Popular Salvation

“Just believe. Ask Jesus into your heart. Say the sinner’s prayer. You will be saved, and it is impossible to lose your salvation.”

Those words are popular, but are they true? If we just believe for salvation, why are we told to then ask and pray? What is it, just believe or ask and pray?
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Where does the Bible say to “just believe” for salvation? It certainly teaches us to believe, but where does it say to just believe? Doesn’t the Bible teach us that it is only a convicted, trusting, obedient, working faith that saves? Doesn’t the Bible teach us to repent of our sins for salvation? Doesn’t the Bible teach us to confess our faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, for salvation? Doesn’t the Bible teach us to be baptized for salvation?

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Where does the Bible say to “ask Jesus into your heart”? There is no such teaching anywhere in the Scriptures. No one was ever told to ask Jesus into their heart to become a Christian.

Where is the sinner’s prayer in the Bible? Christ did not give us any prayer to say so that we might become one of His followers. His apostles didn’t either. There is no such sinner’s prayer in the Bible.

Where does the Bible say it is impossible to lose your salvation? The Bible absolutely teaches that salvation is secure for those who keep the faith, but what of those who do not? Doesn’t the Bible tell us that some have fallen from grace and that we all need to beware so that it does not happen to us, too?
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Search the Scriptures to see if these things are so. Here are some relevant passages to consider: Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:46-47; John 3:1-6, 16, 36; 10:27-29; 12:42-43; Acts 2:36-41; 3:19; 8:5-24, 35-39; 10:43, 48; 11:18; 16:14-15, 30-34; 18:8; 22:16; Romans 1:5; 6:1-11; 8:1, 35-39; 10:8-17; 16:25-26; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Galatians 5:4-6; Ephesians 2:8-10; Colossians 2:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; Titus 3:4-7; Hebrews 2:1, 3; 3:12-13; 4:11; 6:4-6; 10:23-31, 35-39; James 2:14-26; 1 Peter 3:20-21; 2 Peter 1:5-11; 2:1-3, 20-22; 1 John 1:5-2:2; 5:13.