Of all the doctrines contained in God’s Holy Word, there is none more important to the present welfare and eternal destiny of man than the doctrine (plan) of salvation. And of all responsibilities assigned to Christians by Jesus Christ during their tenure on this earth, none is more important than sharing God’s plan of salvation with those who are unsaved and bound for an eternity separated from their Creator.

Among evangelical Christians who know Bible doctrine there is little disagreement on the basis for God’s plan of salvation. Its source and foundation is centered in the person and work of Jesus Christ during His life as the incarnate Son of God upon earth. With clarity the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ left the glory of heaven to take on human flesh and be born of a virgin in the land now called Israel. He lived among mankind and visibly demonstrate that He alone was capable of living a life without sin, and by both word and deeds He revealed that He was in fact whom He said He was—Deity and humanity inextricably combined in one very unique person—the Son of God.

But the primary purpose for Jesus Christ coming to earth was not to live a perfect life, share heavenly instructions and perform miraculous works. His principal objective was to become a vicarious (substitution) sacrifice for all mankind, to take upon Himself (and even become) the sins of every single person on earth (past, present and future) as He hung on the cross of Calvary (Isaiah 53:6; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24). He did this in order to “redeem mankind”—pay the penalty-price for mankind’s sin by spiritual death, i.e., separation from the Father (Matthew 27:45, 46). And as a result of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross any person may be saved, i.e., receive God’s grace-gift of eternal life (Matthew 20:28; Romans 5:6, 8; 1 Timothy 2:6; Titus 2:14). Upon payment of this price and thereby satisfying the judgment and wrath toward sin required by God’s holy nature, Jesus Christ allowed Himself to physically die and be placed in a grave, only to resurrect Himself after three days in order to unquestionably confirm that He was and is Deity—the unique and only Son of God—“the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29; 1 John 3:5).

This historical and factual account of Jesus Christ is the centerpiece of the doctrine of salvation. And just as most evangelicals who know God’s Word are in agreement with this, they also agree that it is by faith in Christ that a person receives God’s grace-gift of salvation (John 3:16-18; Ephesians 2:8). This determination is confirmed from approximately 150 Bible verses, which stipulate that (non-meritorious) faith in or to believe in Jesus Christ is the only requirement for apprehending salvation. They unanimously recognize that self-efforts or personal deeds (works) are of no value in man’s acquisition of eternal life (Ephesians 2:9).

Yet many of these same evangelicals often use misleading statements or expressions when presenting God’s uncomplicated and straightforward plan of salvation, particularly when they endeavor to “close the deal” (solicit a positive response of faith in Christ from the unsaved person). They don’t do it maliciously or purposely, but they do it all the same. Their presentation is usually the product of prior coaching from other Christians who have influenced them in how to “get a person saved,” who have passed on “tried and proven” techniques in achieving success. Often such techniques that use misleading statements and expressions are embodied in a series of steps, which are encouraged to be followed to the letter. And even though such misleading statements and expressions have no biblical basis, in the mind of many evangelical “soul-winners” they have credibility due to the many respected Christians that use them and the fact that many unsaved individuals come to Christ by their use.

It is unfortunate that young Christians early-on adopt such misleading statements and expressions without question from others before they become grounded in the doctrine of salvation. As young Christians with limited understanding of the Bible, they eagerly adopt the practices of more “mature Christians” who themselves received their presentations of salvation’s plan from more mature Christians while they were young in the Lord, who in turn did the same when they were first starting out in the Christian life, ad infinitum. This is a case of “practice making permanent, not perfect.”

But what is even more unfortunate is that once their soul-winning “technique” becomes permanent in their lives, they resist (shut their mind to) any improvement on the matter, lest they conclude they could be wrong—themselves or any Christian they hold in high esteem; or that such improvement in presentation will not coincide with their own “salvation experience.” Also, the very fact that they have been successful in the past by bringing unsaved persons to Christ is demonstrable evidence that what they are doing is correct! Or, is it?

Before listing some of the misleading statements or expressions, which are used by well-intended and totally sincere soul-winners, and commenting there upon, it is freely admitted that many of the unsaved upon whom such statements and expressions are used do indeed come to Christ in genuine faith and do indeed become saved. But this is accomplished at the time in spite of such statements and expressions and sometimes subsequent to such soul winning efforts. It is also freely admitted that many very fine Christians and soul-winners will find fault with the comments of this study, but this writer can only request that each one take the time to consider, with as open mind as possible, the arguments and the Scripture in this study.

