Editorial: Good Works
Don Fortner
Along with every other
man who preaches the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace in Christ, I am
constantly charged by religious legalists with antinomianism. And, along with
all other sovereign grace churches, the men and women of
I cannot stop the
mouths of our detractors. But I can comfort and encourage God's people, so that
the scandalous charges with which they are reproached do not disturb them. To
that end I have written the articles which appear in this issue of THE GRACE
BULLETIN. The articles are principally taken from my sermon notes for two
messages I preached last month on the subject "BE CAREFUL TO MAINTAIN GOOD
WORKS" (Tit. 3:5). If you would like to have these two sermons on cassette
tapes, they may be purchased for $2.00 each, $4.00 for both tapes, postpaid,
from GRACE TAPE MINISTRY, Route 3,
The legalists charge
that the gospel we preach is antinomian and that it promotes wickedness and
licentiousness. I challenge them to prove their charge! Let their
be no mistake. We do, without apology, preach complete justification in
Christ by the grace of God, without works - free, complete, irreversible pardon
to all who believe - the eternal security and preservation of all God's elect -
and the believer's total freedom from the law. What is the result of this
preaching? I have been privileged for eight years to pastor a church without
the least measure of strife or division. In peace, love and unified commitment,
our assembly labors together for the furtherance of the gospel around the
world. Our people give generously to support their pastor and other servants of
Christ in the work of the gospel. This church is committed to evangelism and
missions. And her pastor does not have to pump, pull, plead, prime and pamper
folks to get them to serve the cause of Christ. If this is antinomianism, give
me more of it! Until the legalist can produce love, joy and peace by tormenting
people with law, his arguments will fall on deaf ears.