“Believe on The Lord Jesus Christ

Introduction and Review of the Jailer's Question

0:06 Will you give careful attention to the reading of the Word of God, please, as that reading is found in the 16th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, Acts chapter 16.

0:28 And I shall begin reading with verse 22 and conclude the reading with verse 34.

0:35 The setting of this portion is quite clear from the preceding part of the chapter. The Apostle Paul and his companion Silas, as a result of preaching the Word and casting out a demon from a woman who was able to be sort of a fortune teller when she was under the influence of this demon, this caused such a disturbance that the powers that be took the Apostle and his companion and threw them into prison. And the narrative begins now with that action, verse 23, And when they had laid many stripes upon them, cast them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely, who, having received such a charge, cast them into the inner prison,

1:20 and made their feet fast in the stocks. But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns unto God, and the prisoners were listening to them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everything was opened. And the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, and everyone's bands were loosed.

1:43 And the jailer, being roused out of sleep and seeing the prison doors open, drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm, for we are all here. And he called for lights, and sprang in, and trembling for fear, fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house.

2:24 And they spake the word of the Lord unto him with all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was baptized, he and all his, immediately. And he brought them up into his house, and set food, before them, and rejoiced greatly with all his house, having believed in God. Because we do have a number of visitors with us, I will take just a few minutes to review briefly what we've already discovered in our study of this passage.

3:02 We've turned to this passage for a few weeks, basically because it illustrates so vividly the wonderful truths we've been studying in great detail from the second chapter of Paul's letter to the Ephesians. In Ephesians chapter 3, the Apostle Paul gives perhaps one of the most profound descriptions of God's work of grace in saving a dead, guilty, and sin-bound sinner. And we've examined in great detail that mighty work which God does when he makes new creatures in Christ, to use the language of Ephesians 2 and verse 10. But since one picture is worth a thousand words, we've turned to this passage as a wonderful,

3:46 wonderful illustration of how God actually works in making a new creature. And the conversion of the Philippian jailer is a graphic picture, a detailed commentary upon the great truths that we've been studying in Ephesians chapter 2. And I've suggested that perhaps not the most profitable way, but certainly a profitable way to study this passage is to focus upon its central teaching, the teaching of God. The teaching that is found in verses 30 and 31, in which we have, in verse 30, the most important question any man can ever ask.

4:26 Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And verse 31, which is the most accurate answer ever given to that important question, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house. Last Lord's Day, we focused only upon the question. First of all, we looked at the person who asked the question.

4:52 He is described not by a personal name, but simply as a Roman jailer. A man who obviously was a careless, indifferent, blind, dead sinner. Afraid that the Roman powers would take his life if they discovered that the prisoners were gone, as he supposed they had, as he supposed they had left the prison. We find him ready to kill himself.

5:17 Utterly unprepared to die, he faces judgment and God and hell and eternity. Utterly unafraid. Utterly indifferent. The man who asked the question is a specimen man.

5:29 He's the picture of every man, woman, boy or girl by nature who is utterly insensitive to the great issues of his soul's salvation. Then we considered, secondly, the factors which led him to ask such a question. From one who was utterly indifferent to the issue of salvation, what led him to question? Cry out with great earnestness, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

5:53 And I suggested that the passage, not my interpretation, not my assumptions, but the word of God, indicates that three things led him to ask this report, to ask the question. First of all, the report he had heard of these men, verses 16 to 18. Secondly, the conduct of these men under great injustices, verses 19 to 24, and thirdly, the manifestation of the power of God is recorded in verses 25 to 28. And the other facts are brought into the narrative basically to show us what led to the asking of this question.

6:31 He had heard that they were men of God who taught a way of salvation. He had seen their conduct when he himself put them into this torture instrument and threw them into the inner prison. He saw their patience. He saw their conduct.

6:46 He saw their kindness. He saw their lack of rancor and bitterness and vindictive. No curses upon their lips. And then there was this manifestation of the power of God in the earthquake and then in the restraint of the prisoners who though loosed from their bands do not flee from the prison and this threefold influence of the report of the men.

7:07 Their conduct and then the manifestation of divine power leads him to see his real need and to cry out, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And finally in our brief review we looked at the things which this question revealed. When he said, what must I do to be saved? What was he revealing?

7:27 He was revealing that he had a consciousness of guilt arising from his sin, a consciousness of danger arising from his guilt, and a consciousness of helplessness arising from his guilt and his danger. Therefore he says, what must I do to be saved? I need the intrusion of a saving power from without. I need the operation of a power upon me.

7:54 Sirs, what must I do to be saved? My friend, have you ever asked that question?

8:01 Not as a philosophical question, not as a passing fancy, but out of deep awareness of your guilt, deep awareness of your own danger, a deep awareness of your own helplessness. Have you ever, honestly and earnestly asked the question, sirs, what must I do to be saved? If you haven't, you're like the jailer before this threefold influence, utterly insensitive to the world of spiritual reality. But it doesn't change the fact that you are in a state of guilt, that you are in a posture of great danger.

