"Give your life to Christ"?

I've heard that phrase for years, especially in churches like the one I was raised in. But yesterday it hit me that I can't think of any biblical examples of anyone being instructed to do that.

Would someone point me to the first example in the bible of someone being instructed to do that as a factor of salvation?

Thanks.

Love in Jesus,
Kelby

Luke
14:26 If any [man] come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
14:27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have [sufficient] to finish [it]?
14:29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish [it], all that behold [it] begin to mock him,
14:30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
14:31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
14:32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.
14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

Those statements by Jesus sound way more involved than the "hand him your life (on a single day) and walk away rejoicing" message they were telling me.

Love in Jesus,
Kelby

we love Oyster's scriptures -
but alas, they didn't apply to us, as we both walked down the preverbal 'isle' = 'continued to walk in 'satan's world'....

That is because we are not Israel whom Jesus was sent to in Luke. We are gentiles saved by grace, thru the fall of Israel, to provoke them to jealousy.

That is why its so easy for us, compared to Israel.

Total surrender is required. We are all called to be His disciples.

Indeed, we are to give our lives to Christ, that is the summon of the gospel, to turn from sin to God through Jesus Christ.

This is a lifetime reality though, not a single day thing as your church was doing it, which is called easy believism, which is a false message.

Thanks, All, for your replies.

The church I'd grown up in was a believe-only kind of place and it sounded good and biblical to me and I believed, taught and defended it until some other aspects failed to work. Then I felt it was important to ask God if what they were teaching was complete...or true...at all because it didn't actually do anything. (Yes, I realize that saying even that much can start a whole other debate, but exactly how "personal" is a relationship if the other party never speaks to you, or the other party doesn't show up when you need help?)

Anyway... without explaining all the details, I've not gone to that particular church in many years, but I've heard that phrase used often since. And yesterday I visited another church that speaks similarly (as if "giving your life to Christ" is some specific thing you accomplish on the day of your salvation) and it struck me that I can't think of a single bible passage where something like that was said to anyone when they were asking what was needed.

I can, however, find direct statements telling people to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for remission (washing away) of sins. And I can find where God wants to give HIS life to US by giving us the Holy Ghost (which was a significant and observable occurrence in the bible). So I was obedient and receptive to those additional commands/requirements, and received the promises attached to them. And I'd pretty much forgotten about that earlier mentioned phrase.

So I thought I'd give the promoters of that phrase the chance to show us that, in the bible, it is stated in some form to those who ask what is needed for salvation.

Love in Jesus,
Kelby

P.S. My thanks to oyster67 for actually posting scripture. But I stand behind the claim that what Jesus was saying in his words is not the same as what that phrase is attempting to convey. Otherwise those who use it wouldn't ask "DID you give your life to Christ?" (as if it was a past tense thing fully accomplished on some particular day).