Life's Greatest Question

Acts 16:14-34

Text verse 30:  And brought them out, and said Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

How many questions do you get or ask in a day?  I am sure they are many because we live in a world that is full of questions.  Where are we going to eat; what are your plans for the day; how did your day go - just to mention a few.  But none are as important or serious as “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”  

While it is true that we are bombarded every day with questions, the same was true in the world that existed during the time covered by the Bible.  For example, Job asked this question, "If a man die shall he live again." This particular question is still being debated today.  Even Pilate, a Roman governor, asked the Jewish leaders a very simple question: "What shall I do with Jesus who is called the Christ?"  Jesus Christ even asked a question in Mark 8:32, "What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"  The question Jesus asked and many others found in the Bible are all very serious questions, but none are as important to you today as “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”  Actually, it may very well be the most important question in the entire Bible.  For this reason, let’s take a closer look at it. 

I.  First, it is a serious question.   

 It is serious because it deals with eternity.  Your eternal destiny hangs in the  balance depending on how you answer this question.  

Second, the conditions that existed at the time were serious as well.  The jailer had taken Paul and Silas out of the jail to his home.  He could have been put in jail himself or even put to death; and third, the man was serious.  He wanted to know how to be saved and that at the possible jeopardy of his life.  He was willing to lose his life to save his life.  

He received his answer; have you?  If you haven’t, you cannot afford to put it off any  longer because you may not get another chance to before you die.   

 Paul and Silas gave the simplest answer to the question when they said, “Believe on  the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.”

 Do you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ? 

2. It is a sincere question (read Mark 10:17-22).  

A.  The jailer was sincere in his desire to be saved just as the rich young ruler was sincere in  asking Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life.  Is his quest not the same as asking, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”  

B.    The rich young ruler came to the right source for the answer.  Unlike people today who consult with many “professionals” for answers to life's questions, the young ruler knew the right source to ask.

      C.  He came running.  This shows us the urgency of the question.  He wanted to know quickly.  

D.  He even knelt down before Jesus.  This showed his concern.  Yet, when Jesus answered the question in verse twenty one, the Bible says that "he went away grieved."  He didn’t like the answer that Jesus gave.  

Sadly, today we all too often see the same thing in the lives of people.  They only want to hear an answer that will please them.

3.  It is a simple question.  

     A.  Simple questions usually produce simple answers (Read Matt. 14:28-31).  

     B.  Notice Peter’s question of the Lord, "Lord if it be thee, bid me to come unto thee on the
water?" Notice the simplicity of Jesus’ answer, "come."            

     C.  The jailer asked a very simple question, and the answer came back simple as well.  "Believe
           on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved."

So, the question for you today is, "Are you saved?"  If not you can be.  Please click on How to Be Saved to learn how.  You may have the answer to a lot of life’s questions, but if you haven’t taken care of this major question, you are making the biggest mistake of your life.