8:41 For this very moment, the wrath of Almighty God hangs over your head. You're totally insane. You're insensitive to it. But blessed be God, many of us have asked that question.

The Most Accurate Answer: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ

8:54 Blessed be God, some of you are asking that question today, which leads us then to verse 31, the most accurate answer ever given to the most important question ever asked. And what was the answer of the apostle and his companion? For the text says, and they said, they were absolutely agreed, Paul and Silas, believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved. And thou shalt be saved.

9:18 And thou shalt be saved. And thou shalt be saved. And thou shalt be saved. Thou and thy house.

9:23 Now granted, as one has said, this verse is only the text of Paul's discourse. It is evident that he unfolded its meaning and instructed the jailer fully in the truth since verse 32 tells us, and they spake the word of the Lord unto him with all that were in his house. In other words, the whole discourse, the discourse of Paul and Silas is not recorded. But the substance of the discourse is.

9:56 The essence, or better, the quintessence, the boiled down essence of the discourse is given to us in this wonderful text, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. In a few pregnant words, we have a summary of the gospel, a complete directory to the anxious question of every person who says, what must I do to be saved? And my purpose this morning is simply to expound that answer. But before we do, I'm going to do something that I rarely do.

Refuting False Physicians and Their Answers to Salvation

10:34 And for the sake of you visitors, I feel I ought to say this. We very rarely dabble in what the text does not say. Because the task of a preacher is to open up what the text does say. But I believe it will underscore all the more vividly what the text, does say, if we'll try to project ourselves into that situation.

10:53 And the moment after the Philippian jailer asks the question, sirs, what must I do to be saved? We substitute Paul and Silas with some of the current religious instructors. Let's drag them into the jail and say, one by one, give this man an answer. He's asked the most important, the most profound, the most vital question any fallen son of Adam can ask.

11:20 What must I do to be saved? Sir, what is your answer? Let's bring in, first of all, Mr. Modernist, or Mr. Liberal Preacher.

11:30 And Mr. Liberal Preacher hears the question, what must I do to be saved? And you know what his answer is? He says, now, Mr. Jailer Man,

11:39 you've obviously got some tremendous hang-ups. And I'd like to take out my appointment book and begin to establish a series of counseling sessions with you to get you over these things. These terrible hang-ups which are obviously bringing you into a state of terrible emotional disturbance. Why, look at you.

11:56 You're trembling. It's obvious that you're emotionally disturbed. I mean, you're carrying on in a totally irrational way. Here it is, the middle of the night.

12:04 The prisoners are standing there with their chains free. You're not even concerned about the prisoners. You're not concerned about this ungodly hour to discuss religious questions. Sir, you've got terrible problems and I would like to establish that Monday morning, first thing, you come to my office at nine o'clock and I'll go to work on getting rid of this guilt complex that has obviously been pushed upon you by some false teaching that has made you think that there's something really wrong.

12:33 You see, Mr. Jailer Man, there is no such thing as a need for salvation. Your question reveals a total misconception of who you are and your present situation. That's the answer of Mr. Liberal

12:44 or Mr. Modernist. Well, then we say that doesn't sound like verse 31. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.

12:53 So let's bring in Mr. Decisionist. He hears the question, what must I do to be saved? And he says, well, bow your head, close your eyes and pray after me this little prayer.

13:04 What you need to do is make a decision. And the way you make a decision is to pray the sinner's prayer after me. Bow your head. Pray after me.

13:12 Oh, God. Oh, God. Be merciful. That's how Mr. Decisionist

13:16 would have dealt with it.

13:18 Well, we're not satisfied that that's verse 31. Believe on the Lord Jesus. Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Didn't tell him to make a decision.

13:28 He told him to believe on the Lord Jesus. And he didn't run into a little rigmarole that was supposed to be the inevitable and necessary expression of how you believe on the Lord Jesus. Well, let's bring in Mr. Easy Believer.

13:42 He hears the question, what must I do to be saved? And he says, Mr. Jailer Man, all you need to do is believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for sinners. Accept Jesus as your personal Savior.

13:52 He died for all, all sinners. Now just thank him that he died and you're in. But you see, that doesn't sound like verse 31. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

14:01 He didn't say accept the fact of the atonement. He didn't say accept the reality of his death upon the cross. He said, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Well, let's run out Mr. Easy Believer

14:14 and bring in Mr. Sacramentalist. He hears the question, sirs, what must I do to be saved? And he says, well, it's quite obvious.

14:22 Grace is stored up in the sacraments. You need to get to the baptismal font or to the baptismal tank or to the baptismal jug. Whether you're an aspersionist who sprinkles, an effusionist who pours, or an immersionist who dunks them, you've got to get to the water. Drops or buckets, you've got to get to the water.

