30 And after he brought them out, he said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’

31 They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’”

— Acts 16:30-31

He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

— Titus 3:5

Pray without ceasing!

— 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints

— Ephesians 6:18

22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’

23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

— Matthew 7:22-23

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, joy and peace to you from Jesus Christ.

We are very clear now that a person is saved based on faith in Christ and not because of praying a so-called sinner’s prayer. There is no example in the Bible of a person being required to pray a prayer in order to be saved. If prayer were quirked for salvation, God would have plainly communicated that to us. Prayer is a good work and we already know we are not saved by doing work. We are not implying that prayer is wrong. the Bible urges believers to pray without ceasing and to pray at all times, but prayer is not a requirement for salvation for unbelievers. Faith in the gospel is what saves, not being led by someone to pray a prayer.

A person is saved not by just saying ‘yes’ to Jesus either. While saying yes to Jesus may seem like a very positive response to the gospel message, it is not synonymous with “believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” This statement is confusing, as it does not specify that we are to believe in Christ’s death and resurrection for salvation. Many well-meaning people easily become convinced they are saved based on a positive attitude towards Jesus. Saying yes to or having a vow to the Lord would be a human work which does not save. In Matthew 7 we see many say to Jesus on that day that they have prophesied, cast out demons, or performed many miracles in the Lord’s name, and the Lord will declare to them, “Never knew you. Depart from Me. that He never knew them.”