Date: September 25, 2011
Scripture: Acts 16:16-40
from the series Acts
Sermon:
Now, let me take a minute or two to remind you of the setting of our text.
• Remember from last week this is 2nd missionary journey
• Paul and his team members wanted to share the Gospel in parts of the Asian continent-but God had closed the doors.
Then, prompted by a vision of a man from Macedonia they went through the only open door to them and set sail for the European continent.
Acts 16:11 says that when they put out to sea in the Aegean they, "sailed straight" and the Greek here is a nautical term for "sailing before the wind."
There was no tacking back and forth required.
The wind blew them straight Europe/people/Macedonia.
God not only opened the door
He gently "blew" them through it!
This is a further reminder that if God calls us to do something, He will providentially open all the necessary doors.
He'll always "grease the wheels" and "fill the sales" to make it possible for us to do His will.
And with His help these four missionaries sailed quickly to Samothrace
Then caught another ship to the port city of Neapolis
then walked ten miles inland to the city of Philippi
A very important Roman town in Macedonia.
In fact, Philippi was a very loyal Roman colony.
The military, economic, and political center of the area.
The townspeople had earned their citizenship by helping Caesar Augustus defeat his enemies-Brutus and Cassius- in 42 B.C.
Since then it had evolved into a very "Roman" city
o Populated with retired Roman soldiers and their families
o They brought with them/customs/architecture/Rome itself.
Because of this Romans back then thought of Philippi as sort of a "Rome away from Rome!"
Its citizens were proud Romans and they were also thankful for their Roman roots because Augustus had rewarded the residents of Philippi by exempting them forever from taxes.
Think what this did to property values!
Surely everyone wanted to move to Philippi!
Well, Paul and his three companions walked into this very Roman city
The first followers of Jesus Christ ever seen by anyone in that part of the world.
Well, Paul's usual church-starting tactic was to go to the synagogue.
Remember that last week I told you this is why he had Timothy circumcised.
Otherwise he would not have been permitted in a synagogue.
So, when they arrived in Philippi they inquired and discovered this city had none.
This indicates there were not many Jews living there because to have a synagogue you had to have at least ten men.
Well, Saul knew that any Jews who did live there would customarily gather near a river for prayer on the Sabbath.
So he went down to the banks of the nearby Gangites river and found God fearing women gathered for this purpose.
Their leader was/Lydia/she earned her living/selling purple cloth.
This color of cloth was very expensive to make
• It only came from shellfish and the “maddor” root plant.
• she apparently had no shortage of customers because Lydia was wealthy enough to have a good sized house a house big enough to provide space for the new church start
Okay, with this in mind, let's look at what happened next.
Acts 16:16-24
1. First of all, we see Satan’s efforts to patronize the gospel, and it’s results,
2. then the conversion of the Phillippian Jailer;
3. Third, the deliverance of the apostle and his companion from prison.
4. And then what can God teach us through these examples?
So what happened here? Dr. Luke diagnosed this slave girl as being demon-possessed.
This demon gave the girl the power to predict the future-for a fee of course
she was known for the accuracy of her predictions
This brought her owners a steady source of income
Everyone back then was willing to pay to discover their future.
Some things never change!
Well, I think we should all note that not everything in fortune-telling is fraud or humbug.
If you've seen or heard someone like this Philippian girl, who gets it right when it comes to talking to the dead or telling the future-
Then you can be sure this is a demon-powered thing.
Any form of psychic predictions or astrology is not of God and we should stay far away from it.
"The incident shows how Satan frequently parades as an angel of light, especially under the guise of alleged religiosity."
The demon inspired this girl to say, that Paul and his companions were servants of the most high God
Something that also repeatedly happened during Jesus' earthly ministry.
Remember? People possessed with demons would follow Him and the demons within would shout out Who Jesus was.
Well, this demon also had her say, "These men...are proclaiming to you A way of salvation."
Always making the same statement.
Endeavoring to give the impression that she, in some sense at least, was linked up with them.
Well, this girl proclaimed her statements about Paul day after day and finally, annoyed by her incessant ploy to poison the ministry he turned and said to the spirit,
"I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" and according to verse 18, "...it came out at that very moment."
Be sure to note a couple things here.
First this girl was not a Christian
I point that out to remind you that the Bible teaches Christians can NOT be possessed by demons.
There are no examples in Scripture of Christians being indwelt by the devil or his demons.
