WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED AND STAY SAVED ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE?

Our title contains a questions that have been asked by literally millions of people.  “What must I do to be saved and what must I do to stay saved?”  I believe these two questions are the most important anyone could possibly be asked.  Even more important is the answer!  Are we receiving the correct reply?  I realize there are some people that believe when you are once saved you will always be saved. Therefore, they would say that not matter your relationship with God at your demise, there is no need for the second question as you are eternally saved (once saved – always saved teaching).       

In order to answer these two questions correctly we will set aside all the traditions and teachings of denominations and rely solely on the Word of God.  In this BLOG I will deal with the first question and the second question at another time.

What must I do to be saved? The Bible is clear that our salvation begins by believing.  Two of the most commonly quoted verses in the whole Bible are: ”And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?  And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house [Acts 16: 30-31].   ”For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” [St. John 3:16].   These few verses declare a fact that cannot be disputed in which God requires all of humanity to believe in One Person in order for them to have everlasting life.  That one person is the Lord Jesus Christ.   

Believing qualifies us for salvation!  This is our first step.  In order for one to believe on Jesus or in Jesus, we must know something about Him.  Obviously we need to know what we should believe concerning Jesus Christ. 

First and foremost, the Bible teaches us that Jesus is the only begotten Son of the Living God (St. John 3:16; 3:18; 1John 4:9).  We must believe Jesus was conceived of the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary (See Luke chapter one and Matthew chapter one).  

Secondly, Jesus died for your sins and was raised from the dead.  I quote the Apostle Paul, ”Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures”  [1Corinthians 15:1-4]. 

Thirdly, we must believe Jesus is the only way to God the Father.  Jesus testified of Himself and said,  ”. . .  I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” [John 14:6].   Apostle John wrote, ”He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him”  [John 3:36].  

The Apostle Peter verifies this with the following statement, ”Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved”  [Acts 4:12].   According to the New Testament Apostles and Jesus Himself, for one to be saved, he or she must believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the only way to God or else they have all lied, suffered and died in vain

Now we know we must first believe!  To further prove what you must believe about Jesus; take a look at these verses of scripture.  The entire Gospel of St. John was written for one purpose and that purpose is that you might believe that Jesus is the Son of God!  St. John 20:31 says, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name”.   

Further, the Apostle John is very bold with these statements found in his first epistle.  “Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.”  [1Jonn 4:15].   ”Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”  [1John 5:5].   And again in the 5^th chapter, ”He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.  And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 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”  [1John 5:10-13].

             Truly, the scriptures literally scream that Jesus is The Son of God!  This is what YOU MUST BELIEVE!  So simply that a child can understand!  Perhaps you have left this truth and have come to believe something very different about Jesus.  ”But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” [2Corinthians 11:3].   Salvation is not complicated!  It is clearly revealed in the scriptures for all to see. 

We have found the Bible is very clear that we must first believe on Jesus in order to qualify for eternal life.  Remember, believing on Jesus is the first step.  I am going to assume that you now believe what the Bible says about Jesus.  You are now a believer! 

Now, is there more we must do in order to be saved?  I said this was the first step.  Is simply believing Jesus is the Son of God enough for us to enter the pearly gates of Heaven?

There are multitudes of people that believe they will be saved because they believe there is a God.   However the Bible is also clear about this mindset.  ”Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble”  James 2:19].  Yes, the devils believe there is a God but that does not merit them salvation.

We know the devils also believe that Jesus is the Son of God!  Look at these verses for our proof:  ”And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.  [Mark 3:11].  And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? [Matthew 8:29]. And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ” [Luke 4:41].   

             We now understand by the scriptures that the devils believe there is One God and they also believe Jesus is the Son of God.  We also know, the devil and his angels will be cast into a lake of fire (Mat. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).  Simply knowing there is One God and believing Jesus is the Son of God is not sufficient for salvation. They will certainly not be saved!

             So, what is the next step? 

To discover the Truth about what one must do to be saved, let’s take a look at some of the verbatim preaching of the Apostles of our Lord.  Certainly, they would know the Truth as the Lord Jesus personally taught them!

I want you to take a closer look at the scripture I gave you in the Book of Acts chapter sixteen.  It is quoted often as the way to be saved.  ”And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?  And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house [Acts 16: 30-31]. 

In this passage, Apostle Paul is preaching to the jailer and his household in Macedonia.  God had given Paul and Silas a great deliverance from prison with a supernatural earthquake and the jailer was astonished at this miracle and wanted to be saved.

The jailer asks, “What must I do to be saved?”   Paul stated in verse 31 what he must first do, ”Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

Paul has not finished his message.  Verse 31 was just his introduction.  He continues to instruct this man and his household with the following words, ”And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house” (Verse 32).  Paul and Silas preached the “Word of The Lord” to the man and all that were in the house!  In other words, they began to teach them what they should believe about the Lord Jesus Christ.  These people had probably never heard of  Jesus!  What were they supposed to believe about Him?  For them to be believers, they had to be taught!

After revealing to them the good news of the Gospel and what they must believe to be saved, Paul completed his message by baptizing them the same hour of the night!  ”And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway”  [Acts 16:32-33]. 

