In order to receive salvation a person must go through the following steps:
Hearing the Gospel - Romans 10:14 "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?"
Being convicted by the word of God - Acts 2:37 "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?"
Believing the word of God - Acts 16:31 "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."
Repentance - Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."
Water Baptism - Act 2:38
Receiving the Holy Ghost - Acts 2:38
In order to receive salvation one must first hear the gospel, how that Jesus Christ, as the Son of God, died for our sins, that he was buried and that he rose from the dead on the third day. This message must be preached to all who will listen. If it is not preached people cannot believe on things they have not heard. Of course, those who hear the message must open their hearts to receive it. The power of the word of God will then convict them of sins and a create a desire to get into right relationship with God. The hearer must then believe what he has heard and be willing to apply the gospel to his life. Note that 'believe' as used here does not refer to a passive acknowledgment of the truth of what was heard, but requires an active application of the truth. One has not truly believed if he is not willing to act on that which he purports to believe! This is the type of belief that Paul refers to in Acts 16 and Romans 10. True believers will act upon the word of God and thus will receive salvation. This action requires repentance, water baptism, seeking and receiving the Holy Ghost. These latter steps are dicussed in the next chapters.