Instant Salvation – No Water Needed

Which one of these phrases is found in the Bible? In churches it is common to hear phrases like 1) “ask Jesus into your heart”; 2) “accept Jesus as your personal Savior”; 3) “pray the sinner’s prayer” or 4) “obey the gospel.” The last phrase is the only one found in the pages of the Word of God (see 2 Thess. 1:8; 1 Peter 4:17). So where did these other religious quotes originate if not from the Bible?

Many denominations have invitations or altar calls for sinners to be saved. The plea goes something like this:

“Just accept Christ into your heart through prayer and He’ll receive you. It doesn’t matter what church you belong to or if you ever do good works. You’ll be born again at the moment you receive Christ. He’s at the door knocking. You don’t even have to change bad habits, just trust Christ as Savior. God loves you and forgives you unconditionally. Anyone out there can be saved if they… Accept Christ, now! As their Personal Savior. Come on down, let us pray the sinner’s prayer. You have a God-shaped hole that only Jesus can fill. Won’t you please ask Him into your heart? So bow your head and repeat this prayer after me: ‘Jesus, I am a sinner. Ask you into my heart. come into my life. Amen.’”

This plan of salvation dates back to the 1830s when Charles Finney came up with the idea of “the mourner’s bench” or “anxious seat.” In more recent years the Billy Graham crusades have made this popular.

Public invitations and altar calls are a regular part of many church services. What are some of the problems associated with this plea?

• Lack of Biblical Evidence

Christ did not use this the altar call. Some say He did: “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 10:32). Where will you find the Bible say “personal Savior”? There is no example of someone accepting Jesus as their personal Savior. To say that Jesus used altar calls is a dishonest use of Scripture. There is not a single verse that even hints we should say a prayer to invite Jesus into our hearts – not even Revelation 3:20 where the context shows that Jesus was seeking readmission into an apostate church not into a lost sinner’s heart.

Where do the People Teach the Sinner’s Prayer for salvation? When Ananias was sent by God to tell Saul of Tarsus how to be saved from his sins of persecuting Christ by oppressing Christians, he did not say, “Saul, keep on praying for three more days until you feel in your heart you have been forgiven by God.” Instead, he told this future apostle of our Lord, “and now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’” (Acts 22:16). Later, when Paul met a group of women who were meeting for prayer by a river near Philippi, he did not teach them to pray for salvation. Instead, he used the word of the Lord to open her heart and “she and her household were baptized” (Acts 16:15).On the day of Pentecost Peter accused the Jews of killing the very Son of God. Those who were moved in their hearts asked, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37). Peter did not tell them to “get off by yourself and pray.” “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). You will notice there was no ASKING, there’s OBEYING!!!

• Emotionally Manipulative Techniques

The call to obtain instant salvation is not based on Biblical conviction but man-made emotional appeals. The lights are dimmed, the music is emotional, the preacher’s tears or gimmicks all are used to set the stage. One pastor set two trash cans on the stage. One can was marked “heaven,” and one was marked “hell.” Each child was given a card and was told to write his or her name on it. The Pastor then gave the instructions, I want you to form a line. Then come by and drop your card, either in the can marked ‘Heaven’ or the one marked “hell.’ Make your decision now. Make your choice.” To make things worse, in the one marked “hell” he literally built a fire. Needless to say, the kids’ response was overwhelming. All of those children got saved.

Salvation is not based on a feeling, but on faith and fact. Salvation is more then a feeling. Feelings of joy and happiness do not prove that one was been saved. Those who take narcotics or drink alcohol can experience similar feelings. Is this proof that they are saved?

• Ambiguous

Many of the phrases used in Instant Salvation are ambiguous as to their meaning, such as, “Make Jesus Your Lord and Savior.” He already is. Then there is the request for sinners to “accept Jesus.” The problem is, Jesus does not need our acceptance; we need His (Rom. 15:7). Another saying which does not make not Biblical sense is “accept Jesus into your heart.” Does the person mean, accept the fact that Jesus HAS saved you, that Jesus CAN save you, that Jesus WILL save you, or what? Sinners do not need to experience a warm fuzzy feeling in their hearts, they need a new heart within them. This man-made lingo is not the Words of God found in the pages of the Bible.

• Teaches Faith Only

The Instant Salvation concept includes the idea of salvation by “faith only.” If it is by faith only it excludes everything else including grace (Eph. 2:8). There is only one time “faith only” is found in God’s Holy Word and it teaches just the opposite of those who claim on can be justified by faith only. “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (James 2:24).

• Requires No Repentance

The”altar call” does not require repentance of sin as did Peter of those who were saved on the Day of Pentecost. “Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Repentance is “a definitive turning from evil, a resolute turning to God in total obedience” (Gerhard Kittel, Theological Dict of the NT, Vol 4, 1002). Repentance involves the awareness that “I am going in the wrong direction. Stop. Turn around. Start going in the right direction. Not stop until I arrive at the right destination.” It is not just changing one’s mind about Jesus.

• Requires No Confession

Oral confession of Christ is one of the prerequisites to salvation. “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” (Rom. 10:9-10). Philip would not baptize the Ethiopian until he heard a verbal confession of the sinner’s beliefs about Jesus (Acts 8:35f). Instant salvation does not require this confession.

• Requires No Baptism

Although Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; 1 Peter 3:21 all point to the link between salvation in Christ Jesus and baptism, Instant Salvation claims that baptism along with repentance and confession are works. However, in John 6:28,29 Jesus claimed that faith is a work. Others argue that these three are never mentioned in the Gospel of John and therefore not relevant to salvation in Christ. The phrase “God’s love” is not found in the Book of Acts. Should we conclude that the love of God is not relevant to salvation?

• Gives False Assurances

The altar calls present sinners hope of salvation based on false assurances. Instant Salvation leads sinners to believe their eternal salvation on a one-time confession. All they need to do is call out “Lord, Lord.” But notice what Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” (Matt. 7:21-23).

If someone asked you for directions on how to get to the hospital and you said them in the opposite direction, you are giving them false hope and they may be lost and die. If you give someone false directions to Jesus they will not find salvation. The invitation plea of “Instant Salvation” is like tell someone who wants to get to heaven that all they need to do is the “hokey pokey.”

“Instant Salvation” reduces the plan of salvation to merely believing in God and praying for salvation from your sins. It skips the steps outlined in the Bible and advocates a scheme of redemption which cannot be supported anywhere in the Scriptures. If you feel you were “saved” by this Instant Salvation please reconsider what the Bible really has to say about being saved.

– Daniel R. Vess