This is the most common phrase I hear Christians give to unbelievers and people that are curious about the gospel. It's everywhere.... television, bumper stickers, books, articles, etc. While the statement itself is true, I feel it has absolutely no meaning to the ears of most modern people. Again, I believe the statement is true, but I doubt I'll ever utter those words to an unbeliever. This short essay will explain why.
When I study the way Jesus and his apostles ministered, they took a very different approach and it varied depending on who they were speaking to. The way Jesus spoke to the woman at the well was different than when he spoke to the rich young ruler. The way Paul witnessed to Festus was different than the way he spoke to the Athenian philosophers. It seems obvious from these examples that a "catch phrase" is not what's needed. However, we live in a society inundated with Christian catch phrases and I think it does a disservice to Christ.
Telling someone they need to accept Jesus into their heart as lord and savior does several things that could potentially be dangerous. For example, I've been a student of the bible and a Christian for 15 years and even I have no idea what it means to accept Jesus into your heart. Does it mean we should obey all his commands? I definiately see Jesus saying that. Does it mean we are to put him first in our lives? I see that too. Does it mean we admit our sins to God and ask forgiveness. That's biblical as well. Accepting Jesus into your heart is a rather aloof statement that doesn't really say anything about the gospel, yet it's become a mantra of sorts.
I did not always feel this way but I see great value in using modern language to explain the gospel. Most people have no idea what a "lord" is because they don't live under a kingly government. People understand the word savior but I doubt they could articulate what we're being saved from or why a savior is even needed. Is there something mystical or holy about these words? Wouldn't it make more sense to simply tell an unbeliever that we've offended God by our selfish actions and Jesus volunteered to take our punishment? That's not a great catch phrase though so it'll never stick.

Also, I think we need to relate to people more when sharing the gospel. Paul did this all the time. When he spoke to the Jews he used their own beliefs and traditions to make a point. He also did this with the Athenians by quoting a popular piece of poetry. Now, I'm not trying to say we should conform our teachings to the culture.... far from it. But we are still called to relate to our culture and it's very difficult to do this when we insist on using archaic (though correct) language to express the gospel to them. I've been told this is "cheapening the message" but I fail to see why. I think the opposite is true. I, for one, have dropped my Christianese in favor of relating to the experience of the pesron I'm speaking with.
I guess this boils down to: There's a right way and a wrong way to share the same gospel. Where I live it's embarrasing to see how Christians express their beliefs to others. They completely disregard any cultural differences between them and the unbeliever and then break out with various catch phrases. Whatever happened to "let your conversations always be full of grace and seasoned with salt?" Perhaps this is more of a rant than anything but I'd very much like to hear other opintions on this (very broad) topic.