A common confusion associated with salvation is this matter of “calling on the name of the Lord.” Acts 2:21 reads, “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Acts 4:12 has Peter explaining, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Romans 10:13 reads, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
That this is clearly a salvation issue is hard to deny. But, what does it mean to call on the name of the Lord. Let’s break this down in two parts. First, what is the significance of the name of the Lord. Second, what is meant by “calling on” that name.
In the Name of Jesus
To do anything in someone’s name describes the power associated with their name. For example, I once had a businessman in a small town had owned a gas station/garage, salvage yard, and car parts store. He had been in that town for years and knew all the major figures in the car industry. Seeing I needed a set of tires, he called a local Firestone store and told them I would be coming to do business with them. He then told me to tell them, “Lloyd sent me to get a set of tires on this car.” They, immediately, drove the car into the bay and I was out in thirty minutes with nothing to owe. He had them bill him for the tires, made all the arrangements, and I was the rich recipient of his grace.
The power or authority is dependent on the person in whose name a thing is done or promised. In Acts 19, there were disciples who had known only the baptism of John. Paul had asked them if they had received the Spirit and they did not know about him being given. The apostles were in the business of laying hands on disciples to receive the Holy Spirit. But, this promise was only given to those who were baptized in the name of Jesus. Acts 2:38 records Peter saying, “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 Spirit.” So, when these disciples were baptized in the name of Jesus, Paul laid his hands on them and they spoke in tongues. The promise of the remission of sins and the gift of the Spirit was only by the power or in the name of Jesus. Even though there is none born of women that was greater than John the Immerser, Jesus was greater than John. In Acts 4:12, Peter said, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”  A similar example is seen in Acts 8:16 which described the Samaritans, “For as yet he (the Holy Spirit) was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Peter and John (two apostles) were sent there to lay hands on them to receive the gift of the Spirit.
Acts 3 is another example of the power in the name of Jesus. Verse 6 has Peter and John at the gate Beautiful talking to a lame man who was asking for alms. “Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.” When the people were gathering around them, Peter says, “Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man walk (v.12). Then verse 16 reads, “And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.” Later, when they were arrested, Acts 4:7 reads, “And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?  Peter answered in verse ten, “Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.” The Sanhedrin commanded them not to speak or teach in the name of Jesus (Acts 4:17-18).  Later, in chapter five when the apostles were once again arrested, they beat them and “commanded them that they should not speak in the name of Jesus” (Acts 5:40).  Paul is said to preach boldly in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 9:27, 29).
A separate example is seen in the baptism of the Holy Spirit promised to the apostles and later given to Cornelius and his household. John 14:13 reads, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. (v. 26, 15:16, 16:23, 26). Acts16:18 is an example of Paul commanding a demon to come out of a girl in the name of Jesus. Mark 16:17 promises believers to cast out devils and speak with new tongues in the name of Jesus. Â
Calling on His Name
Acts 22:16 reads, “And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” This expression of “calling on” his name is not speaking some incantation to empower one. It refers to a person who, like Peter, trusts in Christ, depending on Him to do what he promised He would do.  Baptism is an act of faith (Gal. 3:26-27) that depends on Christ to offer to cleanse. Baptism need not be a meritorious work of law, as is suggested.  Rather, it is an act of faith that rests upon Christ to offer what He had promised. The cleansing or as Ananias references it, “washing away your sins,” is not possible by one’s own power.  Yet, Ananias is telling Saul is get up and be baptized and wash away his sins.  Such action must be accompanied by a dependency on the power of Christ, not oneself.
To illustrate, suppose I am needing help to transport a heavy object(s). Acknowledging that I cannot accomplish it on my own, I may “call on” my neighbor or a brother to assist me with whatever needs are available to do the job. Though it required my communicating the need, this idiom does not entail someone shouting out their name, repeatedly.  It supports what has already been stated about baptism being an act of faith that what God has promised, He will perform. Rather than baptism being a meritorious act that depends on oneself for cleansing, it is done “through faith of the operation of God” (Col. 2:12) that there is a resurrection of life (cf. Romans 6:1-6).
It is no wonder that Paul opens and closes the Roman letter with the phrase, “obedience of faith.” In Romans 6:17, after a discussion of baptism, reads, “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.” The form of teaching is clearly the death, burial, and resurrection that is obeyed when one kills and buries the old man of sin to be raised to walk in newness of life. Baptism is not only an act of faith. It is an act of obedience (“obedience of faith”). Saul was told to quit tarrying, but arise and be baptized and wash away his sins. Together (grace through faith), Christ and the penitent sinner are involved in the desired result of having sins washed away.  To illustrate, suppose we seeking to clean our dirty laundry and have access to water and a washer. The cleansing agent is the detergent that mixes with the water and is agitated by the washer to produce clean laundry. Everything is provided for us. However, all of the elements necessary for cleansing is ineffective without the clothes coming in contact with them. They must be put in an operational washer and the detergent applied. Likewise, the blood of Christ made atonement for sins and his resurrection sealed the deal. Everything is provided in Christ. What remains is doing what Saul was told to do in Acts 22:16, i.e., be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord. Baptism describes when the cleansing takes place as it represents the human response of faith in Christ’s redemptive work at calvary.