WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED
By Jim Murriner
What must I do to be saved? Here is the question to which every man must learn the answer, or spend eternity lost, away from God, suffering the torments with the damned in Hell! We can thank God that He has answered this very question in His word. Salvation is made plain many places in the word of God, but there is only one place where we are given this direct question, and have there also the answer.
Paul and Silas were in the Philippian jail and at midnight they prayed and sang praises unto God. God brought upon them a great earthquake, which loosed the bonds upon all the prisoners, and opened the prison doors. The jailer, awaking and finding this out, was about to end his own life, when Paul however, told him that they were all there, the Holy Spirit convicted him of his sin, and he asked the question which we are concerned about here.
We can read this in Acts 16:29-31
29 "Then he called for a light and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,"
30 "And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
31 "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. This is the only way of salvation, all of Gods elect must be saved this way.
WHAT MUST I DO?
Salvation is all of the Lord,(Ps.37:39) yet each sinner has a responsibility before God, to do exactly what Paul and Silas told the jailer to do. You are to "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ".
God does not tell us that we must be baptized to be saved, but that we are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
God does not tell us that we are to join the church to be saved, but that we are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
God does not tell us that we are to keep the law to be saved, but that we are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Neither does God tell us that we are to say the sinners prayer to be saved but that we are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
BELIEVING ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS NOT THE SAME AS MAKING A DECESION
When we speak of believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, we are not talking about what is commonly known today as making a decision for Jesus. If God would leave us in our natural condition, we would have no desire to make a decision for Jesus even if we could.
Romans 8:7-8 tells us that we in our natural condition did not desire Him.
7 "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be."
8 "So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God."
In Eph.2:1 we are even described as being dead in sin while we were yet in our natural condition.
"And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;"
It is because of this condition, which indicates that we are totally without any ability to help ourselves, that rather than making a decision, we are given faith by God.
Notice that Eph.2:8 tells us that when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that the very faith which we exercise is a gift of God.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:"
This giving us repentance and faith is also spoken of in the scriptures as being born again.
John 3:3 "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
1Pe 1:23 "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever."
Just as we had no part in our first birth, when we are born again it is all of the Lord. We as human beings exercise faith, not knowing where it comes from, but knowing that we now see ourselves as sinners and see a need for a savior.
May God give you this new birth granting you repentance and faith even now .
