What is the deal with "PERSONAL Lord and Savior?

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deanarrca

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A friend of mine posed this question on another blog that I am on and I thought it was such a good question I thought I would repost it here because i thought it might get a better response.

She is a cradle Catholic and was asking this of a fundamentalist Protestant on the other blog. (I being an ex-fundamentalist maybe should have had a good answer but really didn’t so I didn’t respond well at least yet anyway.)

So Here is the question she posed:

*What is the deal with “PERSONAL Lord and Savior”. I don’t know why “personal” is so often emphasized. Maybe because I can’t wrap my head around the alternative, which I guess would be an “impersonal” Savior?

My husband is Southern Baptist cum Calvary Chapel cum non-denom, and every church heavily emphasices a “Personal” Savior. In order to be saved you must believe “on” Jesus as a “personal” Savior.

But I can’t find “personal” in the Scriptures and I just wonder why THAT emphasis? Can you point me to the roots of this thought?

And, what is the difference between believing “on” and believing “in”?
 
The evangelical concept of a ‘personal relationship’ with Jesus, is modern Western, individualistic terminology unknown to the writers of Scripture and the early Church.
Our relationship with Jesus is intensely personal. That is true, but it is not exclusive.
Paul said ‘Christ in you, the hope of Glory’.
In the Greek that Paul used it is plural, not singular.
It should read ‘Christ in YOU ALL, the hope of Glory.’ The Church is not made up of isolated individuals, but members of the mystical body of Christ Himself. Paul said we are “members one to another”.
Here is what evangelicals must wrestle with:
Jesus gave two very clear commands to His Church, Baptism and the Eucharist.
One cannot baptize oneself, it requires another person. Recieving the Eucharist requires another person, even if its a priest to a shut-un.
Christianity is corparate, not individualistic.
There was an old evangelical hymn called ‘Me and Jesus on the Jerico road’, or something like that. Giving the impression that our relationship with Christ is exclusive to an individual person. That is why they think they can ‘worship at home’ in the privacy of their living room listening to a preacher or sacred hymns.
Jesus gave a very clear worship COMMAND that requires other human beings. Not a ‘Lone Ranger’ christianity.
Catholics have a personal relationship with Christ. We know Him as Lord and Savior, we are members of His Body (how much more personal can one get?), we pray to Him, we worship Him, we adore Him, we seek to follow Him.
More importantly, receiving the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ into our very person is pretty darn personal.
Interestingly, normally speaking, a marriage is not valid until it is consumnated.
John 6:53-56 (RSV) So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.
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So, can Protestants have a personal relationship with Jesus if they never partake of His Body and Blood?
 
JustaServant - I absolutely agree with you and I like how you explained it. I guess my friend and actually I also was wondering more about the history behind it? when did it become popular Fundamentalist/ Evangelical lingo. Nowhere in the Bible does it use that sort of terminology or the “accept Jesus into your heart” terminology. Just wondering about the origins and any Biblical corroboration if there is any? (which I can’t really find),
 
Great reply, JustaServant! (You always have great replies!).

Can anyone elaborate on the “believing ON Christ” thing? I’ve never had that sufficiently explained to me. The daughter of Lee Strobel was once a member of a Christian parenting board I used to frequent, and she started a thread about that, about how to be “saved” you have to “believe ON Christ”, not just IN Him. I didn’t get it.

In Christ,

Ellen
 
Excellent. By the way I would like to point out that this is a tradition of the evangelicals. Who just happen to decry traditions.
 
deanarrca said:
JustaServant - I absolutely agree with you and I like how you explained it. I guess my friend and actually I also was wondering more about the history behind it? when did it become popular Fundamentalist/ Evangelical lingo. Nowhere in the Bible does it use that sort of terminology or the “accept Jesus into your heart” terminology. Just wondering about the origins and any Biblical corroboration if there is any? (which I can’t really find),
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It’s origins are from the TULIP of Calvinism in the 16th century. They just take it to it’s logical end.
 
ALLGIRLS said:
Great reply, JustaServant! (You always have great replies!).

Can anyone elaborate on the “believing ON Christ” thing? I’ve never had that sufficiently explained to me. The daughter of Lee Strobel was once a member of a Christian parenting board I used to frequent, and she started a thread about that, about how to be “saved” you have to “believe ON Christ”, not just IN Him. I didn’t get it.

