Is it biblical to ask Jesus into your heart?

[tourist]

I think God is pleased that we share the Good news as best we can . No one is going to hell for asking Jesus into their heart in response to believing the Gospel.

That's my understanding as well.

 

[Pilgrimshope]

Correct. Vain jangling is what it is. The Bible condemns useless talk that fails to edify. But this opposition goes beyond that in order to subvert the Gospel.

drag out the errors into the light brother don’t lose sight of the goal


“And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves;

if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”
‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭2:24-

 

[Pilgrimshope]

You need to go back to John 1:11-13 and 1 Peter 1:23-25 to see how the New Birth comes about.

FIRST COMES FAITH IN CHRIST THROUGH THE GOSPEL
THEN COMES THE NEW BIRTH
He came unto his own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you.

And James corroborates this in his epistle (1:18): Of His own will begat He [gave birth to] us with the Word of Truth [the Gospel], that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Amen and amen this is fantastic stuff brother I’m Ezekiel it’s nice meeting you carry on 😃

 

[jb]

You are seriously mistaken (as are many others about the church at Laodicea.. No Christian is spiritually naked, blind, wretched, poor, and miserable. And Christ does not stand outside the door of a Christians's heart, since He dwells within. As to making that a physical door, that would be absurd.

Try reading what the Scripture says, and NOT what your imagination is concocting due to your spiritual blindness!

But then you've a good history of twisting Scripture, have you not!

 

[stepbystep]

Isn't this new heart referring to our heart being cleansed by the blood of Jesus? 1 John 1:7-9, Revelation 1:5, Revelation 7:14, Hebrews 9:14, Psalm 51:2, 10, Hebrews 1:3. These seem to suggest that giving us a new heart speaks of the blood of Jesus cleansing our hearts of the sin that stains them.

I wonder why these Scriptures were not considered when talking about the new heart? Also, my speaking of Revelation 3:20 was to show an example/similarity of asking Jesus into our lives.

I do not actually use the words into my/our heart. I think asking Jesus to come into our lives is Biblical. But, there isn't a great difference between saying hearts or lives to me.

I do not believe that God preforms some sort of Immaculate Heart Surgery to take out our old physical heart and replaces it with a new physical heart. I believe this is all taking place on a spiritual level. Which is why I made the point of comparing it to our being reborn. We are not physically reborn, we are spiritually reborn. Jesus said this.

I do not see how anyone could argue against the blood of Jesus being the cleansing power which accomplishes this gift of a "new heart" that we receive. It is only his blood that has the power to be the payment for our sins and to save us from the judgement of God.

 

[Blade]

Thanks Lion222 but your in my view playing with words. Rev 3 20.. one has to open the door. No matter what you think it you say it.. but He will not come in unless invited.

So PRAISE GOD anyone that said "JESUS COME INTO MY HEART" are saved. Same as those that said "JESUS COME ON IN".. "I INVITE YOU IN".
For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation..

I don't know maybe some believe when the word "Heart" is sued they think of this fleshly heart? So yes to your question.

 

[Bbrdrd]

The OP doesn't sit right with me. Quite simply, to place restrictions on what one must understand before receiving the gospel restricts the preaching of the gospel. Jesus did not command us to teach about sin and then extend the gospel but simply to preach the gospel. The Holy Spirit will reveal what needs to be known about sin and such after the gospel is received.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Those who respond positively to that will come to know the depths of their sin and be drawn further into shedding their sin through the love of Christ.

His burden is light and His yoke is easy. A yoked oxen need not worry about what direction it is headed because the driver will turn it as needed. The oxen doesn't need to understand what it is to plow, it merely needs to walk.

 

[Nehemiah6]

But then you've a good history of twisting Scripture, have you not!

This remark would really apply to you. My posts speak for themselves.

 

[Bbrdrd]

You have fallen into the modernist teaching trap that "God is Love" above all else.

His lordship is one of love. - His Lordship is one of Sovereignty.
The authority of God and Christ are rooted in His nature that is Love. - The authority of God is rooted in Himself, as God.
The lordship we submit to is His love. - The Lordship we submit to is in every aspect of the believers life, even if we do not believe nor love Him, it makes Him no less Lord.

