WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?

WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED? 

"The crowd in Philippi joined in the attack on Paul and Silas, and the magistrates had them stripped and ordered them to be beaten with rods. After inflicting many blows on them, they threw them into prison and instructed the jailer to guard them securely. When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and secured their feet to a stake.

"About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened, there was suddenly such a severe earthquake that the foundations of the jail shook; all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose.

"When the ­jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, thinking that the prisoners had escaped. 

"But Paul shouted out in a loud voice, “Do no harm to yourself; we are all here.” He asked for a light and rushed in and, trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas.

"Then he brought them out and said,

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 

"And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved.”

"So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. He took them in at that hour of the night and bathed their wounds; then he and all his family were baptized at once. He brought them up into his house and provided a meal and with his household rejoiced at having come to faith in God." (Acts 16: 22 - 34).

Tuesday 7th May 2024 in the 6th Week in the Easter Season.

Jailer asked: 

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

He got the reply from Paul and Silas: “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved.”

The Jailer might have thought: Is that all? Then it is very easy. We can do it. 

God wants the means of salvation to be very simple and easy. 

What did the Jailer and family need to believe initially? Paul and Silas proclaimed to them the Apostolic Kerygma:

"Christ was born. Christ died. Christ rose from the dead. Christ will come again."

This Apostolic Kerygma or Proclamation is the sole content of early Church catechesis till the Gospel was written about forty years after the death and Resurrection of Jesus. 

For you and me today, the formula to enjoy the fullness of salvation is still the same:

“Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved.”

Here are some words of Jesus that I believe and repeat often during the day and they empower me to gain mastery over the many trials that beset me during the day. 

"My grace is sufficient for you. For power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12: 9). 

"It is I. Do not be afraid." (John 6: 20). 

"Do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God and believe in me also." (Cf John 14: 1).

"If Jesus Christ is my Good Shepherd, what shall I lack? Nothing!" (Cf Psalm 23: 1). 

"All things are possible for God." (Cf Matthew 19: 26).

AND SO MANY MORE CONSOLING SCRIPTURES FOR YOU AND YOUR HOUSEHOLD. 

The Church honors the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Month of May. 

Honor Mary through the Holy Rosary, Litany, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Consecration to The Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pilgrimages, etc. 

For the Litany, 15 Promises of Mary, Consecration Prayer, etc and Prayer intentions click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2024/04/may-devotion-to-mary.html?m=1