What Must I Do To Be Saved?

ACTS 16:25-34
In each person’s life there
comes a time when he feels
some type action must be
taken, or some type
experience undergone in order
for him to be saved. The above
question is a cardinal one of
paramount importance to each
generation. We are right in
coming to the conclusion
something must be done on
our part in order to be saved.
The consensus we are lost,
without God, a sinner,
doomed, or whatever term we
employ, is absolutely correct.
Since all have sinned (Romans
3:23), we must become aware
of our need of salvation from
sin.
This unending question goes
on arising to besiege each
individual somewhere in life. I
join you in the quest for
salvation. I too want to be
saved from sin and everlasting
punishment, but the question
remains regarding salvation,
“WHAT MUST I DO?”
This lesson proposes to
explore, fairly and scripturally,
the proper plan of action that
will initially save us from our
sins. Later we will study the
continual conduct required to
retain our status of SAVED.

Erring here spells eternal

doom; finding truth and
obeying it will mean eternal
joy in heaven in the end. We
must have God’s intervention
and help to find and obtain
salvation.
Saved or Save both have
several connotations in the
Bible ranging from physical to
spiritual deliverance. This
lesson deals exclusively with
salvation or deliverance from
sin to the extent that we are a
ready candidate for heaven if
we die, or the Lord returns for
the church.

DEFINITION

SAVED – comes from the Greek

word SOZO meaning to save,
deliver, protect, heal, and
preserve. Webster stated that
in theology it means to deliver
a person or soul from sin and
punishment; redeem from
spiritual death.

SCRIPTURAL REFERENCES ON
BEING SAVED

Note the following scriptural

references that denote action
on our part in order to be
saved:
1. “…Receive with meekness
the engrafted word, which is
able to save your souls.”
(James 1:21). Emphasis here is
on the WORD.

2. “Who so walketh uprightly

shall be saved…” (Proverbs
28:18). Emphasis here is on
WALKING UPRIGHTLY.
3. “…Thy faith hath saved thee;
go in peace.” (Luke 7:36-50).
Emphasis here is on FAITH.

4. “Who shall tell thee words,

whereby thou and all thy
house shall be saved.” (Acts
11:14; Read Acts 10:1-48 –
11:1-18). Emphasis here is on
WORDS SPOKEN.
5. “I am the door: by me if any
man enter in, he shall be
saved…” (John 10:9). Emphasis
here is on ENTERING IN THE
DOOR (JESUS).

“…Even baptism doth also now

save us…” (I Peter 3:21).
Emphasis here is on BAPTISM.
7. “…Save yourselves from this
untoward generation.” (Acts
2:40).Emphasis here is on
SAVING YOURSELF.

8. “Look unto me, and be

saved, all the ends of the
earth…” (Isaiah 45:22).
Emphasis here is on LOOKING
INTO GOD.

9. “Believe on the Lord Jesus

Christ, and thou shalt be
saved, and thy house.” (Acts
16:31). Emphasis here is on
BELIEVING.

10. “For by grace are ye saved

through faith…” (Ephesians
2:5,8) Emphasis here is on
GRACE AND FAITH.

11. “For whosoever shall call

upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved.” (Romans
10:13). Emphasis here is on
CALLING ON THE NAME OF THE
LORD.

12. “Not by works of

righteousness which we have
done, but according to his
mercy he saved us…” (Titus
3:5). Emphasis here is on
MERCY.

13. “…He that endureth to the

end shall be saved.” (Matthew
10:22). Emphasis here is on
ENDURING.

14. “For we are saved by

hope…” (Romans 8:24).
Emphasis here is on HOPE.

15. “He that believeth and is

baptized shall be saved…”
(Mark 16:16). Emphasis here is
on BELIEVING and BAPTISM.
16. “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.”
(Romans 10:9). Emphasis here
is on CONFESSING and
BELIEVING.
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You have heard these
Scriptures used separately and
combined, as a course of
action on one’s part in order to
obtain salvation from sin.

Note these Scriptures are

throughout the Bible, some
spoken by Prophets, Apostles,
Jesus, Solomon, and Paul. Who
is right? Do these verses
contradict each other? Do we
use just one verse, all sixteen
verses together, or three or
four verses together, to obtain
a formula for salvation?

I contend we must use all

sixteen verses IN CONTEXT
along with the rest of the
Word of God as it relates to
obligatory action on our part.
We are in gross error to tell a
sinner simply to believe, just
singularly be baptized, have
hope, endure, or use one
single verse alone. All are
pertinent in relation to the rest
of God’s Word on the subject.

I present to you other

scriptures you must consider in
relation to your soul’s
salvation. May we carefully
and rightly divide the word of
truth at this juncture (II
Timothy 2:15). The following
are progressive steps we must
take to obtain this great
salvation. Details of each point
will be covered in subsequent
lessons.

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FAITH
From the Bible we learn that it
is essential to believe God and
His word or we will never take
another positive step toward
being saved. Faith is an
absolute prerequisite in
coming to God. Yet faith or
believing alone is insufficient
to obtain salvation from sin.
Study the following scriptures,
along with others as they
relate to salvation.

