Which one is it? Accept Christ, acknowledge Him, or receive Him as Lord and Savior?
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)
I think it’s important to note that He is already Lord, it does not matter if you believe that truth or not, lost or saved, Jesus Christ is Lord of all. Accepting that title of who He is does not always mean submitting to it, or Him, every fallen angel will attest to that truth.
Acknowledging Him as such is really not that different from the word accepting, although it seems to be the term that most who consider themselves Christians prefer to use. And since Ephesians 2:8 is a truth, it may be about the closest terminology, since salvation is indeed a gift of God, which can be accepted or rejected.
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”
As for receiving Him, that word also would probably be appropriate, as a visitor to your house is either received into your presence or rejected.
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” (Rev. 3:20)
The point of all this is only this, the Almighty forces no one to accept Him, or His gift of eternal life, but even above that, His offering is not continual or unending. He will stop knocking if the call is not answered.
“And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. (Mark 12:34a)
Not far is not inside that strait gate my friends.
Instead of accept, acknowledge or receive I offer these words, submitting to His call, for that is what we must do.
“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
Submission is not just a compilation of these three words, it is the action behind them, it is the force within us, if I may use that word, that causes our free will to submit to His will for the remainder of our lives here, in fact, for all eternity. Submission is complete and total obedience without reservations, it is dying to self, it holds nothing back and offers all we are and have to Him solely for His glory.
It is much more than just accepting Him as Lord of Lords, it far surpasses just receiving Him as the Sovereign Lord of all creation. It is everything, all the time for Him.
“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;” (Col. 3:23)
“For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.” (Romans 14:8)
I do not believe the church, the body of Christ, is in a bad place, I do not believe it is backsliding or misrepresenting His Holy name in any way shape or form, I do not believe in any age it ever has. But I do believe that a lot of places that call themselves churches have very little desire to serve the will of the Living God, that their worship services, if they could be called that, are nothing more than community clubhouses, full of people that say they have accepted Christ.
“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:3)
Those who have been born again live with grief and sorrow every day, they are acquainted with it just as our Savior was. They thirst and hunger for righteousness more than they ever have for food or water, they long to be in His presence, to go home, and struggle through this life, and only then by His strength.
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
Accept, acknowledge, receive or submit, which one sounds like what a servant would do?
I leave you to your thoughts.
