The Sinners Prayer is not enough

Ariellamb

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A large room was seen afar off,one of many different rooms, set in the side of a great hole like a very deep pit.

Upon getting closer I could make out a name written on it..

The name on the door read…We all prayed the sinner’s prayer.

Upon entering in by the door my eyes beheld an incredibly large throng of folk within of all ages, some with crucifixes around there necks, but with all having a Bible in one hand.
Many were laying upon beds writhing in pain as upon a death bed , with a constant stream of words pouring out of there mouths.

I asked one of them a young woman why she kept saying the same words over and over again she said, ‘ I was told I was now forgiven and upon death would enter heaven’

Enquiring as to why she had not arrived there after her death she replied.
'We were not told to forsake the world with all its attractions or that we should seek to die to our old selfish interests and then press on towards the prize of the high calling,we thought we would enter into the Eternal City by right of having prayed the prayer'

I asked why she had thought so while on earth,she replied , 'It was like a kind of magic words to me that having said them I would be safe.
Here I cannot rest, partly because I keep hearing screams all around me of 'if only' 'If only' I had read this book ,if only I had'

Trying to get away from the noise I found an old man lying alone making a faint noise that I could hardly hear coming in short gasps from his mouth, as I looked at him I could see his lips were cracked and dry with what appeared like small maggots pushing themselves out of the sides of his mouth and going straight up into his nose. His eyes were blood shot and very sad.
 
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RobertZ

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The dream of a 14 yr old boy, yet given to another to tell


A large room was seen afar off,one of many different rooms, set in the side of a great hole like a very deep pit.

Upon getting closer I could make out a name written on it..

The name on the door read…We all prayed the sinner’s prayer.

Upon entering in by the door my eyes beheld an incredibly large throng of folk within of all ages, some with crucifixes around there necks, but with all having a Bible in one hand.
Many were laying upon beds writhing in pain as upon a death bed , with a constant stream of words pouring out of there mouths.

I asked one of them a young woman why she kept saying the same words over and over again she said, ‘ I was told I was now forgiven and upon death would enter heaven’

Enquiring as to why she had not arrived there after her death she replied.
'We were not told to forsake the world with all its attractions but instead that we should seek to die to our old selfish interests and then press on towards the prize of the high calling,we thought we would enter into the Eternal City by right of having prayed the prayer'

I asked why she had thought so while on earth,she replied , 'It was like a kind of magic words to me that having said them I would be safe.
Here I cannot rest, partly because I keep hearing screams all around me of 'if only' 'If only' I had read this book ,if only I had'

Trying to get away from the noise I found an old man lying alone making a faint noise that I could hardly hear coming in short gasps from his mouth, as I looked at him I could see his lips were cracked and dry with what appeared like small maggots pushing themselves out of the sides of his mouth and going straight up into his nose. His eyes were blood shot and very sad.


I agree, I know far to many people who have prayed the sinners prayer and have yet to have a change of heart about their sinful lifestyle. That tells me something is seriously wrong.
 
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Gregory Thompson

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I agree, I know far to many people who have prayed the sinners prayer and have yet to have a change of heart about their sinful lifestyle. That tells me something is seriously wrong.

I've noticed that too . so i would agree that "words alone are not enough"
 
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Ariellamb

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Having attended a couple of Billy Graham crusades here in England in the past and hearing the Jeol Osteen prayer at the end of his broadcasts,I can well & truely see how many are duped into thinking that they are on the way to heaven.
 
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RobertZ

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For a person to be saved all that must be done is to turn from your old ways ("repent") and choose to follow Jesus. John 3:16.


That is true but one must also understand that NO man is capable of truly turning from his old ways and choosing to follow Jesus unless God first enables that person to do so by regeneration of Gods spirit and giving him a new heart. True repentance is a gift from God.
 
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Ariellamb

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That is true but one must also understand that NO man is capable of truly turning from his old ways and choosing to follow Jesus unless God first enables that person to do so by regeneration of Gods spirit and giving him a new heart. True repentance is a gift from God.

How can they Believe, unless they have heard? Rom11

They are not hearing the 'Whole Call' to Repentance & then the Crucified life that Jesus demands from any follower of His.

But if after they have heard all of that they 'Can Call upon The Lord to be Saved' Whosoever 'will' may come & drink freely of the water of life.
 
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RobertZ

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How can they Believe, unless they have heard? Rom11

They are not hearing the 'Whole Call' to Repentance & then the Crucified life that Jesus demands from any follower of His.

But if after they have heard all of that they 'Can Call upon The Lord to be Saved' Whosoever 'will' may come & drink freely of the water of life.


That is correct however salvation is still all of God. The Bible tells us that no man can come to Jesus unless the Father who sent Jesus draws the person. This drawing is the enabling of the person by the Holy Ghost for the person to be able to come to Jesus for salvation.
 
