I was playing golf with a good friend when he posed this question on the third tee box:

“Do you believe that a person has to say, ‘yes,’ to Jesus to be saved?” He continued. “If Christ’s death on a cross made salvation available to all mankind, then doesn’t everyone have salvation without saying ‘yes’ to Christ?”

I told him no.

He then asked, “Where does it say in the Bible that you ‘have to’ say ‘yes’ to Jesus to be saved?” What a great question! I had never heard it before. I want to present my answer to both questions in this post, but I want to know how you would have answered his question! How would you have supported it biblically?

Since the topic is salvation, let me lay down a foundation for it. I Peter 1:2 outlines the plan: we are chosen by the Father, set apart in faith by the Spirit, and cleansed by the blood of Christ. This passage shows a Triune God taking part in the plan of salvation:

• From God’s vantage point, He made salvation available to everyone before He created the world.
• From Jesus’s vantage point, He made salvation available to everyone when He shed His blood on the cross for the penalty of our sins.
• From the Holy Spirit’s vantage point, He made salvation happen when you said “yes” to Jesus.

The Holy Spirit’s role is critical. He waits for us to say, “yes,” to Christ by acknowledging our need for forgiveness and affirming our commitment to be His disciple. So where does it say we must respond to Christ in the Bible? I found two passages that express the importance of verbalizing a “yes” to Christ, but I can’t say for sure that God mandates it:

1. Acts 2:21, “And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
2. Rom 10:9-10, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”     

In the meantime, the Bible contains a plethora of verses that connect “believing” in Jesus and “being saved.” Examples include:

• “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life” John 3:36
• “Whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16
• “He who believes in me will live.” John 11:25

Is to “believe” in Jesus the same as saying “yes” to Him? Let’s look at “believe” in the original Greek language. The Greek word is pisteuo’, which means put faith in. It is an active, present verb. It means we have to take action to secure our salvation.

Christians often distinguish between head knowledge and heart knowledge. Head knowledge is agreeing with facts about who Jesus is and what He did for you on the cross. Heart knowledge is acting on the facts through a prayer to Jesus. For example, you can know all about Jesus from the Bible. You can affirm that He died on the cross for you, you can believe that He conquered death through His resurrection, but that doesn’t mean you’re saved if you haven’t said “yes” to Jesus. The danger of head knowledge is having a false assurance of your salvation. Jesus speaks to this in Matthew 25:31-46. He describes a judgment day when he will separate the sheep (believers) from the goats (unbelievers). The goats lived with head knowledge of Jesus and professed Him as their Savior. They did ministry in His name without ever entering into a relationship with Him. Jesus informs the goats, “Depart from me, I never knew you.”

I believe Jesus expects to have a relationship with us based on the passage above, which means we need to say, “yes,” to Him. Let’s think about it. Jesus loved us enough to lay down His life for us and then conquered death through His resurrection. He offered a love relationship with us, promised eternal life, and in return, we said nothing to Him! Can you imagine?!

Photo Courtesy @Shutterstock.com/sarahdesign

We are celebrating Easter next week, and I want you to be certain that you have said, “yes,” to Jesus through a simple prayer:

“Dear Lord, I am admitting that I am a sinner in need of your forgiveness. I believe that you are the Son of God who came to earth to die on the cross to cleanse me of my sins. I am affirming that you gave me the hope of eternal life by conquering death through your resurrection. I am not only confessing you as my Savior, but I am making a lifelong commitment to do your will with the help of your Holy Spirit. Lord, thank you for offering the gift of salvation to me. I humbly say, “Yes, I accept.” Help me to be an effective servant in your Kingdom from this day forward. I pray this in Jesus name, Amen.”  Happy Easter!

How would you have answered my friend’s question? Are there passages I’ve missed that you would have included in today’s post? I look forward to your inputs. Please share them below.

Blessings,

Lee Ann