According to Dummies.com in an article titled, Understanding Salvation by Faith, this is written:
The notion that salvation is totally of God and is the result of nothing that anyone does is hard to grasp. To many, this solution is too easy. Human nature almost demands us to tack something onto the end. And many through the ages have felt compelled to add onto the central message of Christianity. But the Bible makes it clear that salvation is sola gratia — by grace alone. As Ephesians 2:8–9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith. It is not from yourself or anything you’ve done, but the gift of God.” Salvation, therefore, is a free gift of grace from God.
Amen, brother. Oh, sorry. You are not finished? Please continue…
Although all Christians agree that God’s grace is what saves people, they disagree considerably over what a person’s role is in this whole process. Obviously, a Christian needs to believe in Jesus Christ, but a sticky issue has always been whether faith by itself is sufficient for salvation. The Christian Church is split on this issue.
Obviously? How is that obvious? Where are you reading this exactly?
No answer? Perhaps another like-minded individual will have an answer. To quote Don Koenig in his article, Belief Implies Trust in Jesus and by This Faith You Are Saved:
Contrary to what some preachers say the way to salvation is not rocket science.
I could not agree more. Please, go on…
A person is saved when He believes that Jesus is the Lord of Creation and that Jesus saved them from their sins when He died and rose again.
Sorry, brother. You lost me. Where is your Bible reference for that?
The gospel of John said that God came into the world in the form of a man (Jesus) and the world did not know Him but as many as received Jesus He has given the power to become sons of God (John 1:12). So John said salvation comes by receiving Jesus.
Oh, I see. That makes sense. But wait. Did you read the verse before it? It says, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” Even His own rejected Him. Then verse 13 says, “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” I could be wrong, but this seems to imply that His own could not even receive Him without first being born, not due to man’s will and desire, but of God.
Okay. Enough satire. It is all-too-common for Bible-believers to be under the notion that we are saved by grace, not by works, yet also think that belief is ultimately a requirement in order to be finally saved. After all, we do read such verses like Acts 16:31 which says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”
This idea that belief is a necessity for eternal salvation has been one that used to plague me. Even before I was a serious student of the Bible, I could not wrap my head around the idea. I knew I was saved by God’s grace alone. I knew Christ came to save sinners and did. But even with grace and the blood of Christ, no one will be saved without first believing?! I just did not understand it.
Other questions would disturb me as well. What is belief? Belief in what? How can I rest when I am not sure if I truly believe like I should? It was all so confusing and quite burdensome. So much for Christian liberty with those thoughts running through my head.
One step at a time. First, what is belief? Well, according to Strong’s Greek/Hebrew dictionary, belief (pisteuō) means “to have faith in, to entrust, to commit.” This word actually comes from the Greek word, pistis, which is translated into the English word, faith, throughout the New Testament. For instance, Jesus said in Luke 7:50, “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.”
So faith and belief are practically synonymous with one another. That makes perfect sense. Consider it this way. Do I really love a person if I never express that love through actions like kindness and patience and other qualifications defined in the Bible? I would say no. Then how can I believe without trusting in what I say I believe in? If I truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, I would be going to church, helping the poor, and following every commandment I know to follow.
We already have a problem trying to attribute belief to the scheme of eternal salvation. If true belief means we are performing faithful works, yet we know salvation cannot be accomplished by our will and works, then how can belief in Christ be a requirement for eternal salvation?
Next, we must answer the question: Belief in what exactly? Most simplify the answer to this question by saying we must believe in Christ and possibly His work. Okay, what if I believe Jesus was the Christ and that He saved His people on the cross but, since that’s all it takes, I never go to church again or do any other faithful duty? Is my belief sufficient? Most would say no. Why? Because belief is not a fleeting emotion or a passing thought. It is action. It is a deep conviction which cannot exist apart from works. But again, salvation cannot be by works.
Next, what about being freed from the law? What about the liberty that Christ has given us? Romans 8:21 says, “Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” Obligation is bondage. It does not matter how small or large the obligation is. Obligation is diametrically opposed to liberty. If we are obligated to believe and trust in the Lord (even if we should), we have no liberty. We are still burdened by an obligation to God in order to be eternally saved.
Some will argue that Christ merely made the burden much, much lighter than it was in the Old Testament. Yes, our “duties” in this life as disciples of our Lord is much lighter. But this does not change anything concerning our eternal fate. We are told that if we have broken one commandment we have broken them all. We are told that only perfection will be accepted by God. We are also told that every man, woman and child is imperfect. In short, none of us are getting into heaven. Whether the Old Testament folks followed the law or we in the New Testament church believe with all our might, we still fall short of glory. Hence, the need for Christ to save us.