14:42 Mr. Sacramentalist would say, you must get to the water and as soon as possible get to the bread and to the wine. You must begin to partake of the sacraments. Well, you see, that doesn't seem like the answer of verse 31, does it, children?

14:57 Children, what does he say? He does not say get to the water, get to the bread, get to the wine, get to the sacraments. He says, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Then we bring on Mr. Neo-Orthodox,

15:11 which is just a dressed-up form of liberalism. And he hears the man say, sirs, what must I do to be saved? And his answer is, well, you see, I have wonderful news for you. You've been saved all along and you just didn't know it.

15:23 Every man who fell in Adam is redeemed in Christ. You're already saved. And my gospel is simply to tell you it's already done.

15:32 Well, then we run him out and say, that doesn't sound like verse 31 either. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. And we bring in Mr. Work's Righteousness.

15:41 And he says, ah, you would be saved? Well, you must, first of all, make a new start. You must clean up your life, get rid of all that cursing, get rid of all that swearing, get rid of those cigars in your pocket, and get rid of that jug of booze that's bad back there in your little quarters. You've got to clean up and straighten up and you've got to join the church and you've got to start living right and go into prayer meeting and passing out tracts.

16:06 You've got to do, do, do. And furthermore, if it was another Mr. Work's Righteousness, he'd say you'd have to believe in the coming kingdom of Jehovah and start spending X number of hours a week passing out the Awake magazine and selling it and making proselytes to the kingdom of Jehovah. If he was a Mormon, he would tell him that he'd have to be baptized and start the performance of good works and believe in the prophetic office and in the continual priesthood and blah, blah, blah on and on.

16:35 But it would not be Mr. Work's Righteousness feels verse 31 is terribly inadequate. But then we come along to Mr. Charismatic and he hears the question, what must I do to be saved?

16:50 He says, well, if you want to get started, you must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and go beyond that and seek the baptism until you know you've had it when you speak it on the Bible. He says, well, I've known tons.

17:06 And then, dissatisfied that that's not verse 31, along comes Mr. Hyper-Calvinist and he says, now look, what must I do to be saved? He says, now there's your problem, Mr. Jailer Man.

17:18 You know what your problem is? It's in the little word do. See? Your problem is you think you can do something.

17:24 You're dead, Mr. Jailer Man. Don't you know the Bible says you have been made alive who were dead? Dead men can't do a thing, Mr. Jailer Man.

17:32 You're blind. You are morally and spiritually unable to do a thing. And Mr. Jailer Man, your problem is you think you can do something.

17:40 Do nothing. For God to do something.

17:46 For it to do something. And I say, Mr. Hyper-Calvinist answer doesn't jive with verse 31.

17:54 So we take all these false physicians and we say, we respect you as men. We'll not treat you like dogs or beasts or animals. But when a man is asking this vital question, what must I do to be saved? There is no answer that is bomb for a bleeding broken heart but the answer of verse 31.

18:17 And away with the answer of Mr. Liberal. Away with the answer of Mr. Decisionist, Mr. Easy Believer,

18:24 Mr. Sacramentalist, Mr. Neo-Orthodox, Mr. Works Righteousness, Mr. Charismatic

18:30 and Mr. Hyper-Calvinist. Away with all such false physicians. You say, Pastor Martin, there you go.

18:36 Be negative. My friend of the soul's salvation to give you an inquiring soul. The wrong answer is to give poison to a sick man and hurry him to an untimely grave. Thank God in five to seven minutes we've disposed of the chaff.

The Specific Activity Commanded: Faith

18:56 We've thrown out the bones. Let's come to the wheat and to the meat of the text. What is the most accurate answer ever given to this most important question? Look at it.

19:06 Look at it. And they said unto him, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Thou and thy house. Three things in the text.

19:18 The first is this. The answer is this. The specific activity commanded. What is it?

19:27 Believe the Lord Jesus Christ. Here the apostle and his companion command the jailer to engage in a specific activity. And it is an aorist imperative bringing into focus the tremendous necessity of immediate decisive faith in Jesus Christ. They tell him, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

19:59 Now, granted, according to verse 32, what it meant to believe was no doubt fleshed out in much greater detail. They spake the word of the Lord unto him with all that were in his house. He was not led to open profession after verse 31. Just giving a summary of the gospel, he was, led to open profession after the full explanation of the gospel in verse 32.

20:25 Granted, at this point the apostle emphasized the necessity of repentance. His own testimony, Acts 20, 21 and 26, 20 is that he always preached repentance with faith. Granted, he explained who the Lord Jesus was. Granted, all of that I am fully aware of.

20:42 But when you boil it all down, what was the answer to that burning question? It was an answer in which the jailer was commanded to engage in a specific activity, namely, faith. Remember on one occasion a group of people came to the Lord Jesus and they asked this question. I read now from John 6 and verse 28.

21:12 They said therefore unto him, What must we do that we may work the works of God?

