Why You Do Not Have to Accept Jesus Christ as Your Savior

You may be feeling triggered right now, which is the whole purpose of the title to this article. My intention, in this essay, is to correct the bad theology you were taught regarding salvation.

There is a high probability the terms you have embraced, are accompanied by wrong ideas. It is the work of our adversary to redefine terms or to mis-assign wrong ideas to terms. The term in view here is “accept” (Gk. parelabon in Jn 1:11 and elabon in Jn 1:12).

It is true that some people do not receive Jesus Christ, while others do (Jn 1:12). The issue in theology is, “Who determines whether one accepts/receives Jesus Christ or not?” So to be clear, those who have (believe in) the Son of God have life, but those who do not see/believe/obey the Son, do not have the life of God in them (Jn 3:36; Rom 8:9; 1 Jn 5:12).

Jesus is the life of God (Jn 14:6), abundant and eternal (Jn 10:10; 17:2–3). God gives this life (His Son), both in regeneration (Rom 4:17) and in the resurrection on the last day (Rom 8:11; 1 Cor 15:44–46). The term, “regeneration” pertains to a dead soul being made alive (Eph 2:1, 5; Col 2:13). The term, “resurrection” pertains to a body being brought to life in glorified form (ie. immortal., indestructible, without sin, etc.).

The Bible is clear: a person does not choose to receive life, even though some forms of life may be found in him or her. Let us consider a few examples of people receiving life, apart from their will/choice/decision/acceptance…

First, Adam and Eve did not choose to receive the life, given to them by God, when He formed their bodies and breathed life into their nostrils (Gen 2:7).

Second, no person ever conceived in the womb, born of a woman, ever made the choice to receive this life. God made each one and gave each one breath and biological life (Ps 51:5; 139:13). The sons of Adam have living bodies, but dead souls (1 Cor 2:14; Eph 2:1). Despite a biological body being born alive, it is a body of death because of sin (Rom 3:23; 6:23; 7:24). Neither of these was the choice of men (ie. live body/dead soul).

Third, in the ministry of Jesus, He raised a few people from the dead, most notably, Lazarus of Bethany (Jn 11). Here is a foreshadowing view to the resurrection on the last day (Jn 5:28–29). Lazarus was raised from the dead, as a demonstration of Jesus’ identity and power, as the omnipotent God-man. Lazarus died again after this event in John 11, because he was not glorified, which will be a universal event for God’s elect, redeemed people who died in Christ, at our Lord’s second coming (1 Thess 4:13–18; Rom 8:30). Obviously, Lazarus did not choose to receive the life Jesus gave him, after he died and was buried in the tomb. Jesus simply called his dead friend forth from the tomb, and the man came forth. Here is a wonderful picture of irresistible grace and life from the dead.

Fourth, on the Day of Pentecost, some received the Holy Spirit, while others scoffed at the scene, where God baptized those He appointed to life (Acts 2; 13:48). They believed because they had received the Spirit. Those who did not accept what was going on, had not the Spirit of Christ because they did not belong to Him (Rom 8:9). This was not their choice, but God sends His Spirit, to give life, to whomever He wishes (Jn 5:21; 6:63; 14:26; 15:26). Unelect, unregenerate, unbelievers could never accept Jesus as Savior.

Fifth, in like manner, Saul of Tarsus was converted on the road to Damascus, not as an offer that he must accept, but as a result of a supernatural intrusion by our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 9). Saul received the Spirit of Christ that day, not of his own will, but by the will and work of God (Jn 1:12–13; Rom 9:16), who also had a plan to employ Saul, as His chosen instrument, to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15).

If it happens to be your current claim, that you decided to receive Jesus as your Savior, as the catalyst of your being born again, then you are in error. You are not Sovereign over salvation, nor is your mythical free will choice worth anything, in the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God (Acts 2:23). Holding to a doctrinal error does not bode well for your testimony to be a Christian, or worse, a Gospel preacher. The field/soil does not choose to receive the seed planted in it.

God (farmer) plants the Word (seed) into the hearts (field/soil) of His choosing. God is the Maker of every kind of soil (ie. shallow, rocky, thorny, good), and His Word may be spread to some unproductive environments, but there is no choice on the part of unproductive soil, to accept or reject the seed (Word) of God. Jesus explained that the Spirit and the Word give life (Jn 6:63), to whomever He (Jesus) wishes (Jn 5:21). God the Father has life in Himself, and He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself (Jn 5:26). Thus, those brought into Christ have this life in them, too (Ezek 36:26; 37; Eph 2:5; Col 1:13; 2:13; 1 Pet 1:3).

So, we see that the Father gives life; the Son gives life; and the Spirit gives life to whomever they wish. To give life to something means, it formerly was dead, but now it is alive. That which is dead is not in a position to make a choice — a decision to live or not. That which is dead has no will of its own. Rather, that which God made alive is alive. The testimony of the living, by virtue of being alive, is, “the life-Giver gave me life,” not, “I was dead and made a choice.”

Imagine one’s pet dog, if permitted to speak, claiming, “I chose to let God make me alive.” Oh, the laughable arrogance of the living creature that would ever boast such tomfoolery! Yet, some men, with a slightly higher intellect than a pet dog, actually make this very boast, within the hearing of heaven. Repent.

My dear reader, you do not have to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior because He already is your Savior, if that is what God intended Him to be for you — or, Jesus Christ is not your Savior because that was not the will of God for you (Jn 1:12–13; Rom 9:16, 22). If there is anything for you to accept, it is that God sits in the heavens and does as He pleases (Ps 115:3 135:6). Further, it is utterly irrelevant whether you accept this truth or not because the truth does not care about your opinion.

God does His will (Eph 1:11), perfectly accomplishing His eternal purpose, which He carried out in Christ Jesus (Eph 3:11). He accomplishes what concerns us, whether we be elect or reprobate (Ps 57:2; 138:8; Rom 9:22–23).

Can a man, a lowly, fallen creature, change the eternal purpose and will of Almighty God? May it never be. Never forget that the natural man is dead to God, dead in sin. Only God gives life to dead men, and that life is found only in His Son. You are either alive in Him…or dead outside of Him. Either way, it is God’s choice, and it behooves you to accept that…not Him.

David Norczyk

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

November 14, 2020