Is Confessing in Public Required for Salvation?

Posted on February 24, 2022 by

“…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” (Rom. 10:9,10).

Many new Christians are led to understand that a heart faith is not enough to make them secure…that not until they have risen in public congregation are they saved and safe.

So what then does the Apostle mean by these plain words, “If thou shalt confess… thou shalt be saved?” As with so many other passages, a traditional meaning has been superimposed upon the actual words of Scripture. What does the English word “confess” mean? It means to “acknowledge,” to “admit.” And this is exactly what the original Greek word means as well. Yet Romans 10:9-10 says nothing about confessing before men.

The trouble is that the idea of confession has been changed to profession…even public profession.

But Paul also adds, “and shalt believe in thine heart!” Now ask yourself…Is it with that physical organ which pumps blood into our veins that we believe in Christ as our Savior or just merely a figure of speech? Of course it’s the latter. So then why would we insist that it is with our physical mouths that we must confess? Can mutes not be saved then?

Thankfully, the Word of God is clear: An internal belief is all we need (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

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