Acts 16:23-31

“23. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: 24. Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. 25. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26. 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. 27. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 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.”

Paul and Silas have just been beaten with whips because of their stand for Jesus Christ. Not only are they throne in prison, but their feet are placed in the stocks. Stocks is a machine consisting of two pieces of timber, in which the legs of criminals are confined by way of punishment. After all this affliction, notice how you find Paul and Silas in verse 25 “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God:” They are actually singing! Can you believe that? Is your situation really that bad? We act like a little bit of affliction is to hard for us, but its nothing compared what Paul and Silas went through. One powerful thought we can take from this passage is that you never know who is watching you. Let me ask; What are others seeing in you life right now? Are they seeing something different? Are they seeing Jesus Christ living within you? Most of the time people see pride in us, more than they see Jesus. There are more people watching you than you realize. In the life of Paul and Silas we can see the real testimony of what a Christian should be. The Christ like attitude they had in this situation was a great reflection of Jesus Christ as He hung on the cross dying for our sins. Jesus looked out to the hateful crowd and said, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” It made such and impression on the life of a thief that he trusted Christ before he died that day. The same thing happened with Paul and Silas. The jailor is ready to take his own life because he thinks the prisoners have escaped. Paul had already been singing that night. He not only made an impression on the prisoners, but also on the jailor. God’s will for our lives is not always easy. Some days its with much affliction, but God has a purpose to it all. A jailor and his family was saved because of Paul and Silas’ response during their affliction. Its because they were praising God in their low times of life! What is your story? What if there is someone in your life right now that is on the edge of suicide? Their just waiting to take their last breath. There so empty they can’t deal with life anymore. What are they seeing in you? Would your life have such and impact on them that they would say, “What must I do to be saved?” Acts 16:31 “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

Memory Verse Week 5/25/20

Acts 16:31

“And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”