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                                                                                                                          June 1, 2012

Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus,

 One of my functions as President of the Free Grace Alliance is to respond to the mail.  Each month I receive a variety of letters and e-mails containing comments, and requests regarding the Free Grace Alliance.

The queries usually involve one of two types of questions. Many have ministry questions and are interested in ministry opportunities, looking to network and align themselves with like-minded people from their ministry perspective. This is always a delight to be able to connect people and encourage them to maximize their ministry.

The second topic of interest that comes to my desk usually includes theological questions and often involves questions concerning topics like - dispensationalism. “Does one need to be a dispensationalist to be a member of the Free Grace Alliance?”  Others ask, “Can a person be a member of the Free Grace Alliance if they are not a strict sensationalist?”  Some even ask questions regarding the topics of “Millennial Exclusion Theory,”  “The Nature of Gehenna,” and the belief in “The Partial Rapture Theory.”   And of course everyone’s favorite - “Can I be a Calvinist and be a member of the FGA?”  These types of questions are of great importance theologically and biblically.  And as such, each of us needs to determine what we sense is the teaching of the scriptures.

In terms of the FGA, I tell them to look to our Covenant statement on our website to see what “we believe.”  It is certainly not all of what we believe, but it is what all FGA members do believe. FGA is not a denomination or a congregation. It is somewhat of an association, and is actually more of a conglomeration - an alliance of like-minded people working toward a common purpose.  I sense that FGA has a theological unity without uniformity. We serve as a ministry within diversity, maintaining our unity, as expressed in the FGA Covenant. There is a time to be dogmatic. There is even a time to be “bull-dog-matic,” but there is also a time to allow for difference of opinion.   All that being said - - I welcome your letters.

Please mark your calendar for the FGA National Conference in Dallas/Irving, Texas - October 8-10.  It will be a great opportunity to fellowship with like-minded believers and hear from some excellent speakers.



Serving Him with you
Until He comes for us,

Fred Chay, Ph.D.
President, FGA


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