A Brief History of Easy Believism

1. The Roots: Sandemanianism (18th Century)

The earliest full expression of “easy believism” appeared in Sandemanianism, founded by Robert Sandeman (1718–1771). Sandeman defined saving faith as nothing more than intellectual agreement with gospel facts—what he called the “bare assent of the understanding.” This stripped faith of repentance, personal trust, and submission to Christ.

Though the Sandemanians remained small in number, the movement influenced later forms of reductionistic evangelism by redefining faith as mere acknowledgment, rather than a Spirit-wrought transformation of the heart (James 2:19).

2. Revivalism and Decisionism (19th Century)

In the 1800s, revivalist preachers like Charles G. Finney popularized unbiblical methods of evangelism that prioritized visible “decisions” over genuine conversions. Finney’s theology denied original sin and taught that revival could be manufactured through the right use of methods.

This produced innovations such as the “anxious bench” (a precursor to the altar call), where people were pressured to make public professions of faith. Salvation was reduced to a human choice rather than the sovereign work of God (John 1:13). Genuine repentance and faith were often replaced by emotional responses.

3. 20th Century: Easy Believism Goes Mainstream

In the 20th century, evangelists such as Billy Sunday and Billy Graham spread mass-meeting evangelism with calls to “come forward,” “pray the sinner’s prayer,” or “make a decision for Christ.” While Graham did preach Christ crucified, his methodology often blurred the line between true conversion and external profession.

At the same time, dispensationalist theology in America (especially in the Scofield Reference Bible tradition) often redefined faith as a momentary decision for Christ, disconnected from repentance or obedience. This was picked up and further systematized by figures like Lewis Sperry Chafer and later by Zane Hodges, who explicitly denied that repentance is necessary for salvation.

Thus arose the phrase “easy believism”—the idea that one could “accept Christ” without repentance, submission, or transformation, directly contradicting passages like Luke 13:3 and 2 Corinthians 5:17.

4. The Lordship Salvation Controversy (Late 20th Century)

In the 1980s–90s, the issue came to the forefront in the “Lordship Salvation” controversy. Pastor John MacArthur (in The Gospel According to Jesus, 1988) defended the historic, biblical position that true faith always includes repentance and results in obedience.

Zane Hodges and Charles Ryrie opposed this, insisting that salvation required nothing more than intellectual assent or a moment of “belief”—a clear revival of Sandemanianism. This debate exposed how far “easy believism” had spread within American evangelicalism.

5. Today: Easy Believism in Evangelical Culture

In contemporary evangelicalism, easy believism manifests as:

The result has been a generation of false converts who profess Christ but show no fruit of regeneration, echoing Jesus’ warning: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 7:21).

✅ Conclusion

From Sandeman’s “bare assent” → to Finney’s decisionism → to 20th-century altar calls and sinner’s prayers → to today’s market-driven evangelicalism, “easy believism” has always been the same error: reducing saving faith to a shallow, human act, while ignoring God’s command to repent and believe the gospel (Mark 1:15).

True biblical faith is never “easy.” It is God’s sovereign gift (Ephesians 2:8–9), inseparable from repentance (Acts 20:21), and always produces fruit (James 2:17).

You may want to read our article on Sandemanianism.
(The above article was AI generated.)