Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns...suddenly!

Acts 16:16-40 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible (link on links page)

¹⁶ It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling. ¹⁷ Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.” ¹⁸ She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.

¹⁹ But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the market place 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 which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.”

Paul and Silas Imprisoned

²² The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief magistrates tore their robes off them and proceeded to order them to be beaten with rods. ²³ When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely; ²⁴ and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

²⁵ But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; ²⁶ and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. ²⁷ 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!” 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?”

The Jailer Converted

³¹ They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” ³² And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. 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, having believed in God with his whole household.

³⁵ Now when day came, the chief magistrates sent their policemen, saying, “Release those men.” ³⁶ And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The chief magistrates have sent to release you. Therefore come out now and go in peace.” ³⁷ But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out.” ³⁸ The policemen reported these words to the chief magistrates. They were afraid when they heard that they were Romans, ³⁹ and they came and appealed to them, and when they had brought them out, they kept begging them to leave the city. ⁴⁰ They went out of the prison and entered the house of Lydia, and when they saw the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.

In the beginning of today's text we see this girl who has a spirit of divination, a fortune teller. This is not the Holy Spirit, it is an unholy spirit which has it's power in evil and darkness. This spirit though still recognized the Holy Spirit within the apostles. The text says that the girl was following them around and declaring, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”   We also see, in the gospel accounts several times when evil spirits recognized Jesus and acknowledged that He is the Son of God.

 ...two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. ²⁹ And they cried out, saying, “What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?” (Matthew 8:28-29) 

Seeing these accounts of evil spirits acknowledging the true authority of the Holy Spirit and Jesus brings to mind what James writes in James 2:19.  You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder.    It is not enough that we know about Jesus. It is not even enough that we recognize that He is God and that He has authority. Romans 14:11 says:

For it is written, "AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME, AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD."

What we need is more than an intellectual acknowledgment of who Jesus is. We, each individual, needs to accept the work of Jesus, His death on the cross as redemption for our sin. We need more than to know who He is, we need to know Him as our Lord and Savior.

The text continues and shows us what knowing Jesus can do for us. It says:     When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely; ²⁴ and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. ²⁵ But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; ²⁶ and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened.

When we know Jesus, we know peace and comfort even in difficulty. In John 16:33 Jesus says:

"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

When we rest in the knowledge that we are one with the One who has overcome the world we have peace inwhatever difficulty the world brings our way. We have fellowship with God the Father and Jesus. We actually have access to the very presence of God in the heavenly realm. Hebrews 4:15-16 says:

For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One(Jesus) who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

When we are in the midst of our trials and difficulties we can go to the very presence of God in heaven, there  we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. In addition though what we find when we are in the presence of God is that we will respond in worship and praise. Revelation 4:8-9 gives us an indication of what it is like in the presence of God in heaven.

 and day and night they do not cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.”  ⁹ And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, ¹⁰ the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever

When we, like Paul and Silas, focus on the things of heaven rather than the things of earth and worship and praise God even in the midst of our trials and difficulties it changes things. We not only go to that heavenly realm to be in the presence of God but as it says in Psalm 22:3   But you are holy, O you that inhabit the praises of Israel.    God actually comes and is present with us when we praise Him. Jesus says: "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." (Matthew 18:20)

When God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit are present in our circumstances things will change. Jesus teaches us to pray, 'Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 

That's what happened in that prison that night with Paul and Silas. The kingdom of heaven came to earth. The realities of heaven took over the circumstances on earth.  The text continues:    and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. ²⁷ 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!” 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?”

It says:  immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. But it wasn't the bondage of Paul and Silas that was at the center of God's will that night. Rather it was the  jailer that God wanted to free from bondage.

We continue in the text:  They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” ³² And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. 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, having believed in God with his whole household.

Paul and Silas were also later freed from the prison and released to continue in God's will. But God used their obediance, and their worship and praise in the midst of their trial and difficulty to change the life of the jailer and his whole household. There are times that we too may be in the midst of a difficult time, yet if we will, like Paul and Silas lift our voices to praise and worship God in that difficulty, others will see and hear, and like that jailer ask, " what must I do to be saved?” 

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, I thank You for all that You do and have done for me. I thank You, not for the storms and difficulties in my life but that You are faithful and present in the midst of those difficulties. Help me today and each day, to keep my focus on You and on things as they are in heaven. Help me to see and know the reality that You Lord Jesus have overcome the world and everything that it might bring against me. I choose to praise You in the midst of the trials in my life. I pray that You would inhabit my praise. That You Father, Son and Holy Spirit would be present in the difficulties I face so that others might see You and they to might be saved through the revelation that You Jesus are the Christ, The Lord and Savior of all.    Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.   Amen