There ARE examples of Christians sinning-yielding to the devil's temptations
but not being possessed because as Christians, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God Himself
1 John 4:4b says, "Greater is He Who is in you than he who is in the world."
No demon can abide the omnipotent presence of the Spirit of God.
I also want you to note Paul's METHOD in casting out this demon.
First, he was not intimidated but in full control.
He knew that as a Christian he had nothing to fear.
Second, He spoke directly to the demon, not the girl.
Third, he didn't ask-rather he COMMANDED it to come out of her-and in an instant it did.
No ifs ands or buts about it.
He spoke and the demon fled.
It didn't take hours or multiple sessions.
There was no real "spiritual warfare" involved.
The battle had already been won because it was done in the Lord's strength and not man's.
Well, her healing was of course a wonderful thing!
o Imagine how she felt to be freed from demonic control!
o But not everyone was happy about this miracle.
Angered by their sudden economic downfall, the slave girl's greedy masters roused the crowd to riot.
These "proud Romans" wrongfully accused Paul and Silas of throwing the city into an uproar
• Accusing them of typical behavior for any Jew...
• A foolish thing to say, since there were hardly any Jews in town!
• Well, Paul and Silas were immediately seized
• Viciously beaten with rods and thrown deep into a Roman dungeon with their feet fastened in stocks.
And-this beating was no little thing.
The Scripture infers that they received the same kind of flogging that Jesus did
Remember that scene from The Passion where it depicted the first part of Jesus' beating
• Two cruel Romans beat Him with long limber rods
• You have the idea.
• Then after this beating Paul and Silas were then thrown into prison cell deep in the jail.
• Their legs were secured in stocks so they couldn't move-further adding to their discomfort.
Now-as far as I know, none of us have been behind bars or barbed wire but I know we all have felt imprisoned-imprisoned by hard times.
I mean, we've all endured heartache in one form or other
Tough times not of our own making that we could not escape or avoid.
I know this is true because I know you.
I mean, as your pastor, I'm well-acquainted with some of the burdens you have borne or even now are bearing.
The Bible teaches/even for Christians, trials are a part of life.
You can't "get away" from this fact.
As Job 5:7 says, "Man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward."
I mean, like people who want to get out of prison but can't-so many times we want to be freed from hardship-but we can't.
It's part and parcel of being a sinner living in a fallen world.
I say this to help you realize there is truth here in this text that we need to understand.
The record of Paul and Silas' response to their imprisonment can teach us things we need to know as we face the inevitable heartaches and tribulations of life.
Okay, let's get to it then. What can we learn from this example of singing in prison?
What can this particular instance of "Glory in Tribulations" teach us?
Acts 16:25-
1. Well, first, this text tells us that in order to sing in hard times we must be able to SEE things other "prisoners" don't.
Think of it. Paul and Silas were wrongfully accused.
They were beaten within an inch of their lives and then they were thrown into a dark, dank prison cell.
they sat with their legs in the stocks
their muscles cramped and every breath reminded them of their cracked ribs and bruised kidneys.
I imagine the blood was still flowing freely down their backs since their wounds had not been treated so they were weak and growing weaker.
Then as the cold began to seep into their bones
they must have listened to the rats that always plague places like that scurry across the floor in the dark.
What are the hardships you have endured?
Have you had to put up with a person calling you a name?
Have you had a grave illness upon your soul?
Have you given glory to God through this?
Instead of cursing their guards and groaning about their treatment-like the rest of the prison population-these two began TO PRAY out loud.
And understand-the Greek here would not be translated as "prayers of petition"-
o You know, "Get me out of here God!"
o No-this word should be translated as prayers of praise to God
o Like, "God You are so good to us!
o Thank You God for Your great faithfulness!"
Can you imagine praying like that in a situation like that?
Probably not because the truth is, so many of our prayers are ONLY selfish petitions with no praise on our lips.
So many times we only tell God how bad things are.
If this is all we pray then it is no wonder that many times we feel worse after we pray than when we began.
o I mean, so often our prayer life is just one long pity party
o Where we remind ourselves of how hard life is, so it just reinforces our fears, grief, and sorrow.
LISTEN! Prayer is only complete and meaningful when it includes PRAISE to God.
Remember when Jesus gave His followers a prayer "template" to follow it BEGAN and ENDED with praise.
Jesus said, we should begin by saying something like, “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name!
And He said it should end with saying something like, "For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever..."
