Acts 16:16-16:40
We have been going through the book of Acts. Where are we? We are in the middle of Paul’s second missionary journey. In the beginning of Acts 16, they were in what is now Turkey, starting in Derbe, Lystra, and Iconium, and then in verse 8 it says they went into Troas. As you can see from the map, Troas is a seaport, and it was there that Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia calling him to come. They went by sea to Neapolis (verse 11), and then by land to Philippi. This is where they are now. Last week we talked about how the Lord opened the heart of Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, to respond to the gospel. She persuaded them to stay at her house, and they did.
On a modern map, where are they? Philippi is in Greece. Albania is a bit to the north. About 90 years prior to the point Paul is here (about 50 AD), the Battle of Philippi took place. If you read Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar back in your school days, the Battle of Philippi is the battle in which the heirs of Julius Caesar, Mark Antony and Octavian, defeated Caesar’s assassins, Cassius and Brutus. Ten year later (about 80 years before Paul is here), Octavian was declared emperor (Augustus Caesar) and he let many of his officers take over land around the city. There were a lot of wealthy people in Philippi, and it was known as a “little Rome.” For a little city, the monuments and buildings in the city were quite impressive. As the map shows, Philippi was part of Macedonia, the place Paul had been called in his vision to visit. Let’s now pick up our passage.
Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved." She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" At that moment the spirit left her. – Acts 16:16-18
There is a lot here that is foreign to our western ways of thinking. The idea of a fortune teller not being a total hoax is uncomfortable to us – at least, it is to me. But in China, India, indeed, in most of the world, there really are fortune tellers that have reputations of good track records, and people pay big money to get their fortunes from them, especially before making big decisions, such as marriage, business decisions, major purchases, and so on. This girl, apparently, was extremely successful, because she had some help: an evil spirit possessed her.
Does this mean that demons know the future? I don’t think so. What they do have is access to lots of knowledge. I believe, that being spirit, they can communicate with one another without the physical limitations that we have. So although this doesn’t enable them to actually know the future, they do know facts that could make for better decisions in the present. I am sure they all knew that Christ had died and had been resurrected, now sitting at the right hand of God. I think they all knew (and all know) their future fate. Why they didn’t (and don’t) just give up is beyond me.
So it is no surprise that they knew Paul. They knew what he was up to. And so this particular demon spoke through the girl to say something quite true: that Paul and his companions were indeed servants of the Most High God (something the demons used to be before they rebelled against God), and that they indeed were telling people the way to be saved.
Now your first impression of this might be like mine: this is great! Free advertising! But obviously this bothered Paul greatly. Why? I can think of two possibilities. First, it may have been a form of heckling. Just because you say something that is true doesn’t mean that you are being helpful. She may have been shouting whenever Paul tried to talk. It sure sounds like this was happening. She followed them around shouting this over and over. Every day. I can imagine Paul addressing her, saying, “Can you please be quiet?” “Why, am I saying anything that is untrue?” “No.” “Then you can’t stop me.” And then she goes back on shouting.
I see a second possible problem as well: By saying something true, she is getting Paul to effectively endorse her activities. Rather than she giving free advertising for Paul, she is using Paul to give her free advertising. Of course, Paul wanted nothing to do with this.
And at some point, almost overwhelmed with this going on day after day, Paul does something extremely bold. Recall that unlike the original apostles, Paul had not been with Jesus during his earthly ministry and had not seen Jesus cast out evil spirits. No doubt he know knew all about Jesus’ life, but it is something else to try this. So he says, “In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to come out of her!” (Mark 16:17 says that in Jesus’ name His followers will cast out demons.) And just like that, the demon was cast out! Gone! This is great, right? A true miracle! Great things should be about to happen, right? Thousands about to be saved? Jerusalem all over again? Let’s find out.