21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. You see what our Lord did? When they said what shall we do? He said there is but one activity that will bring you into the favor of God and that activity is the activity of faith that terminates upon the only object of true faith, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ.

21:52 And we're back then to the truth of Ephesians 2 you see. By grace are ye saved through the instrumentality of faith. Faith is that singular and unique spiritual exercise in which we go out of ourselves to another in which we give up all hope in ourselves and rest wholly upon another. And that's why the apostle and Silas said to the Philippian jailer not believe in but they used the preposition epi which means upon.

22:25 I am preaching epi upon this platform. I'm resting the entire weight of my body and all of its activity upon the platform. My Bible is resting epi upon the pulpit. It is there as an object being supported by another object.

22:43 They said, Mr. Jailer Man, if you're ever to be saved, the singular specific activity in which you must engage is faith. You must be and this specific activity was commanded. And then the second element in the text is this.

The Exclusive Object of Faith Declared: The Lord Jesus Christ

23:03 Not only the specific activity commanded but the exclusive object of faith declared. What did they say? Mr. Jailer Man, if you be saved, just believe.

23:13 But believe something and believe it sincerely and believe it from the heart but just believe.

23:20 I get so sick of that Eastern Airlines ad because it's full of heresy. You gotta believe. And I keep saying gotta believe what? That nuts are apples and that peaches are dogs?

23:31 You gotta believe what? They just show you a collage of everything that Eastern Airlines is gonna do and then they say you gotta believe. You gotta believe what? And you know, the only reason that's considered such a clever ad is it fits the mentality of our day.

23:44 Just believe something. But that's not what the Apostle and his companion said. Look at it. As surely as they commanded this specific activity of faith, they set forth and declared the exclusive object of that faith.

24:00 Believe upon not himself, not in his own faith, not in his own works, not in his own vows, not in his own ability to do anything, but they said believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Now some of you have newer translations that simply say the Lord Jesus. Some of you have the old authorized version that says Lord Jesus Christ. Well, it's obvious who is meant and there's very little significance in the difference.

24:29 It's just a problem that some of what are considered the better manuscripts do not have the word Christ. In verse 31, some of the older manuscripts do, and so the newer translations feeling that the greater weight of evidence is simply for the terms Lord Jesus omit the word Christ. That's a simple explanation of the difference. But now, what does this involve?

24:50 When they directed him to this exclusive object of faith, what were they telling him? Let me suggest two things. Number one, they say, Mr. Jailerman, you must receive the truths bound up in this title of the only Savior.

25:06 He is the Lord Jesus. And Mr. Jailerman, if you're ever to be saved, you must be acquainted with and have absolute confidence in the facts revealed about that person in his name. And no doubt that's what they opened up to him as we have it in verse 32.

25:25 They spake unto him the word of the Lord. They declared to him all of the glorious truths bound up in the title the Lord Jesus. Let me take then just the two aspects as they are given in the 1901 edition. Jesus.

25:42 Mr. Jailerman, do you want to be saved? Well, you must not just have faith in something, somewhere, somehow, but there must be faith that rests upon Jesus of Nazareth. And you'll remember if you have any acquaintance with your Bible that that's the name that was given to you that was given to him in his incarnation.

26:00 When Joseph was troubled about the fact that his engaged beloved Mary was pregnant and wondered just what to do, the angel came and said, look, here's the explanation. She's with child of the Holy Ghost and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he, the one who is incarnate, the God-man, Emmanuel, Jesus, shall save his people from their sins. It is the name describing the incarnate God, the man, Christ Jesus.

26:33 It was Jesus of Nazareth according to the language of the New Testament who went about doing good, healing the sick, raising the dead. It was Jesus who was crucified, raised and seated. And the emphasis in the apostolic preaching is that Jesus of Nazareth who lived to walk, to heal, to perform miracles, who died and was risen, was raised from the grave, that this Jesus, was the only Savior of sinners. But the apostle says, Mr. Jailer Man,

27:03 you must not only believe the facts bound up in the life history of Jesus of Nazareth, you must recognize in him the one who's been constituted Lord. Now this is the name given to him peculiarly after his exaltation, following his death, his crucifixion, and his passing into the heavens. You remember in Acts 2 in verse 36, Peter says, Having raised him, Almighty God has constituted this Jesus, both Lord and Christ. Now to this Roman, the term Lord applied to anyone in a place of leadership had tremendous connotations.

27:44 Now I'm fully aware that in the original, the word sirs is the word kurios. The word used in a relationship of common greeting was a word of respect, the same way you might say to someone who was your superior, what do you want, sir, pardon me, sir. But when used as an official title of one who had peculiar office and responsibility, this was the term used of Caesar. Many times the jailer had heard the confession, Caesar is Lord.

