A simple addition is a deadly thing.
BQ: I talk to many people who say, "The Bible says that 'faith alone through grace saves you.' They believe it is so, and it's hard for them to imagine why my eyebrow arches up like it does. :P
Q: 1.) How many times does the Bible say that faith alone through grace saves you? 2.) How many times is the phrase "faith alone" used? 3.) Why is saying, "we are saved by grace through faith alone" bad?
A: 1.) Zero (0) times. It says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith." (Eph 2:8-9) Notice how that is worded. God specifically left out the word "alone." It absolutely never says that.
2.) One (1) time. "You see that a man is justified by works and NOT by faith alone." (Jms 2:24) Now observe the similarity in sentence construction between Eph 2:8-9 and Jms 2:24: they both say, "X saves you," but neither of them say that "X alone saves you." In fact, we can see that both of these save us, and that James implies both are necessary. Otherwise he would have had to say, "You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith." By saying "justified by works and not by faith alone," James makes the implicit assertion that both are necessary.
3.) God never approved of people adding even a single word—in this case, "alone"—to His teachings. "You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you." (Deut 4:2) "I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book." (Rev 22:18)
Saying that "faith alone saves" is just as bad as saying "works alone saves" a person. There is just as much evidence in the Bible for both of these doctrines: absolutely none.
(PN172)