“And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21).
Loved ones, in a city far away from where you live there once lived two men. Both men were religious. Both were God-fearing. However, neighbors would confide to a stranger that both men were rather peculiar, and the popular religious leaders disliked them both.
They tried to trap the first one in His own words (Luke 11:54). They misjudged His motives (John 8:43; 10:20). That man was the Lord Jesus Christ. Finally, they nailed Him to a cross and left Him to die.
The second fellow lived a few years later. He got off to a bad start when he switched religions. And such a pity! He had studied for the ministry under the best professors of the day.
His former churchmen more concerned with party politics than truth, called him their enemy (Galatians 4:16). They tried more than once to kill him (Acts 23:12). They hounded him all over the Roman Empire. Some said he was beside himself (Acts 26:24; 2 Corinthians 5:13). He was the apostle Paul.
Both Jesus and Paul would have had popular and promising careers had they only conformed. However, truth was more important to them than popularity (John 8:32; Romans 9:1). The person who is convinced of that today is sometimes lied about too. He is often slandered and misjudged.
You see, truth is NOT always popular, but it is always truth. Truth remains truth even if the whole world rejects it! How important is truth to you?
If truth is important to you, please continue studying this brief post and learn the TRUTH about, “Calling on the Name of the Lord!”
A favorite passage quoted by many preachers who tell people what to do to be saved is from Paul's quotation from Joel in the Book of Romans: “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13; Joel 2:32).
In his sermon on the day of Pentecost, Peter declared: “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21). In view of this statement, folks sometimes ask: Why do members of the church of Christ insist that baptism is a requirement for being saved?
One should not assume that calling upon the Lord’s name, and being baptized, are mutually exclusive obligations. The two expressions complement one another.
“Calling” on Christ involves more than a mere verbal plea. Merely “calling” on the name of Christ is not sufficient to effect salvation since Jesus Himself declared: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21; Luke 6:46).
We use the word "call" with a number of different meanings. She calls (phones) me frequently. The umpire Joe calls balls and strikes at baseball games. The game was called because of rain. The man calls for help (he is making his appeal for help).
The Greek language has different words for "call." Our use comes from the translation of a compound word "upon" and "call" (epikaleomai). It means to surname someone (Matthew 10:2), to appeal to someone, like to Caesar (Acts 25:11), and to be called by a name (James 2:7). No clear context shows the meaning of call as "pray," as is taught by many who believe in salvation through prayer alone.
After Peter quoted Joel's statement, "whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21), the people asked him what they needed to do (Acts 2:37). Peter did not refer to Joel's statement which he had quoted and tell them to pray in the name of the Lord. The same apostle who promised salvation to all who “call on the name of the Lord,” told them to, “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 2:38).
Evidently "call on the name of the Lord" did not mean "pray," or Peter would have told them to say "the sinner's prayer" (a prayer nowhere found in the Bible). He rather told those who believed to "Repent...and be baptized (immersed in water) in the name of Jesus Christ.”
Since the “shall be saved” of Acts 2:21 is equivalent to the “forgiveness of sins” in Acts 2:38, it necessarily follows that “calling on the name of the Lord” includes both repentance and baptism.
Later testimony from the New Testament makes it apparent that the person who submits to baptism, in order to receive pardon, is “calling on the name of the Lord.”
When Jesus appeared to Saul, he asked, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city [Damascus], and it shall be told thee what thou must do” (Acts 9:6). Saul went into the city where for three days he "neither ate nor drank," and continued in prayer (Acts 9:9-11).
Jesus sent Ananias to Saul. When Ananias came to the penitent Saul, he did not tell him to continue in prayer. He rather instructed him as follows: "And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). Paul's sins were not washed away when he prayed three days but when he was baptized, making his appeal in the name of the Lord.
An angel told the Gentile Cornelius to send to Joppa for Peter, “who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved” (Acts 11:14). When Peter came to Cornelius' home, he preached Jesus to them. When the Holy Spirit came on them, to show that the Gentiles could be saved in like manner as the Jews (Acts 15:7-9), Peter "commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord" (Acts 10:48), instead of telling them to pray.
When we are baptized, our forgiveness is in Jesus' name, meaning our appeal for forgiveness is based on His authority. We are to do all in Jesus' name, according to His authority (Colossians 3: 17). Our appeal is in His name because, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).
If we are baptized in Jesus' name, by His authority, we will be baptized according to the instruction He gave His disciples when He sent them into all the world. Jesus told them, “18 …All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen" (Matthew 28:18-20).
If our baptism is in Jesus' name, by His authority, it will be in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. All who wish to enjoy the remission of past sins will “call on the name of the Lord” by obeying the gospel plan of redemption. In no other way is one promised pardon.
Conclusion
A word of encouragement about prayer… Our Lord made it very clear to the people who first followed Him; they were to ask God to meet their needs. Shouldn't we? Genuine, heartfelt prayer can produce powerful changes in our lives and world. When we lift up our hearts to God, asking for His wisdom, we open ourselves up to a great source of wisdom and love.
Do you have questions about today? Questions about your future that you can't answer? Questions about choices or decisions you'll soon have to make? Needs that you can't satisfy by yourself?
Have you sought God's wisdom? Have you asked for direction? Protection? Strength? Courage? If you have, do you consistently ask for His wisdom? Our God is perfectly capable of answering your prayers, but first, you have to ask (Matthew 7:7-11). Find time today to read James chapter one. Think about it. Put it into practice.
The God of Heaven and Earth is so good, and His love reaches all. Through the free gift of God’s grace by Jesus’ blood (Ephesians 2:8; Revelation 1:5) and your obedient faith (Romans 1:5; 10:17; 16:26), salvation is offered. If you have Bible questions or wish to comment on this post, please do so. Lord willing, a Bible answer will be provided for every Bible question.
The churches of Christ are neither Catholic, Protestant, nor Jew (Romans 16:16; Matthew 16:18-19). We are the loving suffering body of Christ (Ephesians 1:20-23; 4:4-6) – CHRISTIANS: “Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf” (1 Peter 4:16; cf. Acts 11:26; 26:28).
We love you with the love of the Lord (John 13:34-35). Samuel A. Matthews, preaching with the Liberty NW church of Christ, meeting in Portland, Oregon, USA.
