A most important question asked by men in the New Testament is “what must I do?” It is a question with eternal consequence about what one must do to be saved.
Devout Jews on the day of Pentecost asked Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Act 2:37). They received an inspired answer from the apostles: “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 2:38). Here’s one answer for what to do to be saved.
Saul, who saw the Lord on the road to Damascus, asked Jesus, “Lord, what do you want me to do?” (Acts 19:6) Jesus answered him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The Lord chose Ananias to tell Paul what to do. And what was that? “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16).
A prison-keeper in Philippi asked Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30) The answer he received from the apostle and Silas was “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:31) In the events that followed, the Bible says that Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house, the jailor took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes – a sign of repentance, and immediately he and all his family were baptized, and then the jailor set food before them and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.
Here we have then three cases of lost people asking what to do to be saved. The answers given differ. Are there three different ways to be saved? Let us see that the answer is no.
Let’s start with the prison-keeper. He asked his question before he believed the gospel, so the answer given him was to believe, for he needed to hear the word of God in order to first believe. Only after he believed could he repent and then be baptized.
The Jews on the day of Pentecost asked their question after hearing the word of God and believing, and so the answer given them was to repent and be baptized.
Saul, who now believed in the resurrected Jesus and demonstrated his penitence for three days, was told to be baptized.
All three are necessary in order to be saved – believe, repent, and be baptized – and in that order.
When a man asks directions to a destination, if he’s at the point of origin, he’s given directions starting from the point of origin. If he’s part way to the destination already and then asks the question, he’s given directions not from the point of origin but from the point at which he is already. The directions in the two cases are not contradictory; they are in harmony with one another, all taking the man to the same destination using the same road.
And just the same, when the men asked about what to do to be saved, each was asking the question from different points on the road to salvation. They were given answers according to where they were on that road.
An unbeliever has not yet begun to travel the road of salvation; he needs to believe upon hearing, repent, and be baptized. The believer is not told to believe, for he already believes through the preaching of the gospel; he’s told to repent and be baptized. The believer who has repented is not told to believe and repent, for he’s already done that; he’s told to be baptized.
No, there are not three different roads or ways to be saved. There’s one way to the destination of being saved.
-Larry Jones