Romans 10:9-13, God's Promise To Save Them That Believe

Romans 10:9-13, “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. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

This is one of the most debated passages of Scripture. I have heard much heresy taught by unlearned preachers from this passage. I love something that Pastor Curtis Hutson said: “A good rule to follow when interpreting the Bible is to never use an obscure passage to contradict a clear one.” That is one of the best quotes I have ever heard.

Without argument, Romans 10:9-10 is definitely an obscure passage of Scripture. Many Christians debate over the meaning of “confess with thy mouth.” The cult of Church of Christ is one example of those who corrupt the meaning of this passage, mandating that a person publicly confess Christ to be saved. Nothing could be further from the truth! We have a very clear passage in the Bible, the entire Gospel of John, which simply teaches to BELIEVE on Jesus Christ to be saved. John 6:28-29, “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” This is a very clear passage. Yet, the Church of Christ and other false teachers will use one obscure passage of Scripture from Romans 10:9-10 to add a requirement to the Gospel which God does not require.

In the Gospel of John the word “believe” is mentioned 88 times, but there is no mention of confessing Christ with your mouth to be saved. We have a precious promise from God in Romans 10:9-13 that God will save anyone who believes. The Bible elaborates on this truth, to ensure that there is no misunderstanding. Romans 10:12, “For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.” Here we plainly learn that God is not a respecter of persons, promising to save ANYONE who places their faith (trust, reliance) in Christ alone.

Romans 10:10-11

Romans 10:11 is often misinterpreted. I have heard numerous Bible teachers and radio preachers get this Bible verse wrong, teaching that you are not saved if you are ashamed of Jesus. That is not what this passage means. Romans 10:10-11, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” At a glance it does seem, from reading verse 10, that verse 11 is teaching that a person won't be embarrassed if they truly believe. This is the errant interpretation of the Church of Christ cult.

We know this is not the correct interpretation for a few reasons:

First, Romans 10:11 is a quote from the Old Testament. Isaiah 28:16, “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.” The correct meaning based upon Isaiah 28:16 is that someone who believes on Christ will never be let down. Jesus will not fail you! That is what Romans 10:11 really means. You can count on God's promise to save them that believe!!! This is a good example of why we must “Study to shew thyself approved unto God” as the Bible exhorts in 2nd Timothy 2:15a.

Second, as mentioned earlier, the Gospel of John plainly teaches that all God requires to be saved is to “BELIEVE ON HIM” (John 6:40). John chapters 19 and 20 tell the story of Christ's brutal crucifixion, burial and His bodily resurrection. This is the Good News (the Gospel) according to 1st Corinthians 15:1-4.

Third, we learn in John 12:42-43 that many of the chief rulers “believed” on Christ, but “THEY DID NOT CONFESS HIM.” John 12:42-43, “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” The Bible is clear that these chief rulers did get saved, but they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. This evidences that confession is NOT necessary to be saved.

Fourth, the Apostle Paul defines the Gospel in 1st Corinthians 15:1-4, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” Paul makes no mention of confessing, repenting, water baptism or anything else. If turning away from a lifestyle of sin, or publicly confessing Christ, or anything else were necessary to be saved, then Paul would have mentioned it.

The written Word of God promises salvation to anyone who trusts in Christ.

Romans 10:13

Another commonly misunderstood Bible verse is Romans 10:13. Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Carefully notice what the next verse says. Romans 10:14, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” This is another obscure passage of Scripture. I have heard some preachers errantly teach that praying to be saved is the Bible method. That is not true friend. It would be foolish to base a doctrine upon one Bible verse, when there is a clear passage of Scripture that contradicts that strange doctrine. 

As I mentioned earlier, the word “believe” is mentioned 88 times in the Gospel of John. There is no mention in John about “calling” upon the Lord. Romans 10:14 plainly teaches that a person cannot “call” until they first “believe.” This plainly shows us that Romans 10:13 is an exception to the rule. There is nothing wrong with praying when you receive Christ as your Savior. However, it is not necessary. Praying is a natural tendency when a person believes. Many soulwinners lead people to pray a Sinner's Prayer to receive Christ, but the truth is that the only reason they want to pray such a prayer is because THEY ALREADY BELIEVE. That is exactly what Romans 10:14a says, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?” The Bible teaches that before a person ever prays to be saved, they were already saved the very moment that they believed. Isn't that wonderful?!

Oftentimes in churches an invitation is given for people who want to be saved to come forward to the altar in front. The truth is that those people were saved before they even left their pew, when they believed. I don't like altar calls for salvation. Why cannot those people be told how to be saved right in their pew? They certainly can. Why do they need to come forward? They don't need to. Many people, like myself, are shy and won't walk down to be made a spectacle in front of the whole church.

Other people may not feel well in their body. In every church I have seen, where altar calls are given to come forward, people are asked to get down on their hands and knees. That is not always a modest thing to do for women, depending on their attire. It is also a dramatic new experience for someone who has never been to an altar before. It is a shame that so many pastors woefully lack understanding, wisdom and respect for people. Most churches want people to come forward, so they can make a spectacle out of them and boast of their numbers saved.

Every preacher should ALWAYS tell people how to be saved right from their pew, without asking them to walk an isle to go up front. By requiring people to come forward those foolish pastors have ADDED an unnecessary step to the Gospel, corrupting it. Heaven only knows how many millions of people have died in their sins and gone to an eternal Hell, all because preachers never told them how to be saved from their pew. Pastor Max Younce has authored a wonderful book about this very topic called: 'Salvation And The Public Invitation.'

So in this blog we have learned that Romans 10:9-13 is often misunderstood in a few ways. You don't have to confess Christ with your mouth to be saved. Believing is enough! Just because you are ashamed of Jesus doesn't mean you don't believe. Even the Apostle Peter was ashamed of Jesus, denying knowing Him three times due to fear. God promises to “SAVE THEM THAT BELIEVE” (1st Corinthians 1:21b). Beware of anyone who requires more than believing to be saved. The Bible teaches that faith is enough. Galatians 3:26, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” You don't need to pray to be saved. I love this helpful quote from Dr. Bob Jones Sr. (1883-1968):

“'Pray to be saved. Ask the Lord to save you.' This is what I heard a minister say to a convicted sinner who came forward for prayer at the close of an evangelistic service. Nowhere in the Bible are men told to pray to be saved. There are examples where men did pray and were saved. Men are told to repent, to believe, to obey the Gospel, but the Bible never says to pray for salvation. It does say that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, but nowhere does the Bible command men to pray to be saved. I think I know why, God, who made the human heart, knew that it was not necessary to tell convicted sinners to pray. If a sinner can see Jesus Christ on the cross, it is as natural for him to pray as it is for birds to sing or flowers to bloom. 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.'” —Dr. Bob Jones Sr., “Comments On Here And Hereafter,” chapter: Prayer And Praise, page 163; Bob Jones University Press, Inc., © 1942

Amen and amen! Dr. Bob Jones Sr. is absolutely correct! Anybody who says that you need to pray to be saved is a liar. The Bible gives us the simple way of salvation. Acts 16:30-32, “And 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, and thy house.”