WWUTT 1098 Singing Hymns in Prison?

A lot of us complain that we're being unjustly treated, but are we really? The Apostle Paul and Silas were unjustly treated, and how did they react to their situation? By singing praises when we understand the text.

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Here's our host, Pastor Gabe.

Paul and Silas in Philippi and the Slave Girl with a Spirit of Divination

Thank you, Becky. We come again to our study of the book of Acts, and this week we've been in chapter 16. Today we're looking at a story, one of the most popular stories that comes from the book of Acts.

I'm going to start reading in verse 16. As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and us, crying out, These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.

And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And it came out that very hour.

But when her owners saw that the hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city.

They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice. The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods.

And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

Singing Hymns in the Inner Prison

About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened.

When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.

And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.

And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and all who were in his house. And he took them that same hour of the night and washed their wounds, and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them, and he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.

But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, Let those men go. And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, The magistrates have sent to let you go, therefore come out now and go in peace.

But Paul said to them, They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens and have thrown us into prison, and do they now throw us out secretly? No, let them come themselves and take us out.

The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. So they came and apologized to them, and they took them out and asked them to leave the city.

So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. So this, of course, is one of the most famous stories in the book of Acts, the story of Paul and Silas being thrown in prison in Philippi.

They sang hymns while in prison. God caused an earthquake to break them out of prison. The jailer was going to kill himself because he thought that all the prisoners had escaped. But Paul said, Do not harm yourself.

We are still here. And he shared the gospel with the jailer and his entire household. Remember that Paul and Silas and their missionary group had come into Philippi preaching the gospel. They preached to a woman named Lydia, who started up a church in her home.

And then they went throughout Philippi continuing to preach. It says in verse 16, As we were going to the place of prayer, this is where they were going to or where they came to right at the very start.

It says we remained in the city some days. And verse 13 says, On the Sabbath day, we went outside the gate to the riverside where we suppose there was a place of prayer. And we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together.

So these are the first people that Paul and Silas had shared the gospel with. And again, a church was planted in the home of a woman named Lydia. And that's the house that they go back to before they leave Philippi entirely as we get toward the end of the chapter.

But they go to that place of prayer again as they're heading that way. They were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune telling. Now when you're looking in looking into the actual Greek of of this particular verse and how this slave girl is described, she is called a ventriloquist.

Yeah, just like a ventriloquist would have a dummy, a puppet, and they, you know, will make the make it sound like the puppet is talking while they're trying not to move their lips, casting their voice, that sort of a thing.

That's a ventriloquist. Well, that that term is actually kind of spiritual in nature. It's demonic. It describes a demon who has control over a person and that demon is able to get the person to do their bidding.

So the person is doing what the what the demon, the ventriloquist wants them to do. That's what a ventriloquist is. And so that's how this girl is being described. She is being controlled by a demon to be a fortune teller to divine the future or the things unseen.

There are probably things that she does that are true, but they're still demonic. It's still godless because as the Old Testament law commands, anybody who does such things should be put to death. So she is doing something that is godless, following in the spirit of Satan rather than in the spirit of God.

And we see that she's capable of saying true things. So she can divine the future to some degree because when she's following Paul and us, it says in verse 17, she cries out. These men are servants of the most high God who proclaim to you the way of salvation.

Well, that's true. So Satan is capable of saying true things when it serves his purposes. And with this girl following them and saying this, there's a couple of things that she benefits from revealing Paul and Silas and the other missionaries with him as being preachers of the gospel.

First of all, it reveals that she's able to see things that other people aren't able to see, of course, because she is she's a fortune teller. The other way this benefits her is that she's able to warn the people about what it is that they're doing.

So it's not like she's following them proclaiming the good news. Hey, these guys have the gospel. Come and listen to them. Rather, she's revealing who they are and what they're doing so that people will stay away from them.

That's her purpose. And that's her cause here. This she kept doing for many days, it says in verse 18. And Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.

And it came out that very hour. It's interesting that it doesn't say the spirit came out of her immediately, but rather that it came out of her that very hour. So it may have been the sort of a thing where for the spirit to release its hold on her took a little bit of time.

It wasn't something that happened right at that very second. Maybe that was the reason why Luke worded it that way. So going on here in verse 19, but when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.

And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, these men are Jews and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice. Now, we're going to see a similar sort of a thing happen when Paul gets to Ephesus.

That'll be later on in the book of Acts, where because of the gospel they preach, there are certain tradesmen there in Ephesus who believe that Paul and the other missionaries are upsetting their way of life.