1. “But without faith it is

impossible to please him: for
he that cometh to God must
believe that he is, and that he
is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek him.” (Hebrews
11:6).
2. “… Whosoever believeth in
him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.” (John
3:16).

3. “So then faith cometh by

hearing, and hearing by the
word of God.” (Romans 10:17).

“In whom ye also trusted…

believed… were sealed with
that Holy Spirit of promise.”
(Ephesians 1:13).
5. “…It pleased God by the
foolishness of preaching to
save them that believe.” (I
Corinthians 1:21).

Refer to any of the first sixteen

verses that relate to faith and
believing.
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REPENTANCE

Repentance, is one of the

cardinal doctrines of the Bible.
It is an action on our part that
follows our believing in God
and His word. God’s Word
plainly and simply teaches that
we must repent.
1. “…Except ye repent, ye shall
all likewise perish.” (Luke
13:3).

2. “…Repent ye, and believe

the gospel.” (Mark 1:15).

3. “…I came not to call the

righteous, but sinners to
repentance.” (Mark 2:17).
4. “…Now commandeth all
men every where to repent.”
(Acts 17:30).

5. “Not willing that any should

perish, but that all should
come to repentance.” (II Peter
3:9).
6. “And that repentance and
remission of sins should be
preached in his name among
all nations beginning at
Jerusalem.” (Luke 24:$7).

“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).
After you believe, you must
repent. Repentance means
feeling sorry for your sins;
making an about face; having a
change of mind and heart;
asking God to forgive you of all
past sins.
The following is another step
of affirmative action to be
taken.
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BAPTISM

Water baptism, by immersion,

in the name of Jesus Christ, is
an essential part of salvation.
You will note in the Scripture,
that it is the means by which
the blood of Christ washes
away sin (Acts 22:16). We have
remission of sins through
baptism in His name (Acts
2:38).

1. “…Except a man be born of

water and of the Spirit, he
cannot enter into the kingdom
of God.” (John 3:5).
2. “…Baptizing them in the
name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”
(Matthew 28:19). Note the fact
that NAME here is singular.
The name must be used in
baptism; not the titles Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost.

“Be baptized every one of you

in the name of Jesus Christ for
the remission of sins…” (Acts
2:38).
4. Study these verses on the
subject of baptism: (Luke
24:47; Acts 22:16; I Corinthians
6:11; 1 Peter 3:20-21; Romans
6:3-4; Colossians 2:12;
Galatians 3:27; Acts 2:41; 8:12-
16; 10:44-48; 19:1-7).
Refer to any of the first sixteen
verses of this lesson that relate
to water baptism.

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HOLY GHOST

The Holy Ghost is the

comforter Jesus sent back into
the heart and soul of man.
Christ’s church, which He
purchased with his own blood
(Acts 20:28), began on the day
of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). Here
many received the Holy Ghost
evidenced by speaking with
other tongues, as the Spirit
gave them the utterance. This
experience is available today
and is essential in our lives
(Romans 8:9).
1. John the Baptist speaking of
Jesus said, “…He shall baptize
you with the Holy Ghost, and
with fire.” (Matthew 3:11;
Mark 1:8;Luke 3:16; John
1:33).

2. “For John truly baptized

with water; but ye shall be
baptized with the Holy Ghost
not many days hence.” (Acts
1:5; John 7:37-39; 14:16-17;
15:26; 16:7-13). Jesus is
teaching about the Holy Ghost
in these verses.

3. “And they were all filled

with the Holy Ghost, and
began to speak with other
tongues, as the Spirit gave
them utterance.” (Acts 2:4).
Experiencing the Holy Ghost is
life’s most exciting event. We
are highly honored of God to
have this great gift. Many
Scriptures give us insight on
this glorious experience
(Romans 8:9-11; Joel 2:28-29;
Acts 2:1-18; John 3:1-8; Acts 8;
10; 19:1-6).
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Being saved from sin and ready
for heaven is life’s most
important pursuit. Salvation is
more valuable than wealth,
fame, or even life itself. God’s
Word is the ONLY source we
have telling us how to receive
salvation.

I wish there were one chapter

or one book of the Bible giving
a step by step detailed analysis
of everything we have to do.
God has chosen to place
nuggets of truth here and
there in His Word to be sought
out by you and me. This is the
purpose of this lesson.

Try, as I may, I cannot accept

the idea that if I simply believe
in my heart, and make a
confession with my mouth,
that this alone constitutes
salvation from sin. I have read
too much about faith,
repentance, baptism, and the
Holy ghost to accept this
proposal.

Dare we accept fragments of

truth on such a vital matter as
salvation? Can we dwell on
faith and ignore baptism? Shall
we demand baptism and skip
repentance? Can we be saved
by accepting one part of the
plan and rejecting the rest of
the Bible?

When we search out truth in

its entirety and obey it; we can
be saved. Don’t be deceived by
any person or any
denominational teaching!
Read your Bible: obey it: this
will save you.
The Queen of Sheba traveled
from the utmost part of the
earth to hear the wisdom of
Solomon (Luke 11:31), but a
greater than Solomon is here –
Jesus Christ. How much have
you sought after Him and His
plan of salvation? Never forget
this one verse in your
searching for salvation.
“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).