28:16 What did that mean to a Roman? It meant that Caesar was the seat of all the authority in the Roman Empire. Caesar held the reins of that entire empire. He said, Mr. Jailer man,

28:28 do you want to be saved? Then you must engage in this singular activity, faith, directed to this exclusive object, Jesus of Nazareth, who has been constituted the Lord and Sovereign of the universe.

28:46 And then secondly, to believe on this object not only means to receive the truths bound up in that title, but the jailer must throw the entire weight of his person into the arms of this Lord Jesus for deliverance. Deliverance from sin, death, and hell. You see, there is no faith without knowledge. But knowledge alone is not of the essence of saving faith.

29:12 I come back to the little preposition. Believe upon the Lord Jesus. You must understand, Mr. Jailer man, that your deliverance from sin and guilt and danger and death and hell is bound up in the historical activity of the incarnate God.

29:31 You must have knowledge of Jesus of Nazareth for faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. You must know that he's not just the man of Galilee. He's not just the carpenter who walks the shores of some Palestinian village. You must know, Mr. Jailer man,

29:49 that he is the Lord who sits upon the throne holding the reins of human government in his hands. All power has been given unto him in heaven and in earth. But Mr. Jailer man, you can know all those things and go to hell.

30:04 You must believe upon the Lord Jesus. Notice he didn't say simply believe in, though that term is used somewhere, believe in, believe ice, but believe upon. He didn't say believe in his death, believe in his resurrection, believe in his love, believe in his mercy. No, no.

30:23 He directed him to the object of faith as none other than the person.

30:30 In other words, he's saying, Mr. Jailer man, throw the entire weight of your personality, I don't know what else to call it but that, upon this person who is proclaimed to you in the gospel. I've often quoted, and I shall quote until my dying day, God giving me breath and strength, the most accurate description of saving faith I've ever found anywhere in uninspired literature. That given by dear Professor Murray in Redemption accomplished and applied.

30:59 What is saving faith? Saving faith is self-sacrifice. Self-commitment to Christ. Self-commitment.

31:06 What makes you you? Mind, body, emotions, soul, capacities, longings, all that makes you. You give that over to whom? To the Lord Jesus.

31:17 What Jesus? In all the glory of his person and in all the perfection of his work as he is so freely and fully offered to us in the gospel. What does the gospel say? It says in this God-man, Jesus of Nazareth, who lived, who healed, who attested his mission, by mighty signs and wonders.

31:36 In this God-man, Jesus of Nazareth, who lived and died and was raised and has been constituted Lord. In that Jesus there is enough virtue to save billions of sinners. The virtue that is in that Savior is available to every man to whom the gospel comes. Now, Mr. Jailerman,

31:58 throw the weight of your soul into his hands and say, Jesus, mighty Savior, Lord Jesus, reigning Sovereign, take me, save me, deliver me, cleanse me, forgive me. The specific activity to which he was directed was faith. The exclusive object was declared, the Lord Jesus. Now, in the third place, look at the text.

The Sure Promise Issued: Thou Shalt Be Saved, Thou and Thy House

32:29 You have a sure promise issued, a specific activity commanded, an exclusive object declared, and blessed be God for the sure promise issued. Look at it. Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house. Now, the promise obviously has two prongs to it.

32:52 There's the individual aspect and there is the corporate aspect. Let's look at the promise in that order. Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved, thou. He repeats it again.

33:08 The thou is in the verb, but then he repeats it with another word to make it very evident that they were not somehow deluded in saying, yes, Mr. Jailerman, even people such as yourself who up to a few minutes ago were dead, indifferent, careless, profane, ungodly sinners.

33:29 You can enter the safe state, Mr. Jailerman, upon believing. Yes, Mr. Jailerman, even upon believing shall be saved.

33:41 Your guilt, you need be oppressed with it no longer. Your danger, you need be threatened by it any longer. Your helplessness, Mr. Jailerman, your deliverance from the state that has caused your question terminates upon your believing.

34:04 And the moment you believe, you are saved. Now, brethren, that's the gospel. The good news that Jesus takes guilty and dangerously injures helpless sinners and the moment they trust, He saves them.

34:26 Believing, you shall be saved. That's the individual promise. Now look at the corporate aspect. He says, Thou and thy house.

34:36 Now briefly let me assert what this is not teaching. Is He teaching that the moment right there outside the prison, if the jailer would embrace the gospel and the Savior even without further explanation, that upon his believing, he'd bring with him into the kingdom all of his children? Of course not. That would violate every aspect of biblical teaching relative to the necessity of each man, each woman being saved by his or her faith.

35:03 That faith which is the gift of God. Well, what is he saying? Well, I'm more and more convinced that this is what the apostle was doing. Let me lay the case before you for your consideration.

