Last week, I wrote about knowing who is saved. Not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, though everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. If both are true, then from what do we need to be saved?

Acts 27:31 has another story of being saved:

27On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea. About midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. 28They took soundings and found that the water was twenty fathoms deep. Going a little farther, they took another set of soundings that read fifteen fathoms. 29Fearing that we would run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daybreak.

30Meanwhile, the sailors attempted to escape from the ship. Pretending to lower anchors from the bow, they let the lifeboat down into the sea. 31But Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men remain with the ship, you cannot be saved.” 

This story obviously is about being saved from death of the corporeal body. When words in the Bible are not so obvious, what should we do?

There is so much we do not know. No human being knows how God will handle us when Jesus returns. As much as scholars try to decipher the Bible, we do not know. Yet many people twist words ever so slightly, like “fire” and “destruction”, to fit a doctrine that may not be true.

What we do know is this: the gate is narrow that leads to life and only a few enter it, and everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. If both are true, then “life” does not mean “saved.” Yet there are too many messages of one vs the other. God is not that simple.

The narrow way includes loving like Jesus, which is the objective of discipleship. There are many believers and relatively few disciples. Acts 27:31 is like an allegory for this principle. There was a condition to being saved from the storm: stay on the boat. In life, the boat we are on is faith. Believe in Jesus.

There is a cost to being a disciple, like there is a cost to build a house, and many choose to not build, and it’s okay. Some try to build, and they do not know what they are missing to finish. Hence, there are many churches that do not grow and are not filled with the spirit. True disciples are not to embarrass them. Rather, encourage them and pray for them. Smile when a religious person calls himself a disciple even when they deny the power of the spirit, and see if they are open to learning the way more accurately. The harvest is plenty but the workers are few.

Of the 275 people on board the ship with Paul, I wonder how many became disciples. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was none of them aside from Paul’s companions. But I bet everyone told the story of Paul, a prisoner who took charge of a ship in danger, who spoke with authority and seemed to be directly connected to the Greater God.

God’s will is for as many as possible to choose Him over the devil of disobedience, to be with Him and not separated from Him. The job of the disciple is to love like Jesus, walking the narrow way by becoming a servant to all. To do this well, we must continue to learn how. By this, all men will know who are truly Jesus’ disciples (John 13:35).

The gospel is not complicated. Yet many preachers speak of what they know little about, acting as if they understand, and making the message more complicated than the love of Jesus. God answers you by your fruit. Look at your fruit and see. Be sober about yourself. You have two ears and one mouth. Therefore, listen twice as much as you speak.