no demands.

• Though grace does not demand commitment and good works, grace motivates and teaches us to live godly lives Romans 12:1-2 and Eph. 2:8-10 and Titus 2:11-13.

• The gospel of grace is about eternal salvation provided by Jesus Christ's work; discipleship and the Christian life is about our commitment and good works.

• Free Grace distinguishes sanctification from justification (or salvation from discipleship).

Objection 8: Free Grace Teaches That Faith Is Merely Mental Assent.

• Though some Free Grace proponents teach this, not all do.

• Obviously, if someone believes a propositional truth, there has to be mental agreement to it.

• Sometimes the offer of salvation emphasizes mental assent while at other times it appeals to the will also John 4:10 and John 8:24; 1 John 3:23;  1 John 5:1.

• It is questionable whether we can psychologize how and why a person appropriates the offer of salvation.

Objection 9: Free Grace Is Antinomian.

• Since antinomian means no law or without law, we have to define what law is in view. If the Mosaic Law, then yes, Free Grace teaches that Christians are not under that Law Rom. 6:14 and Rom. 7:4 and Rom. 10:4. That does not mean that Free Grace teaches license because the New Testament says believers are under the Royal Law James 2:8, the Law of Christ Gal. 6:2, and a new commandment John 13:34; 1 John 3:18, which are commands to love one another. This fulfills the essence of the Mosaic Law Gal. 5:14.

• Contrary to teaching lawlessness, Free Grace teaches responsibility and accountability with consequences of divine discipline Heb. 12:5-11.

Objection 10: Free Grace Believes A Person Can Apostatize (Fall Away From The Christian Faith) & Still Be Saved.

• We should first try to determine whether the person understood and believed the biblical gospel. It is possible that the assumed or professed Christian was never saved.

• The Bible has ample examples of believers who fell away from the faith with no evidence that they were never saved or lost their salvation.

• The book of Hebrews warns of severe consequences for believers who fall away from the faith.

• The grace of God covers every sin. Salvation that cannot be earned by what one does cannot be lost by what one does. Even if one no longer believes, God is faithful to His promise to save 2 Tim. 2:11-13.

Objection 11: Free Grace Is A Recent Historical & Theological Aberration.

• Salvation by God's free grace has always been taught by the timeless Scriptures. No one has ever been saved apart from God's free grace Gen. 15:6 and  Rom. 4:3-4 and Gal. 3:5-9.

• Grace as a free unconditional gift of God has been controversial since the beginning of the church as seen in the legalists' opposition to the Apostle Paul.

• The Reformers of the 16th century did not end the discussion about the gospel but began the discussion of justification through faith and the grounds for assurance that continues to this day.

• The role of works in salvation and assurance has been a perpetual controversy, though not always under the nomenclature of Free Grace theology. In the 1630's there was a trial in Massachusetts, called The Free Grace Controversy in which the issue of works in salvation and assurance were debated and tried in court (see Making Heretics: Militant Protestantism and Free Grace in Massachusetts, 1636-1641, by Michael P. Winship, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2002).

• Though historical theological trends are informative, the final verdict of truth is the Scriptures.

Objection 12: The Free Grace Movement Is An Irrelevant Minority Movement

• It may well be a minority movement, but isn't that always part and parcel of most movements?

• If it is so irrelevant, why are some prominent theologians beginning to attack it and think it necessary to even claim that it is irrelevant? Doesn't this attest to the growing influence of the Free Grace message?

• There is much evidence that the Free Grace movement is having great influence around the world.

Conclusion

When we preach the gospel of God's free grace we will encounter objections. We have discussed some common ones, but there are more. Why do people object to free grace anyway? It's because man has a natural aversion to grace because of his pride. This leads one to misunderstand the nature of God's amazing grace and to insert human performance and merit. The free and unconditional grace of God seems too good to be true. But the gospel of free grace is the only message that gives believers full assurance of their eternal salvation.

The final verdict on any theological system must be an accurate interpretation of Scripture. Many objections to the gospel of God's free grace come from poor interpretations of the Bible, misunderstandings of Free Grace teaching, or rhetorical canards. Free Grace exalts the God of all grace, the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and the total sufficiency of Christ's work on behalf of all people. Only a proper understanding of God's grace and salvation can give people full assurance of salvation and free them to love, grow in that grace, and share it with others.

Original Sources: https://www.gracelife.org/resources/gracenotes/?id=90&lang=eng

Also see:

• TULIP VS LOTUS