I think it serves as vacuous because it really doesn’t address the condition of the seeker nor does it really define Jesus in even the barest of terms. I’ve even seen it used on drunks because it is a quick and easy kill.
It’s not a bad thing, it’s just not a valid path to true Salvation except under extreme circumstances(like someone who is intimately familiar with Christian theology). It’s not even sincere (because it is not original).
At worst, it creates false converts who believe they have “punched their ticket”.
Look into Ray Comfort’s ministry Way of the Master. Listen to Hell’s Best Kept Secret.
http://www.wayofthemaster.com/hbks.shtml
re: “I think it serves as vacuous because it really doesn’t address the condition of the seeker nor does it really define Jesus in even the barest of terms.”
So tell me, then, in Acts 16:29-31, was Paul’s answer to the Philippian Jailer’s question, “What must I do to be saved?”, vacuous too? All Paul told him was, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” That’s even shorter than the “sinner’s prayer”. Just how much theology must one understand to be saved?
. . . and by the way AppyPappy, I totally agree with you that people can be led by the nose to repeating a “prayer” that they don’t understand and have no real idea what they are doing. That can and does happen.
I also agree with you that it can create “false converts”. However, my question is, do you ever tell someone about Christ and how to become a Christian? If you had the opportunity to tell someone, what would you tell them?
I’m not trying to be argumentative, and I do see your point of the danger of not fully explaining to people what becoming a Christian means. But, explaining to people what a Christian is and what one needs to do to become a Christian is possible, isn’t it? If that is so, we tell the Gospel and then let the Holy Spirit do the converting. We cannot know what someone else is thinking or feeling. They can reiterate back to us information, but we have no idea what is in their heart.
Does that mean we don’t tell them about Christ? I think the so-called sinner’s prayer at least gives some simple idea of what you are asking a person to do, and, of course explaining what it means is an absolute prerequisite before ever attempting to help them pray.