“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.” (Acts 16:26)
I love reading passages like this and would love to see God manifest more and more in our lives today. The Bible is full of examples of God rising up against the workings and schemes of our enemies and if there ever was a time we need Him it’s now!
In this passage, Paul and Silas have been beaten and cast into prison for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Isn’t it interesting that we can talk about God all day long and very few people get offended, but at the very Name of Jesus people get all twisted up? That should tell us something of the power of that Name! We can sit and talk with Muslims all day long about Jehovah, Adonai, and God (sort of a generic name) for hours and have sweet fellowship. We can talk about our (joint) ancestor Abraham – not our father Abraham because that starts to stir things up – and all is well. Oh, but my friend, the minute we bring up Jesus all hell starts to break loose!
Paul and Silas are setting an example for us in this passage. It has often been said that we cannot have a testimony without a test. We won’t see miracles without facing the impossible. Battle gear is not everyday wear. And there is not a battle without an enemy. How true all of these sayings are, but oh how faithful our God is! When we face a battle – not IF, but WHEN – He has already assured us of the victory as long as we stay with Him. Unlike some of my friends in the past, Jesus will never back down from a fight or run from the battle. When I am fighting the (proper) enemy and am fully suited up for battle, He is right there with me and promises me the victory. Granted, sometimes I will take a few blows in the ensuing fight, but I know as long as He is there the victory is mine!
Their example to us is simple if we watch with open eyes. They continued (both before and after their jail sentence) to preach in the mighty Name of Jesus. They weren’t afraid of what man could do to them – they had a Commander to obey and a message to share. When threatened, they continued. When beaten they remained faithful to the mission. When imprisoned, they rejoiced that they were counted worthy to share in the sufferings of Christ. When it was darkest for them, they praised.
I’m not saying it was easy. I’m sure they were sore from the beatings and the words of the guards and authorities were still ringing in their ears. Having been the recipient of a few beatings of my own, I can testify one of the last things you feel like doing is singing! Yet we read that at midnight they praised God. And look what happened.
Suddenly. Don’t you just love that word? Suddenly there was an earthquake. The child in me can see God stomping His feet and clapping His hands in heaven to the songs they were singing and that’s what caused the earthquake. I know, that’s childish and foolish, but like I said, that’s the small kid in me. There was an earthquake – so violent that it shook the foundations of the prison. It shook the place so hard that all the prison doors sprang open. Not one remained locked or closed. Every door was opened. And as if that wasn’t enough, everyone’s shackles and chains fell off! They were all set free in an instant at the answer of God to Paul and Silas’ praise. Hallelujah! Suddenly.
The other prisoners weren’t singing along. It doesn’t say that Paul and Silas led a sing-a-long. The other prisoners may have even been angry that Paul and Silas woke them up with their singing. Prison is not known to be a happy place. It definitely is not a positive environment. Prison doesn’t promote joy and celebration. Prison is designed to break a man or woman, to break their spirit, to dehumanize them. Prison is a place of loneliness and despair. Every inmate hears this statement several times during their time behind bars: “You are not here to be punished. Your punishment is being here.” Phoooey. Prison is designed to break someone’s routine – to take them out of their element and to strip them of their identity. That’s why you don’t become Inmate Todd; instead, you become Inmate # 74880. You don’t have an identity or a name, you become a number – a faceless, nameless entity. I’m quite sure that was the general spirit and attitude in that jail as well.
But in Jesus we are not a number on a church role. We are not just another faceless, nameless entity to God. We are His children. We are intimately known by Him and we are striving to intimately know Him as He knows us. There is no prison so isolated, no ocean so deep, no mountain so high, no distance so far that He does not see us, hear us, and stand with us. Read with me the words of David in Psalm 139: “If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.” (Psalm 139:8-11). How can we be downtrodden or depressed when we make ourselves aware of His Presence? And how can we do that? By praising Him in the middle of wherever we are.
Before I get too far off the rails happy, let me reassure you today that whatever you are going through right now, Jesus is there with you. Call out to Him in your distress, cry out to Him in your sorrow, sing out to Him even in your pain and you will find Him there. How comforting should that be to a child of God? And if you’re not a child of God you can become one right now. Satan wants you to think you have gone too far, done too much, become to evil for God to love you. THAT IS A LIE! Jesus stands right there, right now, and is waiting for you to call out His Name. We used to sing a song in church years ago that had a line “...if you’ll take one step toward the Savior, my friend, you’ll find His arms open wide. Believe Him and all of your darkness will end…” And so it is. I pray for you today – even though I don’t know your name right now – that God will surround you with His love and cause you to reach out to Him. I don’t have to guess what will happen because He has already promised to answer. Do it now. Do it today.
Be blessed.
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