How can a layman be saved?

I advise you to read more diligently the Divine Scripture and the teaching of our holy and God-bearing Fathers, to whom it is given by the grace of the Most Holy Spirit to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, that is, the true meaning of the Holy Scriptures; in their spiritually enlightened teaching you will find everything you need for salvation. And I, a sinner, in my feeble-mindedness, answer your question: God the Most Merciful makes our salvation through the Orthodox faith, good deeds and His grace. The Orthodox faith is that which is contained by the one holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of the East; Without this Orthodox faith, no one can be saved. Good deeds are the Gospel commandments, without the fulfillment of which, as without faith, it is also impossible for anyone to be saved. The Orthodox faith without good works is dead, and good works without faith are also dead. He who desires salvation must have both together: the Orthodox faith with good deeds, and good deeds with the Orthodox faith, and then, with the help of the grace of God promoting his good deeds, he will be saved according to the word of Christ, who said: “Without Me you cannot do wicked things.” And we should know that Christ the Savior, our True God, Who wants all mankind to be saved, has made good works a law, that is, His saving commandments of the Gospel, equally to all Orthodox Christians, both monks and laymen living with wives and children, and demands from all Orthodox Christians the most diligent fulfillment of them, because His holy commandments do not require great physical labor, but only the good will of the soul: “the yoke of God” His holy commandments are “good and the burden” of doing them is “easy to eat.” The holy commandments of Christ, with the help of God's grace, can easily be fulfilled by every Orthodox Christian, no matter what his rank, gender and age: old and young, healthy and sick, as long as his soul is disposed to do so. Therefore, those who transgress them and do not repent, at the terrible second coming of Christ will be condemned along with demons to eternal torment. – The holy commandments of the Gospel, especially the most important ones, are so necessary for salvation that if a person lacks one, then there is no salvation of the soul. These are the commandments about love for God and neighbors, about meekness and humility, about peace with everyone and patience, about forgiving your neighbor’s offenses from the heart, not condemning anyone, not having hatred, loving enemies, doing alms, both spiritual and physical, to the best of your ability, and forcing yourself with all zeal to fulfill all the other commandments of Christ written in the Holy Gospel. And most of all, to love God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength and with all your thoughts, and your neighbor as yourself, and imitating the meekness of Christ, fight until you bleed against the passion of anger. And living in peace with everyone is so necessary that the Lord considered it necessary to repeat more than once to His holy disciples and Apostles: “Peace be with you; I leave peace with you; My peace I give to you.” And where the peace of Christ is, there is Christ Himself; and if there is no peace in the soul, then Christ is not there. And patience is necessary for salvation. Christ says: “In your patience ye will gain your souls”; but one must endure not until a certain time, but until death: “he who endures to the end will be saved.” Whoever forgives his neighbor for his sins with all his heart, God forgives his sins. He who does not condemn his neighbor will not himself be condemned by God. And all the other commandments of the Gospel, whoever desires salvation, must observe them like the apple of his eye. And humility, which is the basis of all the commandments of the Gospel, is as necessary for salvation as breathing is for life: just as you cannot live without breathing, so without humility it is impossible to be saved. The saints of God were saved in various ways, but without humility none of them were saved, and this is impossible. Therefore, whoever wants to be saved must, with all his heart, consider himself before God a sinner, the most sinful of people, worse than any creation of God, count himself for dust and ashes, and in the secret of his heart reproach himself for everything, and blame only himself alone for every sin. By thus fulfilling all the commandments of the Gospel in humility of heart, often praying to God with contrition of heart for the forgiveness of his sins, a person is honored with the mercy of God and the forgiveness of sins, and the grace of God visits him, and he is saved by the grace of God undoubtedly. – In addition, an Orthodox Christian must also observe the church commandments set out in the book “Orthodox Confession.” They are also necessary for salvation. – The sacrament of repentance consists in repenting before God of your sins, throwing them away and making a firm intention, with God’s help, not to return to them. Then, before your spiritual father, as before God Himself, confess all your sins and receive permission from him for them. One must prepare oneself for communion of the Divine Mysteries by fasting, tenderness, sincere confession of sins, perfect reconciliation with everyone, listening at the appointed time according to Christian custom to the entire rule of the church, and proceed to the Holy. Communion with fear and trembling, with faith and love, with worship befitting the only God. On how to behave in the family, as well as on other Christian duties, the most complete instruction can be found in the inspired writings of St. John Chrysostom and other holy men, reading their books with the fear of God and due attention. You might be interested in: