Why is “accepting Christ” mentioned in evangelism when it is not in the Bible?

The Biblical Basis for the Phrase “Accepting Christ”

Why is accepting Christ mentioned in evangelism when it is not in the Bible? We're going to answer that question. You can also discover more on GotQuestions .org. Ever since the New Testament era, Christians have found the need to coin new terms to simplify or explain various doctrines.

We reference the Trinity and Proto-Evangelium, although neither term occurs in the Bible. While accepting Christ is not a phrase found in the Bible, it does have a biblical basis. Jesus and his followers often called salvation and the subsequent indwelling of the Holy Spirit a gift.

For instance, Jesus told the woman at the well, If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water. Paul said, The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Gift, Faith, and Receiving Salvation

By definition, a gift is not forced, but it must be accepted. A gift can be refused. John the Baptist said of Jesus, He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.

The word accept here is a translation of the same Greek word translated take in Revelation. Whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. Take, accept, receive, this is what we are to do with the free gift of God.

Salvation is offered, but we must accept the offer in order to receive the gift. Since we do this by exercising faith in Christ, the phrase accept Christ is simply shorthand for saying place faith in Christ and receive his salvation.

Using Terms That Communicate the Gospel Clearly

The goal of using terms like accept Christ is to communicate the truth more effectively to someone with limited biblical understanding. As long as a term is theologically correct and aids understanding, it need not be part of the biblical vocabulary.

If, during evangelism, a certain term causes misunderstanding, then it is good to jettison the confusing term and patiently explain the truth from scripture. While the phrase accept Christ does not appear in the Bible, the concept of receiving a gift does and the phrase seems to work well in most evangelistic contexts.

That answers the question, why is accepting Christ mentioned in evangelism when it is not in the Bible? On our website, GotQuestions .org, you'll find a deeper discussion and recommended resources. If this helped you, give us a thumbs up and click subscribe.

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