The wonderful thing about historical Christianity, is that for the past five centuries, all beliefs and teachings have been recorded in the many wonderful creeds and confessions of the faith.

III. & VIII. We believe, also teach, and confess that Faith alone is the means and instrument whereby we lay hold on Christ the Saviour … after that man is justified by faith, then that true and living faith works by love, and good works always follow justifying faith, and are most certainly found together with it, provided only it be true and living faith. For true faith is never alone … — Formula of Concord (1576), The Creeds of Christendom, ed. Philip Schaff, 3 vols. 3:116, 118

Submitting in obedience to Christ is a natural outworking of genuine saving faith, and sola fide or the doctrine of faith alone, has for five centuries, taught that genuine saving faith “results” in obedience to God (1Jn 2:3-6; 3:6-10; 5:3-4 Jn 14:15,21; 15:10), and good works that “follow after” justification (James 2:14-26; Eph 2:10).

XII. Of Good Works: Albeit that Good Works, which are fruits of Faith, and follow after Justification… do spring out necessarily of a true and lively faith… by them a lively Faith may be as evidently known as a tree discerned by the fruit. — Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England (1571), The Creeds of Christendom, ed. Philip Schaff, 3 vols. 3:494

If you encounter someone who says something like ‘there’s no such thing as a Lordship position,’ it might be helpful to gently reference the confessions for clarification. Let’s clarify that sola fide, the original Lordship position, is not legalistic by examining a set of definitions and descriptions.

5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. — Jesus teaching “resulting” fruit-bearing in John 15:5 (NLT), Approximately A.D. 30.

1. Legalism is when you attempt to merit (earn) your salvation by works.

The Bible is against the heresy of legalism, but supports Christ’s fruit-bearing metaphor of resulting obedience to God. Legalism bad, fruit-bearing good. No historic protestant confession has ever taught that the fruits of the faith merit or earn justification. The Holy Spirit produces the fruit, not human strivings. It’s a supernatural outworking (Ga 5:22-23 NLT; Jn 15:4-5; 1Cor 3:6-7).

“The Pharisees were formalists, focusing entirely on the externals of action, disregarding motives and purposes, and reducing life to mechanical rule-keeping. They thought themselves faithful law-keepers although (a) they majored in minors, neglecting what matters most (Matt. 23:23–24); (b) their casuistry negated the law’s spirit and aim (Matt. 15:3–9; 23:16–24); (c) they treated traditions of practice as part of God’s authoritative law, thus binding consciences where God had left them free (Mark 2:16 – 3:6; 7:1– 8); (d) they were hypocrites at heart, angling for man’s approval all the time (Luke 20:45–47; Matt. 6:1–8; 23:2–7). Jesus was very sharp with them on these points.”

2. Synergism is when you believe that faith plus works justifies.

Historic Christians believe saving faith will result in obedience and that we must guard jealously the fact that faith alone is what saves us, not faith plus obedience (synergism). No historic Protestant confession says that saving faith includes obedience.

“In Galatians, Paul condemns the Judaizers’ ‘Christ-plus’ message as obscuring and indeed denying the all-sufficiency of the grace revealed in Jesus (Gal. 3:1–3; 4:21; 5:2–6). In Colossians, he conducts a similar polemic against a similar ‘Christ-plus’ formula for ‘fullness’ (i.e. spiritual completion: Col. 2:8–23). Any ‘plus’ that requires us to take action in order to add to what Christ has given us is a reversion to legalism and, in truth, an insult to Christ.”

3. Historic Christianity believes that genuine saving faith “results” in obedience to God, and good works that “follow after” justification. These are the fruits of the faith that manifest during sanctification. Sanctifying works not justifying works.

Justification is by faith alone (Rom 3:28), but a faith that does not grow the fruit of obedience by the power and indwelling of the Holy Spirit, is not true faith; it is a dead faith, and James rejects salvation by a dead and superficial faith (James 2:14-26). Genuine faith always “results” in the fruits of the faith (Ga 5:22-23 NLT; Jn 15:4-5; 1Cor 3:6-7), denying this, denies His transformative power.

  1. Verses against legalism (Eph 2:8-10; Gal 2:16,21; 3:10-12; 5:4; Ro 3:20,28).
  2. Verses against antinomianism (1 Jn 3:6-10; 5:18; Jd 4 NET; Ro 6:1-2,15; 3:8,31; Heb 10:26-31; 6:4-6; Lk 9:62).
  3. Verses for obedience “after” justification (1Jn 2:3-6; 3:6-10; 5:3-4 Jn 14:15,21; 15:10). (not “includes” or “plus”)
  4. Verses for Godly dispositions of Love (1 Jn 2:9-11; 3:10; 4:8,20; Jn 13:34-35).
  5. Verses for Godly and Holy lives (Heb 12:14; 1 Tim 6:3-4; 2 Tim 3:12; Titus 2:11-12; Gal 5:22-23).
  6. Verses for good works “after” justification (James 2:14-26; Eph 2:10). (not “merits” or “earns”)
  7. The Holy Spirit produces the fruit, not human decision (Ga 5:22-23 NLT; Jn 15:4-5; 1Cor 3:6-7).