35:14 What he's saying is this, Mr. Jailerman,

35:18 you've come to see how bad off you are. A few minutes ago, you're ready to kill yourself. You figured whatever problems you had, your worst problems were here on earth, and the best thing is to do to get out of them is to kill yourself. Now, Mr. Jailerman,

35:32 you've come to see that whatever problems you've got down here, they're kid stuff compared with the problems you've got before God. You've come to see and to feel that you're a guilty sinner and that if you die in that state of sin, you're lost. You're under the wrath and curse of Almighty God. Now you've cried to me, Mr. Jailerman,

35:49 what must I do to be saved? And we've given you the answer, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. But Mr. Jailerman, I've got wonderful news.

35:59 You're not so vile and so bad that casting yourself upon the mighty Savior, you're going to exhaust the saving virtue that is in Jesus the Christ. Mr. Jailerman, there's enough virtue to bring your whole household into the same salvation. And Mr. Jailerman,

36:15 there's enough virtue to bring every household upon the face of the earth. Mr. Jailerman, you're in bad shape. Your conscience is terrified.

36:21 The question is, is wrong from your heart. What must I do to be saved? But Mr. Jailerman, no matter how bad you are, Savior is mighty to save.

36:31 He's able to save you. He's able to save your house. And in the language of Acts 2, which I believe is a parallel to this, He's able to save all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto Him. Oh, that's good news.

36:46 Furthermore, I think what he's saying is this, Mr. Jailerman, I can appreciate, I can appreciate what you feel. When you begin to see your sin, as is true of everyone, when you begin to sense something of how horrible it is to break the laws of a holy God, to trample underfoot the mercy of God, to live insensitive to the salvation of God, there comes the conviction of the publican that you are the sinner. No one's case is as bad as yours.

37:13 No one's sins rises high to heaven as your sins do. But you see what he's saying? Say, Mr. Jailerman, there is but one salvation.

37:23 You do not need the Savior because you are an especially bad sinner. And there's another way to be saved for people who haven't gone quite as far as you've gone. Mr. Jailerman, there in your household, maybe you have a sweet, loving wife.

37:39 Maybe you've got a disobedient son. Maybe you've got an ideal son or daughter. Whatever it is, Mr. Jailerman, look, when we say to you in answer to your question, what must I do to be saved?

37:49 And we point you to one activity, faith, to one object, the Lord Jesus. Not only will you not exhaust His saving virtue, this is the same salvation that is available and applicable to everyone in your household. Your case is not so singular that you need think you have some special need and therefore you cannot come.

38:14 This is the sure word of promise. Believing you shall be saved. Your household believing, they too shall be wonderfully saved. Now, having expounded the word of promise and having dealt with each word in the promise, having looked at the commandment to believe in the object, now, what are the vital lessons that we ought to deduce from this text?

Vital Lessons: Warrant for Proclaiming Christ to All Sinners

38:39 And it's one of those that you could just sit down in and graze for a long time. But let me suggest, as time permits, that there are three very vital, practical, needful lessons in the text. And the first one is this. Here is the word of promise.

38:55 Here in the answer of the Apostle and his companion is a clear, indisputable warrant for proclaiming Christ as a willing and able Savior to the vilest of sinners without distinction.

39:19 For proclaiming Christ as a willing and an able Savior to the vilest of sinners without distraction. Will you notice? Look at the text again. When the jailer cried, My sirs, what must I do to be saved?

39:35 They were fully conscious that just a few short minutes or at the most an hour or so before that this man demonstrated a character totally devoid of the grace of God. And when he came saying, what must I do? They did not sit him down and say, well, let's see if you've been under conviction long enough to make your question sincere. Let's see how deep the plow work of the law has gone in your heart before we give you the remedy.

40:07 Let's see if you're an earnest seeking sinner before we give you the... None of that!

40:14 The moment the question was answered, what must I do to be saved? They proclaimed to him a willing and able and an accessible Savior without distinction.

40:31 What was the present condition of his family? You see, some people see this and say, oh, but wait a minute. The jailer was...

40:36 Trembling! The jailer was obviously disturbed. When I see people trembling, what about his household? Were they trembling?

40:43 What do you know about his household? Not a thing. And probably neither did the apostle nor Silas. And they said, we have the same gospel for your household.

40:52 Regardless of how deep or shallow their conviction is, they shall be saved.

40:58 The leaven of hyperism is working in any of you. May God purge it out with this passage. Purge it right out of you.

41:07 Here is warrant to say to any sinner, believe me, you are saved. As Bridges says in a masterful brief statement on this, as a guilty sinner, you're invited. As a willing sinner, you're welcome. As a believing sinner, you're assured of salvation.

41:27 That's it. That's the gospel. As a guilty sinner, you're invited. Not a guilty sinner who has gone for one month, two months, or ten months under deep exercise of soul about your lostness.

41:42 No, no. You're welcomed as a guilty sinner without qualification. And as a willing sinner, I mean, you're invited as a guilty sinner. As a willing sinner, you're welcome.

