"Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" -- Acts 2:37
Ask any ten people, "What must I do to be saved?" and you're likely to get ten different answers. We should not depend on man to give us the answer to what we need to do to ensure our eternal salvation, but rather turn to God's word. The writer of Proverbs wrote, "There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death" (Proverbs 14:12). We must turn to God's word as the source of authority for what we must do to be saved.
Several things need to happen before we can fulfill God's requirement for salvation:
1. We need to realize that we are lost:
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." --Romans 3:23
2. We need to realize that We cannot save our self:
"I know, O LORD, that a man's way is not in himself, Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps." -- Jeremiah 10:23
"not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." -- Ephesians 2:9
3. We need to understand that God, out of grace, mercy, and love, has provided a plan of salvation for us:
"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved." -- Ephesians 2:4-5
4. We need to believe that Christ was sent to be the Savior of the world (which includes me):
"For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." -- Luke 19:10
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." -- John 3:16
5. We need to believe that the gospel of Christ is God's power to save:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." -- Romans 1:16
6. We need to believe that Christ saves those who obey Him:
"Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered. And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation." -- Hebrews 5:8-9
What Does God's Word Teach About What We Must Do To Be Saved?
Hear the word of God (the gospel of Christ).
"How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?" -- Romans 10:17
Believe (have faith) in Jesus as the Son of God.
"Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." -- John 8:24
"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." -- Romans 10:17
Repent of our sins. Repentance is a change of mind which leads to a change in our conduct.
"Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." -- Acts 2:37-38
Confess our faith in Christ.
"That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation." -- Romans 10:9-10
Be Baptized in Christ for the remission of our sins.
"And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned." -- Mark 16:15-16
"For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." -- Galatians 3:27
Obedience to the Gospel Results In...
Forgiveness (remission) of sins.
"When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." -- Acts 2:37-38
Newness of life.
"Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." -- Romans 6:3-4
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." -- II Corinthians 5:17
Becoming a servant of righteousness.
"But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness." -- Romans 6:17-18
Entry into the body of Christ.
"For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit." -- 1 Corinthians 12:13
