THE SINNERS PRAYER
As a street preacher for 40 plus years I’ve seen the fruit of this ‘sinners prayer’ and it is bad.
First off, we do not find one example of a sinner’s prayer in the Bible and that should speak volumes. I have three examples found in the book of Acts where it was asked what to do to be saved…..and NO sinners prayer was given.
In Acts 16:30 we find Paul and Silas jailed and this was asked of them;
“And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
NO SINNERS PRAYER SAID
In Acts 2:37 we find Peter preaching in public and the crowd said this;
“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
This would have been the perfect time to have a sinner’s prayer but the next verse reads that Peter told them to REPENT!
In Acts 22:10 we find Paul giving his testimony and Jesus did NOT recite a sinner’s prayer anywhere in that salvation.
“And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do.”
We have people crying out to God but they were NEVER led in a sinner’s prayer….they cried out to God.
NO ONE had them recite words.
IF reciting words can save you, then Polly the parrot can be saved?
Everyone knows you can get a parrot to recite anything even ‘sinners prayer’ and I guess that bird will be saved.
For decades I have had people tell me because they said the sinner’s prayer they are saved, even living in sin they are saved. Drunks, fornicators and homosexuals will tell me some preacher led them into a prayer and told them they are sealed to be saved. No repentance as per Mark 1:14-15
“Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel”
This was the first messaged Mark recorded of Jesus and I do not find a sinner’s prayer, not even the word LOVE and this Is called “preaching the gospel”
Note the words Repent and believe, that is the order of appearance NOT believe and repent later.
“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”
Matthew 4:17
It is very common in Churches to teach that no one can repent unless they have the Holy Ghost or I have heard true repentance and the power to repent only comes from the Holy Ghost….but we do not read this, we read REPENT and BELIEVE. Do not add more than those 3 words.
John the Baptist preached
“And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”
Matthew 3:2
In Acts 2:38 after Peter preached, we read how men were “pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles” and they asked “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
No sinner’s prayer was cited here.
Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesians
“Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ”
Acts 20:21
Repent was preached in the Old Testament, the beginning of the New Testament with John, the first message of Jesus and continued in the book of Acts.
No mention of this sinner’s prayer and not one example of a sinner’s prayer recited….THAT should speak volumes.
Repent means God does not want you just as you are. Do not take this personal, take it as a group as God demands all mankind to repent.
The reason why so many open-air preachers preach against this ‘sinners prayer’ is because we see the fruit of such or in this case the lack of fruit outside the four walls of the Church.
Can someone get saved from a sinner’s prayer…..yes but that is the exception and not the rule.
Keith Green quotes Charles Finney on the sinners prayer.
“People wept as they begged God to have mercy on them… But Finney wouldn’t lead them in the sinner’s prayer- he’d send them home for the night instead.
Why? Because he didn’t want false conversions. He believed that sinners needed to be so deeply convicted of their sin by the Holy Spirit that they turned from their old lives to pursue God with every ounce of strength.”
~Keith Green from his message
‘Produce the Fruit of Repentance’
There is a difference between REMORSE and REPENTANCE.
Remorse is being sorry for being caught, whereas Repentance is being sorry enough to stop.
