Text: Acts 16:25-34
25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34 And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.
Chapter 16 is very popular, especially among evangelical preachers. There are some major themes listed, but none more popular than the account of Paul and Silas being imprisoned. Many scholars have highlighted them as central figures in the chapter. Paul and Silas were accused of proselytizing (meaning they were trying to convert others to Christianity), were beaten, and thrown in prison.
Now there was a Philippian jailer (keeper) that was in charge of the prison. Not much background was given, but by all accounts he was an ordinary guy having an ordinary day. Even the singing and praying did not solicit a response from the jailer because he was asleep. Suddenly the jailer was awakened by a great earthquake (v. 26). He seemed to have been frazzled by what was going on as he saw that all the prison doors were open. He thought the prisoners had...fled (v. 27). The jailer drew out his sword and would have killed himself (v. 27). He "did this for a good reason. Under Roman law and custom, guards who allowed their prisoners to escape received the penalty of their escaped prisoners" (Guzik). But Paul had the presence of mind to dispel his fears. With Paul’s help and the work of the Holy Spirit, the jailer and his entire house became Christians.
What do we learn from this lesson? God can use the most difficult experiences in our life to be a blessing to someone else. Kudos to Paul and Silas for showing great resolve in the midst of a very terrible experience. If given the same set of circumstances, how would you respond? Would your first thought be to pray and sing praises to God?
Prayer: Dear God, help me to embrace the uncomfortable things that I may experience. May my messes be a message of hope to someone else. I know there are times I will experience earthquakes in my life. But help me to find the strength to be able to pray and sing praises unto you. Amen!