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dies-l

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I am becoming convinced that the "sinner's prayer" and the eagerness of many Christians to get nonbelievers to "say the prayer" is quite harmful. The prayer (or more accurately, prayers of this type) itself is not bad, but it should never be seen as an objective or end goal. It is nothing more than a tool that can be used as a starting point to a salvation experience. Some people have genuine salvation experiences that are nothing like the typical evangelical sinner's prayer. Some people say the sinner's prayer and never experience salvation. It needs to be seen as what it is: a tool that is useful for some people -- nothing more, nothing less.
 
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revrobor

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That is true but one must also understand that NO man is capable of truly turning from his old ways and choosing to follow Jesus unless God first enables that person to do so by regeneration of Gods spirit and giving him a new heart. True repentance is a gift from God.

That is learned after one is saved and not a requirement for salvation.
 
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RobertZ

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I am becoming convinced that the "sinner's prayer" and the eagerness of many Christians to get nonbelievers to "say the prayer" is quite harmful. The prayer (or more accurately, prayers of this type) itself is not bad, but it should never be seen as an objective or end goal. It is nothing more than a tool that can be used as a starting point to a salvation experience. Some people have genuine salvation experiences that are nothing like the typical evangelical sinner's prayer. Some people say the sinner's prayer and never experience salvation. It needs to be seen as what it is: a tool that is useful for some people -- nothing more, nothing less.


Thats right, telling someone to say the sinners prayer and then expecting that person to be saved is just wrong. Its the Holy Spirits job to open the eyes of the sinner and only he can do it, not a person.

I am 36yrs old and growing up I probably prayed the sinners prayer about a gazzillion times just to make sure I was saved yet at the same time I never changed! I continued to live in sin until a little over a year ago I was convinced that I was headed for hell, the weight of conviction was weighing down heavy on me, something I had never really had before.

Before I knew it I was telling my father in law that I had never truly been saved and I was crying like a baby completely in shock of my sins as I was seeing them in all their true colors for the first time in my life.

Now what happened this time that didnt happen before when I would pray a prayer and walk away unconverted? this time the Holy Spirit dealt directly with my heart and showed me what a mess I was in! This time the Spirit of God opened my eyes and granted me true repentance.

I was a inappropriate content addict for most of my life and was freed completely from it in the blink of an eye, I now look at my past life in complete disgust. Am I still tempted from time to time? you better believe it but now I have God living inside of me to help me fight off the temptations of falling into a sinful lifestyle.
 
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VCViking

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I agree, I know far to many people who have prayed the sinners prayer and have yet to have a change of heart about their sinful lifestyle. That tells me something is seriously wrong.


Agreed!
 
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VCViking

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Not only is the "Sinner's Prayer" not only not enough it is not even necessary. For a person to be saved all that must be done is to turn from your old ways ("repent") and choose to follow Jesus. John 3:16.



Amen!
 
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VCViking

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Having attended a couple of Billy Graham crusades here in England in the past and hearing the Jeol Osteen prayer at the end of his broadcasts,I can well & truely see how many are duped into thinking that they are on the way to heaven.


So true and so sad!
 
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VCViking

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Thats right, telling someone to say the sinners prayer and then expecting that person to be saved is just wrong. Its the Holy Spirits job to open the eyes of the sinner and only he can do it, not a person.

I am 36yrs old and growing up I probably prayed the sinners prayer about a gazzillion times just to make sure I was saved yet at the same time I never changed! I continued to live in sin until a little over a year ago I was convinced that I was headed for hell, the weight of conviction was weighing down heavy on me, something I had never really had before.

Before I knew it I was telling my father in law that I had never truly been saved and I was crying like a baby completely in shock of my sins as I was seeing them in all their true colors for the first time in my life.

Now what happened this time that didnt happen before when I would pray a prayer and walk away unconverted? this time the Holy Spirit dealt directly with my heart and showed me what a mess I was in! This time the Spirit of God opened my eyes and granted me true repentance.

I was a inappropriate content addict for most of my life and was freed completely from it in the blink of an eye, I now look at my past life in complete disgust. Am I still tempted from time to time? you better believe it but now I have God living inside of me to help me fight off the temptations of falling into a sinful lifestyle.



Amen!
 
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Gregory Thompson

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i agree that an intellectual assent is not enough . it is trust that enters us into His covenant . and connects us to the supernatural . so someone could speak the words and trust like i did . and some could speak the words and not trust . (as John 3:16 says if you believe you will be saved" because if Jesus is not implanted in you . the new life does not grow up in you .

Statements such as Romans 10:9 "if you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord you will be saved" need the proper historical context . there was a movement in the Roman empire that the Emperor put in place where you would say "Caesar is Lord" and even "Caesar is the Son of God" and if you did not "confess" these things you would be put to death.

So in the correct historical context . this illustrates that trust or as it is commonly translated: Belief or Faith, is the main essential thing needed here . it was the thing that set apart the patriarchs from the crowds "who just didn't get it" in the Old testament and what set the apostles apart from everyone else .
 
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