The most common misconception among God’s people is that belief is somehow something different than a work. It is a reasonable misunderstanding since so many have been instilled with this notion as long as they have gone to church. But what is a work of man? Well, it’s anything man is able to do. Since man is able to believe, it is a work. What else could it be? How can this one thing that man does be somehow something other than a work?
But then again, maybe there is more to belief than that. Romans 2 says, “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness.”
Remember the conversation between Paul and King Agrippa? Paul said, “I know that thou believest.” Agrippa responded, “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.” Paul knew Agrippa believed yet Agrippa said himself he was not quite persuaded to, what I call, actively believe.
In one sense, God’s people believe in their hearts simply because God put a believing heart in them (Eze. 36:26). That new heart of flesh is one that testifies to God’s truth because His truth is contained within it. But at the same time that does not mean a person’s brain will catch up to his heart. In other words, a person may have a believing heart, but that does not mean they will actively believe and do the good works they ought to do as one of God’s people.
In short, active belief (works) can only occur when God has given a believing heart. We know it cannot be a person’s works that save. I also contend it is not the believing heart that saves, rather, the believing heart is given to those who are saved by grace and the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. After all, we are told that Christ “shall save his people from their sins.” Eternal salvation cannot be by any human will or effort, otherwise we would be saved by works. Paul said, “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.”
Perhaps you wonder, Then why is not every person saved in the end? Great question which I will provide a simple answer. God does not save everyone and He does not change every person’s heart. You may argue, “That unfair and cruel!” Well, Paul answers this objection by saying, “What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?”
We ask, “Why did God not save everyone?” I believe a better question is, “Why did God save anyone?”
Now before I dismiss the class, let’s consider some of those troubling verses which you may tempted to use in order to refute the notion we are not saved by belief. The are two things to bear in mind when we read about belief and salvation in the Bible. First of all, we must ask, “Are we reading about belief of the heart (which God sovereignly puts there) or active belief (which is a work of man)? Second of all, we must ask, “What are we being saved from?” Let me give you an example.
In Acts 16 which I mentioned earlier, we read, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” To give you the short version of the story, this prison guard was struck by the miraculous work of God in the prison. He fell down trembling at the feet of Paul and asked, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul then responds, “Believe…and thou shalt be saved.” Obviously, the prison guard was already convicted in his heart. Otherwise, a desire to be saved would still be foolishness to him (1 Cor. 1:18). Notice he is asking Paul what he might actively do in order to be saved. Of course, we cannot be saved by works so Paul should have responded by saying something like, “For by grace are ye saved and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Unless Paul is talking about a different kind of salvation.
Paul went on to teach the man and his family the Word of God and he baptized them. Did listening to the gospel or getting baptized save them eternally? Of course not. Again, we are not eternally saved by works. The fact they were desiring to do these things is evidence of their faith and faith is evidence they have been born of the Spirit which is evidence they are saved. So now we ask, “What were they saved from?” If not everlasting hell, then what?
We read a similar situation in Acts 2. Several approach Peter and ask, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Notice they were first pricked in their hearts as though someone, namely God, had done something to their hearts.) Peter tells them to repent and be baptized (active belief). He also says by doing so they would “save themselves from this untoward (wicked) generation.” To paraphrase, “Look, folks. You are saved by grace. Your belief now is evidence of that. But that doesn’t mean you should continue in sin like the rest of the world. You are a child of God and it’s time to start acting like one. Why? Because a life of sin is misery. It’s hell because it separates you from God. You lose the joy of being one of God’s people. No, your sin will not condemn you to hell. It cannot because Jesus saved you from your sins. That was the point of His death. Even so, you’ve got a few more years to live on this earth and you have an opportunity to enjoy being one of God’s born again, saved-by-grace people. So save yourselves from the misery of this world and enjoy God’s kingdom by following Him. You can start, as you would expect, by repenting and being baptized.”
Maybe that was too long to be a paraphrase, but hopefully you understand my point. That’s just one example. Context is everything in the Bible. Just because the Bible mentions salvation, does not necessarily mean it’s talking about eternal salvation. We can all agree on that. For instance, we’re told that Noah was saved by the waters of the flood. Does anyone believe that Noah is going to heaven because it rained? I doubt it. Now apply this logic to other “trouble” verses you come across. After all, Paul said we should “rightly divide” the word of truth.
To summarize:
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- Anything man can do is a work.
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- Belief of the heart is a sovereign work by God on a passive object.
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- Belief of the heart is not the saving factor but evidence of the salvation bought by Christ.
