The Free Grace Alliance

By Dr. Roger Fankhauser, FGA President The fallout of Tullian Tchividjian's admission of an "inappropriate relationship" will sweep broadly through the Christian community. First, how does it impact the message of Free Grace? I'll call Tchividjian "Free-Grace-ish," as he seems to have moved substantially towards a free grace position, but may not be fully free-grace. His views recently led to a separation between him and the Gospel Coalition, as explained by Tim Keller and Don Carson: It was obvious to observers that for some time there has been an increasingly strident debate   going on around the issue of sanctification . The differences were doctrinal and probably even more matters of pastoral practice and wisdom. [1] So, reformed theologians already have their eyes on him. As I write this, I have yet to see any article by a prominent reformed writer which connects his fall with "antinomianism" or his free-gr...

Dear Friend of the Gospel, As you consider year end giving, would you consider helping the Free Grace Alliance? I'm prayerfully asking God to give us $25,000 or more. Would you help? The FGA turned 10 this year. And the need to "connect, encourage, and equip" is greater than ever! 2014 was a good year. We heard great speakers at the annual conference in October. Dr. Charlie Bing, one of the founding members of the FGA presented a excellent workshop about our history some of the misunderstandings about the Free Grace Movement. You can read his manuscript on our website (http://freegracealliance.com/). We held several regional conferences throughout the year. Many FGA members travelled around the world, helping to connect with, encourage, and equip church leaders who might otherwise not receive much grace-friendly training. As I was typing this appeal, a man who was one of my students in Ghana called me and thanked me (again) for the training we brought. All around the ...

Okay, we stole the line. But it is a true statement! Some of you think you've joined the Free Grace Alliance or that your dues are current, and thus you think you are a current member. Here are a few tests to see if this is true: If you have joined the Free Grace Alliance and your dues are current, you recently received access to the "Members Only" page, which allows access to a "live" membership directory. What a helpful tool if we really want to connect - encourage - equip! If you joined the Free Grace Alliance and your dues are current, you recently received a paper addressing a critique of free grace in general and the Free Grace Alliance in particular given by a prominent reformed theologian. The paper corrected many of the misconceptions this theologian had about free grace. If you joined the Free Grace Alliance and your dues are current, you recently received an invitation to provide literature on your ministry for us to include in the folder...

  Good news... and a headache or two!     Good news #1: The Free Grace message seems to be gaining some momentum. I think this in part because we are getting some "push back." For example, one of the sessions at the next Evangelical Theological Society is called "Salvation without Repentance from Sin? A Critique of the 'Free Grace' Gospel." Why do I consider this good news? Because a prominent, globally known reformed theologian thinks the Free Grace message is worth critiquing at the ETS meeting, and thus sees it as more than just an inconsequential viewpoint! I'll say a bit more about this workshop below.   Good news #2: We see the message going around the globe. I recently returned from Ghana, where we  trained church leaders, focusing on a strong emphasis on grace. I know of a number of other "free gracers" who have traveled or will soon travel. And I know of many around the globe, such as a friend of mine in Nepal, who receives ...

After having great intentions of writing something each month, I find I am behind a month or two. Please forgive my tardiness! I have lots of excuses that I won't bore you with, but some of them are legitimate! I want to briefly address four ideas this month. First, how is the Free Grace message getting spread? I am leaving for Ghana two days after writing this and I know others of you travel to other countries. We'd like to know where you are going! Our mission is to "connect, encourage, and equip," and hearing about what God is doing through your work is a great way to encourage and be encouraged.   I know of trips either "on the books" or recently completed to Ghana, Finland, Burundi, Ukraine, Nepal, Philippines, India, Honduras, and Papua New Guinea. I'm sure there are others. Drop a note on Facebook and/or send a short write-up to our blog master, John Correia (pastorjohn@westgreenway.com), and we'll post it on the blog! Let us know, t...