2025.08.17 | What Must I Do to Be Saved?

September 23rd, 2025
by Hope Community

_{^{This blog is based on the sermon from August 17, 2025.}}

Reading Acts 16 again and the desperation in the Philippian jailer’s words jumped out of the page: “What must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30).

It’s not just his question… it’s ours too. Maybe you’ve whispered it in a hospital room. Maybe it’s surfaced during burnout. Maybe it hides beneath your success but reappears in quiet moments: Is there more? How do I find it?

The jailer had just witnessed something unexplainable, an earthquake shaking prison doors open while Paul and Silas sang hymns instead of running for freedom. Faced with a miracle and two men whose peace made no sense, he finally asked the question his soul had been waiting to ask.

Paul’s answer was simple: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” (Acts 16:31)

What It Means for Us Today

Faith in Jesus isn’t about checking off good deeds, fixing yourself before God accepts you, or adding religion on top of an already busy life. It’s about surrender. It’s admitting, like the jailer, that we can’t save ourselves.

The gospel flips everything upside down: salvation isn’t something we work for… it’s a gift we’re invited to receive.

And the story doesn’t end with the jailer’s question. That very night, his whole family believed, were baptized, and experienced joy they had never known. That’s what Jesus does: He brings freedom, not just to individuals but to households, friendships, and communities.

Reflection Questions

Have you ever come to the end of yourself, realizing your own strength wasn’t enough?
In what ways do we sometimes try to “add” to the simple message of the gospel? How can we return to trusting Jesus fully?
Who in your life might need to hear the same hope that transformed the jailer’s household?
What would it look like for you to take a fresh step of faith this week?

An Invitation
If you’re wrestling with that same question: “What must I do to be saved?”, the answer hasn’t changed. Believe in Jesus. Trust Him with your life. He’s ready to meet you with forgiveness, freedom, and joy.

Take time this week to reflect on this powerful passage… and if you’d like to go deeper, you can watch the full sermon on our YouTube channel here:

My prayer is that we would be like that jailer… ready to ask the question, and ready to hear the answer. And when we do, we’ll discover what our hearts have been searching for all along: hope in Jesus.