So that's even happening here in Philippi. Paul and Silas are preaching the gospel. They cast the demon out of this girl that was bringing wealth for her owners, this slave girl who was a diviner. And now that the spirit, the evil spirit has gone out of her, she's not able to fortune tell anymore.

So her owners are not getting any money from this because they are out the money. They now call together the magistrates and say, see, look at these guys who are upsetting our way of life. Verse 22, the crowd joined in attacking them and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods.

And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

So this is basically like they were thrown in a dungeon. When Paul is arrested the first time and he is imprisoned in Rome, it wasn't a prison like this. He was actually under house arrest. So he had a home.

He was required to stay in that home. And there were guards that were guarding the home, soldiers that would guard the home to make sure that he wouldn't go anywhere. But people could still come see him, even though he couldn't leave.

People could come to him. And we read about this at the end of Acts. It's really the way that Acts concludes with Paul under house arrest in Rome. This was a much favorable situation or circumstance for him to be under house arrest than what we're seeing here in Philippi.

I mean, this Philippi is being thrown in the dungeon, taking him into the inner prison and fastening his feet in the stocks. It's like there could not be a more secure form of being imprisoned than what is happening to Paul and Silas right here.

Rejoicing Instead of Complaining

And how do they react to this? The fact that they're locked into the inner dungeon, they're on a dirt floor, stone cold walls, fastened in the stocks, had to be terribly uncomfortable. And how did they react to this?

Verse 25. About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. And the prisoners were listening to them. Paul and Silas are singing hymns. They are rejoicing in God. They've just received some of the most brutal persecution that they have received up to this point.

Not the worst, because Paul was nearly stoned to death. But this is among the worst that they have received. At least Paul and Silas together. They're locked in the inner prison. They're put in the stocks.

And yet they're singing praises unto God. This is common for us to see the apostles react this way. Remember earlier when Peter and the other apostles were brought before the officials there in Jerusalem, they were beaten and let go.

And the apostles went out rejoicing for having been considered worthy to suffer for the name of Christ. And here Paul and Silas are doing that very thing. And one of the things this convicts me of, anytime I read something like this, whether it's the apostles rejoicing after having been beaten, or Paul and Silas singing hymns in the prison, whatever it might happen to be, I think to myself how much I grumble and complain about my circumstances.

And yet I am free and my life is really good. I have things really well. I mean, right now I'm recording the Bible on a broadcast that's going to go out to a thousand people today alone who are going to listen to this lesson without me ever having to leave my home.

That's pretty awesome. I mean, all to the praise of God, absolutely. But this is how convenient we have it today, that we can get the message of the gospel out this easily. And I don't have to go downtown to try to preach to a thousand people who I'm surely going to annoy most of and put myself at risk for possibly being arrested and thrown in jail.

So this is really, really quite easy for me to do this. There is not a whole lot of risk here for me to sit here and do what it is that I'm doing, preaching the gospel. The good news that Jesus Christ has died on the cross for our sins and rose again from the grave and whoever believes in him will not perish, but have everlasting life.

It was this gospel that Paul and Paul and Silas were preaching in Philippi. It is the same gospel that I commit myself to preaching as well. But there's so much less risk for me, at least doing it this way.

There are definitely circumstances in which I would put myself at greater risk. But in the meantime, as for this Bible lesson is concerned, this is easy for me to do. And yet I would be so quick to complain about my circumstances.

Who am I to complain? I'm not being thrown in prison. I'm not fastened in the stocks. Likely tomorrow, I'm going to have the chance to do this again, God willing. The day that you're listening to this, I'm traveling back to the youth group that I attended when I was in high school 20 years ago, and I am sharing with that youth group tonight.

I'm going to be preaching to those teens and I'm driving to get there. I get to hop in a car and drive five hours away and share the gospel with a group of teens in a group that means a lot to me. And it's that easy for me to get there.

Here Paul and Silas got to Philippi, a journey of 400 miles on foot. They had to walk this entire way. And here I'm driving to my destination in a vehicle that's heated. I'm not susceptible to the elements outside the car.

So anyway, you get my point. We have it very easy. We are of a generation that has things easier than any generation before us has ever had it. Whether you're talking about technology, whether you're talking about health, you're talking about civilization in general, laws that have been passed, governments that exist.

We have it so well right now. Who are we to complain about our circumstance here? Here Paul and Silas are locked in prison and put in the stocks for preaching the gospel. Who am I to complain? There are Christians, missionaries, pastors around the world right now in situations and circumstances that are much more volatile than the circumstance that I am in.