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- Active belief is evidence of the belief God put in the heart.
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- Active belief is something man does, therefore, it is a work.
- We are saved by God’s grace alone.
- We are not saved by works!
- We are saved by God’s grace ALONE!
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Sopme say only the “elect” are to be saved. (These people were picked before the world was made and no one else can be saved.) They go on to say “Work can not save anyone. So, are all the rest eternally lost?
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In short, yes. But do not think this is some small handful of people. It is a great multitude which no man can number.
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How could a non-Christian be born again?
Should a person use only one verse to conclude messages that God intends for us? Let’s meditate Matthew 5:9 as follows: Matthew 5:9, “Blessed [are] the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God”. As the word, peacemakers, is mentioned in Matthew 5:9 with the phrase, the children of God, a false message could come about that as long as a person, whether he is a believer or not, declares peace in this world, he or she could be considered as a child of God or a Christian. Thus, using a verse to conclude God’s message is erroneous.
Examples to prove that not all the people, that proclaim to believe in Jesus, will automatically be granted with the Holy Spirit:
1) Acts 19:1-2, “And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, HAVE YE RECEIVED THE HOLY GHOST SINCE YE BELIEVED? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.” The phrase, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed, in Acts 19:1-2 implies that not all the people, that believe in Jesus, would automatically be granted with the Holy Spirit or else it would not justifiable for Acts 19:1-2 to enquire whether these people had received the Holy Spirit at the time of their believes with the assumption that the Holy Spirit would automatically be granted at the time when they began to believe.
2) Acts 8:14-17, “…Samaria HAD RECEIVED THE WORD OF GOD,….when they were come down, PRAYED FOR THEM, THAT THEY MIGHT RECEIVE THE HOLY GHOST: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.). Then laid they [their] hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.” As the phrase, received the word of God, is mentioned in Acts 8:14-17 with the phrase, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, it implies that believing in Jesus does not imply a person would receive the Holy Spirit automatically unless requesting it.
3) Matthew 7:21, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” The phrase, every one that saith unto me Lord Lord, in Matthew 7:21 refers undoubtedly to those people that believe in Jesus since they call Jesus to be their Lord. Would these believers be accepted by the Lord? No, they will not be accepted by the Lord since Matthew 7:23, “(mentions that) And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” As these people, that call Jesus as Lord, could be rejected by Him in the last days, it implies that not all, that believe in Jesus to be their Lord, are Christians.
Is it irrational to use Matthew 7:21-23 to jump into conclusion that Christians would lose salvation since 1 Corinth 3:12 opposes it? The following is the extract:
1 Corinthians 3:12-15, “Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. IF ANY MAN’S WORK SHALL BE BURNED, HE SHALL SUFFER LOSS: BUT HE HIMSELF SHALL BE SAVED; yet so as by fire.”
As proved above that Matthew 7:21 should not be applicable to backsliders since Christians would never lose their salvation, the only possible reason to think of and that is those people that are mentioned in Matthew 7:21 that proclaim Jesus to be Lord are not Christians at all.
The same is supported in Luke 13:24-25 that many believe in Jesus and yet not many are saved. The following is the extract:
Luke 13:24-25, “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: FOR MANY, I say unto you, WILL SEEK TO ENTER IN, AND SHALL NOT BE ABLE. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I KNOW YOU NOT WHENCE YE ARE:” The same is mentioned in Matthew 22:14, “(that) For many are called, but few [are] chosen.”
Some Christians might use the two criminals that hung on the cross as an excuse for not requesting the receipt of the Holy Spirit. They have to bear in mind that Jesus had not resurrected yet at that time and the criminals did confess that they were sinners too. Besides, one of the criminals did not reject when Jesus called him to follow Him to be with Him in the paradise. Do you find this to be his acceptance of Jesus for his confession when he agreed to be with the Lord to be in the paradise without opposing Him?
Should a Christian declare that faith alone could save a person without accompanying with any action? James 2:21-24, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. YE SEE THEN HOW THAT BY WORKS A MAN IS JUSTIFIED, AND NOT BY FAITH ONLY.” The same is mentioned in James 2:18-19, “(that) Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: SHEW ME THY FAITH WITHOUT THY WORKS, AND I WILL SHEW THEE MY FAITH BY WORKS. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.”
Should a non-Christian repent for their sins or should he or she declare to believe in Jesus and yet worship Buddha simultaneously? John the Baptist went before Jesus to declare repentance and this shows that repentance is significant for Christianity’s conversion. James 1:21, “(even mentions that) Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” As the phrase, lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, is mentioned in James 1:21 prior to the phrase, receive…the engrafted word, it implies the significance of repentance prior to receiving Jesus as his or her Personal Saviour.
