November 19, 2025 • 18 mins
In this Bible Story, Paul and Silas are beaten brutally and thrown into prison for casting a demon out of a little girl. As they dwell in the dark and cold chamber, they sing to the Lord, and a mighty earthquake and they escape. This story is inspired by Acts 16. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.
Today's Bible verse is Acts 16:25 from the King James Version.
Episode 232: As Paul, Luke, Silas, and Timothy were traveling through Thyatira, they were being followed around by a demon-possessed slave woman. The woman kept yelling at the crowd that these people were God’s servants and they will tell them how to be saved. Annoyed beyond the point of tolerance, Paul commanded the evil spirit to come out of the woman. The slave woman’s owners were not pleased. They beat Paul and took him and Silas to court where they were beaten yet again and thrown deep into prison. Around midnight as Paul and Silas were singing psalms to God, an earthquake shook the prison, opening the gates of all the prisoners. The Jailer, thinking that the prisoners had escaped, was about to fall on his sword when Paul and Silas spoke up.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let us pray, and at midnight, Paul and Silas prayed
and sang praises unto God, and the prisoners heard them.
Act sixteen twenty five. As words of Act sixteen resonate
in my spirit, I stand excited because I now have
(00:21):
a major key to my unending success to day. I
acknowledge that prayer should be my first response and not
my last resort. As I look at Paul and Silas,
I realize that my worship is a warship that can
(00:42):
be used to break the oppression and chains of the enemy.
Through my voice and through my praise and worship, you
will send a shock wave and an earthquake that will
shake the foundation of my prison and free me. No
(01:03):
matter where I am or what I face, I will
never forget that one of the greatest weapons that I
possess is my worship. With this truth, I will sing
your praises everywhere I go, and when I do, the
(01:23):
chains of hell and the chains of my enemy will
not be able to hold me. In Jesus name, Amen,
thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time
with God by listening to today's Bible story brought to
(01:43):
you by Bible in a year dot.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Com singing jailbirds.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
In our last story, we were able to read the
letter Paul wrote to the Galician Church. Paul, with the
love and wisdom of Jesus, implored the Galician Church to
stop binding themselves to the law. He encouraged them to
live under grace and living in the spirit. Now we
see Paul and Silas faced with a vexing demon. As
(02:17):
Paul confronts the demon, he is met with imprisonment. As
Paul and Silas dwell in the dark depths of a
Roman jail cell, they are able to be lights of hope.
Inspired by the Book of Acts.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
We're so glad you joined us on the Bible and
of your podcast today. The Bible any of your podcast
is an outreach of PowerPoint Ministries and can only come
to you each week through the support of listeners just
like you. Your support today is so important that we
want to thank you for your gift by giving you
a copy of my book called The Jesus Book. It
(02:52):
is a powerful guide that shows how every book of
the Bible points to Jesus and how his living word,
the truth of God's works, will transform your life. So
to get a copy of the Jesus book. Simply go
to Jack Graham dot org slash Jesus. That's Jack Graham
dot org slash Jesus, and thank you for your support.
(03:14):
In our last episode, we heard Paul's letter to the
Church in Galicia and his powerful, beautiful explanation of salvation
by grace alone in Christ alone. He urged the Galatians
to not let themselves be enslaved of the burden of
the law now that they have received the liberty that
is ours in Christ. He then encourages us to use
(03:35):
our freedom in Christ, to walk by the spirit and
not the flesh, and to produce the fruit of the
Spirit in our lives. Today we'll find Paul and his
missionary partner Silas confronting an evil spirit and facing a
Roman prison. Yet even in the darkness of their cell,
they are full of hope and praise as they glorify
God with singing, and as a result, a man in
(03:57):
his family comes to personal faith in the Lord. Let's
listen now, in this reading from the Book of.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Acts, servants of the Most High God. She screamed, make
way for the servants of God. She yelled even louder.
These men have come in the name of God. She
laughed and twirled around in circles. It had been days
of her nonsense. Paul, Luke, Silas, and Timothy had been
(04:25):
followed through Thiaterra by a slave girl possessed by a demon.
For days. She rolled around on the floor, yelling and
proclaiming their arrival. It had grown maddening. Even though what
she was saying was true, she said it spitefully and jokingly.
Every place they entered into she yelled and screamed. It
(04:46):
deterred people from listening to them. It scared people away.
Sometimes truth spoken rudely can do just as much damage
as a lie. The slave girl was clearly disturbed and
fed multiple herbs to keep her mind. Trapped in a cage,
her owners would make money off of her, selling her
off as a fortune teller. At first, it broke Paul's
(05:08):
heart to see a girl so broken. However, after days
of endless yelling, Paul was thrown into a small rage.
These men are of God. Hear them, hear them, she shouted.
Her wicked cackles pierced the ears of people in the streets.
Here are the men who have come to be in
(05:28):
the name of Jesus. Come out of this girl, you
unclean spirit, Paul interrupted and yelled. The girl fell on
to the floor, rolling in the dirt. Her fists banged
on the floor and her teeth bit into her tongue.