41:54 Come, all ye that labor, and I will give you rest. As a believing sinner, you're assured. I see in this text this clear and disputable warrant for proclaiming Christ as a willing and able Savior to the vilest of sinners without distinction. But secondly, here is a clear and unmistakable demonstration of the only means effectual to the conversion of sinners.

Vital Lessons: The Only Effectual Means of Conversion

42:19 Here is a clear and unmistakable demonstration of the only means effectual to the conversion of sinners. What was it? The proclamation of an able, willing, accessible Savior. It was free grace.

42:33 Here's the full, unfettered preaching of Christ in verse 31. The emerging of immediate faith in verse 31. The expounding of the essence, of the message, verse 32. This, I say, is the only means of the conversion of sinners.

42:53 It's the preaching of the gospel of free grace. That gospel that focuses upon the able, willing, and accessible Savior. I speak now particularly to you men in the work of the ministry, whether formally or informally. Some of you preparing for that awesome office.

43:13 And you ask the question, what shall I do if there is no conversion work under my ministry? Well, you see, the temptation is to look for some other means, some other method, some other gimmick. No, no. Preach on.

43:27 Keep proclaiming. Keep heralding. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

43:35 In due course, open up the law of God that men may see why they need to believe. Granted, in due course, expound the two natures of Christ. Expound the nature of vicarious, penal, substitutionary. Granted, in the whole course of divine truth.

43:52 But sound this note clearly. Sound this note often. Sound this note with confidence. It is God's means to bring home His sheep.

44:03 Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. And then thirdly, and this is the most vital application that I want to make this morning, this text teaches us or gives to us the clear and undeniable proof that until you believe, you are not safe. Oh, look at the passage. Until you believe, you are not safe.

Vital Lessons: Until You Believe, You Are Not Safe

44:32 When the jailer said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? Did they say, Look, that's a hopeful sign that God may be beginning a work of grace in you. Cherish your convictions. Attend to the means of grace.

44:45 That is not what the text says.

44:50 There is a subtle form of self-righteousness in that kind of counsel. Now the sinner prides himself that he's no longer a dead sinner. He's an awakened sinner. He's a seeking sinner.

45:00 And I've actually seen men strutting around saying, Oh, I'm an awakened sinner. I'm a seeking sinner.

45:07 My friend, listen. This text teaches until the sinner believes, he's not safe. When he said, What must I do to be saved? They did not say, Well, the fact you're asking that is an indication you're probably already saved.

45:28 That's not scriptural.

45:31 They said, Mr. Jailerman, we cannot see the hidden springs of the regenerative work of the Spirit of God, and no one believes more firmly than I that regeneration is unto faith. Neither did the Apostle Paul show any ignorance of that doctrine.

45:49 But in our preaching, we do not probe to the hidden secret workings of the Spirit of God. We deal with these norms of Scripture. And he says, Mr. Jailerman, you've asked me, you've questioned, what must I do to be saved?

46:02 My answer is, until you believe, you're not safe. You're not saved. You're not rescued. You must believe.

46:11 Now, is it better to be a trembling sinner than a sleeping sinner? Well, the answer's obvious. Prior to all these things, he was a sleeping sinner. Sound asleep, while even the prisoners had enough interest to listen.

46:25 And here he was, spiritually asleep, ready to kill himself and send himself straight to hell. Now, he's no longer a sleeping sinner. He's an awakened sinner. Remember the illustration?

46:34 Last week, about the little lost girl in the cave? Sound asleep, dreaming about being in her mother's arms. Ten, twenty feet away, there's a bear. And a few more feet away, there's a den of rattlesnakes or a nest of rattlesnakes.

46:46 While she's asleep, she's unaware of her danger. She awakes. She's aware of her danger. But listen, listen.

46:52 Though it's better to be an awakened sinner than a sleeping sinner, awakened sinners and sleeping sinners both go to hell.

47:03 Let me use another illustration. Here are two men dying of starvation. Their body, not had enough food and drink to sustain its life. One of them has drifted into a coma.

47:13 He's totally unaware of his real situation. The other man's wide awake and he feels the hunger pangs that cry out of every pore of his body. Now, which one is in a better condition? Well, you say the man that's awakened up to cry for food, beg for food, scratch for food, steal food, do anything to get his food.

47:31 But my friend, he's still going to starve to death until he gets his food.

47:36 The man in the coma, perishing with hunger, and the man wide awake, perishing with hunger, hunger will both perish until the body absorbs the necessary nutrients to sustain its life. It's a sad thing to see sleeping sinners. And I was struck with it this morning and I preach against that backdrop. In final preparations for coming here, I looked out the window and saw a neighbor friend of mine who's always working on his house and his garden and his yard.

48:07 And I said, Lord, another Sabbath in which you've given this man opportunity to live. Only to think of eternity and heaven in his soul. And all he can think about is digging up his garden and painting his house and building his sun porch. Lord, what will it take to awaken him?

