The most high-profile death bed / last-minute (so-to-speak) conversion to Christ in the Bible is the case of the criminal crucified alongside Jesus (Luke 23:39-43). Only moments before his own death, this criminal had been an unbelieving mocker of Christ (see Matthew 27:44). However, at the last moment the criminal repented-acknowledging Jesus and His heavenly Kingdom. The Lord gave him the blessed promise, “Today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
Although the story of the criminal on the cross demonstrates that last-minute conversions are possible, the Bible warns us to repent now, without waiting another moment. John the Baptist warned, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). Jesus had the identical message concerning the need for immediate repentance, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17).
We are not instructed to consider converting "someday," but to believe today! “While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts,...” (Ref. Hebrews 3:15, 4:7).
So many people walk in doubt and unbelief, Christians are included and many on both sides of the fence do not understand there is an enemy with many human followers out to steal, kill and destroy ( Ref. 1 Peter 5:8 with John 10:10).
Some are taken in by their own sinful ways (1 John 5:16), and others become devoured by the devil (2 Tim. 2:26). Those who are not walking in total faith that God will keep them and keep them alive and healthy are targets for the enemy (Acts 26:8 with John 8:51 and John 12:25), therefore we say repent and believe in Jesus Christ today (John 6:47 with Josh. 24:15.
Again, many people die without having the experience of an extended amount of time on a death bed. Many people die instantly and unexpectedly, with no opportunity to trust in Christ. 2 Corinthians 6:2 declares, "(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)"
Looking Deeper
So, can you repent at the moment of death and still have the same salvation as someone who's been a Christian for many years?
It's a tricky question for some, but it’s a fascinating one and certainly one that many people are concerned about- on the other side, some really don't think about it because they already have it in their mind that a repentant heart-even at "near death" is one on its way to the Lord.
We talk about foxhole faith (i.e. Vietnam war, other wars or near-death predicaments), when people cry out in desperate moments of crisis or those that "postpone" their choice to their deathbed; the moment of committing their lives to Christ.
Some people say that it doesn’t make sense for somebody who has been a Christian all their life to be in the same state as somebody who did as they pleased all their life and waited until the last second to get their accounts square with God as they think they are breathing their last breaths.
There’s a parable in the New Testament (Matt. 20:1-16) in which Jesus speaks about those who agree to work for a certain wage, and then at the last minute some other people are hired and only work for a few shorter time but they get the same pay.
The first group is really bent out of shape, and they say, (vs 12)"Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.”
Does the second group receive the same salvation? Yes and no.
They are brought into a state of salvation; that is, they escape the punishment of hell and enter into the Kingdom if indeed that last-breath repentance is genuine. The requirement for entrance into the Kingdom of God is to repent and believe in Christ (Mark 1:15).
The thief on the cross did it in the last minutes of his life, and Jesus assured him that he would be with him in paradise (Luke 23:43). There, we have Exhibit A in the New Testament of somebody who actually did that and who was promised by our Lord Himself that he would participate in Jesus’ Kingdom.
Certainly it’s possible for a person at the last moment of their life to repent sufficiently, believe, and be justified and enter into all of the benefits of membership of the coming Kingdom of Heaven in the future.
Wait a minute...
We tend to think that all that matters is getting there because there is an unbridgeable chasm between getting into Heaven or missing it altogether. Yet Jesus tells us to work and to lay up treasures for ourselves in Heaven (Matt. 6:20) because He promises emphatically that there will be rewards (Ref. Revelation 22:12) dispensed to His people according to their works.
You don’t get into Heaven by your works, but your reward in Heaven will be according to those works, according to the New Testament. What that says to me is that although people can make it by the "skin of their teeth" so-to-speak; by repenting in their last dying breath, nevertheless, their degree of rewards will not be nearly as great as that of those who have been serving Christ faithfully for many, many years.
In Closing...
While a death bed conversion can be legitimate, it is not preferred. In fact, the Bible often speaks of accepting salvation immediately. John the Baptist, for example, taught, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). Hebrews 3:7-8 urges, "Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:" 2 Corinthians 6:2 adds, "(.................behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)"
Are you uncertain as to where you will spend eternity? The Bible teaches that you can know for sure where you will be if you were to die. 1 John 5:13 promises, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."
If you are unsure about your salvation, you can settle any doubts right now. Romans 10:9 says, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."