How important is the asking for salvation, really? I mean, if you know you’re a sinner in need of a savior and believe that Jesus died for your sins, that would be enough, right? Do you still need to ask for salvation to be saved? In John 3:16 it says that whosoever believes in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life, which would indicate that belief is all that’s needed and not necessarily the asking, is this a correct interpretation? What is your view on this?
Believing the Gospel is the single requirement for salvation (John 6:28-29, 1 cor. 15:1-4). Asking to be saved is an action that confirms our belief. In Matt. 7:7-8 Jesus said whoever asks receives, whoever seeks will find, and to whoever knocks the door will be opened.
In Romans 10:10 Paul put the two together, saying, “For it’s with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it’s with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” In Romans 10:13 he confirmed this with a quote from Joel 2:32, “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
With something as important as our salvation, I think it’s a good idea to be sure we have all our bases covered. We know that God knows our hearts. He knows when we first believed and that’s when we became His (Ephesians 1:13-14). But both Jesus and Paul admonished us to ask. To me, that means we should ask.