The words that serve as a title for this article came from the mouth of Peter on the Day of Pentecost when the Gospel was preached for the first time. His sermon is the only one recorded though the other apostles preached as well as he. His words convinced the Jews that they had crucified the Savior, and they wanted to know what to do to be saved from this terrible deed. Peter, speaking by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit gave them the Lord's answer to their question, "...Men and brethren, what shall we do?" by saying, "...Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 2:37-38). After telling them what to do he encouraged them to obey with these words: "...Save yourselves from this untoward generation" (Acts 2:40). We are told: "Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls" (Acts 2:41).
It shall be the purpose of this article to urge men to accept the salvation that God offers. We know that "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Pet. 3:9). God wants everyone saved, and yet we know that most people will be lost-not because they have to be-but because of a failure to obey the truth. The blood of Christ is able to remit every sin of every person who will obey Him (Heb. 5:9; Matt. 7:21).
When we speak about salvation we are talking about a word that Webster defines as: "1. The saving of man from the spiritual consequences of sin; esp., deliverance from sin and eternal damnation through the atonement of Christ; redemption. 2. Preservation from destruction, failure, or other evil. 3. The source, cause, or means, of preservation from danger or difficulty..."
Rest assured, the answer that Peter gave on Pentecost was the right answer, because the apostles "...were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:4). Their message was the Spirit's message.
There are some important implications in the statement "Save yourselves" and I want us to look at some of these implications in this study.
First of all, the statement implies that man has a self worth saving. It seems that far too many people do not realize the value of mankind. After all, "...we are the offspring of God" (Acts 17:29). Man was valuable enough to God that God was willing to send His Son to die on the cross for man's sins, and Christ was willing to come and die. Please read Romans 5:6-9 if there is any doubt in your mind as to the value that God places on man. You will note that in verse 8 Paul wrote, "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Yes, God wants all sinners saved, and that is why Christ came into this world. If this does not prove the worth of man, what would it take? Our Lord said, "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt. 16:26). It would literally be impossible for a person to gain the whole world of education, finances, social position, etc., etc., because life is too short and power is too limited. But if he could gain all of this world and in the process he loses his soul-he is a great loser. This being the case, what about the person who is willing to trade his soul for just a part-a portion-of this world? Your soul is the only thing that is truly yours. Everything else will be left behind when you depart this life, but your soul will live on. Our soul will live forever either in heaven or in hell (Matt. 25;46; Rom. 2:6-11). Where we are in eternity is up to us---we make the choice.
The statement "Save yourselves" not only shows that man has a self worth saving, but it also shows that man has responsibility in his own salvation. Some would have us believe that God determined each person's eternal destiny before the world was ever brought into existence. It is contended that the number to be saved "is so certain and definite that it can not be either increased nor diminished." According to this false doctrine (which originated in the mind of John Calvin) man is not a creature of choice, and thus has no say-so as to where he will be for an eternity. However, God's Word tells us that salvation is "by grace" (God's part), and "through faith" (man's part) (Eph. 2:8-9). The sad thing is that most religious groups believe and teach that salvation is by "faith only." The Bible does not teach this, but instead teaches the very opposite. Words could not be plainer than those written by James when he said, "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only" (Jas. 2:24). How could this statement have been any clearer? Yet men persist in teaching the false doctrine of "faith only." Your Bible will read the same way at the day of judgment that it reads today! Will you accept God"s Word or the word of uninspired men? The choice is yours.
If one would be saved by the grace of God, he must obey "the word of his grace" (Acts 20:32). This is what teaches us, not only that we are saved by grace, but how we are saved by the grace of God (Tit. 2:11-12). We are told that our Lord will save "all them that obey him" (Heb. 5:9). The Great Commission, given by our Lord, clearly reveals commands to be obeyed (Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15-16).
Question: How were the people on Pentecost saved? First of all we read that they " gladly received his word were baptized...." (Acts 2:41). James wrote,"Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls" (Jas. 1:21). When it says that they "gladly received his word" this means that they believed that Jesus was "Both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36). They were willing to respect the authority of Christ (Acts 4:12). These people "were baptized." But why were they baptized? Because this is what they were told to do (Acts 2:38) in order to have "remission of sins." We know that they had to repent first.
God's grace, mercy and love make man's salvation possible. However, men have responsibility-they must obey the Gospel of Christ. In gladly receiving God's Word, men can save themselves from the condemnation of a wicked generation (just as the people did on Pentecost.) Are you willing to receive (obey) the Word of God that you might save yourself? Remember-your eternal destiny is at stake.
...Virgil L. Hale