We affirm that Adam was in a covenant of life with the triune God in the Garden of Eden, in which arrangement Adam was required to obey God completely, from the heart. We hold further that all such obedience, had it occurred, would have been rendered from a heart of faith alone, in a spirit of loving trust. Adam was created to progress from immature glory to mature glory, but that glorification too would have been a gift of grace, received by faith alone.

via Federal-Vision.com | © 2009 Elavno Media.

Some false accusers and twisted logicians are accusing the above statement of heresy because perfect obedience, allegedly, cannot be “faith alone.”

But the issue is one of instrumentality. Neither Adam’s nor a present-day believer’s faith is alone in the person of the believer. The question is trust. Was Adam to trust in the merit of his good works or trust in the kindness of God (who made a promise out of mere grace) and the faithfulness of God (who can thus be trusted to keep his promise)?

He obviously had no merit before God, other than the nominal meaning of “merit” as simply fulfilling the conditions of the promise. This definition would apply to believers as well who are justified by faith as required by the covenant of grace. If we take a substantial definition of merit, then Adam had none. Adam was no more supposed to trust in his own works then we are supposed to trust in our own faith.

In any case, faith alone is not incompatible with a life of good works. So for example, we read in the Westminster Confession, “Of Saving Faith”

By this faith, a Christian believeth to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word, for the authority of God himself speaking therein; and acteth differently upon that which each particular passage thereof containeth; yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life, and that which is to come. But the principal acts of saving faith are accepting, receiving, and resting upon Christ alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant of grace.

Obviously, there are differences here. Adam (nor Eve) had to trust in a mediator, in his person and work, as the ground of their standing before God, as we do (and as the Joint FV statement robustly affirms!). But the narrow point here is that there is no contradiction between “faith alone” and a behavioral requirement. According to the Westminster Confession we are not only justified but sanctified by faith alone in Christ alone. But what is sanctification?

the dominion of the whole body of sin is destroyed, and the several lusts thereof are more and more weakened and mortified; and they more and more quickened and strengthened in all saving graces, to the practice of true holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

So this is both a behavioral requirement and a condition for final salvation (“without which no man shall see the Lord”).

Maybe anti-calvinists out there will want to attack on this point, but for faithful Presbyterians there is no contradiction between required obedience and rendering such obedience by faith alone.