Anyone sincerely seeking an answer to this question must be aware of a state of being lost. Someone who is convinced of their lost situation will definitely want an answer to question "what must I do to be saved."
God loves man and wants to have a close relationship with man both in the here and now, and in the hereafter.
But because of man's sin a close relationship with God is not possible.
Sin is when man fails to live up to God's moral standards, either actively or passively.
Sin can be a thought, an action, an inner disposition or simply not doing what one ought to have done.
Isaiah 59:2
But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
No one is exempt from sin since we have all inherited a sinful nature from the first man in God's creation, Adam.
And because of our sinful nature man is prone to sin.
Romans 3:23
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God....
Romans 3:10
As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one;
The penalty for sin is death, which means separation from God. Another way to express this is that man is lost.
In this lost condition, man's relationship with God is really nonexistent.
Romans 5:12
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin,
and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned...
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, ....
Out of love for man God provided the means by which man should receive forgiveness.
Because man is not able to attain salvation by works nor by paying to obtain it, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to die on the cross.
The death of Jesus Christ was the only acceptable price to God that could take away the sins of man.
Jesus died the death that man could not die in order to give man the life man could not live, and this life is eternal life.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord....
Salvation is a free gift that God offers to all.
Just as with any other gift, the free gift of salvation needs to be accepted for it to have meaning.
The only way to accept God's free gift of salvation is by faith, faith in Jesus Christ.
Faith in Jesus Christ means that we acknowledge that we are sinners and that we accept the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross
as the only sufficient and complete payment for our sins.
Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins and rose again to give His righteousness.
Acts 16:31
They replied, Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved...
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord....
Ephesians 2:8-9
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.
At this very moment God is working to draw people to him so that they would believe the good news of the free gift that Christians preach.
It is God's desire that no one is lost but that all come to know Jesus Christ as their Savior.
It is the task of the Holy Spirit to convince people that they are sinners and that they need a Savior.
If you believe this and express this to God you will be saved.
Romans 10:9-10
That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
These verses confirm that when you realize that Jesus was the sinless Son of God,
the God-man who died for your sins and rose again from the dead for the forgiveness of your sins, you will be saved.
If you believe this in your heart you will have no problem confessing or telling God that this is what you believe.
This means that you place complete trust in Jesus Christ alone for the forgiveness of your sins.
This is a onetime confession with the result of you being eternally saved.
Romans 10:13
...for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
If you understand that you are a sinner and that you cannot save yourself;
If you believe that Jesus died and rose again to pay the penalty for your sins;
If you would like to receive this free gift of salvation right now, tell this to God in prayer.
Pray:
God, I know that I am a sinner.
I know I cannot do anything to deserve eternal life.
I believe that Jesus died and rose again to pay the penalty for my sins.
I accept Jesus' sacrifice for the forgiveness of my sins.
By faith I accept Jesus as my Savior.Help me to live the life You want me to live from now on.
Thank You for the gift of salvation.
In Jesus name I pray, Amen.