When the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, "These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice." – Acts 16:19-21
Oops. The owners of the slave girl testify falsely against Paul and Silas. The charges are quite vague. It would appear that anti-Semitism was pretty strong here. The charge is that they are Jews and are advocating Jewish customs. According to one source, at this time in Rome anti-Semitism was strong, and a law was passed forbidding anyone not Jewish from being circumcised. Perhaps this was what was implied in the charge here. If so, it is highly ironic that Paul and Silas are accused of trying to get Gentiles to become circumcised, given that they were carrying around a letter from the church in Jerusalem saying that Gentiles do not need to be circumcised!
The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. – Acts 16:22-24
It appears that everything happened quickly. The crowd joined in. Why? Perhaps they were there and saw that these men had ruined their “good-luck prophet.” Or perhaps it was anti-Semitism. Either way, without a trial, without getting a chance to defend themselves, without a chance to mention who they were, they were ordered to be flogged. Once again, Paul endures terrible physical punishment. He receives stripes over his scars from the stoning he had had on his first missionary journey. Then they were thrown into prison, no caring for their wounds. They were put in the inner cell, dark and windowless, and placed in stocks. The stocks were not just a form of confinement, but of torture. The feet were stretched wide apart and anchored in holes through a large block of wood. This is much worse than simply being in chains. You can’t move your legs, and over time, the uncomfortable position becomes unbearable.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!" – Acts 16:25-28
So what were Paul and Silas doing that night? The pain was excruciating, both in their backs and in their legs. Their future looks grim. And what are they doing? Praying and singing songs to God! At midnight! Can you picture it? Hey, Silas! Let’s sing some old Scripture songs! How does that one go again? You remember Arise Shine? Let’s do it! Arise shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the lord has risen on you... Meanwhile, the other prisoners were listening. I can imagine what they were thinking: these guys are crazy! They’ve lost it! The pain was too much for them, they thought.
Suddenly, an extremely violent earthquake happens. I’m from California, so I know what violent earthquakes are like. When I was about 5 there was a very large earthquake close to where we lived. It put all kinds of cracks, big ones, in our walls. It was early in the morning. It knocked the books off the shelves and then knocked the shelves off the wall in my bedroom. I ran out of bed and tried to go to my parents’ bedroom, but it was like trying to walk in quicksand, everything was so “wavy.” It sounds like the earthquake in Acts was even worse, shaking the “foundations of the prison.” Do you think the earthquake was a coincidence? No.
It shook the prison doors open, and somehow (I can’t quite picture this) knocked off everyone’s chains. This was a special kind of earthquake. Or perhaps some angels were helping with the chains. (This is what I think.) The jailor woke up, and because the penalty for losing prisoners was death, decided not to wait but instead take his own life. Paul, told him not to do it: they were still all here. It was dark – I don’t know that Paul saw him, but perhaps he heard the drawing out of the sword and guessed what the jailor was about to do. Notice that Paul holds no hard feelings against the jailor.
The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" - Acts 16:29-30
Why did he fall trembling before Paul and Silas? There were other prisoners there. Perhaps because they had peace. Maybe the other prisoners were just as panicked as the jailor.
What did he mean by his question? Possibly he thought that the gods were angry with him for imprisoning Paul and Silas, and he wanted to know what could be done to appease the gods. Also note that in one sense he had just been saved; Paul had saved him from suicide. Now Paul and Silas are about to show him how to be saved in the deepest and most complete sense possible.
They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household." Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole family. – Acts 16:31-34
I suspect that answer was not at all what he expected. They explained to him and his household the gospel – the purpose of Jesus’ coming to earth, His death and resurrection, and how to have eternal life and peace with God: Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. And then the jailor brought them into his own house – note that this is a direct violation of his orders, but obviously, he doesn’t care. If you have eternal life, you become a lot less worried about the current one. In fact, not only was he unworried, he was “filled with joy.”
There are some who use this verse – the part where it says “you and your household” – to argue that when the man is saved, somehow this imparts salvation (or guaranteed future salvation) to all the members of his family. In some churches, this idea is behind infant baptism. But this verse does not make a very good case for this idea. An alternate, to my mind, far more natural explanation is that the “you and your household” is for the whole idea of “believe in Jesus and you will be saved.” Not only you, but your wife and kids: if they believe in Jesus, they too will be saved. And notice the last part: he and his whole family had come to believe in God. That is why they were saved!
