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Jesus said a person must be converted – have a conversion – or he cannot go to Heaven. The Greek word translated “converted” is “epistrepho.” It means “a turning.” This is not praying a sinner’s prayer or raising a hand. This is the change of heart that God gives a sinner at the new birth. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Again, Christ said, “Ye must be born again” (John 3:7). This is a radical change of heart. The Bible says, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new [creation]: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Corinthians 5:17). This is not just praying a sinner’s prayer. This is conversion! This morning I’d like to talk about counseling to bring a sinner to conversion in Christ.

What is conversion? What do we want to happen? The sinner needs a conversion, not a decision. Since the time of Charles Finney (1792-1875) “Decisionism” has taken the place of conversion in many churches all over the world. Millions of people have made a decision, but have not been converted.

What is “Decisionism”? What is conversion? Here is the definition from Today’s Apostasy, written by Dr. Hymers and my father, Dr. Cagan.

      Decisionism is the belief that a person is saved by coming forward, raising the hand, saying a prayer, believing a doctrine, making a lordship commitment, or some other external, human act, which is taken as the equivalent to, and proof of, the miracle of inward conversion; it is the belief that a person is saved through the agency of a merely external decision; the belief that performing one of these human actions shows that a person is saved.
      Conversion is the result of that work of the Holy Spirit which draws a lost sinner to Jesus Christ for justification and regeneration, and changes the sinner’s standing before God from lost to saved, imparting divine life to the depraved soul, thus producing a new direction in the life of the convert. The objective side of salvation is justification. The subjective side of salvation is regeneration. The result is conversion. (Today’s Apostasy, pp. 17, 18).

Making a decision is a human work that anyone can do, anytime. Conversion is a supernatural act that changes a person’s life and eternal destiny forever.

Getting a decision is much easier than bringing a soul to conversion. The preacher can get large numbers of “decisions” to count. You can get a decision anywhere, anytime. You can pray the sinner’s prayer with people at their front door, on an airplane, or anywhere else. You can count them, but you’ll probably never see them again. They made a decision, but have not experienced a conversion.

For conversion, most people need to come to church and hear the Gospel several times before they understand it and trust Christ. Some people come to church for months and even years before they are converted.

To lead people to Christ you must speak with them individually, yourself, after they respond to your invitation. Take them to another place where you will speak to them. Do not automatically lead them in a quick prayer. Praying a sinner’s prayer is not the same as trusting Jesus. Raising the hand, walking forward, or being baptized is not the same as trusting Jesus. Doing those things does not prove that a person has trusted Jesus. Trusting Jesus is something different, unique and special in itself. Trusting Jesus is trusting Jesus.

To lead a person to trust Christ and experience a real conversion takes time, effort, insight, prayer, and the grace of God. Dr. Hymers and Dr. Cagan have been counseling people for conversion for more than thirty years. Here are some things they have learned.

1. First, pastors must listen to sinners.

Do not assume – as virtually all evangelical preachers do – that the sinner already understands the Gospel. You must listen to him and find out what he believes. What is his religious background? What does he believe about Jesus? Does he think Christ is a spirit? Does he think Christ already lives in his heart? Does he think Jesus is angry with him? Does he think he is going to Heaven, or not? Learn what he thinks. Then show him the truth and lead him to the true Christ.

How does the sinner live? Is there anything that might hold him back from living a Christian life – pornography, adultery, or the opposition of family members? Sinners do not have to make themselves perfect to be saved – they can’t. But someone who willfully and persistently holds on to major sin is not trusting Christ. Instead, he trusts himself.

If you don’t listen to sinners, you can’t help them. Find out why the sinner has come to speak with you. What does he want Jesus to do for him? Why did he come? One person said he wanted Jesus to get him a job. But that is not salvation! Even if Jesus did give him a job, he would still be lost. The person must want his sins pardoned through the Blood of Jesus.

2. Second, sinners make errors about Jesus Christ.

What does the sinner think about Jesus? Ask him, “Where is Jesus now?” The Bible says that Jesus is in Heaven “at the right hand of God” the Father (Romans 8:34). But most lost Baptists think Jesus is already inside their hearts, or that He is a spirit floating in the air. You can’t come to Jesus if you don’t know where He is.

Ask the sinner, “Who is Jesus?” Many people think He is just a man, one of the great teachers of history. But that “Jesus” cannot save anyone. Some people think He is a spirit, or that Jesus is the Holy Spirit. But Christ is not a spirit. After Jesus rose from the dead, the Bible says,

“They were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them” (Luke 24:37-43).

