Jesus Doesn’t Want Your Invite

For various reasons I won’t explore here, it has become common practice in many evangelical circles to tell people to “invite Jesus into your life,” or “accept Jesus into your heart,” or even “say the sinner’s prayer and you’ll be saved.” My goal is not to act as the evangelism police or to question the sincerity of those who use this language. I’ve used it myself. But after deeper reflection on Scripture, I’ve become convinced that these phrases are not only absent from the New Testament but can also be deceptive and spiritually dangerous.

One of the core problems is a misunderstanding of what it means to “receive Jesus” (John 1:12; Colossians 2:6). In the biblical sense, receiving Christ means embracing Him as Messiah and Lord. It is not about adding Jesus to your existing life as a spiritual supplement. It is about surrendering your life entirely to Him. This is not a mystical or emotional experience but a recognition of His authority and lordship. This understanding aligns with Christ’s own command to make disciples by baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything He has commanded (Matthew 28:19–20).

Another concern is that we have replaced the process Jesus gave us for making disciples with a man-made formula. Nowhere in the New Testament do people become Christians by praying a scripted prayer. Conversion is marked by a public profession of faith through baptism, which also signifies entry into the church, God’s covenant people. It is within this covenantal context that assurance of salvation is rightly cultivated. Becoming a Christian is not primarily a private emotional experience. It is a communal and covenantal reality, affirmed by the church as it witnesses your profession and your transformed life. While baptism does not save or regenerate, it provides a biblical and visible foundation for assurance, as the church affirms your credible profession of faith.

For this reason, we should not affirm someone’s salvation simply because they prayed a prayer. Instead, we affirm it through baptism and meaningful membership in a local church. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, but the church helps us discern the fruit of that faith. This is also why church discipline matters. We are called to guard the integrity of the church’s witness. We must not affirm as Christians those who persist in unrepentant sin or doctrinal error, thereby shipwrecking their faith.

So while the intentions behind these modern methods may be sincere, they are ultimately misguided. It is time to set aside man-made formulas and return to what Scripture teaches. In doing so, we will foster greater maturity and assurance among believers and strengthen the health and witness of our local churches.

Nino Marques