The upsurge of born again" Christianity has made conversion, a perennially important topic, especially popular today. With its special emphasis on the Bible and its teachings, evangelical Christianity has championed the need for conversion in modern life. But what does the Bible really say about conversion? Is the New Testament view of conversion uniform? Is it a one-time occurrence or an ongoing process? According to the gospels, how central to the message of Jesus is conversion?

Many studies focus on psychological or anthropological aspects of conversion, but they give only a nod to...