Steps to Peace With God

This is a very popular tract and millions have impacted through it.

Overview

This tract explains four concepts in successive steps; specifically, God’s Purpose, Man’s Problem, God’s Solution, and Man’s responsibility of accepting the solution in faith. The order of the steps cannot be reversed. The recipient of the message must know first that God loves him/her, but he/she is separated from God through mans choice to sin. Good works, religion, philosophy, and morality cannot bridge the gap. God has provided the only solution – his Son Jesus Christ, who died on the cross and rose from the grave. His works bridged the gap and provided the only payment God would accept. Now the choice is man’s; namely, to receive Christ – to “trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.”

Step four ends with a four-fold explanation on how to “receive Christ.” In order to receive Christ, one must admit to be a sinner, be willing to turn from sins (repent), believe that Jesus Christ died for them on the Cross and rose from the grave, and pray to invite Jesus to come in and control their life through the Holy Spirit (Receive Him as Lord and Savior).

The booklet concludes with a section on Assurance (of salvation) and suggested steps to deepen ones new life in Christ: Read the Bible, pray, evangelize, worship, fellowship, get involved in Church, and love others.

As An Evangelistic Tool

“…God gave us a will and freedom of choice. We chose to disobey God and go our own willful way. We still make this choice today. This results in separation from God.”

In regards to the “problem” facing man, the quote above suggests that man has been separated from God because he has sinned. Two verses are cited in support of this (Rom 3:23; 6:23).

Additionally, the bold words above the gap illustration says, “Our choice results in separation from God.” However, this quote does not line up with Pauline theology. Paul is not saying that personal sins have separated man from God (i.e. lying, cheating, stealing, etc…); the problem is imputed sin, which passed down from Adam. Paul teaches this concept up in Romans 5:12: “…just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.” Technically, we sin because we are sinners. We do not become sinners by sinning. Therefore, it would be more accurate if the quote read, “One Man’s choice resulted in separation from God.”

Step four speaks about man’s responsibility to receive Christ for salvation, but creates perhaps the most confusion out of the entire booklet.

“We must trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.”

The two verses cited in support of the quote commit a hermeneutical fallacy; that is to say, it takes two verses out of context and applies them to evangelism:

“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 him, and he with me”(Revelation 3:20).

Since this first passage is directed towards believers, its frequent application to evangelism seems a bit misleading. There are several reasons why this verse should not be used in evangelism. As stated earlier, Jesus’ words in Revelation 3:20 are directed toward believers (the Laodicean Church). Secondly, Jesus is offering fellowship with him, not salvation. Ironically, in a verse that is used to substantiate, “asking Jesus to come into ones heart” the passage makes no mention of the words “ask,” “Jesus,” “come,” “into,” or “heart.” This passage is popular in child evangelism, but it may only complicate things all the more for a child who takes things literally. But even with the adults who can comprehend abstract concepts, there is still no gospel presentation. Regardless of age, the unbeliever needs a relationship with Christ, not fellowship. Thus, they need a verse that speaks of relationship rather than fellowship.

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).

The second verse (Rom 10:9), when applied to evangelism becomes problematic for Paul seems to condition salvation not only on believing, but confessing, which is a work! This contradicts his “faith alone” theology in Rom 3:28. It also violates his “nothing can separate” discourse in 8:38-39. Does nothing include a failure to confess Jesus as Lord? Many people have claimed that timid or hesitant people who fail to confess Jesus as Lord in public remain unsaved. Will “bashful,” the dwarf in Snow White fail to receive salvation if he fails to publicly confess Christ?

Two crucial questions will solve this hermeneutical spiral: “Who are Paul’s readers” and “why do they need to be saved?” More specifically, saved from what? Verse 13 reveals another condition for those who desire to be “saved”: “Whoever calls on the name….will be saved.” In the next two verses, Paul emphasizes the obvious: The sending of the preacher precedes the preaching, the preaching precedes the hearing, and the hearing precedes the believing/acceptance of the message. The implication in verse 13 is that once who “calls” must first believe. Thus, to “call on the name of the Lord…” is a command for the believer. The context (v. 14-15) has revealed that believers are in view of Paul’s admonitions. These formulas “confess” and “call” “…and you will be saved” refer to salvation [deliverance] from the wrath of God that was being revealed at the present time in their pagan city; this is not a reference to salvation from Hell. Some interpret the “calling” and “confessing” as a synonym for obedience in word and deed, which seems to fit the situation for Paul’s audience. In conclusion, these verses should not be used in evangelism; they are addressed to those who have already believed in Christ. To suggest that these passages speak of salvation from hell not only violates the flow of Paul’s theology, but disregards the immediate context.

Clarity in Presenting our Message

“Jesus Christ died on the Cross and rose from the grave. He paid the penalty for our sin and bridged the gap between God and people.”

Paul defines the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1-6; it is the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is “gospel” [lit. Good news] because He did it for us and in our place! Thank you Lord! Although the tract contains good elements to share in evangelism, step four and the explanation of “receive(ing)” Christ muddy up the waters. Let’s take another look at step 4:

“We must trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.”

The latter half of this quote seems to contradict “faith alone” theology. Why mention “and receive” if the issue is faith (trust) alone? To be precise, receiving Christ is the result of belief, and is not commanded. When it is mentioned in scripture (John 1:12; Col 2:6), it is used in the past tense indicating result not means.

“Be willing to turn from your sins (repent).”

Repentance is commonly rendered a change of mind or a turning from sin. Here, it is defined as being willing to turn from personal sins. If it said one must turn from all personal sins, it would make salvation unattainable, but the notion of being willing to turn from personal sins does not do any better. There are some obvious reasons why this interpretation of repentance should not be used in evangelism. Above all, there is not a shred of evidence in the scriptures where eternal life is contingent on turning from personal sins. It is safer to say that repentance refers to “a change of mind.” Of course, if an unbeliever wishes to be saved the must “change their mind” about Christ and trust in him as the only way to receive eternal life.

“Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit. (Receive Him as Lord and Savior.)”

Similar to the added condition above, these extra curricular activities of praying, inviting, allowing, and receiving cannot be substantiated by scripture. Nobody has ever been saved by praying. However, this is not to say that one cannot express to Christ through prayer that he or she is trusting in Him for salvation. But in any case, the key verb still remains: Believe and be saved. Dr. Charles Ryrie suggests that "Enthronement [putting Christ on the throne of my life; making Him Lord of my life; etc.] is not a condition for salvation but rather . . . it should he a consequence of it."

“Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and need your forgiveness. I believe that You died for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as Lord and Savior. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Once more, not only is this sample prayer not necessary for salvation, but it contains controversial issues and vague concepts that could mislead or confuse the hearer. The evangelist would to best to keep the issue faith alone in Christ alone. Personal sins, prayers, and other practices can be mentioned one second after the person has expressed acceptance of Christ as personal savior. Relevance to Today

The message of Christ, which this booklet presents, is timeless; it will be relevant in every age and in every era because man is lost without Christ. Any human being that is born physically alive remains spiritually dead unless they change their mind about Christ (repent) and accept him as savior. Additionally, the pamphlet contains simple illustrations and steps, which people really appreciate nowadays.

Conclusion

I think if we are going to present the free gift of salvation, then it would be good to stay away from adding anything to faith alone. Furthermore, it is perhaps safer to stick with “clear” passages, which address the issue of salvation from the penalty of [imputed] sin; hell. Here are a few passages that frequently come to mind when sharing the message of life:

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31a)

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life” (John 6:47)

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ (John 11:25-26)

“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law” (Romans 3:28)

“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness” (Romans 4:4-5)