Christians generally make no errors when they convey to the unsaved their lost condition in sin and that due to this condition they are destined to an eternity without God (John 3:18; Romans 3:23; 6:23). Likewise they make little error in explaining to the unsaved how Christ paid the penalty-price for their sins; although, admittedly, many confuse Christ’s spiritual death on the cross with His physical death as the payment—but then it is not necessary for the unsaved to understand all the theological aspects of Christ’s death(s), just necessary that they accept Him as their Savior by faith in place of any self-effort or works on their part.

Where confusion can creep in is when the soul-winner explains to the unsaved person how he may apprehend God’s grace-gift of salvation. He will often use the following misleading statements or expressions:

It is curious that Christians who persist in using such expressions, either cognitively or ignorantly, either cannot find any basis for such statements or expressions in the Bible; or, they “hang their hat” solely on misinterpretations of two or three verses of Scripture. It is the intent of this study to demonstrate the truth of this with each statement or expression listed above. This being said, consider the evaluation of each statement or expression, as follows:

Ask Christ to come into your heart.

Nowhere in the Bible does anyone use or is instructed to use this expression relative to the salvation message. It is an expression coined outside of biblical canon and can only be confusing to a lost person unless explained to him that it means to “place one’s total and genuine faith in Christ” in order to be saved. The Bible has much to say regarding the “heart,” which in the context of salvation is essentially the seat of one’s emotions, mentality and will, used to convey “genuineness of purpose or decision.”

Specifically, when a person believes in Jesus Christ, his faith must be with his “whole heart”—meaning that his faith must be totally sincere or genuine (Acts 8:37; Romans 10:10). This faith comes as the result of a genuine—“with the heart”—understanding of the gospel message (Acts 28:27) and the willingness to candidly—“from the heart”—obey it (Romans 6:17).

One who uses this expression will often turn to Revelation 3:20 wherein it is stated, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” The assumption is that Christ is standing at a person’s heart’s door waiting to be invited in. Although one may assume this, the truth is that this verse applies to those who are already saved at the church of Laodicea who are neither “cold nor hot” in the service for their Lord. The application cannot be truthfully applied to an unsaved person.

Robert B. Thieme, Jr. in his Rebound Revisited puts it this way.

The danger in using such an expression without being very clear that salvation is strictly by faith in Christ is that the unsaved person may not be aware that salvation is a matter solely of faith, rather that his salvation is contingent upon his prayer—a meritorious effort on his part. And should this be his ultimate understanding, his faith is in his “prayer of invitation” and not in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Hence, he will not be saved.

Pray the “sinner’s prayer.”

Nowhere in the New Testament do the apostles or other believers suggest to the unsaved that they pray a “sinner’s prayer.” Those that insist on such a procedure as the avenue to salvation base their claim on and model the prayer after the publican’s [tax collector’s] prayer in Luke 18:13, And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” Here again there is misinterpretation of the passage, but not without reason. The words “be merciful” are a translation of the Greek word, hilaskomai, which should be translated “be propitious,” a phrase that conveys “satisfaction.” In fact, the entire verse is best translated by Kenneth S. Wuest in his book, The New Testament—an Expanded Translation, as follows:

Whereas the term, “merciful” conveys the concept of “overlooking sin,” which God can never do, the term, “propitiation” conveys the concept that by way of the cross (the blood-sacrifice of Jesus Christ) God completely covers man’s sin so that a righteous God and sinful man may come together without any violation to the holy nature of God.

Lewis Sperry Chafer, late President and Professor of Systematic Theology of the Dallas Theological Seminary and world-renowned evangelical theologian, in his Systematic Theology, Kregel Publications, 1993, explained it this way:

The same is true when it is insisted that the unsaved person include in the “sinner’s prayer” a request to God to “forgive his sins.” God has already accomplished this “in Christ.” He will not do it in answer to the sinner’s prayer, for then it becomes a response to a “meritorious work” on the part of the sinner. But once the sinner places his full and genuine faith in Christ, forgiveness of all sin (past, present and future) as it pertains to the petitioner’s eternal destiny then becomes an accomplished and permanent fact.

