Worship that Breaks Chains

Introduction

We are continuing in our series of sermons: Encounters With God in which we have been examining specific occasions throughout Scripture when people encountered the living God.

We have seen a few constant patterns emerging from our study. One being that people encounter God not by their own initiative or ingenuity but by God's.

Secondly we have discovered that the people who have had an encounter with the living God, that encounter has profoundly and irrevocably changed the nature and direction of their lives.

And perhaps a third emerging consequence of that encounter is true and unadulterated worship that is birthed as a result of that encounter.

Last week the proverbial can was kicked a little further as we saw the Holy Spirit come upon the followers of Jesus. He had promised that when He arrived they would receive power and become His witnesses and that is exactly what happened.

But that witness was never supposed to remain in Jerusalem. It was supposed to spread throughout Judea, Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth. By the time we get to Acts 16, the gospel is moving.

And wherever the gospel goes it encounters people who are in bondage, some in chains that are easily seen and others in chains that cannot be seen.

People that are going to and fro wherever they want to go, completely oblivious of their enslavement.

You can have money in your pocket, keys to your own house, and make your own decisions, supposedly answering to no one, and still be completely and unequivocally bound, not free.

On the other hand someone can have their freedom taken away, be locked behind a prison door, have their feet fastened in stocks, and possess a freedom that no one can take from them.

This is what makes this passage extremely fascinating. We are going to examine and discover how those who appear to be free are actually captive while those who appear to be captive know that they are free.

In Acts 16:16-34 we will see how another set of unexpected individuals are to encounter God. An encounter not of their making but that will redirect the course of their lives.

There are three theological realities that arise naturally from what Luke narrates in our passage today: One, the fact that the gospel confronts spiritual bondage.

Two, that worship remains faithful in the midst of suffering and three, that God uses our freedom to bring freedom to others.

I. The Gospel Confronts Spiritual Bondage (vv. 16-18)

Acts 16:16 LSB

16 Now it happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a servant-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling.

Luke introduces us to a young woman who is living under multiple layers of bondage. First, she is literally a slave. She belongs to other people. Luke refers to her “masters,” plural.

Secondly those masters are exploiting her condition for their own financial benefit. Whatever concern they may have had for this young woman, Luke makes sure that we understand that her condition was profitable to them.

A spirit of divination. Literal translation would be a Python spirit. One commentator notes that the concept goes back to the Greek city of Delphi, where the god Apollo was believed to be embodied in a python snake.

The original priestess at Delphi was supposedly possessed by Apollo and thereby able to predict the future. Therefore anyone possessed by the Python spirit could foretell coming events.

However, an actual demon gave such a person supernatural abilities. Demons took advantage of people's worship of false gods. Paul commented,

1 Corinthians 10:20 LSB

20 No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. And I do not want you to become sharers in demons.

This spirit of divination revealed an even deeper form of bondage for she was under the influence and control of an evil spirit. This woman is enslaved physically, exploited economically, and oppressed spiritually.

None of these chains were visible and none of these chains are chains that she possessed the ability to break for herself.

This is one of the realities Scripture teaches us about spiritual bondage. Sin loves to convince us that we are free while simultaneously enslaving us. Listen to the words of the Master:

John 8:34 LSB

34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

Peter describes the very same principle:

2 Peter 2:19 LSB

19 promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved.

This is one of sin's greatest deceptions. It presents itself as freedom while progressively taking control. You appear to be doing what you want, following your own desires.

You're thinking nobody has the right to tell you how to live. Culture calls that freedom. What Scripture asserts is that if what you call freedom has mastered you, you are not free. You are a slave.

Acts 16:17 LSB

17 Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are slaves of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”

Now this is fascinating because what she's saying is essentially true. Paul and Silas are servants of the Most High God

She uses the Greek designation of the Hebrew term: El Elyon a title used to denote God as absolute absolute sovereign around 50 times in the OT.

This is something to pay attention to because the fact that a statement is true does not mean that the source of that statement is ultimately trustworthy. We have seen this before in the ministry of Jesus:

Mark 1:23–25 LSB

23 And immediately there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 saying, “What do we have to do with You, Jesus the Nazarene? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

Jesus did not thank the demon for its endorsement. He silenced him. The gospel does not need demonic powers to authenticate its message.

Regardless of the trueness of the statement, it would be damaging for the gospel to have an association with a demon-possessed person:

Acts 16:18 LSB

18 And she continued doing this for many days. But being greatly annoyed, Paul turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to leave her!” And it left at that very moment.

I want you to notice something. Paul does not speak primarily to the woman. He speaks to the spirit. Paul understands that behind what everyone else may see as a strange fortune-telling slave girl is a spiritual reality that must be confronted.