They could be put to death for preaching the gospel. So who am I to complain when things get a little bit rough or somebody disagrees with me or the work that I have to do today is a little bit harder than it was yesterday?

Who am I to complain? The Lord God has taken good care of me. He has blessed me with so much. He has called me to a calling that is greater than any other calling that I could receive to preach the gospel, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, to call sinners to repentance, to grow those sinners who do repent into a knowledge of the truth.

This is the calling that I have received. What a blessing of God this is. I should be rejoicing every day. So once again, it's convicting to me to read this, to see Paul and Silas locked in prison for preaching the gospel.

And what do they do? Even though they're Roman citizens and they don't deserve this, they were treated unjustly, which of course we get to when we get to the end of the story. And yet being locked in prison, they're singing hymns.

And the rest of the prisoners are listening to them. You know, when the apostle Paul tells us to not complain, and interestingly enough, this was in his letter to the Philippians where he says this, it's Philippians 2 .14, when he tells us do everything without complaining or grumbling, he gives the reason why.

So that you might be children of God, blameless and without fault in a crooked and depraved generation in which we shine like stars in the universe. So by not complaining and arguing, other people are going to observe that, especially in our culture today.

It's like everybody's got a license to complain. And when people in our culture see that you're not complaining, they see you go through tough stuff and yet you rejoice in God. And I'm not saying that you don't mourn or your heart's not broken.

We don't put on a fake face, but we nevertheless put on joy. You can mourn and still have joy. You can mourn over something difficult that has happened to you and still rejoice in God for the salvation that you have in Christ Jesus.

When people see that, when they see that that's your attitude and that's your response to your circumstances, it's going to communicate something to them. It's going to communicate that you believe God is sovereign and he is in control.

And this world is not my home. And this circumstance is not my final lot. For I have a treasure and a reward that is stored up with Christ and God and glory. And no one can take that from me. So therefore, though I might be struggling now and I might mourn in my situation or my circumstance in this moment, I don't despair.

I don't lose hope because my hope is in Christ forever with him in glory. And my friends, that testament says a lot to people in our culture today who just complain about everything. Each each group of people is probably known for a certain kind of complaining, right?

Millennials complain a certain way. White people complain a certain way. Black people can complain a certain way. Immigrants complain a certain way. It's like if you can categorize the people into their various constituencies, you probably know them by their complaining, do you not?

Men complain about things a certain way. Women complain about things a certain way. And yet here we are as Christians to be rejoicing in God, in Christ, our savior. For the problem of death has been solved.

Christ has conquered it for us. When we die, we have nothing to fear of the grave. We're going to be with him forever in glory. So if death has been overcome, what are we worried about regarding anything else that happens in this world?

Our trust is in Christ and in him alone. And so we do not despair. We mourn, but we have joy. We struggle, but we look forward in peace to the things that have been stored up for us in Christ Jesus in glory.

Paul and Silas knew that they understood that though they were persecuted for the gospel, they celebrated that. Amen. Praise God. Glory. Hallelujah. I am suffering the sufferings of Christ. I am sharing in his sufferings in the preaching of the gospel.

But Christ had taken the wrath of God upon himself. We don't have that to fear. So what do we have to fear of any man? We are one with God in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Nobody can take that from us. So let us rejoice.

Let us give thanks to God today because of the salvation that we have in Christ. The fellowship that we have with God through Christ Jesus, our Lord. I hope that this is encouraging to you. And I hope that you can have a little bit more joy today than you had yesterday, remembering your sins are forgiven and you have a father in heaven.

Prayer for Joy and Thanksgiving in Christ

Let us pray. Our heavenly father, we thank you for the salvation that we have in Christ. And I pray that today as we labor through this world, we like Paul and Silas, pray and sing hymns unto God. Nothing in this world can take away from us the joy that we have in Christ.

So keep us in that. Keep us secure, though we might be struggling through personal relationships or with debt or some things that are going on in life that are unforeseen circumstances, yet we do not despair.

We do not lose heart. We put our hope and our faith and our trust in Christ Jesus, our Lord, who lifts us up and has given us a seat with him in glory that we might dwell with him forever in an imperishable kingdom where all this stuff that we struggle through here on this globe will not go with us when we go into glory.

We will be with Christ Jesus forever in a place of perfection and wonder. Fill our hearts with that today, that hopeful expectation of heaven forever with God. And it's in Jesus' name we pray, amen.

Closing Announcements

You've been listening to When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, Gabe will be going through a New Testament study. Then on Thursday, we look at an Old Testament book.

On Friday, we take questions from the listeners and viewers. Tomorrow, we'll pick up on an Old Testament study, When We Understand the Text.