SERMON OUTLINE:
(1). Silas the Leader.
(2). Silas the Missionary.
(3). Silas the Prisoner.
SERMON BODY
Readings:
• Acts chapter 15 verses 22-40
• Acts chapter 16 verses 16-40.
• 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 19
• 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 12
• 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 1
• 2 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 1
• When you think of Silas from the Bible,
• What is the first Bible story that comes to mind?
• For most of us it is probably when the apostle Paul and Silas,
• Caused a riot by preaching about Jesus.
• I preach and they give folks a cup of tea or coffee afterwards to wake them up;
• Paul and Silas preach and there is a riot!
Ill:
• Reminds me of John Wesley the 17th century Anglican clergyman, evangelist,
• And founder who with his brother Charles founded the Methodist Church,
• John Wesley shocked the establishment of his day;
• By preaching the real gospel message,
• And also by preaching outdoors in the open-air.
• In his diary we read these words.
• Sunday morning, May 5, preached in St. Ann’s,
• Was asked not to come back anymore.
• Sunday p.m., May 5, preached at St. John’s, deacons said, "Get out and stay out."
• Sunday a.m., May 12, preached at St. Jude’s, can’t go back there either.
• Sunday p.m., May 12, preached at St. George’s, kicked out again.
• Sunday a.m., May 19, preached at St. somebody else’s,
• Deacons called special meeting and said I couldn’t return.
• Sunday p.m., May 19, preached on the street,
• Kicked off the street.
• Sunday a.m., May 26, preached in meadow,
• Chased out of meadow as a bull was turned loose during the services.
• Sunday a.m., June 2, preached out at the edge of town,
• Kicked off the highway.
• Sunday p.m., June 2, afternoon service, preached in a pasture,
• 10,000 people came to hear me.
• TRANSITION: Like Wesley, when Paul and Silas preach and there was opposition,
• Paul and Silas preach and there is a riot!
• As a result they were beaten and thrown into jail;
• There crime was preaching the message of Jesus!
• The account goes on to say (vs 25):
“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them”
• Wow! That is how to handle a prison experience,
• They were mistreated, falsely charged and violently beaten (vs 22),
• But they are not feeling sorry for themselves;
• Instead they are rejoicing and witnessing!
• Now before we carry on with this story;
• Let’s just pause for a moment and take a quick detour.
• Because we know about the apostle Paul, but who was Silas?
(1). Silas the Leader.
(1a). He was a ‘chief’ man.
• We first are introduced to Silas in Acts chapter 15;
• Where Silas was an active participant and leader in the Church;
• He was given a great name by Dr Luke who recorded the book of Acts;
• He is called (Acts chapter 15 verse 22):
• K.J.B.: The “chief among the brethren”
• N.I.V.: “Leaders among the church.”
(1b). He was a ‘chosen’ man.
We are also told in chapter 15 that Silas became a “chosen man”
• He was chosen with Judas (called Barsabbas),
• For a very important and very sensitive job.
• Their job if they chose to accept it;
• Was to go to the Gentile Christians in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia;
• To teach and explain to the Church,
• That Gentile believers did not have to observe the Law of Moses to follow Jesus,
• They did not have to believe in Jesus and then become Jews
• The gospel is not a Jesus plus message.
Ill:
• Christianity was born out of Judaism, by fulfilling it.
• i.e. think of tadpole & frog, or caterpillar & butterfly.
• One naturally produced the other.
Ill:
• The best example of how Christianity fulfilled Judi sum is sacrifice.
• We don’t make sacrifices today like they did in the Old Testament,
• In Old Testament times;
• God told the people to sacrifice animals as a temporary covering for their sins.
• It was a temporary plan for the perfect sacrifice that was coming.
• When Jesus came he gave his life as that perfect sacrifice;
• Once and for all time, it never needs repeating and cannot be improved upon.
• This sacrifice is the permeant plan of God.
• Everything before was like shadows;
• But the death of Jesus is the substance!
• TRANSITION: Now the early Church was still learning all of this;
• They were still trying to figure it all out,
• Remember they did not have a complete New Testament;
• They were limited in their understanding.
• And so when a situation arose that needed wisdom and sensitivity;
• The early Church chose Silas & Judas (called Barsabbas).