A variation of “asking God to forgive” one’s sins that is often used by soul winners is to instruct the sinner to “confess” his sins (or that he is a sinner) before God during the “sinner’s prayer.” 1 John 1:9 is used to support this notion. Again, this is totally unsupported biblically. In the first place, the sinner needs not confess to God something that God already knows; or, to acknowledge in a meritorious prayer a realization that God has generated in the sinner. And in the second place, the passage in 1 John applies to Christians, not the unsaved.

The bottom line is that the unsaved person need not ask God to show “mercy” toward him, to forgive him or to cover his sin by sacrifice. God has already done this in Christ. Nor does he need to ask God to be gracious toward him, because again, God has already done this in Christ. In the person of His Son, God has been both merciful, gracious and completely forgiving on the cross of Calvary. The unsaved never need to ask or beg God for something that God has already accomplished and is most eager to apply to anyone who will simply by faith receive it.

Rather than ask an unsaved person to accept Christ by means of a “programmed prayer,” which employs biblically erroneous language and meaning and which may easily be interpreted by the unsaved person as some meritorious “work” on his part, it would be best to simply ask the person, based on what he “now knows” about Christ and His sacrifice, to make a decision to trust (an equivalent word for faith) Christ only for his personal salvation. The person then has the opportunity to confess openly to the soul-winner that he is both willing and has made such a decision—and this decision made within the person’s “will” instantly brings to him eternal life.

Before leaving this aspect of this article, it is freely admitted that multitudes of the lost who have prayed the “sinner’s prayer” have been saved; but, they have been saved either prior to parroting the prayer, when with their “will” they made the decision to trust in Christ, or after the prayer (seconds, minutes, hours or days later) when within they “willfully” realized and agreed (evidence of faith) that it was only Jesus Christ and His work that secures their personal salvation.

Repent of or forsake your sins and believe in or on Christ.

Repentance is absolutely necessary for a person to be saved. The problem lies in the soul-winner’s failure to convey the true meaning of this term when witnessing to an unsaved person, which then makes it possible for it to be understood as a “works” requirement on the part of the petitioner as part of the salvation “formula.”

Lewis Sperry Chafer in his Systematic Theology addressed this very important topic in this manner:

Even if the presenter of the gospel doesn’t personally believe that repentance is “sorrow for one’s sins,” this is usually the message conveyed to the unsaved listener. The human heart is prone to imagine that there is some form of atonement for sin by being sorry for it. Most often the term, “repentance” is never defined or explained from the pulpit. Ministers generally feel that its meaning is understood. Unfortunately, the common belief is that repentance is nothing more than a feeling of penitence—of sorrow for one’s sin, and/or, that it is a totally separate act that the unsaved person must perform, which is to turn from one’s sins.

The term “repentance” means only “a change of mind and direction.” It essentially means that “change in attitude” that a person experiences as the result of the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, which change allows him to make the decision that nothing (good works, super deeds, grand intentions, pious behavior, religious ceremony—absolutely nothing) can bring about his personal salvation other than Jesus Christ and what Christ did for him on the cross of Calvary. This “change of mind,” which in itself is prompted by the influence of God’s Spirit, allows the person to direct his faith only to Jesus Christ. It has nothing to do with emotion or sorrow and cannot be self-generated upon demand, lest it be a meritorious “work” required for salvation.

To reiterate, “repentance” as a “change of mind” will always accompany the salvation experience, but it should never be presented as a “condition of salvation,” lest it be misconstrued as a separate and self-generated (and thereby meritorious) act of sorrow for one’s sins. Once this is perceived by the unsaved person as one of two conditions for salvation, he is in no position to place faith alone in Christ alone for his personal salvation. He will be combining his work of repentance with faith in order to achieve eternal life, and this is contrary to God’s Word and won’t get the job done!

Again, take note of the words of Lewis Sperry Chafer from his Systematic Theology:

The Bible student will discover the distinct absence of the demand for repentance from salvation scriptures while researching this topic. Chafer points out that there is upwards of 115 New Testament passages that condition salvation on believing, and fully 35 passages that condition salvation on faith, which latter word in this use of it is an exact synonym of the former. These 150 passages include practically all that the New Testament declares on the matter of the human responsibility in salvation; yet each one of these texts omits any reference to repentance as a separate act. As Chafer puts it, “This fact, easily verified, cannot but bear enormous weight with any candid mind.”

