Easy Believism or Lordship salvation?

In light of the  recent awakening to the errors of Easy Believism, many Evangelical Christians  are viewing   Lordship Salvation as a  more biblical alternative; but is this really an answer to the problem or just a  knee jerk response? Does Lordship salvation come any closer to hitting the mark,  or have we simply traded one error for 
 another?

Now more than in any  time before, we are witnessing the results of an Easy Believism gospel. We see  the grown-up children of the Awana generation who claim to have “said a prayer”  or “asked
Jesus into their hearts” and been saved as a child and yet have had no  change in their lives. They live as Practical Atheists, denying Christ in their  daily lives and yet claim His name as Christians. They drink, smoke, take the  name of the Lord in vain  never darken  the doors of a Church and yet say that they are saved and on their way to  heaven.

Many sincere Christians are asking why? How can this be? The evidence of  true salvation is shown by our surrender to Christ’s authority and in a changed life. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.“ 2 Corinthians 5:17    
 
Easy Believism removes the message of “repentance toward God” and offers simply “faith in  Christ” through a simple prayer,
without any recognition of our sinfulness or  guilt before our holy God. Lordship salvation adds surrender and a commitment to  make Jesus Lord, as a requirement for salvation. 

While it is good that  many have recognized that Easy Believism has oversimplified the gospel message  to the point of making it
basically a magic prayer, they have also erred  themselves in attempting instead, to de-simplify it by adding extra demands.  This has resulted in the trend toward Lordship Salvation. The reasoning is this: “If we make sure these  people really, really mean
the prayer that they say, or make a REAL commitment  to Christ, surrendering to His authority,  then surely they will be truly saved. 

Paul preached  “…repentance toward God, and faith
toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 20:21)  When asked, “What must I do to be saved?”, his answer was not, “Make Jesus Lord  of your life.”; it was simply, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt  be saved,”  (Acts  16:31)

We must not confuse  Justification with sanctification. Making Jesus Lord is not a condition of  salvation, but a result. When we recognize our sinful condition  and condemnation before God and turn to Christ our Savior for rescue, we believe in him and are saved. The one who redeems our soul becomes our Lord. We are saved because we believe in what he has done already on our behalf, dying on the cross to pay for our sins and rising again to bring us newness of life. We are not saved because we decide to commit to him and make him Lord. Salvation is all in what He has done, not in 
what we do. We cannot decide, or will or surrender ourselves to be saved. We can  only believe in what he has done. “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the  will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:13 
  
“But though we, or an  angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have  preached unto you, let him be
accursed.“ Galatians 1:8  The answer is not to  “add to or change the
gospel of Christ”, but to simply preach the true gospel of  Christ in Biblical terms.

“And they went out,  and preached that men should repent.”  Mark 6:12 
  
“He that believeth on  him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he  hath not believed in the
name of the only begotten Son of God.“  John 3:18  

 “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.”  Ephesians 2:8&9