When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: "Release those men." The jailer told Paul, "The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace." – Acts 16:35-36
Why were they released? Perhaps because the flogging and the night in jail was enough to satisfy the crowds. Now if they quietly left town, the problem could be forgotten.
But Paul said to the officers: "They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out." – Acts 16:37
Their rights as Roman citizens were completely ignored in Philippi. They had rights to a trial, to appeal, and much more. Why did Paul make such a big deal of this? Wouldn’t it be better just to leave quietly, you know, turn the other cheek? What do you think? Note that it wasn’t just Paul, it was also Silas who was beaten. Paul isn’t just defending himself, he is also defending Silas, and others who may in the future discover this broken system. As Christians, I think it is appropriate to correct injustices when we can do so. Just because the injustice happened to us doesn’t mean that we are suddenly disqualified from dealing with them. Now, I think we need to be wise about this. There is a world of difference between having to wait in line for a ling time at the supermarket and what Paul and Silas went through. And when we do address injustices, we need to make sure we aren’t causing injustices by doing so. Yelling at a ticket agent at an airlines counter is never appropriate.
The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia's house, where they met with the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left. – Acts 16:38-40
Paul could have pressed charges, and the magistrates would have been severely punished, perhaps losing their lives. But Paul did not go anywhere near this far. He simply explained their citizenship, and gave them an opportunity to apologize profusely.
Then they went back to Lydia’s house, which was becoming the central location for the new church in Phillipi. And finally they left. But the church in Philippi was planted. It was growing. Much later, Paul would write a letter to the Philippians. One lesson from this letter fits in so well with what we have just read:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Phil. 4:4-7
How about you? Are you one who rejoices in the Lord always? Remember Paul, rejoicing with Silas at midnight, bloody, in the stocks, in pain, hungry, in a dark prison with an uncertain future at best. Do you understand why we should rejoice? We are blessed beyond measure! An eternity in the presence of Jesus to look forward to! A God who doesn’t let things happen by accident to us! A God who loves us!
And let your gentleness be evident to all. Remember Paul, concerned about the jailor life, concerned about his family, even while Paul was in prison going through all he was going through. Remember that his caring was there all the time – he acted quickly to keep the jailor from killing himself. Remember how he shared the gospel even while bloody, hungry, and tired (it was the middle of the night). What about you? When on the phone for an hour dealing with a disputed item with your insurance company, is your gentleness evident to all? When working with a difficult boss, difficult coworkers, or impossible clients, is your gentleness evident to all? Why should our gentleness be evident to all? It is because the Lord is gentle to us. If the difficult people are not believers, it is because they don’t know the Lord. The Holy Spirit does not live in them, yet. Even if the difficult people are believers, it is because maturity is a process, and we should be patient, as the Lord is patient to us. We should be quick to forgive, because the Lord is quick to forgive us.
The Lord is near. Do you really believe it? Do you live like it? I am going to butcher this quote, but in essence, G. K. Chesterton (I think this is the right person) was once asked what he would do right then if the Lord was right beside Him. His answer: He Is. The Lord is near. You are never alone.
Are you anxious about anything? It is natural to be anxious about things. We are anxious about global things: terrorism, dangerous world leaders, the future of our economy... We are anxious about personal things: paying the bills, job security, our health, our children, the test you didn’t study for... Paul says, and God says through Paul, don’t be like that. Pray, with thanksgiving, and leave it in God’s hands. Remember who God is and how He feels about You, and then ask Him to lead you through the things you need to go through and to change the things it is in His will to change. Then you will be at peace. You will have the peace of God. You may even want to sing songs of praise to God at midnight! Go for it! Don’t wake up your family members, but go for it! Rejoice always!
