Expert: Cooper P. Abrams III - 11/29/2004

Question
Hi,

What does it mean when it is said that "whoever calls upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved" exactly? I'm confused by the
phrase "upon the name of the Lord"...does this mean that
whoever asks Jesus to be saved will be?


Thanks,
Matt Bachman

Answer
Hi Matt,
    I am sorry this is so late.   I am having a mess with my e-mail because of my spam blocker.  I get from twenty five to hundred spam messages a day and I have been trying to filter it out.    I think I have corrected it blocking Allexperts questions.
    Thanks for you understanding and your good question.

Romans 10:13  "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

    "Whosoever" means that anyone can ask for salvation.
The word "call upon" in the original language means to "invoke worship, to appeal to, and to call."    In other words a person who "calls upon or appeals" to the Lord to save them from their sins shall be saved.    From the Greek definition we see it means more than just saying the words and this is confirmed by other passages also.

    Earlier in the passage Romans 10:9-10 state:  "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

     The passages says that if a person "confesses" which means to acknowledge that Jesus is the Lord and...believe in one's heart that God has rasied Him from the dead, God would save that person.   Verse 10 explains that if this confession or acceptance that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior, comes from a person's heart...they will be saved.  Just saying the words does not save....what saves if that it a a heart felt acknowledgement that a person is appealing to God to save them from their sins....and recognizing that they cannot save themselves and thus they are relying wholely on the Lord Jesus Christ for their salvation.

    So, "upon the name of the Lord" refers to a person putting his faith in Jesus Christ for salvation and nothing else.

    Ephesians 2:8-9  "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."

    This passage explains that salvation is not something that a person can merit or earn by any good works, ritual and anything else.  Salvation is the "gift" of God through His grace.     So the person who is "saved" and whose sins are forgiven and receives eternal life...is the one who wholly puts their faith in Jesus Christ for their salvation.  We throw ourselves on God's mercy and grace and He promises to save us.

    1 John 2:2 states: "And he (Jesus Christ)  is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."   The word "propitiation"  means full payment.  When Jesus, the Christ,  suffered and died for our sins and was resurrected...He paid fully our sin debt.    He then offers salvation to us freely as a gift if we will receive or accept it.   That is why Romans 10:13 says the one who is saved is the one who calls on the Lord.   We acknowledge our sin and that He is our God and Savior and in simple faith ask God to save us.    And....He does..that is His promise.

   I hope this answers your question, but if not completely please write again...   Thank you for writing and being patient with me in responding.   I wish someone would figure out a way to elimate spam....

Cooper Abrams
Romans 12:1-2
Bible-truth.org