Well, Paul and Silas followed Jesus' teaching because in spite of the situation their prayers were filled with praise.
And as they did this-as they praised God
o God did the same thing He did for King David.
o He "...put a new song" in their mouths... "a hymn of praise to God." (Psalm 40:3)
So these two began to SING-not sad songs but joyful songs-
SONGS of praise and in this way they turned their dank, dark cell into a sanctuary!
Your finances will be turned into praise
Your marriage will be turned into praise
Your attitude will be turned into praise.
Okay-how could they do this? How were they able to sing songs of praise under those CIRCUMSTANCES?
1. We must note that these two were mature enough to know that when a Christian is in the center of God's will, he or she is never UNDER the circumstances.
You are never under the circumstances
Isn’t that great news to hear!
You are not under that bondage, that sin, that malady.
We have a loving Heavenly Father Who is sovereign OVER every circumstance of life-the good and the bad.
• They had enough confidence in God to know that He was still in control
• That He could and would use even this painful, dark situation for their good and His glory.
• And the same for you take heart and rejoice.
This reminds me of a quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon who once said,
"It is easy to sing when we can read the notes by daylight; but the skillful singer is he who can sing when there is not a ray of light to read by. Songs in the night come only from God; they are not in the power of men."
Paul expressed this same confidence in God once again, later in his life as he was imprisoned in Rome.
He wrote young Timothy and said that even in the midst of that time of suffering, "I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day." (2 Timothy 1:12)
Paul believed that God's sovereign power and knowledge was absolute.
You have to say/confidence/”God you are in control”
And then claim the victory in Christ.
Knowing He is taking the yoke from you.
Paul also had faith that God's love for Him/infinite/unconditional.
And these beliefs enabled Paul and Silas to "see" things-even in the dark-that others don't.
Can you see through the darkness that comes in life?
Can you see through the attacks of Satan?
Paul and Barnabas had "SEEING HEARTS."
In other words, they looked at their situation not just through PHYSICAL eyes-but through the "eyes" of their hearts, which is a way of saying they looked at their beating and imprisonment through the eyes of faith.
In other words, these two missionaries didn't let their circumstance choose their attitude.
Remember the Who’s in Whoville, “The Grinch movie”
And we need to make a conscious CHOICE to trust God
to praise God
To have faith in God no matter how bad things appeared to be.
And if we are to "sing" in those times when we feel imprisoned by hardship, we must make the same attitudinal choice.
Someone once wrote,
"Everything can be taken from men but one thing: the last of human freedoms-the ability to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances."
And this is a right deduction, for attitude really is a choice.
It is a conscious decision.
Some people choose to embrace an attitude of OPTIMISM-like the ninety-year-old man who married a twenty-four-year-old girl.
For the wedding, he bought a new suit with two pairs of pants.
Then he financed a new house with a thirty-year mortgage, located next to an elementary school so their future children wouldn't have far to walk.
Others, for whatever reason, choose instead to look at life from a PESSIMISTIC perspective, like the little boy who was preparing for a test.
He told his dad, "I'm going to fail this test because I don't understand the material."
His father responded, "Son, you have to try harder. Be positive!"
"Okay," the boy replied, "I'm POSITIVE I'm going to fail this test!"
Attitude is a choice.
Your attitude will determine the outcome of the situation.
It’s just like a ship sailing the ocean.
Regardless of how the winds blow, the sails set the course.
As we go through the winds of life. Our sails are our souls.
How you set your sails, decides its goal.
And is not the calm or the strife.
Well Paul and Silas chose to "fill their sails" w/steady trust in God.
They decided to look at their situation through the eyes of optimism.
Now, when I say optimism I'm not referring to wishful thinking.
No, for maturing believers like Paul and his companions, optimism is based on FAITH-a hope that is sure and steadfast.
It is a conscious decision to look at life from the perspective that confidence in God provides.
It's a commitment to put our trust not in the ever-changing circumstances of life, but rather in our God,
Who, as James 1:17 says, "...does not change like shifting shadows."
one of the wonderful blessings of choosing this attitude
one of the benefits of deciding to put our who faith in God
Is that in enables us to notice...to SEE...things that other, more pessimistic people miss or don’t see.
Paul referred to this in 2 Corinthians 10:7 when he said that people who don't put their confidence in Christ, "...are looking only on the surface of things."
Paul and Silas had a HEARTS that could "see."
o They saw that in the midst of all their present difficulties
o they were still in the presence of God
o And God was at work even in their current painful situation.