Sometimes I like to read familiar passages in the Message, just to get a fresh take on a passage that we can become numb to. Here is Phil. 4:4-7 in the Message:
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. – Phil. 4:4-7 (The Message)
By the way, I think one reason these passages seem to fit Acts 16 so well is that Paul may have been thinking about these adventures while writing this part of the letter. I say this because a little later in the chapter he mentions these “early days.” I’ll leave that for you to look at on your own.
On a modern map, where are they? Philippi is in Greece. Albania is a bit to the north. About 90 years prior to the point Paul is here (about 50 AD), the Battle of Philippi took place. If you read Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar back in your school days, the Battle of Philippi is the battle in which the heirs of Julius Caesar, Mark Antony and Octavian, defeated Caesar’s assassins, Cassius and Brutus. Ten year later (about 80 years before Paul is here), Octavian was declared emperor (Augustus Caesar) and he let many of his officers take over land around the city. There were a lot of wealthy people in Philippi, and it was known as a “little Rome.” For a little city, the monuments and buildings in the city were quite impressive. As the map shows, Philippi was part of Macedonia, the place Paul had been called in his vision to visit. Let’s now pick up our passage.
Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved." She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" At that moment the spirit left her. – Acts 16:16-18
There is a lot here that is foreign to our western ways of thinking. The idea of a fortune teller not being a total hoax is uncomfortable to us – at least, it is to me. But in China, India, indeed, in most of the world, there really are fortune tellers that have reputations of good track records, and people pay big money to get their fortunes from them, especially before making big decisions, such as marriage, business decisions, major purchases, and so on. This girl, apparently, was extremely successful, because she had some help: an evil spirit possessed her.
Does this mean that demons know the future? I don’t think so. What they do have is access to lots of knowledge. I believe, that being spirit, they can communicate with one another without the physical limitations that we have. So although this doesn’t enable them to actually know the future, they do know facts that could make for better decisions in the present. I am sure they all knew that Christ had died and had been resurrected, now sitting at the right hand of God. I think they all knew (and all know) their future fate. Why they didn’t (and don’t) just give up is beyond me.
So it is no surprise that they knew Paul. They knew what he was up to. And so this particular demon spoke through the girl to say something quite true: that Paul and his companions were indeed servants of the Most High God (something the demons used to be before they rebelled against God), and that they indeed were telling people the way to be saved.
Now your first impression of this might be like mine: this is great! Free advertising! But obviously this bothered Paul greatly. Why? I can think of two possibilities. First, it may have been a form of heckling. Just because you say something that is true doesn’t mean that you are being helpful. She may have been shouting whenever Paul tried to talk. It sure sounds like this was happening. She followed them around shouting this over and over. Every day. I can imagine Paul addressing her, saying, “Can you please be quiet?” “Why, am I saying anything that is untrue?” “No.” “Then you can’t stop me.” And then she goes back on shouting.
I see a second possible problem as well: By saying something true, she is getting Paul to effectively endorse her activities. Rather than she giving free advertising for Paul, she is using Paul to give her free advertising. Of course, Paul wanted nothing to do with this.
And at some point, almost overwhelmed with this going on day after day, Paul does something extremely bold. Recall that unlike the original apostles, Paul had not been with Jesus during his earthly ministry and had not seen Jesus cast out evil spirits. No doubt he know knew all about Jesus’ life, but it is something else to try this. So he says, “In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to come out of her!” (Mark 16:17 says that in Jesus’ name His followers will cast out demons.) And just like that, the demon was cast out! Gone! This is great, right? A true miracle! Great things should be about to happen, right? Thousands about to be saved? Jerusalem all over again? Let’s find out.
When the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, "These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice." – Acts 16:19-21
Oops. The owners of the slave girl testify falsely against Paul and Silas. The charges are quite vague. It would appear that anti-Semitism was pretty strong here. The charge is that they are Jews and are advocating Jewish customs. According to one source, at this time in Rome anti-Semitism was strong, and a law was passed forbidding anyone not Jewish from being circumcised. Perhaps this was what was implied in the charge here. If so, it is highly ironic that Paul and Silas are accused of trying to get Gentiles to become circumcised, given that they were carrying around a letter from the church in Jerusalem saying that Gentiles do not need to be circumcised!