Chapter 15 verses 32 tells us they were also ‘prophets’,
• They were men were gifted b God;
• To bring an authoritative word from God on a particular subject.
Ill:
• Henry Ford the founder of the Ford Motor Company;
• Once asked electrical genius Charlie Steinmetz to build the generators for his factory.
• One day the generators ground to a halt,
• And the Ford repairmen couldn't find the problem.
• So Henry Ford called Steinmetz,
• Who came along and tinkered with the machines for a few hours;
• And then when he threw the switch, the generators whirred back to life.
• When Henry Ford got a bill, he was amazed at how much it was;
• Steinmetz was asking for $10,000.
• Flabbergasted, the rather tight-fisted car maker inquired why the bill was so high.
• Steinmetz's reply:
• “For tinkering with the generators, $10.
• For knowing where to tinker, $9,990.”
• Henry Ford paid the bill.
• TRANSITION: In the early Church when this big problem needed fixing;
• It required Silas & Judas (called Barsabbas) to do the ‘tinkling’
• They had the backing of the mother Church in Jerusalem,
• And they were men actively involved in Church leadership.
• They had the gift of prophecy,
• As well as wisdom and sensitivity.
(2). Silas the Missionary.
Acts chapter 15 verses 36-41
“Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.’ 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.”
• Judas (called Barsabbas) returned to Jerusalem,
• But Silas remained with Paul and Barnabas to teach and preach the word of the Lord.
• Silas became a companion to the apostle Paul;
• On his second missionary journey (49-52 A.D.),
• That journey went through modern-day Turkey starting in Antioch;
• Then on through Greece and then back home.
Silas took the place of Barnabas:
• We looked at the story of John Mark in a previous sermon;
• And how when the going got tough he ‘deserted’ Paul & Barnabas,
• (Acts chapter 15 verse 38)
• Later, Barnabas wanted to give John mark a second chance;
• But the apostle Paul said no, and so they had a "Sharp disagreement".
• The unexpected consequence of the disagreement was two missionary teams;
• That were able to spread the gospel twice as far.
• Barnabas and John Mark sailed to Cyprus,
• And Paul and Silas go on to Syria and Cilicia.
Note:
• Paul and Silas, were effective in their mission trip;
• They saw a number of people come to faith, came to know Christ, including:
• Achaicus (1 Corinthians chapter 16 verse 17)
• Chloe (1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 11)
• Crispus (Acts chapter 18 verse 8)
• Erastus (Romans chapter 16 verse 23)
• Fortunatus (1 Corinthians chapter 16 verse 17)
• Gaius (1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 14)
• Phoebe (Romans chapter 16 verse 1)
• Quartus (Romans chapter 16 verse 23)
• Sosthenes (1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 1)
• Stephanas (1 Corinthians chapter 16 verse 15)
• Tertius (Romans chapter 16 verse 22)
• The Jailer (Acts chapter 16 verses 30-31)
Pause:
• What does it mean to come to faith?
• What do we need to do?
• Explain the A,B,C of the gospel.
(3). Silas the Prisoner.
• A glimpse into Silas’ character can be seen in the incident I referred to earlier:
• When he and Paul had been viciously beaten with rods at Philippi,
• Then thrown into prison and locked in stocks.
Ill:
• A mechanic was removing a cylinder head from the motor of a motorcycle;
• When he spotted a well-known heart surgeon in his shop.
• The surgeon was waiting for someone come and take a look at his bike.
• The mechanic shouted across the garage,
• “Hey Doc, can I ask you a question?”
• The surgeon, a bit surprised, walked over to the mechanic working on the bike;
• And said, “Sure, what is it?”
• The mechanic straightened up, wiped his hands on a rag and spoke,
• “When I look at this engine. I open its heart, take valves out, fix ‘em, put ‘em back in
• And when I finish, it works just like new.
• So how come I get such a small salary and you get the really big bucks,
• When you and I are doing basically the same work?”
• The surgeon smiled and leaned over and whispered to the mechanic …
• “Try doing it with the engine running!”
• TRANSITION: God is in the business of working on hearts;
• And he too works on them while they are still ‘running’
• And we see an example of his heart surgery in this incident.
• We break into the story;
• Just after Paul has released a slave-girl from an evil spirit that had been tormenting her.
• She had been using occult practices to read fortunes etc.
