Sir’s what must I do to be saved Acts 16:25-40

Introduction

Here we find Paul and Silas imprisoned after free a young girl from a spirit of divination. The girls masters are angry at them because they lost all their hope of making a profit from her soothsaying forever. They bring them before the magistrates and accuse them of teaching things that are illegal for them to receive as Romans.

In reality Paul and Silas hadn’t done anything but trouble this city with the Gospel. This morning we are going to see how we as christians react to persecution and adversity can help bring someone to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Singing Despite their Persecution vs. 25

I can imagine as Paul and Silas are sitting their in the middle of the jail after being beaten and paraded through the jail to the center and then their feet shackled the last thing anyone expected them to do was to pray and sing praises to God.

Think about our reaction if we were to get beat senseless. Would people find us singing or sulking?

Matthew 5:11–12 “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”

Think about all Joseph went through in His life

His brothers sold him into slavery

he ends up on Potiphar’s house, where he is wrongfully accused and thrown in Prison

He is forgotten about in prison

and he interprets Pharaohs dream and is placed as second in command in all of Egypt

After his dad dies his brothers are scared he is going to retaliate for what they had done to him but instead he says in Genesis 50:20 “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”

Think about Job

Job had everything, Wife, Kids, Animals, property and then one day Satan comes before God and God asks him if he had considered His servant Job Job 1:8 “And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?”

Satan tells God the only reason Job is like that is because he has a hedge of protection around him, So God tells Satan you can take anything from Him except for his own life.

Satan takes everything, His Kids, property, and animals and instead of cursing look what Job said in the midst of this great trial Job 1:21 “And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return thither: The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Notice that the prisoners heard them

This brings us back to their initial arrival in the jail.

The jailer paraded them through the whole prison and no doubt everyone saw their wounds as they walked through.

They would have heard the stocks being put on them and I’m sure they would have expected them to be cursing and not praying and singing.

Application:

Even when we face the greatest persecution of our life, we should pray and sing through it.

People are watching us and how we respond.

A great earthquake vs. 26-28

As they were singing their was suddenly or out of no where a great earthquake. It was so great that the foundations of the prison was shaken.

Isn’t it amazing how God can shake the whole earth to accomplish his will

I think back to Matthew 28 where the earth shook to role away the stone from the tomb or even in Acts 4 where the earth shook and those who were there were filled and spoke boldly in the name of the Lord

The earthquake opened up the doors and released the bands they were in

The keeper of the prison woke up and noticed all the doors in the prison opened and took out his sword and was ready to kill himself, because that would have been less punishment than if the rulers would have found out about the prison escape.

Paul stops him letting him know that every one is accounted for.

Not only did Paul and Silas not run during the chaos, but none of the prisoners ran.

I believe they didn’t run because they were in shock of what had just happened and wanted to hear what Paul and Silas had to say as well.

The Conversion of the Jailer vs.29-34

The jailer at first is speculative that they are all still there. He asks for a light and looks around and sees that all the prisoners are still there so he came and fell down before Paul and Silas and brought them out and asked them the most important question of his life and a question all of us must come to

Sir’s what must I do to be saved?

The Jailer likely heard about the conversion of Lydia and surely he heard about the young damsel freed from the spirit of divination, but now he needed to experience salvation for him self.

Pauls answer is the Gospel

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved

And their is plenty to go around, if your family believes on the Lord Jesus Christ they shall be saved as well.

This is the only way to heaven, Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life no man comes to the father but by me.

Jesus died for our sins, he was buried and three days later he arose from the dead, paying our sin debt with his blood and defeating death.

It seems as though the jailer took them to his house where Paul continued to preach and the whole house believed on Jesus and were saved.

We see at the conversion of the Jailer his life was changed

The same jailer that through them in the middle of the jail and put them in stocks just to make their time in jail a little more uncomfortable is now cleaning their wounds in the middle of the night.

A true conversion brings about a real change

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Ephesians 4:21–24 “If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

Colossians 3:8–11 “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.”

Notice that after their conversion they got baptized.

Baptism didn’t complete their salvation, their belief in Christ did.

Baptism is a public profession of an inward possession. It pictures the death burial and resurrection of Jesus.

After their baptism he gave them food and rejoiced, believing in God.

What a time of fellowship that must have been.

When is the last time you sat around just rejoicing in what God has done?

The release of Paul and Silas vs. 35-39

For an unknown reason after one night in jail the magistrates send the serjeants to the prison keeper and tell them to let Paul and Silas go.

The Jailer conveys the message and it wasn’t good enough for Paul. Look what he says in verse 37

They have beaten us publicly even though we weren’t convicted of anything, which shouldn’t happen being roman, and then they threw us in prison and now are light us go privily meaning privately or secretly.

So we aren’t going to go unless they come get us themselves and let us go.

The serjeants told the magistrates what Paul had said and they feared when they hear Paul was a Roman. They thought because he was a Jew they could treat them this way.

The Magistrates came and besought them and brought them out and wanted them to leave the city.

They had sent the city into an uproar because of the Gospel and now they were asking them to leave quietly

The reassurance of the saints vs. 40

Paul and Silas left prison and went to Lydia’s house.

They went to comfort the new believers and then departed from Philippi.

Conclusion

As a believer the world is watching us and how we react when we are persecuted. Does the world find us grumbling or singing?

Maybe you are here this morning and you have the question “What must I do to be saved?” Come this morning and we can show you from God’s word the answer to that question