Some time back, a controversy arose in the evangelical church over what is called “lordship salvation.” In its simplest terms, the question is whether one can have Christ as Savior but not as Lord. That is, can one possess salvation for eternal life while exhibiting no discipleship in this life? The “lordship salvation” people say that if one has been redeemed by the grace of God, one should also expect that one will be renewed by the grace of God. Those who oppose, say that to measure whether or not people are saved by judging their progress in holiness is a form of legalism — if grace is free apart from works then we should not be judging that grace by works. Lordship people counter by saying that, indeed, grace is free, not a result of works, but the grace imparted for salvation is also imparted for sanctification, they cannot be separated.
I’m with the “lordship salvation” camp. What I find comforting in this doctrine is that the holiness expected of disciples throughout the New Testament does not rest in my will or determination to realize. It is grace that is “training [believers] to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:12). As John MacArthur observes, “It is unthinkable that God would sacrifice His Son to purchase heaven for sinners but leave them to fend for themselves against the power of sin in this life.” Grace is available, is at work, to make us into the kind of people Jesus came to save, “a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14).
Does that mean that there is nothing for us to do regarding sanctification? Do we just persist in feeding on sin until grace comes along, grabs us by the scruff of the neck to drag us away from the trough? I don’t think that’s what Paul (nor the “lordship” camp) has in mind. Consider the description of the activity of grace in the letter: training. This is the Greek term used to describe the instruction of children. The purpose of training is to direct children to what is good and healthy for them. The hoped for result is that they will learn for themselves, evidenced by their following the wisdom they have embraced, what is profitable and what is not. It’s no different for us. Grace is at work awakening us to what is true, good, and beautiful so that we would “live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.” Grace saves; grace trains. Grace for then; grace for now. Soli deo gloria.
