[Editor’s note: This is Part 2 of a four-part series. Click here for Part 1, Part 3, or Part 4]

I will never forget the first time I heard Mr. Gothard teach that “unmerited favor” is a faulty definition of grace. His first step in redefining grace was to look up the New Testament word “graciousness” which is abbreviated as “charis” in the Greek language. “Charis” means, in part (the part that Bill utilizes) “the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude, joy, and liberty.” He used this partial definition of graciousness to define and apply every usage of the word grace in the Bible. Romans 11:6: “And if by grace, it is not of works, otherwise grace is no more of grace.” Gothard removes the emphasis on the unmerited gift of God and replaces it with an emphasis on one kind of gift from God and how we are to utilize this gift, earning His favor. Bill Gothard teaches that “in the Old Testament, those who found grace possessed qualities that MERITED God’s favor.” He uses Philippians 2:13 to explain his extra-biblical definition of grace as being “the desire and the power to do God’s will.” His teaching limits “grace” to the realm of sanctification (growing in Christ) while excluding justification (God’s declaration of sinners being righteous in Christ).

Yes, God in His grace gives us the power to carry out His will and to obey His law written upon our hearts. Everything that we do is only because of His grace working through us. But this cannot limit our understanding of its definition. This power is freely given by God. Never earned. As with his other teachings, Bill Gothard bends grace, leading people back to a set of rules, thus making his followers stuck in this self-defeating cycle: Get grace to keep the law in order to earn more grace to keep the law so that you can earn more grace in order to keep from sin,… and on the cycle goes.

Obviously, we believers grow in grace as noted in the Bible. We grow in GRACE, though. Not the law. Not by works do we grow INTO grace. Not by graciously complying with anti-societal rules, regulations, and “principles” compiled to earn favor with God. In order to grow in grace, we apply Matthew 7:8-9. We ask, seek, and find this beautiful gift. Forget about “earning” or “meriting” this gift. It’s free!

Those who struggle with sin, temptations, habits and addictions, instead of depending on lists of man-made rules and regulations, should rest their hopes on prayer and the promises of God’s Word. We have a generous Heavenly Father Who longs to give His grace to us–free of charge. And this grace, unmerited and unearned, continues to grow in us, changing us, transforming our lives. This is the cycle of grace. Unaltered, undefined, UNMERITED, unearned, free grace!

In his re-defining of grace, Bill laid a foundation (on the basis that it’s earned) which leads to a cycle of never-ending bondage to performance. He’s laid a foundation portraying merited grace combined with the teaching that Christians can’t handle freedom. The common thread throughout his ministry is that God is our harsh judge. I spent many years under this understanding. I neglected to see God as a loving Father because I was too consumed with wondering if I’d failed God. My heart was heavy, weary and rule-burdened under the weight of pleasing Him. Only in recent years has it occurred to me that God is not the kind of Father who simply lays down a list of moral demands. Rather, He is a loving Father who redeems and transforms us through His grace into the image of His son. This changed me from feeling like a slave of the law, fearing the wrath of a ruthless Judge because I may have missed a rule or two to recognizing that I’m a sanctified, free child of God. Free to overcome sin, and free to walk in newness of life.

I heard Bill Gothard once say (on a trip to Russia) that “Christians can’t handle freedoms.” Yet, the believer who enjoys Christian liberty experiences true worship–praise from a heart toward God. The believer who lives only by a list of rules will praise (and defend) the one who wrote that list. This is why Bill Gothard’s followers are too often distracted from devotion to Jesus, and so vehemently defensive of him.

This post is continued here…