Now friends, you know water baptism is something that is rarely mentioned in the preaching of the Gospel today.  As a matter of fact water baptism is actually fought against by modern ministries as not important or necessary to be saved.

Obviously, Paul and Silas thought it extremely important for them to baptize these people.  They didn’t wait until the next day!  They baptized all the people the very same hour of the night.

We find there is an obedience that is required when the truth of the Gospel is preached.  Paul had preached to the people in Macedonia and they had obeyed his preaching by believing and being baptized in water.  The Book of Romans lets us know this.  ”But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you” [Romans 6:17].

So then we find one must first believe and then we must obey the Word of God.

Let’s take a look at the very first Gospel message ever preached.  I believe you will see a pattern that was set forth in the beginning that Apostle Paul was following years later in Macedonia. 

It all begins after the resurrection and ascension to Heaven of the Lord Jesus.  Jesus had instructed His disciples to wait on the promise of the Father which was the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

When the Day of Pentecost was fully come, the Holy Spirit fell on all those that were gathered together.  The fire of the Holy Spirit filled the place they were sitting and they were all filled with the Spirit and spoke in tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

This all caused a great commotion in the area. There were thousands gathered in Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost.  When they heard and saw what had happened, they began to ask what was going on.  As the other Apostles stood with him, Apostle Peter preached the very first Gospel message.  You can read that first Gospel message in Acts chapter 2, verses 14-40.

After hearing the preaching of the Gospel, the people wanted to be saved and they began asking the Apostles what they should do.  Let’s begin reading from the Book of Acts, chapter two, verse 37 where they asked this question, “What must we do?” ”Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart”, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?   

The Word of God Had penetrated their hearts and they desperately wanted to know what they should do! ”Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost”  (verse 38).  Now we are seeing more clearly God’s great plan for the salvation of mankind. 

First, God requires mankind to believe that He sent His only Son to save mankind by offering Himself for the sins of the world.  Then, we must obey from our hearts that form of doctrine (teaching) which was delivered to us (See Romans 6:17). 

Looking throughout the scriptures we find God’s ministers preaching repentance.  John the Baptist began his ministry with a cry of repentance.  Likewise Jesus began His ministry the same with a command to repent.  When Jesus sent His disciples to preach the Kingdom throughout Israel, they preached that men should repent.  Jesus was so forceful in His preaching of repentance He declared, ”I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish”  [Luke 13:5].  The Apostle Paul was quoted in Acts chapter 17, verse 30, ”And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent”.   No wonder the very first Gospel message also demanded repentance!  Peter commanded the people to repent!

Yes my friend, God loves you!  Jesus loves you, but they command you to repent!

First, we believe.  Secondly, we obey by repenting of our sins.  That’s two very important steps everyone must take. 

There is yet a third step we must obey.  This final step is the one the devil hates the most as it completes the Divine Plan of God!  Peter commanded that they should also be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.  He declared that our obedience would lead to two wonderful things that would happen in our lives.  One, we would receive remission or forgiveness of our sins.  Two, we would receive the gift of the Holy Ghost!

In verse 39 the Apostle Peter sealed this great plan of salvation with a promise.   ”For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call”.  The Gospel command and the promises are for everyone the Lord our God shall call!

I hope you see how Amazing the wisdom of God is.  He has given us His Divine plan of salvation so clear to understand that a child could not misunderstand it.  We Believe. We Repent. We are Baptized, and then We Receive!

             There is only one gospel message!  One faith! One way!  God doesn’t have several plans of salvation; there is only one.  

Many will no doubt say I am preaching we are saved by works and not by Grace.   The truth is, I have declared unto you what THE APOSTLES explicitly preached and that is all.  As for being saved by Grace alone I must remind the reader that we are saved by Grace THROUGH FAITH (By Believing) (Eph. 2:8).  And faith without works is dead being alone (James 2:20; 2:26). 

I realize some of you that read this article may have difficulty believing you must be baptized in water in the Name of Jesus Christ as you may have been taught the opposite.  I would like for you to consider these three scriptural reasons we should be water baptized. 

(1) For the remission or forgiveness of sins: ”Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost”  [Acts 2:38].  Remember, Peter had the keys to the kingdom.  The keys were: (a) repent and (b) be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.  If you obeyed these two commands, you would receive the Holy Ghost.

(2) To fulfill all righteousness: ”And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him” [Matthew 3:15-16].  Bible scholars tell us Jesus walked 70 miles to be baptized in water by John!  If He thought it was that important why belittle its importance today? 

(3) For a good conscience: ”Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ” [1Peter 3:20-21].  The Apostle Peter is very bold and says emphatically that water baptism also saves us and will give us a clear conscience toward God!  If for no other reason than these three, everyone not only should be baptized, they must!

             Jesus said, ” . . . And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” [Mark 16:15-16].  Look closely at what our Lord said in these two verses.  The emphasis here is on “He” or the person that believes.  “He” that believes.  And, “He” that is baptized.  In other words, it is what the person does that qualifies him for eternal life. 

First, he believes, then, he is baptized.  Some have misinterpreted this scripture to mean that a person believes then he receives the baptism of the Spirit.  It should be clear that our Lord’s emphasis is on the person and what he does and not on the working of the Spirit.  He believes and then he gets baptized.  You cannot baptize yourself with the Holy Spirit!  But, you can be baptized in water.