Taking Christ as your personal Savior means believing the gospel—that Christ died for you, was buried, and rose again.
Les Feldick teaches that this is not a mere religious phrase or mental assent. A person must first know they are a sinner and then genuinely believe, by the Holy Spirit's work, that Christ paid their sin penalty. When that faith is real, God makes the believer His child and Christ lives in him.
Romans 3:23 — Establishes the first step: every person is a sinner, which is why a Savior is needed.
Galatians 2:20 — Shows Paul's description of being crucified with Christ and Christ living in him.
Romans 1:16 — Identifies the gospel as God's power unto salvation for everyone who believes.
Scripture says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). No one is righteous on his own, so every person needs a Savior. The gospel of Christ is God's power unto salvation to every one that believeth (Romans 1:16). Paul also describes the believer's union with Christ: "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20).
Les Feldick teaches that the phrase "take Christ as your personal Savior" is a coined expression, not found in Scripture, but it is valid if it means believing the whole gospel—that the Son of God became flesh, shed His blood, was buried, and rose again (Clip2). He rejects a mere "ease of believism" and mental assent; genuine belief is Holy Spirit-driven and is based on knowing you are a lost child of Adam and that Christ died for you personally (Clip1, Clip6). At the moment of that faith, God considers the old sin nature crucified, regenerates the spirit, and Christ comes to live in the believer (Clip0, Clip7). Les also compares salvation to an event, not a process; the Christian life that follows is the process (Clip5).
Les Feldick says, "You show me one verse where it says, if you will take Jesus as your Lord and personal Savior, thou shalt be saved. It doesn't say that, but you see, we've coined it." He explains that the phrase is acceptable if it means believing that the very Son of God became flesh, went to the cross, shed His blood, was buried, and rose from the dead. Without that whole body of truth, it can become just a cliché (Clip2).
Les proclaims that the Gospel is only one thing: "Christ died for me, and He died for you. He paid my sin penalty. He suffered in my place. His divine, pure, precious blood was shed in total payment for your sin and mine. He was buried, He was really dead, and He arose from the dead powerful, victorious." Once a person understands and believes this Gospel, he is taking Christ into his heart and Christ becomes his personal Savior (Clip3). Paul calls this gospel "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16).
Les explains that as soon as we believe we are sinners and that the gospel is the only remedy, "God takes this old sin nature and He considers it crucified." Paul's testimony is "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20). The Holy Spirit enlightens the understanding, regenerates the dead spirit, and the believer realizes that the old Adam was placed on the cross in the mind of God. Fellowship is restored, and the Spirit comes to dwell in the believer (Clip0, Clip7).
Les says, "I don't adhere to some ease of believism, oh yeah, I believe that Christ died for me. I've accepted Christ as my personal Savior. I don't go for that." Instead, a person must understand with all their being that they are a lost child of Adam and truly believe that Christ died for them, shed His blood, was buried, and rose from the dead. This is a "genuine, Holy Spirit-driven belief," not just mental assent (Clip1, Clip6).
Les says that because of salvation a person becomes "a totally different person in your outlook, in your desires." But he also says, "You're not going to be a mature Christian overnight. It's going to take time. The Christian life is just like coming into the physical life. We come into the Christian life as a babe in Christ, just an infant that needs tender, loving care, an infant that needs nourishment, an infant that needs protection" (Clip4).
Crucified with Christ
Believing the gospel means God sees the old sin nature as crucified; Paul's 'I am crucified with Christ' is not literal, but God's accounting.
Genuine Faith vs. Easy Believism
Les rejects a mere 'I've accepted Christ as my personal Savior' and insists the believer understands they are a lost child of Adam and truly believes Christ died, shed blood, was buried, and rose; God then makes him a child and places him in the body of Christ.
The Phrase Is Not in Scripture
Les challenges the coined expression and explains it is valid only if it includes the whole body of truth about Christ's incarnation, cross, blood, burial, and resurrection.
The Gospel Defined
The Gospel is that Christ died for me and you, paid sin penalty, shed blood, was buried, rose; believing this is what takes Christ into your heart and makes Him personal Savior.
The New Believer's Growth
Salvation makes a person new in outlook and desires, but a new believer is a babe in Christ who needs nourishment and protection.
Salvation Is an Event
The first step in the plan of salvation is agreeing with God that you are a sinner; salvation itself is an event, not a process.
Holy Spirit-Driven Belief
Les distinguishes real belief from mental assent by saying it is a genuine, Holy Spirit-driven conviction that your eternal destiny depends on what Christ did for you.
What Happens at Faith
When the Holy Spirit enlightens and regenerates the dead spirit, the believer realizes the old Adam was crucified in God's mind, fellowship is restored, and the Spirit comes to dwell.
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Les calls believing this the first step of faith before a person can take Christ as Savior.
Galatians 2:20: I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Shows the believer's identification with Christ's death and Christ's life in him.
Romans 1:16: For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
The gospel—Christ's death, burial, and resurrection—is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.
Les Feldick points out that no verse says "take Jesus as your Lord and personal Savior, thou shalt be saved." It is a coined expression. If it means believing that the Son of God became flesh, died, shed His blood, was buried, and rose again, then it is fine.
You must believe the gospel: Christ died for you and for all, paid your sin penalty, shed His blood, was buried, and rose from the dead. Believing that, with the Holy Spirit's work in you, makes Christ your personal Savior.
Yes. Les says salvation is an event, and the Christian life is a process. The first step is believing God's verdict that you are a sinner; when you truly believe the gospel, God moves in and makes you His child.