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THE KING’S BUSINESS
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Wednesday, February 14 . Acts 16 : 29 , 30 .
Christ is not in the best Greek texts, and therefore is properly omitted in the Revised Version. He upon whom we are to'believe is indeed the Christ, but it is Jesus as Lord and Saviour that we must especially believe, in in order to be saved—Rom. 1 0 : 9 , 1 0 ). What does it mean to believe on the Lord, Jesus ? In finding an answer to this ques tion note carefully Paul did not say toj the Philippian, Jailer, “Believe about the: Lord Jesus,” but “Believe oh the Lord Jesus. One may believe perfectly cbrrectly about the Lord Jesus and be lost; no one can believe on the Lord Jesus and be lost. But what does it mean to believe on a person? It means'exactly the same in the Bible as it does in ordinary every day life. , In ordinary every day life to say we believe on a person means that we put confidence in him as that which he claims to be-and offers himself to be. For example, if we say we believe on a doctor, we mean that we put confidence in that man as a doctor, and if we are sick we put our case in his hands. If we say we believe on,a banker, we mean that we put confidence in that man as a banker, and if we have money to deposit we put it in his bank. If wc say • We believe on a teacher, we mean we put confidence in that person as a teacher, and if .we wish to be taught we go to school to him. Just so to believe on the Lord Jesus is to put confidence in the Lord Jesus as what He claims to be and what He offers f Himself to be. In other words, it means that we receive Him or take Him to be to us what He offers Himself to be to any one who will take Him (cf. John 1 :12). He offers Himself first of all as our sin bearer, the one who took our place and died in our stead (Matt. 20:28; cf. Isa. 53-6- 1 Peter 2:24; Gal. 3:13). Therefore,' if we believe on Him we put confidence in,Him as the one who bore our sins in our place, we “receive” Him, or take Him to be oul Saviour who died in our place, and trust God to forgive us because He died in our place. Again, He offers Himself to us as the one who arose again to be our Lord and King and who has power to deliver
In a moment the brutal jailer has become an anxious inquirer. He asks the question that every man who has not been definitely saved by a definite acceptance of Jesus should ask, “What must I do to be saved?” Three things are to be noted about the question: ( 1 ) why the jailer asked it; ( 2 ) how he asked it; (3) from whom he asked it. Just why he asked i t : because he was lost and had been brought to see and to feel that fact. The jailer had been fast asleep in more senses than one; he had been within one step of death, and that solemn ized him and set him to thinking as it has many another man. But not only had he been brought face to face with death, he had been brought face to face with two holy men, and that made him think even more deeply. But that was not all, nor even the decisive thing, he had been brought face to face with God, and he saw himself utterly lost, as every san man sees himself when brought face to face with eternity and God. Second, how he asked' i t : in deep earnestness. We see here none of the ‘ trifling and shallowness so , characteristic of many an inquiry room. On the con trary we. see the jailer “trembling for fear,” and we see him “falling down.”' Oh, that we might see more inquirers today trem bling for fear, and that we might see them falling down on'their knees, not to us, but to God. Nowadays we almost have to drag the inquirer to the front and then plead and argue with him to get him down on his knees. (3) Note carefully from whom he asked the question: from men who knew the answer; from men who knew God’s Word (v. 32) ; from men who were saved themselves.
Thursday, February 15 . Acts 16 : 31 , 32 .
Here we have the great answer to the question, but it is a very simple answer; it makes the way of life as plain as day. All that one has to do to be saved is to "believe on the Lord Jesus." (The word
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