They believed that as Paul put it in later years, "In all things God works for the good of them who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)
One of my favorite TV shows years ago was Gomer Pyle, USMC. Perhaps some of you are old enough to remember it as well. Gomer was just a naive country boy from the hills of North Carolina and his drill Instructor in boot camp, Sergeant Carter, constantly yelled at him and put him through all kinds of tough times.
When others would say things like, "Gomer, Sergeant Carter is so mean to you! He's so unfair! Don't you hate him for the way he's treating you?!"
Gomer would reply, "Oh no, Sergeant Carter is the wisest man I know. He knows everything there is to know about being a marine. He's just doing this for my good.
You see." Gomer, had confidence in his sergeant so in the midst of countless pushups and midnight marathon runs in full gear-and even one time when Sgt Carter ordered Gomer to move a huge pile of sand from one place to another and then back again-in all this Gomer SAW something his peers missed.
He "saw" that His superior had his best interests in mind-that all this was for his good.
o Well, we must have the same kind of faith-filled confidence in our Superior
o if we are to sing in tough time
o we need that confidence that opens our eyes so that we can SEE His loving hand at work
o Even in times filled with heartache and pain.
Let me ask you-are you being treated unfairly this morning?
Does your life seem like a prison?
Then, hear me-trust God-He will never leave us/forsake us.
He is truly LORD of all-this includes school troubles or marital problems or work stress or sickness
or even death itself, and if we are committed to furthering His purposes,
He will work all things-even these "prison times of life" to our good.
So open the eyes of your heart and SING!
2. And then there's one other thing we can learn from this particular prison music.
When we sing in times like this the world NOTICES-and wants to learn to SING along.
Verse 25 says that as Paul and Silas were singing, the other prisoners were listening.
This was something new
they'd never heard this kind of response to their situation before.
So, as the Greek here literally says, "They listened attentively."
Then when God miraculously responded by sending an earthquake that opened the doors and released the chains and locks around their stocks, well, they knew this had indeed been very SPECIAL singing.
So they didn't take advantage of the situation and run away.
the jailer thought they had all run away and was about to take his own life in desperation, Paul was able to say, "Don't harm yourself.
We are all here." Well that particular "lyric" made the jailer want to "sing along" as well and so he asked life's most profitable question, "What must I do to be saved?"
In other words, he said, "Teach me to sing too! Tell me what I need to do to be like you?"
Ironically he was no longer the captor but captive to what his prisoners had to offer.
They were so serene and calm in the midst of tragedy that he knew he had to have what they had.
So he listened to Paul's response to this question and became a Christian and then apparently urged Paul and Silas to share the gospel with his family as well, because verse 34 says that his entire family was baptized.
The jailer invited them into his home
And the same man who had inflicted their wounds washed and bandaged them.
Then he fed them.
Think of it-God truly prepared a table for Paul and Silas in the presence of their enemies.
The same table He prepares for you in every tribulation!
But I don't think any of this surprised Paul and the others.
Remember, the fact that they had chosen to have faith in God no matter what……..enabled them to SEE things others missed.
o They knew they served a God Who worked miracles like this.
o Listen fellow Shell Pointers-the world is listening for our "song!"
o They are listening to hear how we respond to the unfairness of life.
So, we must realize that in the darkest times of our lives we need to be at our BEST as Christians.
There must be SINGING instead of SIGHING.
You see, if we respond as Paul did
Those around us will be asking us the same question the jailer asked Paul.
I mean, if you "sing" even in the midst of heartache, you'll find people drawn to you.
And then you can lead them to the cross.
This is one way to be a truly contagious Christian.
Invitation:
This morning I invite you right now to pray with the Psalmist and say, "God, open my eyes that I may SEE wonderful things in Your law." (Psalm 119:18) "Open my eyes wide enough that I can see Your great faithfulness." Let's all ask God to give us "seeing hearts."
And, if you are here today and are not a Christian, then I hope and pray that today's worship has opened your eyes to see your need to follow Jesus as Savior and Lord. God promised way back in Deuteronomy 4:29 that, "If you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you LOOK for Him with all your heart and all your soul." If you have never made the commitment to follow Jesus I urge you to seek Him today. There may be other decisions that other see the need to make public today...to join this church...to rededicate your life to God in some way. And we invite you to make share those decisions with us now by walking an aisle and sharing them with me as we stand now and sing.