Php 2:9-11 Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Love is not God's primary attribute. What about His Holiness, Justice, Wrath... these three had to be satisfied before His love could flow. God cannot love sin or that which is tainted by sin. Since all are under the curse, His Justice must be satisfied. His Wrath was taken out upon Jesus Christ. This enabled His Love to flow into the temporal existence.

All three of these requirements, took place in eternity, through God's plan of redemption. He could legally, declare His Justice and Wrath were satisfied, even before He created because, nothing can stop God's redemptive effort.

Becoming rooted and grounded in love is the first part of every believers walk.
But that is also based on obedience to his lordship, for example Baptism as a first step of faith.
But you know love through trusting and giving yourself to it.
You experience love by letting it have you. - You experience love, as one of the chosen, because at the appropriate time, it overtakes you.
Faith is required to receive love. - Completely wrong. God's love for the elect goes to before the world was created.

Eph 1:3-6 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ: even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before him in love: having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved:

God's Love for the ones He chose extended from eternity. They will one day have Faith but as of yet are not even born. This Truth prompted the writer to say:

1Jn 4:17-19 Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, even so are we in this world. There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath punishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love, because he first loved us.

Hoo boy...am I missing it or out of love, wrath, holiness, and justice do we only find "God is love" in the Bible? Yet you say His love is not His "primary" attribute.

The issue with modern teachings about God being love is not the central idea that God is love, but that what "love" is understood to mean is often not a Biblical view of love.

Each of God's attributes of holiness, justice, and even wrath flow out from His being which is love.

 

[JBTN]

Reading the title of the thread, Luke 11:9-13 is what came to my mind.

 

[p_rehbein]

Wish I had a bucket of popcorn

🙂

Why r some dead set on putting restrictions on salvation?

John 3:16 works 4 me.

 

[awelight]

You need to go back to John 1:11-13 and 1 Peter 1:23-25 to see how the New Birth comes about.

FIRST COMES FAITH IN CHRIST THROUGH THE GOSPEL
THEN COMES THE NEW BIRTH
He came unto his own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you.

And James corroborates this in his epistle (1:18): Of His own will begat He [gave birth to] us with the Word of Truth [the Gospel], that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

While the direction you are going in is called "Gospel Regeneration", you attempt here to use Scripture against Scripture. You in no way responded to the question raised in my original response. I asked how could this be? How can one have anything to do with there own birth, in the flesh? Since the Greek, for being Born from above, is "passive" voice, how can one have anything to do with their spiritual birth.? You ignored the question!!!! And like so many who post here, you edited my post so others, could not easily see the point that was made by me. Very disingenuous of you.

You said,
FIRST COMES FAITH IN CHRIST THROUGH THE GOSPEL
THEN COMES THE NEW BIRTH
He came unto his own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

This verse dose not prove your point... if anything it proves mine.

You underlined "even to them that believe on His name: Which were born"..... Which were born, is in the past tense, WERE born. The ones receiving Him therefore, are equal to the ones "Which were born" sometime in the past. This verse did not say, "Which were being born". If it had, then the being born would be as they were believing. Instead, this verse clearly says, that they had already been born.

Which were born.... How? Not because of Genealogy, not because of their own will, as originating from the fleshly nature nor by the will or strength of another man. But of God. This is the teaching of John 3:3-10. While the Gospel has a tremendous role in the believers "Conversion" (which is ongoing, throughout the Christian walk), it is not the power of "Regeneration". This lies in the authority of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit.

As to your reference of 1 Pet 1:23, this is not dealing with the New Birth of John 3:3-10. The Greek word for "BORN" in John 3:4, is γεννηθη, (Aorist passive subjunctive of gennao, which means: "to be born, conceived or brought forth". The Greek word in 1 Pet 1:23, is αναγεγεννημενοι, which is used only here and is a compound word made of ανα (meaning "again") and γεγεννημενοι (meaning "to bear or beget), It has it's root in gennao also but carries more the meaning of "bearing forth again or being begotten again". The ASV, renders it this way: 1Pe 1:23 having been begotten again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the word of God, which liveth and abideth.

Either way you translate it, the meaning is to be brought forth again, not to be "Born Again" as in "being born from above" because Peter is writing to believers and is making reference to how the Word of God, in an ongoing "conversion" experience, works in us.

Sorry for the long reply. Probably will make no difference to you anyway.

