The Jesus Bible Reading PlanSample

“WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?”

Faith is about trusting in Jesus regardless of daily circumstances. Paul and Silas had been beaten, stripped and thrown in jail for following Jesus (16:22 – 23), but the real test of their faith came in how they responded to their imprisonment. They didn’t seek legal action or resort to grumbling; they didn’t question God’s plan. Instead, they decided to pray and sing to God (16:25). This activity and their attitude must have seemed strange to the other prisoners — and to the jailer!

To show his glory through Paul and Silas’s circumstances, God sent an earthquake to shake things up. The jailer thought the prisoners had escaped; desperate, he prepared to take his own life: he knew he would be sentenced to death if the prisoners escaped under his watch. Instead of seeking their own welfare, Paul and Silas stayed in the prison and ministered to the jailer. It had to be mind-boggling to see two prisoners respond to his cruelty in such a tender way.

He asked the question that is “The Question” for people who have seen God and his people at work: “What must I do to be saved?” (16:30). The answer is simple because the message is clear: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (16:31). Paul was a brilliant theologian, but he also knew that the message of Jesus was beautifully simple, and he was ready to share it clearly in a moment of openness and opportunity.

Jesus, thank you for making salvation so simple, so that someone like me can receive it. Amen.