It should also be pointed out that the Gospel of John, which is written to present Christ as the object of faith unto eternal life, does not once employ the word repentance. And in this marvelous book is the most quoted passage, which is spoken by Christ Himself regarding the “salvation formula” in all of Scripture—John 3:16 (For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life).

In like manner, the Epistle to the Romans, which is the complete analysis of all that enters into the whole plan of salvation by grace, does not use the word repentance in connection with the saving of a soul, except in verse 2:4 where the word is the equivalent to salvation itself.

When Paul and Silas in Acts 16 answered the direct question from their jailor concerning what he should do to be saved, they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." (vs 31). This reply fails to recognize the necessity of repentance in addition to believing. “From this overwhelming mass of irrefutable evidence, it is clear that the New Testament does not impose repentance upon the unsaved as a condition of salvation.” (Systematic Theology by Chafer)

So then, what about the significance of repentance in specific (but few in numbers) “problematic” passages of Scripture? In many cases it conveys only a “change of mind,” in others it represents or equates to the act of salvation in its totality and in others it represents a specific meaning to a specific audience. There are a few passages that offer no exegetical difficulty because it is easily discernable in each case that the word repentance is (1) a synonym of believing (cf. Acts 17:30; Romans 2:4; 2 Timothy 2:25; 2 Peter 3:9) or (2) a synonym of a change of mind or direction (cf. Acts 8:22; 11:18; Hebrews 6:1, 6; 12:17; Revelation 9:20). Also, there are three passages that employ repentance that specifically target Israel, but they too employ the word as a synonym to either believing or a change of mind or direction (cf. Acts 2:38; 3:19; 5:31). Yet three passages deserve extended consideration.

Luke 24:47, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Kenneth S. Wuest, Teacher Emeritus of New Testament Greek at the Moody Bible Institute, renders this verse more accurately as, and that there is to be preached in His name repentance with reference to the putting away of sins to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Here the meaning of preaching “repentance in His name [Christ]” is the equivalent of preaching the placement of one’s trust in Christ, which results in the “putting away of sins.”

Acts 20:21, testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward [in] our Lord Jesus Christ. Here both Jews and Gentiles must change their mind regarding God, for without an understanding of God’s gracious purpose there can be no reception of the idea of saving faith. It is possible to recognize God, as many do, and still not receive Christ as Savior.

“Repentance toward God,” in this case, is a heart-felt change of mind regarding how one is actually saved—from works by self to grace by faith. This repentance is distinguished from and yet tied to “faith toward [in] our Lord Jesus Christ.” In this case repentance and faith are but two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. When a person places his faith in Jesus Christ, he is in fact turning from all other concerns regarding the salvation of his soul. True faith in Jesus incorporates the concept of repentance.

Acts 26:20, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn [by turning] to God, and do works befitting repentance. Here the Apostle Paul is saying to King Agrippa that he was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, because he went to both the Jews and Gentiles instructing them to change their minds regarding God [by accepting Christ by faith] and then do works that would demonstrate true repentance [i.e., salvation faith].

Lewis Sperry Chafer in his Systematic Theology concludes his dissertation on this subject with the following remarks, which have application to this study.

The bottom line is that any Christian who endeavors to lead an unsaved person to Christ should guard against making the final step of placing one’s faith (total and genuine trust or confidence) in Christ a series of “steps,” which then relegates it to a mixture of “faith and works,” a product that nullifies proper faith.

And as in the previous aspect of this study, this writer freely admits that multitudes of the unsaved have been saved after being presented with the “closing” of “repentance plus faith;” but, their salvation came in spite of such presentation, when they exercised their will in placing total and genuine faith in Jesus Christ for their personal salvation.

Accept Christ and confess Him publicly.

On the other hand many well-intentioned ministers often combine faith in Christ with the requirement to confess Him publicly as an additional step in “being saved.” To do this is to again diminish the concept of salvation by grace through faith. The unsaved person, by hearing this proclamation, understands that he must do two things in order to be saved. He must confess publicly along with exercising his faith, because to exercise faith alone is insufficient. With this as his understanding and his action, he cannot and will not be saved. Why? Because the process is then works-based, i.e., it includes something “he must do” apart from faith. This is in stark contradiction with upwards of 150 salvation-invitation texts throughout the Word of God. Yet there are two passages of Scripture that seem to suggest just this. They follow:

Matthew 10:32, therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. This study can only validate the cogent remarks regarding this passage by Lewis Sperry Chafer in his Systematic Theology.

