Time Served For Radical behavior #2

Acts 16:29-31

Acts 16:16–26 TPT

16 One day, as we were going to the house of prayer, we encountered a young slave girl who had an evil spirit of divination, the spirit of Python. She had earned great profits for her owners by being a fortune-teller. 17 She kept following us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Great High God, and they’re telling us how to be saved!” 18 Day after day she continued to do this, until Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit indwelling her, “I command you in the name of Jesus, the Anointed One, to come out of her, now!” At that very moment, the spirit came out of her! 19 When her owners realized that their potential of making profit had vanished, they forcefully seized Paul and Silas and dragged them off to the city square to face the authorities. 20 When they appeared before the Roman soldiers and magistrates, the slave owners leveled accusations against them, saying, “These Jews are troublemakers. They’re throwing our city into confusion. 21 They’re pushing their Jewish religion down our throats. It’s wrong and unlawful for them to promote these Jewish ways, for we are Romans living in a Roman colony.” 22 A great crowd gathered, and all the people joined in to come against them. The Roman officials ordered that Paul and Silas be stripped of their garments and beaten with rods on their bare backs. 23 After they were severely beaten, they were thrown into prison and the jailer was commanded to guard them securely. 24 So the jailer placed them in the innermost cell of the prison and had their feet bound and chained. 25 Paul and Silas, undaunted, prayed in the middle of the night and sang songs of praise to God, while all the other prisoners listened to their worship. 26 Suddenly, a great earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. All at once every prison door flung open and the chains of all the prisoners came loose.

Acts 16:29–31 AV

29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Acts 16:32-35

32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34 And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

35 And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go. 36 And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace.

Time Served For Radical Behavior:

This story starts out with Paul on a journey with Silas going from town to town instructing the believers to follow the decisions made by the Apostles and Elders in Jerusalem.

Acts 16:5 shows what was the result of the people honoring Pauls request.

Acts 16:5 AMP

5 So the churches were strengthened and made firm in the faith, and they increased in number day after day.

Paul & Silas have established themselves in this region as bona fide leaders in the Kingdom of God.

In the Respect of time I want to Point a few things out in this text and we are going to tarry for a refreshing in the Holy Spirt..

Acts 16:16-17

One day, as we were going to the house of prayer, we encountered a young slave girl who had an evil spirit of divination, the spirit of Python.

She had earned great profits for her owners by being a fortune-teller. 17 She kept following us, shouting,

“These men are servants of the Great High God, and they’re telling us how to be saved!”

Retaliation

The slave girl no longer her her demon power

Her Owners could no longer profit from her

The Town Felt these men had the power to influence others

2. Celebration

Most Christians struggle with this truth:

Your Present trails are connected to your Future Victories

Paul & Silas response to being stripped naked & severely beaten with Rods on their bare backs & thrown into prison & placed in the innermost cell of the prison with their feet bound and chained was to rejoice.

They Found victory in their present situation.

3. Restoration

While in prison God has shaken some stuff up!

The jailer & his Family are converted to Christianity because God allowed Paul & Silas to get locked up.

The Jailer, Lydia & Cornelius all have the same testimony. The had the power to influence there family to become saved.

My prayer for you is God give them the power to influence their family to be saved.

Time Served For radical behavior

The family is saved and the prisoners have experienced the Power of God. Time Served