You must see the principle. We have been talking about living Christ. So you may consider that you like to live Christ and because you can’t make it, you need to fast, and you need to pray. You may want to do these things, but He doesn’t. What is religion? Religion is that you and I would do something to please God. You and I would initiate something to please God. What is God’s economy? God’s economy is that He has prepared everything. The Father has prepared the best robe and is waiting for His son to come home. The Father has also prepared a fatted calf. According to Luke 15 everything was prepared for the prodigal son’s return. When the son came home, the Father had the best robe put upon him. This is to be saved. He comes back to be saved. He cannot save himself; only the Father can save him. But he needs to come back to be saved. If the son never came back, how could the Father save him? But if, after coming back, the son was too busy doing things, how could the robe be put upon him? The Father stopped the son’s talking and put the robe upon him. Then he said to kill the fatted calf and to be merry. This is to be saved. The picture in Luke 15 shows what it is to be saved.
The principle was the same on the day of Pentecost. While Peter was speaking there, the best robe was already prepared, and the fatted calf was already killed. Everything was there and salvation was ready for the people to receive. So Peter said, “Be saved.” To be saved simply means to turn to God and calm yourself down. Let the Lord do everything, not only for you, but upon you and in you. The more we do to get salvation, the more the Lord is frustrated. He cannot do anything. This is a real picture of the situation with so many Christians. Many turn their back to the Lord. Others listen to the Lord and turn to the Lord. After turning to the Lord, they get involved in too much doing. Sometimes when the Lord would see that we are so active, He would just wait until we have done everything and have been thoroughly disappointed and have given up. When we are tired out the Lord would say, “Very good! Now is the time for you to be saved. Let Me save you. Don’t do anything. Don’t pray; let Me save you. Don’t read the Bible, let Me save you. Don’t do your good work, let Me save you. Stop. Just turn to Me. Love Me, and tell Me you want Me. You cannot do anything.”
Don’t come to the law saying you will do it. You can’t do it. You had better tell the Lord that you love Him, you love His Word, but that you cannot do it. Tell Him that you have no intention to do it, that you will let Him do it. This is to be active-passive; it means: “I am here, Lord, to let You do it.” “Let” shows the active, but “You do it” shows the passive. To the Lord it is active, but to me it is passive. We must be an active-passive person. Peter had that kind of experience. So based upon his experience, he charged the people to be saved. This means the Lord is here; salvation is ready; everything is prepared for you. The Lord is saving now. Are you willing to be saved? You must be willing. Be saved! On that day over three thousand responded in a willing way (Acts 2:41). This means they regretted their past, they repented, and now they were willing to be saved. Then they were all baptized. Even they couldn’t baptize themselves. They were baptized by someone else. This is the basic principle of God’s economy— this is the active-passive voice.
Very few Christians really know the active-passive way for us to enjoy the Lord in His salvation. Consider your own experience. For years you may have been a good Christian—seeking, doing, praying, studying the Bible. This means you are doing, doing, doing. All your doings have been a kind of frustration to the Lord. Then you may consider not to do anything. This also is wrong. If you do nothing, you are absolutely passive.