48:22 I saw him as the jailer in the first part of this passage. It's a terrible thing to be a sleeping sinner. It's a heartbreaking thing to live among sleeping sinners who, as it were, are slumbering three-tenths of an inch from the precipice of hell.

48:40 If I'm speaking to any sleeping sinner who prides himself that preaching is a sin, I'm speaking to him that preaching like this doesn't get to you, my friend. It ought not to be the occasion of pride. It ought to be the occasion to humble you that you're living like a beast who has no soul to save, who has no eternity to gain. And it's always encouraging to see an awakened sinner.

48:59 To see a young boy, a girl, a man, or woman begin to say, look, dad, mom, pastor, so-and-so, I realize I'm lost. I'm not ready to meet God. Oh, it's wonderful to see an awakened sinner. To see somebody getting his eyes open to realize he's three-tenths of an inch from the precipice.

49:21 To see their spiritual eyes begin to stand wide open and realize I'm in a state of danger. Oh, but listen to me, listen to me, listen to me, listen to me. This whole community to the man, to the boy, to the girl, this whole gathered group here and downstairs in the overflow room, every single individual could become, if they would become in a moment, everyone, an awakened sinner, literally trembling like the jailer. Lived with horror at the thought of it.

49:50 Listen, you'd still go to hell trembling unless you believe.

49:56 That's the emphasis of this text. You're not safe.

50:03 Jesus said, he that believeth not the wrath of John 3 and verse 36. Away with this teaching that awakening is regeneration.

50:20 You have no grounds to believe a man's regenerate until he's believed. Because that regenerating work is not a thing. It's always under faith. And when God implants the life,

50:35 the life will manifest itself in the embrace of the offered Savior.

50:41 Am I speaking to some children this morning? You've never been able to be like the jailer, a sleeping sinner. Because your mommy and daddy have faithfully instructed you in the word of God. Heaven, hell, your sin, Christ, eternity, those have always been real issues to you.

50:58 I know what that is. That was my experience in Ohio. I used to chafe against it. I just wished I could have reached into that place in my conscience that had been conditioned by the training of my home and rip it out so I could have a little fun in my sin instead of sinning with such misery.

51:16 I sinned because I didn't have a new heart. But I couldn't sin with abandonment because I was for the most part of my life an awakened sinner. Am I speaking to young people, children, Christian parents, visitors, friends? You've got a saved husband, a saved wife.

51:32 Listen, listen.

51:35 That awakened state is the most dangerous one. Because you will either from that state ask the question that this man asked, what must I do to be saved? And take seriously the biblical answer and give yourself no rest until you've believed upon the Lord Jesus. Or you'll drift off into a subtle form of self-righteousness and content yourself, well, I'm in some kind of limbo.

51:59 I probably won't die and go to hell because I'm not a careless sinner. But I doubt I'll go to heaven because I haven't yet believed. My friend, there is no evangelical limbo.

52:11 He that believeth not shall be damned. He that believeth on the Son hath life. You're not safe until you've believed. And with that, I would close my exhortation this morning, urging upon you if you're conscious of your need, why just continue on conscious of need?

52:32 Oh, look at the simplicity of the text. If you're asking the question, sirs, what must I do to be saved? We do not give you the false medicine. of liberalism and say, well, your problem is that you're just thinking about things in a wrong way.

52:48 We do not give you the answer, the terrible poison of works righteousness telling you to straighten up and fix your life up and do this and do that. Nor do we insult you by just telling you to accept the facts of the gospel. You've believed them, some of you, all your life. That's an insult to tell you that that's what you need to do.

53:06 You already do that. But what we tell you today in apostolic simplicity is this. Believe on the Lord Jesus and we give you the promise thou shalt be saved. Cast the weight of your whole person upon that glorious and say, oh, Lord Jesus, this is the word of your promise.

53:32 Is it dishonoring to the man who stands on the shore seeing a man floundering in the water if when he throws to that man the means of rescue, he takes it as a serious insult to the intention of desiring his deliverance and lays hold upon it and is brought to shore? Is that dishonoring to the man who's in the place of rescue? You say, of course not. Anything less than that is a dishonor to his intentions.

54:00 Is it dishonoring to the Lord Jesus to say, oh, Lord Jesus, I believe when you come to me in the life preserver of the promise, you do so because you are serious in offering me deliverance. Is it dishonoring to Christ to lay hold on me if it shall be true to me even as you've promised?

54:29 It is not humility that causes people to grovel in a state of so-called awakened conviction for months and years. And they say, well, I'm too humble to believe the Lord would save me. That's an insult to the Son of God. It's wicked unbelief that says He's not sincere when He offers me deliverance.

54:49 He's not to be trusted when He says, believing, I shall be saved. Away with this false, humility that insults the Redeemer, that mocks His promise. Oh, this morning, believe upon it. I'm loath to close the service because I know something of the subtlety of the human heart and some of you even now saying, yes, but, yes, but.

55:17 Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Let us pray.