Romans 10:9 & 10, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. The primary meaning of verse 9 is the necessity of recognizing (acknowledging) Jesus Christ as the Messiah and His work on the cross of Calvary, to include His resurrection. But verse 9 (confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus) is further explained in verse 10 (with the heart one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation). It may better be rendered, as seen in the original text, “For with the heart [a genuine decision of the will] faith is exercised resulting in righteousness and with the mouth [outward expression] is evidence confirming [before man] this salvation. This interpretation is further confirmed by verse 11, for the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame [or be ashamed]. Here the emphasis is on salvation by faith alone, yet it includes the fact that the one who is saved by faith will also experience a change of nature that is evidenced by communicating an outward testimony.

The Believer’s Bible Commentary by William MacDonald has these concluding remarks regarding this passage, “When we present the gospel, we must maintain that faith is the sole condition of justification. But we must also remind sinners and saints constantly that Jesus Christ is Lord (Jehovah-God), and should be acknowledged as such.” Lewis Sperry Chafer concludes in this fashion.

Lordship Salvation: Ask Christ to be the Master/Lord of your life or Commit your life to Christ or Confess Christ as Lord or Believe and profess Christ as Lord of your life.

Many sincere believers who are inattentive to doctrine are also easily led to suppose that the same dedication that is urged of believers and stressed throughout God’s Word, which is voluntary in the case of the believer, is imperative in the case of the unsaved. This message may be expressed in several ways when one is attempting to relay the “salvation formula.” Such phrases as ask Christ to be “Lord of your life” or “Master of your life” come to mind. All such terminology, though meant well and though may be understood by the deliverer of the message, conveys the wrong message to the hearer of the message.

An earnest study of Scripture will reveal that prior to a person accepting by faith alone Christ alone, he is spiritually dead—unable in any way of making any spiritual commitment or dedication to God.

Robert B. Thieme, Jr. in his Rebound Revisited puts it this way.

To reiterate, to “believe” is not a simple “head belief” or an intellectual acknowledgment of the historical facts that Christ lived and died on a cross. It is a conscious (willful) and truthful (genuine) decision by a person to trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ, and nothing else (person, thing or system), for his personal salvation. It means that the person makes a genuinely conscious decision to accept without tangible proof (therefore by faith) the fact that Jesus Christ did everything necessary for his personal salvation, that is, he counts on it, or, in other words, he “stakes his eternal soul” only on Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for eternal life.

Regarding the belief that commitment or dedication is part of The Salvation Formula, Lewis Sperry Chafer in his Systematic Theology has this to say.

Those that level such a requirement on the unsaved ignore the need of Christ’s death as the ground of regeneration and forgiveness. They substitute consecration for conversion, faithfulness for faith and beauty of daily life for believing unto eternal life.

Chafer goes on to say,

To conclude this phase of the study, it is suggested that the minister, the missionary, the soul-winner place the priority on the salvation of the soul when addressing the unsaved. And this may be accomplished only when the lost person exercises faith alone in Christ alone. Once this is done, only then is there the obligation for the believer to make Christ Lord of his life.

Summation.

This study has attempted to show that the Bible clearly teaches that it is faith alone in Christ alone that is the sole condition placed upon man to apprehend eternal salvation. It has not been the purpose of this study to irritate or anger any well-intentioned believer who seeks to carry out the Great Commission; although, it is realized that the contents of this study may well do this.

The salvation formula (plan of salvation) is so important that every believer must “get it right.” It is totally of grace by faith. Anything added to this makes it a “way by works.” Lewis Sperry Chafer concludes:

A person need not walk an aisle, pray a prayer or make a public confession to be saved; although these may illustrate the fact that the person is saved (for often saving faith precedes such prayers and/or professions). The emphasis must always and only be on the inner decision of faith, which the unsaved may execute in the privacy of his heart (will). Once he does this he is instantly and permanently saved.

The ONLY time in the Bible where the question is advanced, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” is found in Acts 16:30, to which the apostle Paul gave a complete and accurate answer in verse 31 by saying, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

SALVATION is by FAITH ALONE IN CHRIST ALONE!!