Chapter XVI: What Must I Do to Keep Saved?

Allow me to add a word of welcome to all of you who are present and especially to the visitors. We are very grateful for such good attendance at our Sunday evening meetings, and especially for the large number of young people present. I know of no better way to build a courtship, and eventually a marriage and a home, than upon regular attendance to all the meetings of the church. I have just learned recently of one young man who is seriously considering obeying the Gospel as a result of attending our Sunday evening meetings with his girl friend. This is an example of how you young people may do a lot of good, not only for yourselves but for those whom you may bring with you. Hence I urge you to come back tonight to hear Brother Bradford and every Sunday evening to our program of worship and study.

We had so many questions arising in my class upstairs this morning that we didn’t get to our lesson. We are taking the same lesson next Sunday, the first twenty-two verses of the ninth chapter of Acts, and the memory verse will be Colossians 2:12. If you want a copy of the questions, you can find them here on the pulpit at the end of the hour.

We had a fine program last Wednesday evening, even a bigger crowd than expected. I hope you realize the importance of the training we are giving the young men on Wednesday evening. It means a lot to them. They’ll be the leaders of the churches in just a few years from now and they’ll appreciate your presence and encouragement as they conduct our services for the next five weeks. We are expecting a good program again this week.

This morning my topic is “What Must I Do to Keep Saved?” There have been many sermons, and rightly so, preached upon the subject, “What Must I Do to Be Saved?” That is indeed a very important question. It is asked and answered three times in the book of Acts (Acts 16:30-34; 2:36-38; Acts 9:6; 22:16). These answers teach that in order to be saved, one must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God; repent of his sins; and then be buried with Christ in baptism for remission of sins. One who has done these things is then a child of God, a member of the Lord’s family, a citizen in the Lord’s kingdom, a member of God’s church; for Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,” (Mark 16:16) and God adds to the church day by day such as are being saved (Acts 2:47). All people then who have been saved are in the church because God put them in, just as soon as they were saved.