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In popular culture, a come to Jesus moment (or come-to-Jesus moment) has come to refer to “a moment of sudden realization, comprehension, or recognition that often precipitates a major change” (Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary). So, any kind of significant, potentially life-altering decision that a person must make—often choosing between good and bad—can force a come to Jesus moment. The idiomatic wake-up call is roughly synonymous.
A related term, a come to Jesus meeting is an idiom referring to an intervention in which a person is confronted about something concerning which he must make a significant decision. For instance, if a girl is in an unhealthy relationship, a group of friends may arrange an intervention, a “come to Jesus meeting,” to try to get her to “see the light” and make the decision to exit the relationship.
Of course, the phrase come to Jesus is the language of conversion. Used as modern slang, it can be applied to any significant decision, whether or not Jesus has anything to do with it. Literally coming to Jesus may be the furthest thing from the mind of the person making the decision or the people running the intervention.
Leaving the modern idiom for a bit, a true come to Jesus moment is the point when a person is rescued from sin and given eternal life. Jesus Himself extended the invitation to come to Him in Matthew 11:28: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (cf. Revelation 22:17).
In the New Testament, when people come to Jesus, it was often the defining moment of their lives. Nathanael (John 1), Nicodemus (John 3), the woman at the well (John 4), Jairus (Luke 8), the woman with the issue of blood (Mark 5), and many others came to Jesus and found forgiveness, healing, and a brand new life.
Those who come to Jesus in faith will never be turned away (John 6:37–39). Those who come spiritually hungry and thirsty will be satisfied (John 6:35). Those who come to Jesus seeking the way, the truth, and the life will find it (John 14:6).
Every believer has had a “come to Jesus moment.” That is, every believer has experienced a moment when he or she placed faith in Jesus and accepted the truth that He died for sin and rose again (see Romans 10:9–10; 1 Corinthians 15:1–4).
In 2024, after the State of the Union Address, President Biden was caught on a “hot mic” saying that he and the Prime Minister of Israel needed to have a “come to Jesus meeting.” President Biden was not planning to share the gospel with the Prime Minister, but he was presumably going to try to get him to alter the course of his prosecution of the war against Hamas. President Biden was expressing his opinion that an intervention—a hard talk—was necessary. One can only imagine the results if both the President and the Prime Minister actually did “come to Jesus” in the biblical sense of the phrase.