The owners of the slave girl are not happy, they have lost their source of income:
• They have Paul & Silas are arrested and put on trial (vs 19-20).
• The owners of the slave girl play the race card against Paul & Silas.
• In verse 20 they say "They are Jews,".
• In verse 21: They appeal to the magistrates sense of tradition and custom.
• "They are advocating customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or observe,"
Ill:
• 1903 the Russian Czar;
• Noticed a sentry posted for no apparent reason on the Kremlin grounds.
• Wanting to know why he was there, he started making inquiries and he discovered;
• That in 1776 Catherine the Great found there the first flower of spring.
• On seeing it she commanded;
• “Post a sentry here, so that no one tramples that flower under foot!”
• For 127 years no-one questioned why a sentry was standing in the middle of no-where,
• Some traditions die-hard.
• TRANSITION:
• The slave-girls owners use both the race tactic;
• And the traditions ploy to get rid of Paul & Silas:
• The magistrates decide to act fast.
• They flex their muscles and have Paul & Silas beaten and thrown in prison.
(a). Contented hearts (vs 22-25):
“The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.”
• They are falsely arrested (they have not committed any proper crime),
• They are humiliated (Stripped in public),
• They are violated (severely flogged)
• They are imprisoned (placed in the inner cell)
• If that was not bad enough they are even put in stocks.
Most of us would be feeling sorry for ourselves… but not Paul & Silas.
• They are not murmuring or grumpy or complaining;
• They are praying and singing praises (vs 25).
Question: Why were they singing,
Answer: Because they knew they were in the centre of God’s will.
• Quote:
• “The best place and the safest place to be is in the centre of God’s will”.
• It may not always be easiest or the happiest or the most pleasant in the short term;
• But in the long term it will prove itself to have been best.
ill:
• Dr Judson was one of the first missionaries sent abroad by nonconformist churches;
• He arrived in India in 1813 and settled in Rangoon, Burma.
• Later when war broke out between Burma and the English Government of India;
• He was arrested, and put in prison and accused of being a spy.
• As he was lying in a foul jail with 32 lbs. of chains on his ankles,
• And with his feet bound to a bamboo pole.
• A fellow prisoner with a sneer on his face, said,
• “Dr. Judson, what about the prospect of the conversion of the heather?”
• To paraphrase: “How you gonna convert the heathen from in here”
• Judson’s reply was instant;
• “The prospects are just as bright as the promises of God.”
• In other words; no matter how dark and stormy our situation may be,
• God does not change and neither does his word!
Ill:
• Dr Judson went on to achieve an incredible amount in his life;
• Translated the Bible in Burmese, produced the very first Burmese dictionary;
• And left a Christian community of about half a million people.
• “Dr. Judson, what about the prospect of the conversion of the heathen?”
• “The prospects are just as bright as the promises of God.”
• So hang on in there and keep trusting.
Note (vs 25) tells us that they were praying and singing hymns in prison.
Ill:
• Now I have sung and praised God in prison on many occasions,
• I’m glad to say not as a prisoner, but as a guest speaker at prison services.
• Weirdest experiences (not sure if it wasn’t done tongue-in-cheek);
• “as to hear the prisoners sing; “Bless this house O Lord we pray”
• Know the hymn it goes on to say:
• “Bless these walls so firm and stout,”
• TRANSITION: Paul and Silas were praying and praising God;
• And their motives were genuine!
• They have contented hearts, they asked God to guide them and he has led them here!
ill:
• Sometimes we use the expression an “acid test.”
• This term originated during times when gold was widely circulated.
• Nitric acid was applied to an object of gold to see if it was genuine or not.
• If it was fake, the acid decomposed it;
• If it was genuine, the gold was unaffected.
• TRANSITION:
• Paul and Silas were the genuine article:
• They refused to let the darkness of their circumstances;
• Put out the light of Christ in their hearts and minds.
• It may have been midnight in the jail;
• But Paul & Silas had the light of Christ to illuminate them.
• They may have been bound by shackles,
• But their spirits were certainly free!
• Prayer and praise are powerful weapons;
• God responded by sending an earthquake to shake up the prison.
(b). Converted hearts (vs 26-34):
“Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27 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. 28 But Paul shouted, ‘Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!’
29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’
31 They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.’ 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptised. 34 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 household.”
Wow! God sent an earthquake:
• The foundations shook the prison,
• And the prisoners had the chance to escape.