Why should a non-Christian confess sin? 1 John 1:8, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” As the phrase, we say that we have no sin, is mentioned in 1 John 1:8 with the phrase, the truth is not in us, it implies that non-Christians would not have God’s truth with them if they declare that they are not sinners. As God’s truth is not with non-Christians if they do not confess that they are sinners before God, there is a query whether God would dwell within their bodies at the absence of biblical truth in them. Thus, it is a must for non-Christians to declare before God to be sinners to seek His forgiveness. The absolute promise of God for those who confess their sins before Him and that is: 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Repentance and confession are significant to non-Christians for their receipts of the Holy Spirit since John 9:31, “(mentions that)…God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” The phrase, God heareth not sinners, in John 9:31 implies God’s rejection of those non-Christians that insist not to repent and continuing in worshipping Buddha and the insisting that they are not sinners before God. These people would have their prayers to be in vain even if they declare to believe Jesus Christ and Buddha at the same time. The phrase, God heareth not sinners, in John 9:31 implies purity is significant for non-Christians’ conversions and prior to the receipt of the Holy Spirit and that is why it demands non-Christians to repent and to confess their sins before God to have their sins to be cleansed for purity. Thus, it is significant for all the people that declare to believe in Jesus Christ to have their sins to confess before God especially Psalms 5:4, “(mentions that) For thou [art] not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.” Psalms 5:4 seems to highlight to us that God would not dwell among non-Christians if sins are with them. For this reason, it is advisable for all the people that declare to believe in Jesus Christ to confess their sins before God so as to have their sins to be cleansed with purity for God’s dwelling.
Did the Gospel highlight to us to request for the Holy Spirit? The following are the extracted verses to prove that Jesus and even His disciples did request for the receipt of the Holy Spirit:
1) John 4:10, “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; THOU WOULDEST HAVE ASKED OF HIM, and he would have given thee living water.” The phrase, have asked of him, in John 4:10 has stressed the significance of the request for the Holy Spirit.
2) John 6:32-34, “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. THEN SAID THEY UNTO HIM, LORD EVERMORE GIVE US THIS BREAD.” The phrase, Then said they unto him Lord evermore give us this bread, in John 6:34 is another proof that Jesus’ disciples did request for the receipt of the Holy Spirit. However, their requests could only be fulfilled until after Jesus’ resurrection in the Calvary.
3) Luke 11:13, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall [your] heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
From the above extracts, these give an absolute certainty that a person could receive the Holy Spirit through requesting for the receipt of it.
Bear in mind that Romans 8:9, “(mentions that)…if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” As the phrase, any man have not the Spirit of Christ, is mentioned in Romans 8:9 with the phrase, he is none of his, it implies that those people, that do not have the Holy Spirit/Jesus Christ with them, are not considered to be Christians at all.
Assurance from God that we will receive the Holy Spirit when we ask from Him: Luke 11:10, “For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” The same is supported in Mark 11:24, “(that) Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive [them], and ye shall have [them].”
Romans 10:9, “(mentions) That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” This verse implies that our faith should be grounded upon the resurrection of Jesus. Muslims too believe in Jesus, but they reject the resurrection of Jesus. However, Romans 10:9 demands not only to confess Jesus but also to believe He has been resurrected.
Sinner’s prayer has met the requisition of the confession since it demands non-Christians to confess themselves before God of their believes in the name of Lord Jesus Christ. It demands also the non-Christians to acknowledge the resurrection of Jesus and that meets the requirement of Romans 10:9. Not only that, it requires non-Christians to confess their sins before God for purification and also to express their needs for Jesus Christ to be their Personal Saviour. One should bear in mind that God will deny those people that believe in Jesus and yet refuse to proclaim the name of Jesus. The following are the extracts:
1) Luke 9:26, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and [in his] Father’s, and of the holy angels.”
2) Luke 12:8-9, “Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.”
3) Matthew 10:32, “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.”
There should not be any worry if a person does not have confidence whether he has received the Holy Spirit before, he should not hesitate but to ask for the receipt of the Holy Spirit since spiritual baptism only takes effect once. Once a person has received the Holy Spirit, he would not receive any more in the future since Ephesians 4:5, “(mentions that) One Lord, one faith, one baptism”. The phrase, one baptism, in Ephesians 4:5 implies one spiritual baptism instead of more than once.