In Christ,

Ellen
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Well I was about to write my own post about this, but then I decided, finally to google your question as even though I believe the difference is “there isn’t one”, the syntax difference was really vexing me. Google found this for me:

christianebooks.com/whatdoesitmeantobelieveonjesus.htm
“…(he) brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” Acts 16:30-31
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Theologians before 1800 paid a great deal of attention to the historical context of these words. But between 1800 and 1900, various European theologians increasingly interpreting scriptures out of context, and used the emerging science of psychology to explain the process of salvation. Certain influential theologians slowly began to explain salvation as primarily a psychological process instead of a mystical union of God and man…
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So apparently, the syntax comes from a english translation of the bible, more over taking that verse out of context. There’s a lot of interesting information in that web link, I’d recommend reading it.
 
ummmmm.
Jesus is personal. to whoever believes in him. whoever believes, repents, and THEN is baptized.
the only things we NEED for salvation are “confessing and believing that Christ is LORD” and repenting. then, when we mean this ONE TIME DECISION with our heart’s, when are CALLED by God, and we submit to His call, he (according to Scripture) takes our heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh.
the thing is, Christ died once. and ONCE IS ENOUGH. he said as he died “It is finished!”
NOT “okay! here’s part ooooone…” NO. we cant repeat his sacrifice! ITS DONE!!
How much more personal can God get??? certainly more personal that confessing to a priest instead of to God directly. certainly more personal that not choosing to be baptized. certainly more personal because of HIS WORD! and best of all, 1 Timothy 2:5 “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,”
OH how he loves us!
He’s PERSONAL because we CHOOSE to heed God’s call to save us! He is personal because He died that WHOEVER so believes IN Him will not perish but have everlasting life!! HE IS FAR MORE LOVING AN PERSONAL than to leave you stranded in “purgatory” !!!
so yeah Jesus is MY personal Lord and Savior! AND i partake in the Lord’s Supper because I do it in remembrance of Him! and when we CHOOSE to follow Christ, God gives us the Holy Spirit into our hearts! oh how personal! it is personal! we choose.
our parents don’t force us into it because they are OBLIGATED as Catholics to do so or they are threatened with “excommunication”. BY NO MEANS! God let’s us CHOOSE to accept His Son.its as personal as it gets if you stick to Scripture. 🙂
 
In response to Tyrel’s last post:
larrylec said:
Excellent. By the way I would like to point out that this is a tradition of the evangelicals. Who just happen to decry traditions.
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Please stay on topic, we’re talking about putting the word ‘personal’ in front of Our Lord’s name. So why bash the Eucharist, why bash confession, why bash purgatory, why bash excommunication? I mean, are you reading the same thread as we are? :confused:

If you would answer the question, rather than spew hatred of a misconception, maybe we will understand where you’re coming from. All we want is an explanation of this tradition, so that we can understand it’s basis. No Protestant has yet attempted to answer the question, only to change the subject!
 
This is off topic from my original posed question- So if you want to create a new thread for this we can or just let this thread go off in another direction

**Tyrel777 you said- >>whoever believes, repents, and THEN is baptized. the only things we NEED for salvation are “confessing and believing that Christ is LORD” and repenting. then, when we mean this ONE TIME DECISION with our heart’s, when are CALLED by God, and we submit to His call, he (according to Scripture) takes our heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh. <<

Tyrell, I want your understanding here. Now is what you just said above an absolute for every single person born on this planet?

What about babies who die before they have a chance to believe?

What about the severly mentally retarded or brain damaged?

And a third group --What about those who acknowledge a God and do the things approved of by God but have never heard of Jesus?

Second:
It is not a One Time Decision because we have free will and can change our minds at any time- The reality of it is people have a crisises (sp?) of faith all the time. It has to be a continuing or ongoing decision a perserverance to the end. I can quote scripture if you would like 🙂

Tyrell also said * >>NO. we cant repeat his sacrifice! ITS DONE!!<<*
Absolutely we agree- Once for All That doesn’t go against Catholic doctrine at all.
 
Catholics (not those that are Catholic in name only but devout Catholics) have a personal relationship with God. - But many fundamentalist/Evangelicals believe they don’t. In what way don’t devout Catholics have a personal relationship? It is definitely emphasized in my Parish.

But the phrase " Accept Jesus as your “personal” Lord and Savior" or the Just accept Jesus into your heart- Is not found in the Bible, Nowhere is that phraseology used when unbelievers become Christians in the Bible and by itself does not lead someone to salvation or a saving grace in Christ.

It is not used in Acts where the 3000 were saved or anywhere else in the Bible.

It is a meaningless catch phrase of Fundamentalism/ Evangelicalism. I just wanted to originally know the history behind it and when it became popular in use.
 
The way my mother (an Evangelical) says it any way, its in reference to making my faith my own (My own “personal” savior) as opposed to believing that my salvation is because my parents believe or because I go to church every week or because I hang out with Christians. Its a conscious choice to surrender the “Lordship” over my life to its rightful Lord.