After He rose from the dead, Jesus ate. A spirit does not eat. A spirit does not have flesh and bones as Christ had. And a spirit – even the Holy Spirit – does not have Blood to wash sin away!

Ask the sinner, “Is Jesus angry with you?” Many Catholics and others think that He is. They believe in an angry “Christ” – which is not the Jesus of the New Testament. The Bible says that Jesus loves sinners. He forgave the thief on the cross and a woman taken in adultery. How can a sinner trust someone who is angry with him? Correct these errors and point the sinner to the real Jesus.

3. Third, sinners make errors about salvation.

There are three main kinds of errors about salvation. Many sinners think that if they do one of these things, they will be saved – or if they have done one of these things, that proves they are saved. Here are the three main things sinners trust instead of Christ.

Physical action: baptism, going forward, raising the hand, making a Lordship commitment, giving up a few sins (this is not Bible repentance, which is a change of mind), or saying the sinner’s prayer. These are human works which cannot save anyone. The Bible says, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us” (Titus 3:5).

Mental action: having the right thoughts, or believing Bible facts about Jesus or about salvation. Sinners often say, “I believe that Jesus died on the Cross for me.” But millions of people believe that fact. Even the Devil believes that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the Cross and rose again. He saw it. The Bible says, “The devils [demons] also believe, and tremble” (James 2:19). The sinner must trust Jesus Christ Himself, not a fact about Him.

Emotional actions: feelings and experiences, looking for “assurance” rather than for Christ, or feeling better in life. Feelings go up and down. Everyone has good thoughts and feelings. Everyone has bad thoughts and feelings. The sinner knows this. He’s had those feelings himself. If you trust your feelings, you will think you are saved and then lost, lost and then saved, all your life long. Salvation is only in Christ, not in feelings. A grand old hymn says,

My hope is built on nothing less
   Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame [frame of mind, feeling]
   But wholly lean on Jesus’ Name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand,
   All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
   (“The Solid Rock” by Edward Mote, 1797-1874).

Correct these errors and point the sinner directly to Jesus Himself, for pardon of sin by His Blood.

Many false ideas mention Christ, but they “put Him under” or “pipe Him through” something else. Some people think if you are baptized, you receive salvation in Christ. This puts Christ “under” and “through” the water of baptism. Many think if you say the sinner’s prayer you will be saved, and the prayer is the same as trusting Jesus. So they get people to pray the prayer and count them, when very few of them trust Jesus and are converted. That is putting Christ “under” and “through” the words of a prayer. The Bible says that “Jesus Christ Himself” is the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20), not the words of a sinner’s prayer. Point the sinner to trust in Jesus Christ Himself.

I have seen people run from one error into another. They can start by looking for a feeling. The next time they say, “I didn’t have a feeling. I just believe that Christ died for me.” The sinner moved from the error of looking for a feeling to the error of trusting a fact about Christ. Hunt the sinner out of his refuge of lies and point him to Christ.

4. Fourth, sinners need conviction of the sin of their hearts.

A sinner must be convicted of the sin of his heart. Everyone admits they’re a sinner in some way. Everyone admits that they’re not perfect, that they have done some things wrong. I’m not talking about that.

I’m not talking about awareness of actual or specific sins. Yes, the sinner has done many sins. But just thinking about those sins will not save him. If you go through a list of specific sins, the sinner may think, “I’m not doing those things, so I must be saved.” Or he may think, “I’ll stop doing those things and that will show I’m saved.”

Sin goes much deeper than that. Everyone is a sinner inside, with a sin nature inherited from Adam. Everyone has a wicked heart. The Bible says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9). Every sinner is selfish inside. Every sinner is against God in his heart. This is far deeper than the specific sins that a person has done. What they do comes out of what they are. Far deeper than anything the sinner does, his heart, his whole being, is sinful and wrong. The sinner must feel the sin of his own heart. Tell him of the sin of his heart in your preaching, and when you speak to him after the sermon.

A sinner cannot change his own heart, any more than a goat can change himself into a sheep. That’s what it means that he is lost and cannot save himself. He cannot trust Christ by himself. Only God can draw him to Jesus. Christ said, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him” (John 6:44). This is called “the Gospel vise” – the sinner must come to Christ, but he cannot do it. He cannot do anything to save himself. As the Bible says, “Salvation is of the Lord” (Jonah 2:9). The sinner must be like Isaiah who said, “Woe is me! for I am undone” (Isaiah 6:5). Show him the sin of his heart. Show him that he cannot save himself. Show him that he needs mercy. Then he may come to Christ.

