This quotation is found in Acts 22:1 and Romans 10:13. Many people quote these verses in an attempt to “prove” that all one has to do to be saved is simply say “Lord save me.” But there is far more involved than simply saying these words. Obedience is involved!
To “call upon the name of the Lord” is to call upon Him by doing – obeying – what He commands. The phrase is a figure of speech (synecdoche) implying all that one must do to be a disciple of the Lord. What the people on Pentecost cried “what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37), they in effect were asking “how shall we call upon the name of the Lord and be saved?” Peter describes what is involved in calling on the Lord’s name in Acts 2:38 – “Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. . .” i.e. by His authority. This is what Saul of Tarsus was commanded to do in order to have forgiveness of sins. “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’” (Acts 22:16). He was to obey the gospel by repenting of his sins and being immersed into water for the forgiveness of his sins, “calling on the name of the Lord.” This was the process by which he called upon the name of the Lord (i.e., obedience). Acts 8:16; 10:48; 19:5 also connect baptism with the name of the Lord.
The context of Romans 10:13 makes it plain that in order to “call upon the name of the Lord,” both “hearing” and “obeying” the gospel are involved. “ But they have not all obeyed the gospel.  (v. 16), i.e., they have not all “called upon the name of the Lord.” This shows the urgency of preaching the gospel of Christ around the world.
Every act of obedience faith (John 8:24), repentance (Acts 2:38), confession (Romans 10:10), and water baptism (Mark 16:16), is to be performed “calling on the name of the Lord.” From the very moment we believe until the day we depart the earth, we must be calling upon the name of the Lord (1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Tim. 2:19). We must by faith, obey His word. His name is to be recognized in every act we perform (Col. 3:17). In so doing, we are “calling upon His name.” Are you calling upon the name of the Lord?