And as far as that goes, I agree. In the future, I will want my children to ultimately take on their faith in a personal matter. That will not, of course, stop me from having them baptized as infants (a concept I would have been appalled at 4 years ago) or taking them to Mass every week. It will mean that, like my mother, I will begin educating them early on about what we believe and why. I will make sure they have generous access to the Sacraments. And I will live out my faith in the best example I can. But I’m not under any impression that my children will ride my coattails to heaven.

Sometimes I’ve run across people who say “Oh, sure, I’ll go to heaven because I attend church X every week” or “My parents were Christian, so I am too.” I think the idea of making Jesus your PERSONAL Lord and Savior, then, is a reaction to this kind of thinking.

And now, when asked, I’m highly tempted to reply: Oh yes, I have a personal relationship with Jesus. I eat his flesh and drink his blood every week. 😉

So… I can see where they’re coming, from one side any way. And when not taken to its extreme, it is even in harmony with Catholic thinking. That is, after all, what the sacrament of Confirmation is about, at least in part. It is, in part, the appropriation of the promises and graces we received in baptism. (and before anyone jumps on me, like I said, its only PART of this beautiful sacrament).

On the other hand, as some pointed out, it can be taken too far - to the exclusion of the Truth that being incorporated in Christ means that we are incorporated into a COMMUNITY of believers. We worship with others, we pray with others, and importantly we SERVE others. When it becomes all about “Jesus and me” an important truth is lost.

But, to paraphrase Chesterton, its another one of those ideas that simply takes a single idea and focuses on it to the exclusion of others. Certainly not all of those who talk about having a Personal Relationship with Jesus take this idea out of the circle of Truth.

Or for that matter espouse the idea of “once saved always saved.” I came from an Evangelical tradition that embraced Free Will - and therefore our ability to put ourselves outside of God’s grace after having made that “personal decision for Christ.”

Anyway - that’s my two cents from a former Evangelical Protestant. 🤷
 
ljubim said:
No Protestant has yet attempted to answer the question, only to change the subject!
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My dad, a lutheran pastor when alive, used to say about the hymn, “I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses”, beautiful hymn, lousy theology. So, sorry, no help for you from this part of western noncatholic Christianity. 🤷

Jon
 
Tyrel777 said:
ummmmm.
Jesus is personal. to whoever believes in him. whoever believes, repents, and THEN is baptized.
the only things we NEED for salvation are “confessing and believing that Christ is LORD” and repenting. then, when we mean this ONE TIME DECISION with our heart’s, when are CALLED by God, and we submit to His call, he (according to Scripture) takes our heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh.
the thing is, Christ died once. and ONCE IS ENOUGH. he said as he died “It is finished!”
NOT “okay! here’s part ooooone…” NO. we cant repeat his sacrifice! ITS DONE!!
How much more personal can God get??? certainly more personal that confessing to a priest instead of to God directly. certainly more personal that not choosing to be baptized. certainly more personal because of HIS WORD! and best of all, 1 Timothy 2:5 “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,”
OH how he loves us!
He’s PERSONAL because we CHOOSE to heed God’s call to save us! He is personal because He died that WHOEVER so believes IN Him will not perish but have everlasting life!! HE IS FAR MORE LOVING AN PERSONAL than to leave you stranded in “purgatory” !!!
so yeah Jesus is MY personal Lord and Savior! AND i partake in the Lord’s Supper because I do it in remembrance of Him! and when we CHOOSE to follow Christ, God gives us the Holy Spirit into our hearts! oh how personal! it is personal! we choose.
our parents don’t force us into it because they are OBLIGATED as Catholics to do so or they are threatened with “excommunication”. BY NO MEANS! God let’s us CHOOSE to accept His Son.its as personal as it gets if you stick to Scripture. 🙂
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You have a very warped view of the Catholic Church.
I would suggest you read this thread again before making such incredible statements.

Ultimately, our relationship with Jesus is very personal. We recieve His body and Blood every Sunday. You cannot get more personal than that. For a devout Catholic, thier relationship with our Lord is VERY personal.
We are simply saying it is not EXCLUSIVE.
I heard one preacher state we should ‘make a personal CLAIM on Jesus.’ It’s silly, childish theology that uses language that is not appropriate to the relationship we have with our Lord.
In short, devout Catholics have a persoanl relationship with Jesus. But, as Paul reminds us, it is by no means exclusive.
 
As a Southern Cradle Catholic woman, looking in from the outside, but very closely, my observations have be that my Protestant neighbors have this “my best and closest buddy system type relationship with Jesus”. It is an exclusive one on one relationship each and everyone of them seem to have.
Not only is this totally unbiblical (funny for the folks that claim to follow the Bible to the letter) It is wrong and totally blashemy.

Jesus established His Church here on Earth and through His Church we are joined into the Body of Christ. This is the Biblical explanition of our relationship with Christ. In the NT there are several referces to this, but not a single one to back up “Jesus and me” Protestant theology.
 
“Personal” makes it seem like everyone has their own Jesus. That’s just wrong!

He was, is, and always be, ONE Christ…forever and ever!
 
heathernoel said:
“Personal” makes it seem like everyone has their own Jesus. That’s just wrong!

He was, is, and always be, ONE Christ…forever and ever!
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You know something, everytime when a Non-Catholic Christian Evangelical claims his “Personal Relationship with Jesus.” It seems to portray them as “individualistic” rather than the focus on helping his fellow brother or sister.
 
Tyrel777 said:
ummmmm.
Jesus is personal. to whoever believes in him. whoever believes, repents, and THEN is baptized.
the only things we NEED for salvation are “confessing and believing that Christ is LORD” and repenting. then, when we mean this ONE TIME DECISION with our heart’s, when are CALLED by God, and we submit to His call, he (according to Scripture) takes our heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh.
the thing is, Christ died once. and ONCE IS ENOUGH. he said as he died “It is finished!”
NOT “okay! here’s part ooooone…” NO. we cant repeat his sacrifice! ITS DONE!!
How much more personal can God get??? certainly more personal that confessing to a priest instead of to God directly. certainly more personal that not choosing to be baptized. certainly more personal because of HIS WORD! and best of all, 1 Timothy 2:5 “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,”
OH how he loves us!
He’s PERSONAL because we CHOOSE to heed God’s call to save us! He is personal because He died that WHOEVER so believes IN Him will not perish but have everlasting life!! HE IS FAR MORE LOVING AN PERSONAL than to leave you stranded in “purgatory” !!!
so yeah Jesus is MY personal Lord and Savior! AND i partake in the Lord’s Supper because I do it in remembrance of Him! and when we CHOOSE to follow Christ, God gives us the Holy Spirit into our hearts! oh how personal! it is personal! we choose.
our parents don’t force us into it because they are OBLIGATED as Catholics to do so or they are threatened with “excommunication”. BY NO MEANS! God let’s us CHOOSE to accept His Son.its as personal as it gets if you stick to Scripture. 🙂
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where is that in the Bible? can you show us this passage? since you only believe if it is written, please do us this favor. show us these exactly words.

**
O truth, you are present to those who seek your help, and at one and the same time you answer all, though they seek your counsel on different matters. You respond clearly, but not everyone hears clearly. All ask what they wish, but do not always hear the answer they wish. Your best servant is he who is intent not so much on hearing his petition answered, as rather on willing whatever he hears from you.
St Augustine**
 
deanarrca said:
A friend of mine posed this question on another blog that I am on and I thought it was such a good question I thought I would repost it here because i thought it might get a better response.

She is a cradle Catholic and was asking this of a fundamentalist Protestant on the other blog. (I being an ex-fundamentalist maybe should have had a good answer but really didn’t so I didn’t respond well at least yet anyway.)

So Here is the question she posed:

*What is the deal with “PERSONAL Lord and Savior”. I don’t know why “personal” is so often emphasized. Maybe because I can’t wrap my head around the alternative, which I guess would be an “impersonal” Savior?

My husband is Southern Baptist cum Calvary Chapel cum non-denom, and every church heavily emphasices a “Personal” Savior. In order to be saved you must believe “on” Jesus as a “personal” Savior.

But I can’t find “personal” in the Scriptures and I just wonder why THAT emphasis? Can you point me to the roots of this thought?

And, what is the difference between believing “on” and believing “in”?
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I think they just mean that everyone has to have a personal commitment to Jesus, it’s not enough to just belong to a church or go through the motions, you have to really mean it. I don’t see anything wrong with this concept, as a Catholic I myself have a personal relationship with Jesus.
 
jfoges said:
I think they just mean that everyone has to have a personal commitment to Jesus, it’s not enough to just belong to a church or go through the motions, you have to really mean it. I don’t see anything wrong with this concept, as a Catholic I myself have a personal relationship with Jesus.
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I agree. However, the danger comes when we believe we don’t need the Church. Christ said that where two or more are gathered in His name. In addition, the Church is the vehicle for sanctifying grace. It is where we receive the Sacraments. So, as long as one professes a personal relationahip in the way you profess it, that’s fine.

Jon
 
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