What Must I do to be Saved? [Part 2] - Ben Bailey

What Must I do to be Saved? [Part 2]

There is nothing more important in the entire world than our eternal soul. Jesus said, “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul” (Mark 8:36-37). God has made it possible for all people to be saved and live the best life (1 Timothy 2:4, John 10:10). Since this is the case we must ask the question, “What must I do to be saved?” In our last post, we noticed the first step in God’s plan of salvation was to hear/listen to God’s Word. Today, let’s look at the second step in God’s plan of salvation.

The second step in the plan of salvation is belief. Jesus said, “If you do not believe that I am He, you will surely die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24). True belief is always an active obedient faith in God. Jesus taught the multitudes that they could not just call him “Lord” and not do the things He said (Matt. 7:21). Believing in Jesus means that we are willing to trust and follow him with our whole hearts. A beautiful example of this is seen in Acts 8. Phillip has just started teaching the Ethiopian Nobleman the gospel plan of salvation. As he teaches him about Christ the Bible tells us they came to a certain water and he wanted to be immersed. Phillip then tells him, “If you believe with all your heart you may” (Acts 8:37). From this text, we learn that belief is a deep conviction that Jesus is Christ the Savior of the world. We also learn that we must be willing to do whatever Jesus says if we really believe in Him (Acts 8:38ff).

While we do not want to underemphasize the importance of belief, please understand that belief alone will never save anyone. In fact, the word belief never means mental acceptance only. Belief always means an active, obedient trust in God (Gal 5:6). We understand this in everyday life. For example, imagine a person is out in the middle of the lake about to drown and someone comes along and throws them a life preserver. If that person just believes the life preserver will save them and never does anything to “be saved” (Acts 2:40), will he be saved? Absolutely not! That person must take steps of action such as reaching for the preserver, holding on, and helping pull himself in. Likewise, there are steps of action associated with belief that one must do to be saved. It is so sad that there are thousands of denominational people who teach that all one must do to be saved is believe in Jesus and accept Him as your personal Savior. Nothing could be further than the truth. Did you know that the Bible never says belief alone will save? In fact, the only time belief alone is used in the Bible, James says it will not save a person (James 2:24). True belief is always associated with the action of doing what God says to be saved (See Hebrews 11).

Have you believed in Jesus as Lord and Savior? Are you willing to put your trust in Him and do what He says to be saved? Be looking for our next post tomorrow as we discuss the most challenging step in salvation--repentance.

You can also watch our video on the plan of salvation from this link: https://thegospelofchrist-tgoc.subspla.sh/wcnmxp2