 

[Nehemiah6]

I asked how could this be? How can one have anything to do with there own birth, in the flesh?

And the answer was provided by the Scriptures quoted. "In the flesh" is irrelevant, and Jesus dismissed that altogether saying "that which is born of the flesh is flesh".

We are talking about being born of the Spirit. And the water which Christ mentioned (in connection with being born of the Spirit) was a metaphor for the Word of God. It is called "clean water" in Ezekiel 36:25, but the "water by the Word" in Ephesians 5:26.

That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

The Word of God cleanses the soul in that (1) it exposes the sins within a person, and (2) also indicates that the remedy is the blood of Christ. And it is the Holy Spirit who applies the Word to the soul. This is brought out Hebrew 4:12,13.

For the Word of God is quick [alive], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him [the Holy Spirit] with whom we have to do.

We see here that the Word of God and the Holy Spirit are inseparable. And that is why the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to them than believe (Rom 1:16). And only those who believe are born of the Spirit (John 1:12,13). Thus the words of Christ in John 3:5 come true: Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water [the Gospel] and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

In spite of all these Scriptures, the misunderstanding that water baptism is what is being referred to, took hold of many after the apostles, and thus the false teaching called baptismal regeneration came into existence. But water cannot wash away sins, neither does it have regenerative power. The New Birth is supernatural hence we are "born from above", "born of God", "born of the Spirit" in order to create a "new creature in Christ".

 

[awelight]

And the answer was provided by the Scriptures quoted. "In the flesh" is irrelevant, and Jesus dismissed that altogether saying "that which is born of the flesh is flesh".

We are talking about being born of the Spirit. And the water which Christ mentioned (in connection with being born of the Spirit) was a metaphor for the Word of God. It is called "clean water" in Ezekiel 36:25, but the "water by the Word" in Ephesians 5:26.

That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

The Word of God cleanses the soul in that (1) it exposes the sins within a person, and (2) also indicates that the remedy is the blood of Christ. And it is the Holy Spirit who applies the Word to the soul. This is brought out Hebrew 4:12,13.

For the Word of God is quick [alive], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him [the Holy Spirit] with whom we have to do.

We see here that the Word of God and the Holy Spirit are inseparable. And that is why the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to them than believe (Rom 1:16). And only those who believe are born of the Spirit (John 1:12,13). Thus the words of Christ in John 3:5 come true: Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water [the Gospel] and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

In spite of all these Scriptures, the misunderstanding that water baptism is what is being referred to, took hold of many after the apostles, and thus the false teaching called baptismal regeneration came into existence. But water cannot wash away sins, neither does it have regenerative power. The New Birth is supernatural hence we are "born from above", "born of God", "born of the Spirit" in order to create a "new creature in Christ".

Once again you edited my response. And how did water baptism and baptismal regeneration, get into this conversation?

This you and I are agreeing with. But water cannot wash away sins, neither does it have regenerative power. The New Birth is supernatural hence we are "born from above", "born of God", "born of the Spirit" in order to create a "new creature in Christ".

 

[Lanolin]

Wish I had a bucket of popcorn

🙂

Why r some dead set on putting restrictions on salvation?

John 3:16 works 4 me.

I think they have nothing better to do than argue.

Can picture someone preaching and saying 'ask Jesus into your heart' and another preacher going 'no thats wrong all you have to do is change your mind!' and them having a big old fight about it.

Then one goes you are a calvinist and the other goes OH YEAH well you are just an arminist and then they start throwing water over each other to see who gets baptised first.

 

[awelight]

Hoo boy...am I missing it or out of love, wrath, holiness, and justice do we only find "God is love" in the Bible? Yet you say His love is not His "primary" attribute.

The issue with modern teachings about God being love is not the central idea that God is love, but that what "love" is understood to mean is often not a Biblical view of love.

Each of God's attributes of holiness, justice, and even wrath flow out from His being which is love.

I don't want to tear down God's love, just to make a point here. Love is vitally important. The love God has for His own, The Love believers have for Him and the brethren.

But, while I maybe speaking in the wilderness, all alone. I honor God first. His primary attribute is His Holiness.

Isa 6:3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is Jehovah of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

This His only attribute, repeated three times.

Holiness is the governing attribute over His character. Not love. His holiness dictates how His love flows and thank God for that. If it didn't, then that god could love sin. That god could love unrighteousness. That god could love immorality. etc...

