The World’s Greatest Question
David A. Paher
INTRODUCTION
Many questions exist, but only one inquiry is the greatest. In fact, entrance into heaven hinges on it, and salvation depends upon it. The men at Pentecost (Acts 2:37), the Philippian jailor (Acts 16:30) and Saul of Tarsus (Acts 22:10) all asked this profound question: “What must I do to be saved?” Ironically, most people would agree to this question’s seriousness, but few teach the truth regarding its answer. So, what must one do to become a Christian?
ONE MUST HEAR GOD’S WORD TO BE SAVED
First, one must hear God’s word. Paul said, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rom. 10:17). Almost everyone has heard about Jesus, but hearing the word of Christ is how people have faith. As Jeremiah wrote long ago “it is not in man who walks to direct his steps” (Jer. 10:23), it is evident that one must turn to God’s word, the Bible, to find “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Pet. 1:3). “He who has ears, let him hear” (Mt. 13:9). Tuning ears to God opens the pathway of faith.
ONE MUST BELIEVE IN JESUS TO BE SAVED
Second, one must believe in Jesus, God’s son. The Apostle John penned his gospel account “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (Jn. 20:31). The Lord himself said, “unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24), and “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn. 14:6). This exclusivity abandons all religions that do not mediate through Jesus the Christ e.g. Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Animism, Hinduism, etc.
Faith is important in matters of salvation. Paul said, “For by grace you have been saved through faith” (Eph. 2:8); however, speculation abounds as to what type of faith is under consideration. (For an excellent discussion on this matter, read “Baptism or Salvation: Which Comes First?”) Hebrews 11:1 describes faith using words of certainty: “assurance” and “conviction” (American Standard Version) and “substance” and “evidence” (King James Version). Much of the world defines faith as an educated guess; blind acceptance; a hoax or mystical feelings; a better-felt-than-told-experience; a “still, small voice in the night”; a message in the clouds, or some writing in the grains of wood, or some supposed picture on a piece of bread; or an urge that hits you like a bolt of lightning and drives you to your knees. Biblical faith, however, is not any of those things. Faith is hearing God’s word (Rom. 10:17). When one believes in their heart that Jesus Christ is God’s Son, then confessing that faith before others comes naturally.
ONE MUST CONFESS YOUR FAITH TO BE SAVED
Third, one must confess their faith before others. Jesus said, “everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven” (Mt. 10:32). Our light is to shine before others and is not intended to be hidden (Mt. 5:14-16). Paul said that “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Rom. 10:9-10). The best example of confessing Christ is the statement made by the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8:37: “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” But belief and confession alone do not bring one to Christ. To draw near to God, one must first cleanse their hands and purify their hearts (Jam. 4:8).
ONE MUST REPENT OF SINS TO BE SAVED
Fourth, one must repent of their sins. For most people, repentance will likely be the most difficult step in biblical salvation because it calls for complete change—a willful decision to no longer live in sin on purpose. Jesus said, “unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Lk. 13:3). “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Mt. 6:24). “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God?” (Jam. 4:4). As a Christian, Paul said, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). When one has made that difficult decision to change his/her lifestyle, then the last step in Heaven’s plan is relatively simple.
ONE MUST BE BAPTIZED TO BE SAVED
Fifth, one must be baptized into water for the remission of sins. Whereas the religious world would generally agree with each point until now, the subject of baptism polarizes spiritual people into various camps of the doctrines of men. But such schisms are needless because the Bible is clear and simple. God’s power to save men from their sins does not lie in the water. However, God’s word has abundantly and explicitly stated that baptism is a part of the gospel plan to save. Furthermore, baptism is obeying the Lord’s command; it is not working or earning his/her way to heaven. Baptism is the culmination of all the previous steps and is the last move that finally puts a soul into God’s kingdom and adds that person’s name to the Lamb’s Book of Life.
So, what does the Bible have to say about baptism? Readers will notice that Jesus commanded baptism. “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mk. 16:16), and “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (Jn. 3:5). (Some have unfortunately concluded that the water to which Jesus has referred here is amniotic fluid and not water baptism. However, the Lord corrected Nicodemus’ assertion to a physical birth, and he would correct any similar explanation in modern times as well.)
Bible students will also notice that the apostles taught about baptism’s importance. When the crowd of 3000 at Pentecost showed their remorse over murdering the Savior, Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38). He knew that baptism “now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 3:21).
Paul, too, affirmed baptisms importance as he taught that “as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27). He knew he was saved in the city of Damascus and not on the road to Damascus, as many today assert. While on the Damascus Road, Paul asked, “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts 22:10), and Jesus responded, “But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do” (Acts 9:6). Shortly thereafter, the Lord appeared to a preacher, named Ananias, and told him to go find this Saul of Tarsus because, at this point, Saul was still in sin--he was not yet a Christian. Ananias hesitantly went to Saul, but upon entering the house, he said, “And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name” (Acts 22:16). If Paul were saved on the Damascus Road, then a natural question arises: to what sins of Paul did Ananias refer that needed to be washed away?
One can read in the Bible where a sinner prays, but one cannot read in the Bible what is called the Sinner’s Prayer because it simply does not exist. In fact, every example of conversion in the book of Acts mentions these simple steps. Some accounts omit a step or two not because the plan is different but due to the fact that some of those souls seeking truth are closer to obeying the gospel plan than others. For example, Cornelius (Acts 10) and the Philippian jailor (Acts 16) had to hear God’s message because they lacked faith in Christ that comes from hearing God's word. However, Jews (Acts 2) and proselytes like the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8) and Lydia (Acts 16) already faithfully worshipped God and obeyed his plan according to Judaism. When evangelists came and told them that Jesus was the Messiah for whom they waited, the only step they needed to complete was baptism because it was the final act that would put them into Christ.
ONE MUST REMAIN FAITFHFUL TO BE SAVED
Finally, one must remain faithful as a Christian. Obeying the gospel is only the beginning of one’s walk with Jesus. The Bible contains all the things that one must do as a Christian. Those things may be summed up in Jesus’ revealed statement to the Apostle John, “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:10). Paul is an example of faithfulness. On the eve of death he penned these words: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:6-8).
CONCLUSION
God's message is clear; his word is plain. For reasons unknown, however, people follow doctrines of men, which are neither found in the Scriptures nor are they approved of God. To be faithful to the gospel, we must embrace all of the gospel. As the Psalmist said, “The sum of your word is truth” (Ps. 119:160). Some have been guilty of skipping steps in Heaven's plan or neglecting them entirely; but honest and sincere seekers of truth strive not to make this grave mistake.
Dear reader, if you are challenged by what you have read, and you are convicted in your heart to obey Heaven's plan, you may become a child of God today. No matter how much of the gospel plan you have obeyed so far, if you have not been baptized into Christ, you have yet to put on Christ in reality (Galatians 3:27). Please call a church of Christ in your area and kindly request them to help you obey the gospel. If you need help locating a congregation in your area, e-mail me, and I'll help you find one.
