A man is in his hotel room. It is 2a.m. He is tired of living his life the way he has. He wants CHANGE. He was let down a few years ago, I think it was November, but this time its different. Remembering that the hotel he checked into was "Jesus Inn", he flicks on the tv realizing that every room is subscribed to the TBN network--"24 channels, 24 hours, until the trumpet blows". On the first channel, a preacher is intently looking at the screen as if he were talking to him:
Preacher 1: "Have you repented of your sin? Do you really hate your sin? Jesus wants to save you, but you must repent of your sin. So repeat after me, "Dear Jesus. I am so sorry for my sins. I am sorry for living my life for the devil. I renounce the devil..."
The man quickly turns the channel.
Man: (thinking to himself) "That guy was crazy. I want change, not something to make me feel bad."
He suddenly realizes that another preacher is preaching.
Preacher 2: "Did you know Jesus loves you? He really does? If you want to go to heaven and not hell, repeat after me, "Dear Jesus. I'm sorry for the way I've lived my life up until now. I've messed up. I blew it. I need your help..."
Man: (again to himself) "I blew it?" It wasn't my fault. My dad messed me up. My uncle too. Who does that guy think he is?
The man changes the channel three times, imagining that maybe he would get a different result. He does:
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| HT: The Czar |
Man: "I'm saved! Hooray! I feel so much better."
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Interestingly enough, you can trace the history of the movement and find that the sinner's prayer, like my satire above, has gradually been redacted. In the beginning, sinner's were invited to the front row. They were told "salvation was looming over their heads". The sinner's prayer was a process leading up to a confession, a coaxed confession, but a confession nonetheless. Eventually, Billy Graham would popularize it in a form we are very much aware of today:
"Lord Jesus, I need You. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be."In a digital sermonette, some still try to retain a more robust sinner's prayer. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon today for evangelical or non-denominational churches who employ the sinner's prayer to simply add it on to the end of almost any sermon. The sermon for the day could be "5 Ways to Make your Marriage Better". That message would be appropriate at a marriage seminar, but generally there is this awkward moment where the pastor will say, "And if you don't know Jesus, you are going to have a hard time with any of this (smile, insert laughter). If you want Jesus and desire to live with him forever, repeat after me..."
Plain and simple, "easy believism" is just another possible novelty of Protestantism. I know there are many Protestants who reject it, and we agree that it should be rejected. However, one should stop and ask "in what spiritual climate was this idea able to grow?" I expect that in this century, a new religion that is already emerging will dominate the airwaves. This religion will be in the tradition of "easy believism" and will make it possible for just about anyone to say they are "Christian".
"For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it."- Matthew 7:14
Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."- Acts 2:38
*Finney disdained Catholicism, but also called the Westminster Confession the "paper pope". Gotta love Protestantism!