Now, let’s meditate Matthew 5:9 again: Matthew 5:9, “Blessed [are] the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God”. As we know once a person receives Jesus Christ to be His Personal Saviour, his spiritual fruits will grow and these include peace in God and that is why Jesus mentions Matthew 5:9 to be appropriate since Christians would have their spiritual fruits to grow and these include peace, one of the spiritual fruits (John 15:5).
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Prior to praying sinner’s prayer, a person has to repent from sinning, such as, continuing in worshipping idols and etc. Repentance is the foremost significance for the conversion to Christianity. Without repentance, a non-Christian might pray a hundred times sinner’s prayer, God would not listen to him since John 9:31, “(mentions that)…God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” Sinner’s prayer is only effective when a person fully repents from sinning, such as, discontinuing in worshipping idols and etc., and he then says sinner’s prayer, God would then come and dwell into his life.
When a person becomes a Christian through sinner’s prayer, he is a Christian even though he might sin in the future and he will never fall away for his promise. This is supported by 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 as follows:
1 Corinthians 3:12-15, “Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. IF ANY MAN’S WORK SHALL BE BURNED, HE SHALL SUFFER LOSS: BUT HE HIMSELF SHALL BE SAVED; yet so as by fire.”
If you have read the book of Romans, you would have discovered even Paul himself was struggling with sin. The following is the extract:
Romans 7:18-20, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [how] to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” Indeed, Paul did sin against God since Romans 7:19, “(mentions that) For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.” Even though Paul did sin, Paul is still considered to be a Christian. As Paul himself could fall into sin, it implies that a person is still considered to be a Christian due to his initial acceptance of Jesus Christ to be his Personal Saviour through sinner’s prayer even though he might or will sin in the future.
Does this mean Christians should give way to sin? No, God forbids since John 14:15, “(mentions that) If ye love me, keep my commandments.” and the same is supported in John 15:10, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.”
Nevertheless, sinner’s prayer is the way to be born again since it demands a non-Christian to request for the receipt of the Holy Spirit. However, once a person is converted, he has to obey God’s commandments. He might sin in the future and yet his salvation is permanent.
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Does Acts 19:1-9 (Christians in Ephesus ) give a strong proof that believing attracts immediate receipt of the Holy Spirit?
Let’s meditate Acts 19:1-9:
Acts 19:1-9, “…at Corinth , Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus : and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, HAVE YE RECEIVED THE HOLY GHOST SINCE YE BELIEVED? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.”
The phrase, finding certain disciples, in Acts 19:1 does not give any strong proof whether these disciples were Jesus’ disciples or John at the time of their dialogue. There were a number of possibilities that can be viewed for the phrase, certain disciples, as mentioned in Acts 19:1:
a) it could be that there were Jesus’ disciples and they did not know about the existence of the Holy Spirit and yet they did receive water baptism from John;
b) it could be that there were John’s disciples and yet lately believed and followed Jesus;
c) it could be that there were John’s disciples and had not believed in Jesus and yet lately followed Jesus:
d) it could be that there were neither Jesus’ nor John’s disciples, yet had just converted to disciples not long ago; or etc.
In view of the above possibilities, it is hard to jump into the conclusion using Acts 19:1 that these disciples were John’s disciples.
Whether these people were John’s disciples or not, were not significant. The main thing that needs to be highlighted is that these people should not be questioned, Acts 19:2, “..Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?” This is by virtue of if these were John’s disciples and they had believed in Jesus, the Holy Spirit would have come immediately upon them at the time of their believes even though they only received John’s baptism and they did not know the Holy Spirit, with the assumption that believing attracts immediate receipt of the Holy Spirit. The reason is simply the knowledge that they acquired (whether they knew the Holy Spirit or whether they received only John’s baptism0 would not affect his salvation with the assumption that believing attracts immediate receipt of the Holy Spirit. As the phrase, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed, is mentioned in Acts 19:2, it gives an uncertainty that believing attracts immediate receipt of the Holy Spirit.
Some might argue that certain parts of the book of Acts were transitional period for the receiving of the Holy Spirit. However, the transitional period should have been ended at the time of Pentecost since John 16:7 mentions the receipt of the Holy Spirit was after the resurrection of Jesus.
Those people that insist not to request for the receipt of the Holy Spirit while they are on earth with the assumption that believing attracts immediate receipt of the Holy Spirit, would regret eternally what if they have discovered their past knowledge was wrong and that Jesus would speak to them that He does not know Him at end time as mentioned in Matthew 7:23.
Disciples in current context. Acts 11:26, “(mentions that)…the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch .” As the phrase, the disciples, is mentioned in Acts 11:26 with the word, Christians, it implies that the word, disciple, and the word, Christian, can be interchangeable.