I believe saving faith will result in obedience… We must guard jealously the fact that faith alone is what saves us, not faith plus obedience. … No historic Protestant confession says that saving faith includes obedience. — Historic Protestant Position

4. Antinomianism denies the transformative power of the Holy Spirit.

They falsely teach no works or fruits need follow saving faith, leading to a blind faith, hypocrisy, carnality, debauchery, and eventually destruction through apostasy. They also falsely teach a twisted form of faith called assent which strips trust from the equation, and a watered down unscriptural version of repentance that only takes place in their head. This, of course, matches no authoritative Greek lexicon, or dictionary, and has been disproven by the academic community and centuries of sound doctrine, creeds, and confessions. They despise the truth that repentance is contrition (2Cor 7:10), a hatred for sin (Jude 23 NLT), and a turning from sin (Acts 3:26; Act 3:19).

For there will be a time when people will not tolerate sound teaching. Instead, following their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves, because they have an insatiable curiosity to hear new things. And they will turn away from hearing the truth, but on the other hand they will turn aside to myths. — 2 Timothy 4:3-4 NET

Genuine Saving Faith Chart

I’ve created a simplified chart for your convenience.

Genuine Saving Faith  
Legalism
The Pharisees
Works = Justification
Violates: Eph 2:8-10; Gal 2:16,21; 3:10-12; 5:4; Ro 3:20,28		 False
Synergism
The Judaizers, most Catholics, most Witnesses, Mormons, some Lordship salvation
Faith + Works = Justification
Saving faith includes obedience.
Violates: Eph 2:8-10; Gal 2:16,21; 3:10-12; 5:4; Ro 3:20,28		 False
Monergism
Historic Sola fide, Protestant Christians & Moderates, most Lordship Salvation, some moderate free grace
Saving faith “results” in obedience “after” justification. Faith Alone = Justification. Resulting in Fruits
Defends: Eph 2:8-10; Gal 2:16,21; 3:10-12; 5:4; Ro 3:20,28
Reconciles: Jn 14:15,21; 15:4-5,10 1 Jn 2:3-6; 5:3-4; James 2:14-26; Eph. 2:8-10; 1 Jn 3:6-10; 5:18; Jd 4 NET; Ro 6:1-2,15; 3:8,31; Heb 10:26-31; 6:4-6; Lk 9:62		 True
Antinomianism
Extreme 80’s “Free Grace” Heresy, Hyper-Grace Heresy (Antinomianism), Woke Theological Liberalism.
Faith Ignoring Regeneration & Sanctification = Justification - Fruits
Violates: Jn 14:15,21; 15:4-5,10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 5:3-4; James 2:14-26; Eph. 2:8-10; 1 Jn 3:6-10; 5:18; Jd 4 NET; Ro 6:1-2,15; 3:8,31; Heb 10:26-31; 6:4-6; Lk 9:62		 False

False teachers only want Jesus “as savior” but deny him “as Lord” over their lives (Jd 4 NET; 2Pe 2:1-2 NET). Both are true for the saved, as Christianity is a call to discipleship (Mt 10:38 NLT; Lk 9:23; 14:27).



Christian theologians have never seen faith simply in terms of intellectual assent to Christian belief. It is a matter of the heart, not simply the mind, involving personal commitment. As the English theologian William Temple (1881–1944) once pointed out: “Faith is not only the assent of our minds to doctrinal propositions: it is the commitment of our whole selves into the hands of a faithful Creator and merciful Redeemer.” …

Faith is about trust in God, rather than just accepting that God exists.

— Dr. Alister McGrath (Ph.D., Molecular Biophysics at Oxford; D.D. Theology at Oxford; D.Litt. Intellectual History at Oxford), Theology - The Basics, Faith. p. 1,4.

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The idea that there can be saving faith without repentance, and that one can be justified by embracing Christ as Saviour while refusing him as Lord, is a destructive delusion.

— Dr. J. I. Packer (Ph.D., University of Oxford). Concise Theology, 60. Repentance. Time Magazine top 25 evangelical. On faith, on repentance.

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Jesus on another occasion said, “Why do you call me Lord and yet you don’t do the things that I command you?” You see, our problem is that we’ve come to think of the term “Lord” as a name and so we say, “The Lord Jesus Christ” and we think of Lord as His first name, Jesus His middle name and Christ His last name; He’s the Lord Jesus Christ. But in reality when I say the Lord, you should put a comma there for Lord is not his name; it’s His title. The title that signifies my relationship to Him. He is my Lord, I am his slave; I am his servant, He is my Lord.

— Chuck Smith C2000

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“The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.” ― Ecclesiastes 12:11