This may seem to some a nit picky point but hopefully, all see how important it is to get this right. Holiness is difficult to define, look it up, but the best definition would be "PURITY". The very essence of God is "PURE", not love. From this purity flows all things. Love is an important one for sure but not at the cost of the others, Justice, wrath, righteous, anger, jealousy, pleasure, etc....

 

[awelight]

This maybe of interest to some. A survey done by Ligonier Ministries and LifeWay Research (Yr. 2020):

Questions asked and there responses.:


1). Jesus was a great teacher but He was not God.
--- Among general population -- 52% agreed and 36% disagreed.
--- Among Evangelicals ----------- 30% agreed and 66% disagreed.

2). God chose the people He would save, before He created the World.
--- Among general population -- 26% agreed and 50% disagreed.
--- Among Evangelicals ----------- 38% agreed and 44% disagreed.

3). The Bible, like all Sacred writings, contains helpful accounts of ancient myths but is not literally true.
--- Among general population -- 48% agreed and 41% disagreed.
--- Evangelicals were not questioned.

4). Religious belief is a matter of personal opinion, it is not objective.
--- Among general population -- 54% agreed and 34% disagreed.
--- Evangelicals were not questioned.

5) The Holy Spirit gives a spiritual New Birth or new life, before a person has faith in Jesus Christ.
-- general population was not questioned.
-- Among Evangelicals ------------ 57% agreed and 35% disagreed.

6). God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism and Islam.
-- general population was not questioned.
-- Among Evangelicals ------------ 42% agreed and 48% disagreed.

>>>> missing percentages were in the category of "Not Sure".

The state of religion today.

 

[Bbrdrd]

I don't want to tear down God's love, just to make a point here. Love is vitally important. The love God has for His own, The Love believers have for Him and the brethren.

But, while I maybe speaking in the wilderness, all alone. I honor God first. His primary attribute is His Holiness.

Isa 6:3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is Jehovah of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

This His only attribute, repeated three times.

Holiness is the governing attribute over His character. Not love. His holiness dictates how His love flows and thank God for that. If it didn't, then that god could love sin. That god could love unrighteousness. That god could love immorality. etc...

This may seem to some a nit picky point but hopefully, all see how important it is to get this right. Holiness is difficult to define, look it up, but the best definition would be "PURITY". The very essence of God is "PURE", not love. From this purity flows all things. Love is an important one for sure but not at the cost of the others, Justice, wrath, righteous, anger, jealousy, pleasure, etc....

"Purity" doesn't really describe anything, merely a completeness. God is pure what? God is pure love, so even in His holiness it is His love that defines Him. Love isn't simply something that flows from God but it is essential to who He is, though when it comes to assigning value to attributes there is really no such thing as one "primary" because God is completely each of His attributes not merely a possessor of them.

Holiness isn't best described as purity, though, but otherness. When a man is holy, it is because he is set aside. God's holiness is His distinction from created beings and it is not merely an attribute but the description of all of His attributes. To describe God as holy is fine, but it doesn't really say anything about Him since holiness is something unique to Him.

Love on the other hand is something we can understand, something we can appreciate and work out. We know God through His love, and we know who God is because He is love. We do not know or can fathom what it means to be holy except to be set apart for God, yet love is something even a child can appreciate.

 

[awelight]

"Purity" doesn't really describe anything, merely a completeness. God is pure what? God is pure love, so even in His holiness it is His love that defines Him. Love isn't simply something that flows from God but it is essential to who He is, though when it comes to assigning value to attributes there is really no such thing as one "primary" because God is completely each of His attributes not merely a possessor of them.

Holiness isn't best described as purity, though, but otherness. When a man is holy, it is because he is set aside. God's holiness is His distinction from created beings and it is not merely an attribute but the description of all of His attributes. To describe God as holy is fine, but it doesn't really say anything about Him since holiness is something unique to Him.

Love on the other hand is something we can understand, something we can appreciate and work out. We know God through His love, and we know who God is because He is love. We do not know or can fathom what it means to be holy except to be set apart for God, yet love is something even a child can appreciate.

Have a good day sir, not going to do this.

 

[mustaphadrink]

Question: "Is it biblical to ask Jesus into your heart?"

