We feel like laughing when we consider the solemn commandment, “thou shalt not kill”, as a bishop blesses the army.

George Bataille, Eroticism (1962)

Is Salvation by Faith a Free Gift or Must it be Earned?

Abstract

Even if the choice of faith or unbelief is entirely up to human beings, they are deciding one way or the other, and only one of the choices has the required reward. That means the reward is not freely given but depends on the choice—one choice is right and the other wrong—just as a pass mark in an exam depends on making the right choice of answer. A special form of behaviour is necessary for salvation. People still have to earn salvation by behaving in the way God approves of.

A Free Gift?

Christians say that faith is God’s free gift that requires no special behaviour or effort to earn. Christians do not have to try to be good.

By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God.
Ephesians 2:8

Good deeds are not needed for salvation but only faith. That is unfair on those who are faithless but good, but, even so, do all those who have faith automatically get this free gift? The answer has to be, “No!” if God is omnipotent, because otherwise He is constrained. So, even faith does not ensure salvation. In the end, it is God’s whim! Such a capricious doctrine cannot be just.

Moreover, even if the choice of faith or unbelief is entirely up to human beings, they are deciding one way or the other, and only one of the choices has the required reward. That means the reward is not freely given but depends on the choice—one choice is right and the other wrong—just as a pass mark in an exam depends on making the right choice of answer. A special form of behaviour is necessary for salvation. People still have to earn salvation by behaving in the way God approves of.

The reward is still based on God’s approved choice, and so the reward is not freely given. All that has happened is that instead of God making the criterion of salvation something altruistic that might help life in this world, such as doing good deeds, he has made it selfish.

Last uploaded: 09 November, 2009.

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God’s Own Summary of the Bible—Magi Mike’s Blog
I explain here in a criticism of a book by F S Collins: “We will see that Christ gave two answers when asked for the most important commandment, and the reason is that the two… ”
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Before you go, think about this…

We have elections in the belief that governments will carry out policies we want, but our favorites lose, or join a coalition with another party whose policies we do not want, or on election they simply adopt different policies from the ones we voted for. Is it surprising that 30 to 50 per cent of the electorate commonly do not vote. Yet in comparison with totalitarian countries we make failure to vote into a virtue—it proves how free we are. The real message is that many people are resigned to being punished. They have become passive and often despairing, believing that they cannot influence events so there is no point in trying. Similarly we may all know the planet is dying but we feel helpless about it and so have become apathetic about our fate.

Who Lies Sleeping?