5. Fifth, if the sinner is convicted of the sin of his heart, try to lead him to Christ.

I do not lead everyone to Christ who comes to speak with me! Some people are only curious. They do not want to be forgiven of their sin. Some people come only because they saw others come. Some people have no sense of their sin and no God-given awakening. Leading people in a prayer to trust Christ who are fooling around will only bring them to a false conversion. When does it seem that a person may trust Christ?

The sinner must be “disgusted with himself,” as one girl in our church said. He must “give up on himself.” He must “come to the end of himself.” Isaiah came to the end of himself when he said, “Woe is me! for I am undone” (Isaiah 6:5). Then it is much more simple to trust Christ. He is not trying to learn something. He needs Christ to save him.

The sinner must trust Christ Himself. Direct the sinner to Jesus Christ Himself and the pardon of sin by His Blood. You may lead the person in a simple prayer such as “Jesus, I trust you. Wash my sin away with your Blood.” Or there may be no prayer at all, just a direct turning to Christ for forgiveness through His Blood. The sinner does not need to pray a prayer. The sinner does not need to make a picture of Jesus in his mind. The words don’t have to be “right.” Some people memorize – and repeat back – the “right” words but do not trust Christ. The thief on the cross did not say perfect words. He said, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom” (Luke 23:42). But he knew he was a hopeless sinner and he turned to Christ. It was that simple! The Lord said to him, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Trusting Christ Himself is much more important than saying words!

6. Sixth, after you have spoken with the sinner, ask him a few simple questions.

Ask him, “Have you trusted Jesus?” If he says “no,” speak with him again. If he says “yes” ask him when he trusted Jesus. If he says, “I’ve trusted Him all my life” or “I trusted Him a long time ago,” he is not converted.

If he says, “I trusted Christ right now,” ask him what he did. Try to get Him to describe his act of trust in his own words. People can memorize the “church words” they hear and repeat them back even if they are not converted What did the sinner do in his trust? Did he believe something about Christ? Did he trust a feeling? Or did he directly trust Christ Himself?

Ask him, “What has Jesus Christ done for you?” If the person does not speak about Christ forgiving his sin by His Blood, but talks about his own thoughts or feelings or goodness, he is not saved!

Ask him, “If you died today, would you go to Heaven or to Hell?” If he says “Heaven,” ask him why. What would he say to God if God asked him why he should get into Heaven? If the person speaks of good works or something besides Christ and His Blood, he is not saved! Then ask him, “A year from now, if you had a bad thought and then you died, where would you go?” If he says “Hell,” he is depending on being good and not upon Christ. Then you can ask him, “A year from now, if you left the church and never came back, and lived with a woman (or man) without being married, having sex with her, and you were taking drugs every day, would you be a Christian or not?” If he says “yes” he has never dealt with the problem of sin, and is still lost.

It is important to ask him not just to say, “I trusted Jesus,” but to describe what he did with Jesus in his moment of trust. You want to hear about his time of trust, not his whole life story or everything that happened that day. I do not look for particular thoughts or feelings. But the elements of his sin and pardon of that sin through Christ’s Blood through an act of trusting Christ Himself must be there. The details of the experience may be different for different people. I look for a genuineness, for a reality in what the person says.

If the person has made a mistake, correct the error and speak with him again. But a person who makes the same mistake over and over again shows that he is not serious about being converted. Those who God is drawing to salvation will listen to the sermons and to your advice. Those who do not listen will not be converted.

Do not be disappointed if the person turns out not to be saved after you speak with him. A few people are converted the first time they hear the Gospel, but most are not. Most people have to come again and again before they trust Christ.

Check each person more than once. Do not baptize people right away. Ask them to wait at least one year, and probably two years would be better in the apostate condition of the churches in our day. Probably two or three years would be better. That will give you time to see if their faith is genuine. You can check a person in different ways during that time. You can ask him for his testimony – outside of a church service. You can ask him weeks or months later. Those who did not trust Christ will forget the “testimony” they made up and will make mistakes after a year or two. They only wanted to “pass” and be approved, but they didn’t trust Jesus. Others can memorize some words and repeat them back, but when you ask in a different way at a different time they don’t know what to say, because they don’t have the personal experience of trusting Jesus.