• This would cause major problems for the Roman prison guard:
• A Roman guard knew that if a prisoner escaped;
• Then whatever sentence any of the prisoners had will become his sentence.
• This guard evidently doesn’t want to suffer public humiliation and disgrace,
• By being confined to prison, so he almost commits suicide (vs 27).
In verse 28: Paul cries out to him, "Don’t harm yourself, we are all here,"
• I think the fact no-one escaped is a bigger miracle than the earth quake;
• These prisoners must have known this supernatural event was of God himself!
• And fearing God they stayed put and listened to his messengers.
• The jailor then falls down before Paul and Silas:
• And in verse 30 asks them the question every preacher loves to hear;
• "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
• The jailor may have shut the prison door on Paul,
• But Paul did not shut the door of salvation to him,
• For Paul uses this is the perfect opportunity to lead him to Christ:
Note: The man gives evidence of his new life in two ways:
• First: Verse 33 he is baptized along with the others in his house who trusted Christ!
• Again, this is the normal response for anyone who trusts Christ.
• We demonstrate our inward belief by an outward act of obedience.
• Second: He washes Paul and Silas’ wounds.
• There is a three-fold change of behaviour.
• (a). The man, who had at least played a part in inflecting the wounds on these men,
• Now cleaned and dressed their wounds.
• (b). The man who had been responsible for thrusting these men into the inner-most prison;
• Now took them into his own house.
• (c). The man, who given them prison-fare to eat;
• Now set before them the best that he had.
Question: Are you converted/saved this morning?
Answer: If not, then why not!
Ill;
• I started with a story from John Wesley’s diary,
• Let me finish with another one.
• John Wesley, the founder of Methodism,
• Spent many years as a Priest in the Church of England;
• He had been instructed in the Bible and his knowledge was good;
• He spoke with great fervour about Jesus.
• But he knew that something was missing in his life.
• He didn’t have a certain ‘power’ which he had witnessed in others;
• And he didn’t know how to go about getting it.
• He had been on some missionary campaigns,
• Even one to America, but he had experienced no success.
• But one day all that changed.
• In his journal,
• Wesley describes his powerful conversion experience:
• “In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street,
• Where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans.
• About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change
• Which God works in the heart through faith in Christ,
• I felt my heart strangely warmed.
• I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation,
• And an assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins,
• Even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.”
• The next day, which was Thursday, May 25, 1738 Wesley wrote:
• “This I know, I have ‘now peace with God.’”
• Question: Will you trust Christ tonight.
• Answer: Then do it now!
And Finally:
Question: What can we learn from the life of Silas?
Answer:
(a).
• Silas was a leader in the early church,
• He was a fellow missionary with the apostle Paul,
(b).
• He is described as “faithful brother”
• (1 Peter chapter 5 verse 12).
(c).
• He is often called a Hellenistic Jew;
• (A Jew who spoke Greek and adopted (to some extent) a Greek way of life)
• But others speculate;
• Silas must have been a Hebrew to have risen so quickly in the Jerusalem church.
(d).
• He was also a Roman citizen.
• As a Roman citizen, he enjoyed the same legal protections as the apostle Paul.
• (Acts chapter 16 verse 37).
(e).
• He is also referred to as “Silvanus” in Paul’s letters.
• Silas is a Jewish name; Silvanus is the Latin form.
(f).
• Silas was open-minded,
• Believing as Paul did that Gentiles should be brought into the church.
• He was a gifted preacher, loyal traveling companion, and strong in his faith.
(g).
• Later, Silas and Timothy ministered in Berea (Acts chapter 17 verse 14),
• And Silas spent extra time in Corinth, ministering after Paul left that city.
• Silas served with Peter as well; in fact,
• He is thought to have played postman;
• And delivered the letter of 1 Peter to its recipients (1 Peter chapter 5 verse 12).
Silas is a great example of someone:
• Who used his gifts to serve the Lord and others with all his heart.
• The apostles called him “faithful,”
• And he was known as one to “encourage and strengthen the brothers” (Acts 15:32). Multitudes in the early church were blessed by Silas, and Paul and Peter
SERMON AUDIO:
https://surf.pxwave.com/wl/?id=GJq9tJnahbwvfhWydPRafw17Cj3PsFwP