Answer: “Do you want to be saved? Then just ask Jesus to come into your heart.” While this statement is not anti-biblical, neither is it expressly biblical. The wording generates a mental image that can easily lead to wrong impressions, especially among children, who tend to take things literally. Plus, the exhortation to “ask Jesus into your heart”—if that’s the whole message—leaves out some important things such as repentance and faith. The Bible does mention the fact that, in some sense, Jesus resides in our hearts: Paul prayed “that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (Ephesians 3:17). But Paul is writing to believers who had already received Christ. The parallel prayer in verse 16 is that God “may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” There is no evangelistic appeal in the context of Ephesians 3. Paul is not telling the Ephesians to “ask Jesus into their hearts”; he is simply elevating their awareness that Jesus is present within them through the Holy Spirit.

The verse from which the “ask Jesus into your heart” concept is usually taken is Revelation 3:20, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” Notice, however, that the verse does not mention the heart at all. Neither does the individual ask Jesus to do anything; rather, Jesus asks us to do something. In context, Jesus is speaking to the church of Laodicea, who was in desperate need of repentance (verse 19). The Laodiceans had effectively excluded Jesus from their fellowship, and the Lord was seeking to restore that fellowship. The passage does not deal with a person calling on the Lord for salvation.

The idea of Jesus “coming into your heart” is nowhere used in any preaching in the Bible. The gospel is the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sin (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Gospel presentations in the Bible exhort a proper response to that message: believe (John 3:16; Acts 16:31), receive (John 1:12), and repent (Acts 3:19). We are to change our minds about our sin and about who Christ is, believe Jesus died and rose again, and receive the gift of eternal life by faith. None of the apostles ever told someone to “ask Jesus into your heart.”

Often, the exhortation to “ask Jesus to come into your heart” is used as a simple way to say, “Ask Jesus to enter your life” or “Allow the Lord to take control.” If this is done in the context of presenting the whole gospel, then there’s no harm done. But before a person is invited to “ask Jesus into your heart,” he or she should understand sin and its penalty, the payment Christ made on the cross, and the reality of Christ’s resurrection. In fact, referring to salvation as Jesus’ “coming into your heart” might even help a person understand that the Spirit of Christ comes to indwell the soul (see John 14:17). Still, it is always best to use the terminology the Bible uses. “Ask Jesus into your heart” does not fully communicate what is actually occurring at salvation.

When sharing the gospel, we should be careful what we say and how we say it. Even the word believe can be misleading if it is presented as mere intellectual assent (agreeing that certain facts are true) instead of as trust (relying on those true facts). Judas Iscariot believed certain facts about Jesus, but he never trusted Jesus for salvation. Salvation is not about believing a list of facts. Salvation is not about asking Jesus to come into your heart. Salvation is about trusting in Jesus as your Savior, receiving the forgiveness He offers by grace through faith. Salvation is about being made new through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5).

From https://www.gotquestions.org/ask-Jesus-into-heart.html

Thoughts?

Since I retired (somedays I am more tired than others) I have had the pleasure of taking another look at what the bible says and teaches and when you get into the nitty-gritty of things, you generally find that what we thought it says it doesn't. This one of those in question.

When I do a study of any kind, I ALWAYS start with the scriptures and move out from there. With this one, I started with the first call to salvation which is Acts 2 v 38 which says in answer to their question "What shall we do?" One would suppose that Peter would tell them what they should do in answer to the question. So what was it they had to do?

Repent. Get rid of the old man.
Be baptized in water. Put on the new man.
Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Power for witness.

If we stick to this line of instruction we cannot go wrong.

As you read through Acts you will see that on numerous occasions they were filled with the Holy S|pirit and were given boldness to proclaim the name of Jesus and very often this was accompanied by the supernatural.

I have this feeling that the idea of accepting Jesus into your heart is used as a simple means to boost salvation numbers. As we know evangelists rely on numbers to justify their ministry. My question is does asking Jesus into your heart produce disciples or Christians? I have a feeling it is the latter and therefore not to be recommended.

Jesus' last command was to go and make disciples, not Christians, apart from the fact that Christian was an unknown concept then. So we need to get back to basics which are repent, baptize, and filled with the Holy S|pirit. When I was brought into the Kingdom of God, at the age of 11, I felt the Holy Spirit fill me and that is probably why I am still here 66 years later.