Look at his attitude and conduct. A person who leaves your church and refuses to listen to you shows that he was not serious about sin and did not trust Christ. A person with a persistent bad attitude about the church and the Christian life shows that he was not serious about sin and did not trust Christ.

7. Seventh, remember the true test of counseling ministry.

The true test of counseling ministry is this: CAN YOU TELL A PERSON THAT HE DID NOT TRUST CHRIST AND WAS NOT CONVERTED THAT DAY? CAN YOU TELL A PERSON THAT HE MUST COME BACK AND SPEAK WITH YOU AGAIN ABOUT HIS SALVATION? I don’t know of any pastors that do this. That’s why our churches are full of lost people, including Sunday School teachers, deacons, pastor’s wives, and pastors themselves. Pastors insist on praying a prayer with everyone who responds to their invitation. They do this so they can count the number of baptisms. Almost none of those they baptize are saved. They don’t remain faithful to the church because they are not born again. These people are not “backslidden.” They are lost because the preacher never took time to make sure they were converted. Whether you can tell a person that he is still lost and needs to come again is the true test of your ministry. Are you like the people who “loved the praise of men more than the praise of God”? (John 12:43). Or do you speak the truth whether people like it or not?

This is a way of saying: Do you believe in real conversion – a real trust in Christ that results in a real Christian life? If you insist on leading everyone in a prayer, or to raise their hand, or sign a card, you are a “Decisionist.” You are not taking care of the human souls that God has sent to you.

I hope that some of you believe in real conversion. I hope that some of you see the need to take time with each person, to make sure that he trusts Christ and is converted. This is what a faithful pastor does. The faithful shepherd cares about the sheep. I hope you will do your best to make sure that your people have trusted Christ and are converted.

YOU MAY THINK THAT I HAVE GONE INTO TOO MUCH DETAIL ON THIS, THAT CONVERSION IS REALLY A SIMPLE MATTER THAT DOESN’T REQUIRE MUCH THOUGHT. But what if the medical profession did not require obstetricians to know the details of how to deliver a baby? What if they all did the same thing, or didn’t wash their hands, or didn’t know what to do with a breech birth, etc.? If we treated the delivery of babies like we do the delivery of souls, millions of babies would die unnecessarily – because right now millions of souls die unnecessarily and go to Hell because we don’t spend enough time making sure of their conversion, or teaching people how to do this in our Bible schools and seminaries – WHERE THIS IS NOT TAUGHT AT ALL!!!

I am going to read the words of “Then Jesus Came,” by Oswald J. Smith and music by Homer Rodeheaver. When Jesus comes into your life, His Blood cleanses you from all sin; the Blood He shed on the Cross is still available to cleanse your sin. And Jesus rose from the dead to give you eternal life. Only trust Jesus and He will pardon your sin and give you life everlasting. I hope you will come back and have dinner with us at 6:15 tonight. Dr. Hymers will preach an evangelistic sermon titled, “A Blind Man Healed by Jesus.” Be sure to come back at 6:15 tonight and stay for dinner after Dr. Hymers speaks.

One sat alone beside the highway begging,
His eyes were blind, the light he could not see.
He clutched his rags and shivered in the shadows
Then Jesus came and bade his darkness flee.
When Jesus comes, the tempter’s power is broken;
When Jesus comes, the tears are wiped away,
He takes the gloom and fills the life with glory,
For all is changed when Jesus comes to stay.

From home and friends the evil spirits drove him,
Among the tombs he dwelt in misery;
He cut himself as demon powers possessed him,
Then Jesus came and set the captive free.
When Jesus comes, the tempter’s power is broken;
When Jesus comes, the tears are wiped away,
He takes the gloom and fills the life with glory,
For all is changed when Jesus comes to stay.

So men today have found the Saviour able,
They could not conquer passion, lust and sin;
Their broken hearts had left them sad and lonely,
Then Jesus came and dwelt, Himself, within.
When Jesus comes, the tempter’s power is broken;
When Jesus comes, the tears are wiped away,
He takes the gloom and fills the life with glory,
For all is changed when Jesus comes to stay.
   (“Then Jesus Came” by Dr. Oswald J. Smith, 1889-1986;
      music by Homer Rodeheaver, 1880-1955).

(END OF SERMON)
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Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“Then Jesus Came” (by Dr. Oswald J. Smith, 1889-1986;
music by Homer Rodeheaver, 1880-1955).