The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. – Acts 16:22-24
It appears that everything happened quickly. The crowd joined in. Why? Perhaps they were there and saw that these men had ruined their “good-luck prophet.” Or perhaps it was anti-Semitism. Either way, without a trial, without getting a chance to defend themselves, without a chance to mention who they were, they were ordered to be flogged. Once again, Paul endures terrible physical punishment. He receives stripes over his scars from the stoning he had had on his first missionary journey. Then they were thrown into prison, no caring for their wounds. They were put in the inner cell, dark and windowless, and placed in stocks. The stocks were not just a form of confinement, but of torture. The feet were stretched wide apart and anchored in holes through a large block of wood. This is much worse than simply being in chains. You can’t move your legs, and over time, the uncomfortable position becomes unbearable.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!" – Acts 16:25-28
So what were Paul and Silas doing that night? The pain was excruciating, both in their backs and in their legs. Their future looks grim. And what are they doing? Praying and singing songs to God! At midnight! Can you picture it? Hey, Silas! Let’s sing some old Scripture songs! How does that one go again? You remember Arise Shine? Let’s do it! Arise shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the lord has risen on you... Meanwhile, the other prisoners were listening. I can imagine what they were thinking: these guys are crazy! They’ve lost it! The pain was too much for them, they thought.
Suddenly, an extremely violent earthquake happens. I’m from California, so I know what violent earthquakes are like. When I was about 5 there was a very large earthquake close to where we lived. It put all kinds of cracks, big ones, in our walls. It was early in the morning. It knocked the books off the shelves and then knocked the shelves off the wall in my bedroom. I ran out of bed and tried to go to my parents’ bedroom, but it was like trying to walk in quicksand, everything was so “wavy.” It sounds like the earthquake in Acts was even worse, shaking the “foundations of the prison.” Do you think the earthquake was a coincidence? No.
It shook the prison doors open, and somehow (I can’t quite picture this) knocked off everyone’s chains. This was a special kind of earthquake. Or perhaps some angels were helping with the chains. (This is what I think.) The jailor woke up, and because the penalty for losing prisoners was death, decided not to wait but instead take his own life. Paul, told him not to do it: they were still all here. It was dark – I don’t know that Paul saw him, but perhaps he heard the drawing out of the sword and guessed what the jailor was about to do. Notice that Paul holds no hard feelings against the jailor.
The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" - Acts 16:29-30
Why did he fall trembling before Paul and Silas? There were other prisoners there. Perhaps because they had peace. Maybe the other prisoners were just as panicked as the jailor.
What did he mean by his question? Possibly he thought that the gods were angry with him for imprisoning Paul and Silas, and he wanted to know what could be done to appease the gods. Also note that in one sense he had just been saved; Paul had saved him from suicide. Now Paul and Silas are about to show him how to be saved in the deepest and most complete sense possible.
They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household." Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole family. – Acts 16:31-34
I suspect that answer was not at all what he expected. They explained to him and his household the gospel – the purpose of Jesus’ coming to earth, His death and resurrection, and how to have eternal life and peace with God: Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. And then the jailor brought them into his own house – note that this is a direct violation of his orders, but obviously, he doesn’t care. If you have eternal life, you become a lot less worried about the current one. In fact, not only was he unworried, he was “filled with joy.”
There are some who use this verse – the part where it says “you and your household” – to argue that when the man is saved, somehow this imparts salvation (or guaranteed future salvation) to all the members of his family. In some churches, this idea is behind infant baptism. But this verse does not make a very good case for this idea. An alternate, to my mind, far more natural explanation is that the “you and your household” is for the whole idea of “believe in Jesus and you will be saved.” Not only you, but your wife and kids: if they believe in Jesus, they too will be saved. And notice the last part: he and his whole family had come to believe in God. That is why they were saved!