I want you to also notice that Paul does not perform an elaborate ceremony. He doesn't stage an event. He does not prolong the encounter. He does not negotiate. He doesn't invoke his own authority. He does not demand payment.

I want you to see the difference between what happens biblically and what we see on TV. He simply commands the spirit to live in the name of Jesus Christ.

Immediately the spirit leaves. The authority that breaks her spiritual bondage is not Paul's authority; it is the authority of Jesus Christ, which is consistent with what we see throughout the New Testament.

Colossians 1:13–14 LSB

13 Who rescued us from the authority of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

This woman could not deliver herself. Her masters certainly were not going to deliver her because she was making them money but Jesus had the authority and the will and the power to help this poor captive girl.

The apostles were doing what Jesus had commissioned them to do, and these miraculous works served as divine authentication that they were indeed His authorized representatives proclaiming His message

The gospel has now arrived in Philippi and it begins by disrupting things that thrive upon human bondage. As long as this woman remained enslaved, everybody benefiting from her bondage was satisfied.

But the moment Jesus sets her free, somebody loses money. The crude reality is that there will always be people and systems that benefit from keeping others enslaved.

Sometimes bondage is profitable but the gospel is not concerned with earthly profits. And ultimately every human being apart from Christ lives under a bondage that they cannot break through personal effort.

Romans 6:17–18 LSB

17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching to which you were given over, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Notice that biblical freedom is not autonomy. You don't finally reach a point where nobody tells you what to do. You will always be a slave but who your master is has eternal ramifications

Biblical freedom is being delivered from the master who was destroying you so that you can belong to the One who created you.

The gospel confronts spiritual bondage but sometimes obedience to the gospel that brings freedom to somebody else may bring suffering into your own life. Which is what happens next.

II. Worship Remains Faithful in Suffering (vv. 19-25)

Acts 16:19–21 LSB

19 But when her masters saw that their hope of profit had left, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities, 20 and when they had brought them to the chief magistrates, they said, “These men are throwing our city into confusion, being Jews, 21 and are proclaiming customs that are not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.”

These people are not even devout false idol worshippers. Their concern primarily was the fact that their cash cow was gone. The spirit left and so did their income.

What was freedom for this woman became financial loss for the people who had been profiting from her bondage. But instead of being honest concerning their actual anger, they instead appealed to the civic pride of Philippi.

Philippi was a Roman colony. Roman citizenship and Roman identity were matters of tremendous pride and these men know exactly which buttons to push.

Think about that the next time you are tempted to make your ethnicity the center of your identity. The real issue here is money, but their public accusation is culture, ethnicity, and Roman loyalty.

Sometimes opposition to the gospel will present itself as one thing when the real issue is something else entirely. Jesus warned his disciples that following Him would bring opposition:

John 15:18–20 LSB

18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you. 19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. 20 “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

Many of the issues we face today in our culture may resemble friction between ethnicities or skin color. Yet there may be something deeper operating behind all of these things.

Paul and Silas are not suffering ultimately because they are Jews. They are suffering precisely because they are obeying God. Their ethnicity is superficial to the real underlining issue.

And also take notice that sometimes we assume that if we are doing what God wants us to do, then things should work out favorably for us but Scripture never makes that promise.

Acts 16:22–24 LSB

22 And the crowd joined together to attack them, and the chief magistrates, tearing their garments off of them, proceeded to order them to be beaten with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted them with many wounds, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely, 24 who, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

They were stripped, beaten with rods, and inflicted with many wounds. Then they were thrown into the inner prison and their feet were secured in stocks.

Their obedience to Christ has apparently rewarded them with humiliation, physical pain, and imprisonment. Yet nothing about their circumstances indicates that God has lost control.

1 Peter 4:12–13 LSB

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you. 13 But to the degree you are sharing the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.

They were placed in the inner prison, which was the most secure part of the prison. It was likely dark and damp. Their legs were spread as far apart as possible.

They were beaten and stripped of their clothing so their raw backs would have been in contact with the damp rocky wall behind them. It was beyond uncomfortable and painful. And then here comes the contrast:

Acts 16:25 LSB

25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

I hope these guys were harmonizing or at least singing on key, they had an audience. In the midst of their painful discomfort they began to worship. They did not wait until their circumstances improved.

They worshipped while they were still hurting. They prayed while they were still imprisoned. They sang while the chains were still attached. With no idea when or if deliverance would ever come.

That is faithful worship, worship that is not based upon their current circumstances but rooted in who God is. Habakkuk describes this kind of worship:

Habakkuk 3:17–18 LSB

17 Though the fig tree should not blossom And there be no produce on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail And the fields yield no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls, [though there be sickness in my body and there be not relief in sight. Though there be holes on the roof and no money in the bank to repair them. Though the refrigerator is empty and all four tires of the car are flat. Though I be evicted from my apartment and there not be even a tree around to shield me from the smoldering sun] 18 Yet I will exult in Yahweh; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.

