LESSON 2

What Should I Do Now That I Am Saved?

1. Should I tell anyone that I am saved?

For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels. -- Luke 9:26

Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought him that he might be with him: but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and show how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him. -- Luke 8:38-39

Note: We learned in the last lesson that when God saves us he saves us forever. Now we find a verse that tells us that it is possible for Jesus to be so ashamed of a person that He would not want to admit that they are His. This will be the sad testimony of people who were ashamed of Jesus and would not admit that they belonged to Him. God wants us to tell others about what he has done for us. Some good places to start would be our family, friends and at a Bible believing church.

2. Should I be baptized now that I am saved?

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: -- Matthew 28:19

Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. -- Acts 2:41

And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. -- Acts 8:36-38

Note: Our Lord commanded that new Christians should be baptized. Baptism does not save you but is commanded for Christians as a public testimony of God's grace in saving them. It is a picture of Jesus' death, burial and resurrection (See Romans 6:3-5). A person should be baptized only after they have trusted in Jesus Christ as their Savior. The eunuch asked Philip if he could be baptized and Philip said, "If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest" He had to be a believer in Jesus before he could be properly baptized. A person should be baptized as soon as possible after they are saved.

3. I was baptized as a baby or before I prayed and asked Jesus to save me. Should I be baptized again?

And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. -- Acts 19:3-5

Note: These men had been baptized by John the Baptist but when they heard that Jesus was the Savior that John said would come, they believed on Jesus and were baptized again in obedience to Christ's command in Matthew 28:19. Even if you were baptized before you were saved or as a baby you should be baptized again as a public testimony of your salvation.

4. When and how should I be baptized?

And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. --Acts 8:36-39

And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to 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, straightway. -- Acts 16:30-33

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: -- Matthew 3:16

Note: In almost every case in the Bible people were baptized immediately after they were saved. Since baptism is one of the first steps of obedience to God after a person gets saved, it just makes good sense to obey the Lord as quickly as possible. Notice also that when people were baptized (including the Lord Jesus) they had to go "down into the water" and come "up out of the water". This doesn't fit sprinkling or some other method of baptism so it is apparent that they were put under the water (immersed) when they were baptized. Only baptism by immersion correctly pictures the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus (Romans 6:3-5).

The word "baptize" literally means to put into or dip.

5. Should I go to Church now?

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. -- Matthew 18:20

Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. -- Hebrews 10:25

But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. -- 1 Timothy 3:15

Note: Jesus put a tremendous amount of importance upon believers meeting together regularly. He especially promised his presence when believers were gathered together in one place. When you read the book of Acts you find the Church meeting daily. The local church is God's place for instruction in the truth of His Word, fellowship and service. Every parent wants good influences in their child's life. If a child is allowed to run with the wrong crowd he will be influenced to do things that are wrong. God is no different with His children. He wants us to be positively influenced by the preaching and teaching of the Bible. He wants us "running" with the crowd that loves and serves Him. He wants His children to fellowship with Him and with their brothers and sisters.

6. What type of Church should I attend?

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. -- Matthew 7:15

And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ. -- Acts 5:42

For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. -- 2 Corinthians 4:5

To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: -- Colossians 1:27-28

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: -- 2 Timothy 3:16

Note: Finding a good church is not always an easy task in this day and age. Jesus warned that there would be many false prophets before He returned. Here are some practical guidelines to go by. First of all it should be a Bible believing church. It is hypocritical for people to say they believe in Jesus and then deny His Word or deny that He is who the Bible says He is. Secondly, the church should preach Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation. A sure sign of a false church is that they say you must be a member of their organization in order to be saved. Anyone who preaches something besides Jesus or adds something in addition to trusting in Jesus for salvation is false. Thirdly, the teaching and preaching in a scriptural church will challenge you to trust and obey God, grow closer to Him and live a better life. We invite you to visit our Church if possible.

7. What version of the Bible should I read?

The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. (Psalms 12:6-7)

For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. --Psalm 119:89

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: -- 2 Timothy 3:16

For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. -- Matthew 5:18

Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. -- Matthew 24:35

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. -- 1 Peter 1:23-25

Note: These verses tell us a very important truth. God has promised to preserve His Word forever. God has kept His promise in our day through the Authorized Version, more commonly known as the King James Bible (KJB) or King James Version (KJV). Many teach today that any English Bible is acceptable and that the multitude of modern versions are better than the KJB because they easier to read and are the result of better scholarship and were translated from better manuscripts. Nothing could be farther from the truth. First of all, if the King James Bible was so difficult to read you wouldn't have been able to understand salvation and get to this point in this Bible study. Secondly, the translators of the KJB were all devout, godly men who were some of the greatest scholars of their day. The translators of all the modern versions have included men who were not Bible believers. Thirdly, the manuscripts from which the KJB was translated have their root in the faithful, Bible believing churches throughout history. The manuscipts from which all the modern translations were made come from Alexandria, Egypt. Alexandria was a place of known heresy and false teaching. At the end of lesson three will be a link to a page which will provide you with links to other pages with information on the differences between the KJB and other versions.

STUDY QUESTIONS

1. Should I tell people that I am Saved?

2. Should I be baptized now that I am saved?

3. If I was baptized as a baby or before I was saved should I be baptized again? Why?

4. How soon should I be baptized after I am saved?

5. Does it matter how I am baptized? How should I be baptized?

6. Should I go to church now that I am saved?

7. What kind of church should I attend?

8. What type of church should I avoid?

9. What version of the Bible should I read?

Go To Lesson 3