When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: "Release those men." The jailer told Paul, "The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace." – Acts 16:35-36
Why were they released? Perhaps because the flogging and the night in jail was enough to satisfy the crowds. Now if they quietly left town, the problem could be forgotten.
But Paul said to the officers: "They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out." – Acts 16:37
Their rights as Roman citizens were completely ignored in Philippi. They had rights to a trial, to appeal, and much more. Why did Paul make such a big deal of this? Wouldn’t it be better just to leave quietly, you know, turn the other cheek? What do you think? Note that it wasn’t just Paul, it was also Silas who was beaten. Paul isn’t just defending himself, he is also defending Silas, and others who may in the future discover this broken system. As Christians, I think it is appropriate to correct injustices when we can do so. Just because the injustice happened to us doesn’t mean that we are suddenly disqualified from dealing with them. Now, I think we need to be wise about this. There is a world of difference between having to wait in line for a ling time at the supermarket and what Paul and Silas went through. And when we do address injustices, we need to make sure we aren’t causing injustices by doing so. Yelling at a ticket agent at an airlines counter is never appropriate.
The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia's house, where they met with the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left. – Acts 16:38-40
Paul could have pressed charges, and the magistrates would have been severely punished, perhaps losing their lives. But Paul did not go anywhere near this far. He simply explained their citizenship, and gave them an opportunity to apologize profusely.
Then they went back to Lydia’s house, which was becoming the central location for the new church in Phillipi. And finally they left. But the church in Philippi was planted. It was growing. Much later, Paul would write a letter to the Philippians. One lesson from this letter fits in so well with what we have just read:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Phil. 4:4-7
How about you? Are you one who rejoices in the Lord always? Remember Paul, rejoicing with Silas at midnight, bloody, in the stocks, in pain, hungry, in a dark prison with an uncertain future at best. Do you understand why we should rejoice? We are blessed beyond measure! An eternity in the presence of Jesus to look forward to! A God who doesn’t let things happen by accident to us! A God who loves us!
And let your gentleness be evident to all. Remember Paul, concerned about the jailor life, concerned about his family, even while Paul was in prison going through all he was going through. Remember that his caring was there all the time – he acted quickly to keep the jailor from killing himself. Remember how he shared the gospel even while bloody, hungry, and tired (it was the middle of the night). What about you? When on the phone for an hour dealing with a disputed item with your insurance company, is your gentleness evident to all? When working with a difficult boss, difficult coworkers, or impossible clients, is your gentleness evident to all? Why should our gentleness be evident to all? It is because the Lord is gentle to us. If the difficult people are not believers, it is because they don’t know the Lord. The Holy Spirit does not live in them, yet. Even if the difficult people are believers, it is because maturity is a process, and we should be patient, as the Lord is patient to us. We should be quick to forgive, because the Lord is quick to forgive us.
The Lord is near. Do you really believe it? Do you live like it? I am going to butcher this quote, but in essence, G. K. Chesterton (I think this is the right person) was once asked what he would do right then if the Lord was right beside Him. His answer: He Is. The Lord is near. You are never alone.
Are you anxious about anything? It is natural to be anxious about things. We are anxious about global things: terrorism, dangerous world leaders, the future of our economy... We are anxious about personal things: paying the bills, job security, our health, our children, the test you didn’t study for... Paul says, and God says through Paul, don’t be like that. Pray, with thanksgiving, and leave it in God’s hands. Remember who God is and how He feels about You, and then ask Him to lead you through the things you need to go through and to change the things it is in His will to change. Then you will be at peace. You will have the peace of God. You may even want to sing songs of praise to God at midnight! Go for it! Don’t wake up your family members, but go for it! Rejoice always!
Sometimes I like to read familiar passages in the Message, just to get a fresh take on a passage that we can become numb to. Here is Phil. 4:4-7 in the Message:
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. – Phil. 4:4-7 (The Message)
By the way, I think one reason these passages seem to fit Acts 16 so well is that Paul may have been thinking about these adventures while writing this part of the letter. I say this because a little later in the chapter he mentions these “early days.” I’ll leave that for you to look at on your own.
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