That is worship that the circumstances cannot control. Paul and Silas may not have chosen the venue and they certainly did not choose the circumstances.

But suffering has placed them in front of an audience that is now listening to how Christians respond when life hurts. Their worship has become their witness.

These prisoners are hearing men who have been beaten worship the God they serve, which raises an uncomfortable question for us: What do people hear from us when life hurts?

These guys were not worshiping in order to get out of prison. They had no idea how or if they would have ever gone out or died there.

Sometimes God opens the prison doors and other times He gives us the grace to worship Him while the door remains closed. And don't miss the irony. Years later Paul would write these words to believers in this very city:

“…for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am… I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:11-13).

Paul and Silas were already free before God ever opened the prison doors, But…

III. God Uses Our Freedom to Bring Freedom to Others (vv. 26-34)

Acts 16:26 LSB

26 And suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the jailhouse were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened.

And out His own sovereign purposes God suddenly intervenes. There is an earthquake powerful enough to shake the foundations of the prison. The doors open and everyone's chains fall off.

What kind of earthquake is this? Luke does not tell us that Paul and Silas sang until the earthquake came. The worship was not a technique for getting God to change their circumstances.

They were worshiping because God was worthy of worship. Paul and Silas did not manipulate God into doing what he did. Suddenly everyone is free but nobody leaves.

Acts 16:27–28 LSB

27 And when the jailer awoke and saw the prison doors opened, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!”

Paul and Silas have been unjustly beaten, stripped, thrown in the inner prison, feet placed in stocks. Now the doors are open chains are loose and they stay. Why?

Certainly they did not like the painful discomfort and their environment was not pleasant, but there was something more important than getting out.

The jailer sees the doors open and rightfully assumes that the prisoners have escape. It was only natural that this would be the case. But this was not an ordinary earthquake.

Everyone in that prison had an encounter with the living God so their nature as been severely and permanently altered and the living God was still in there so now he was about to have the same encounter.

The jailer knew that there was a worse fate than death falling into the hands of the Roman government for having allowed prisoners to escape. So he prepares to take his own life. Knowing this:

“Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!’”

The Jailer has spent the night making sure Paul could not escape, now Paul refuses to escape so that the jailer might live. That is what freedom in Christ looks like.

Paul is so free that even when the door opens, he does not have to walk through it. His freedom allows him to concern himself with the life of another person:

Acts 16:29–30 LSB

29 And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, 30 and after he brought them out, he said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

NOW we discover where this entire night has been going. The jailer who held the keys is asking the prisoners how he can be set free… what a reversal.

1 Corinthians 1:27–28 LSB

27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, 28 and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may abolish the things that are,

“Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age?” (1 Corinthians 1:20).

Let them come explain how does this make a lick of natural sense. And let them start with the cross. That is what brings this man to the end of himself and is suddenly aware of his own affliction, his own condition and with much respect he says,

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

Acts 16:31 LSB

31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your house.”

He does not need to perform enough religious works or clean himself up first or make himself worthy. All he had to do was believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The bondage this man was experiencing went deeper than physical chains or prison doors. His bondage is sin and the solution is Jesus.

John 8:36 LSB

36 “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

This is the real chain-breaking happening in Acts 16. Yes physical chains fell from Paul and Silas but the greater miracle is that the gospel is about to set a sinner free. 

Acts 16:32–34 LSB

32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his household. 33 And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household. 34 And he brought them into his house and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly with his whole household, because he had believed in God.

The gospel reaches this man and his entire household and the transformation began immediately. The man who had been responsible for guarding their wounds was now washing them.

The man who had placed prisoners under confinement brings them into his house and sets food before them. Moments earlier he had a sword pointed at himself but now he's rejoicing.

Don't miss this: the slave girl encounters the power of Christ and is delivered from the spirit that held her captive.

Paul and Silas already belong to Christ and their encounter with God's sovereign intervention sustains and brings a freedom that imprisonment cannot take from them.

Prisoners encounter the presence of God and are rendered unable or unwilling to take advantage of the fact that the prison doors are open and that the chains have fallen.

The jailer encounters God through circumstances he never could have anticipated, hears the gospel, and believes in the Lord Jesus.

God's sovereign initiative operates differently with each person. In other words an encounter with God does not look identical for everyone but there is something that these encounters have in common.

God takes the initiative. God reveals His power. God makes Himself known and nobody who truly encounters the living God walks away unchanged.

There is no such thing as a chain strong enough or a prison door fortified enough that cannot be obliterated by the presence of the living God.