But then, like a storm that had finally been broken
by the sun, the demon left her. She wept where
she lay on the road. Paul and Silas lifted her
(05:52):
to her feet and brushed the dirt off her clothing.
She gave a remorseful grin towards the men, and then
ran back to her master's Even though the exacerbating noise
was gone, Paul had a sinking feeling that this was
not over. The girl ran home to her owners, wailing
with tears of joy and freedom. Her owners, however, were
(06:13):
displeased with her restoration. They made a great deal of
money from the demon inside her. The demon was able
to tell fortunes and speak in ancient dialects. Many people
paid a great amount to listen to a tongue of
dark magic. They struck the girl and she crawled back
into the space she was kept. The owners would deal
(06:34):
with her later, but for now they set their sights
on Paul. Silas and Paul were enjoying themselves in the
market place. They bought food for their travels and spoke
about Christ to the shopkeepers and venders as they passed.
Paul was walking towards a man selling dates and bread
when he felt a swift blow to his right temple.
(06:54):
Paul fell immediately on to the ground. He looked up
to see a boot coming down on his rib cake.
Paul felt the air leave his chest. He gasped and
looked over to see Silas pinned onto the ground by
another large figure. Paul was turned around and bound by ropes.
He and Silas were tied up and marched to the
(07:14):
magistrate court house. These Jews are disturbing our city, the
slave owners declared before the court. They advocate for traditions
that are not Roman. Paul and Silas looked at one another.
They would not be receiving a fair trial. Paul opened
his mouth to speak to the judge, but was interrupted
by a right hook to the jar. Their robes were
(07:37):
ripped off their bodies and the magistrates ordered for Paul
and Silas to be beaten with rods. Paul watched the
long and thin branch strike Silas's back. Silas did not scream.
He was strong and knew what being a Christian entailed.
He turned his back on those who whipped him. Paul
received the same beating. The sharp branch broke through his
(08:01):
bare skin, blood and splinters caked onto his back. After
a steady beating, Paul and Silas were thrown into prison.
The stone floor was cold and jacket it ripped Paul's
feet underneath him. Before the two men could catch their breath,
the jailer arrived. He was a large man, clearly well
built for his job. His grip was violent and hard
(08:23):
as he fastened their ankles into chains. However, there was
something different about him. Paul could see that behind the
scowl was a face of a lost sheep. It was
midnight and the cold prison walls enveloped the prisoners in darkness.
A dim torch light could be seen from the distant
hallways where the jailer slept. Paul could hear a steady
(08:43):
drip of cold water fall on to the jagged stone.
It echoed across the silent prison. All the prisoners were
in the corners of their cells, shivering and waiting for
morning light. Paul and Silas thought about Jesus, how he
had suffered the scorn of men, yet still loved them.
He maintained hope and joy, so they would do the same.
(09:06):
One by one, the prisoners lifted their heads as they
heard voices singing hymns to God. Paul and Silas sang
with joyful shouts and beautiful melodies. Their songs bounced off
the cold stone walls. Its echo was hauntingly powerful. The
frigid prison air was filled with the warm praises of
God's children. The songs became louder as other prisoners joined
(09:29):
in on the melody. An orchestra of hope erupted from
the dark depths of the Roman dungeon. As herding men
turned to their God. As they sang, the earth itself
began to shake, as if God was joining in on
the music. A mighty earthquake shook the foundation of the prison.
The hinges of the doors were shaken open, and the
iron bars fell like the walls of Jericho. Paul and
(09:53):
Silas's chains were unfastened, and there was a clean escape
made ready for them. However, Paul and Silas did not move.
They could hear the footsteps of the jailer approaching. He
turned to the corner to see the gates busted wide open.
Assuming that Paul and Silas had escaped, the jailer drew
his sword. He wept, knowing that he had dishonored his
(10:13):
country and to allow escape was inevitable death. The jailer
pressed the tip of his blade against his throat and
mumbled a last word before stepping forward to fall on
his sword. Stop, Paul yelled. The jailer stumbled forward and
was caught by Silas before he could fall on his blade.
Do not harm yourself, Paul said, We are all here.
(10:37):
The jailer trembled in the arms of Silas. He was
bent over before them, weeping at the fact that they
saved his life. Paul and Silas guided the jailer out
of the prison into the moonlight. There they sat speaking
about the hidden brokenness in the jailer's heart. What must
I do to be saved, the jailer asked, with tears
in his eyes. Paul and Silas smiled. Believe in Jesus
(11:01):
and you will be saved. You and your household will
be blessed, they answered. So the jailer brought them back
to his home, and they preached the gospel to his
entire family. He hid them in his home until it
was the appointed time for them to be released. It
is time for you to leave in peace.
Speaker 4 (11:18):
The jailer said.
Speaker 3 (11:20):
The magistrates have asked for you to go quietly and
in peace, but Paul knew why they wanted them gone.
Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, and they were imprisoned
without a trial. What they had done was condemnable under
Roman law, so the magistrates were forced to apologize to
Paul and Silas. After the magistrates groveled, Paul and Silas
(11:41):
were content to leave with joy.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
We begin today's reading learning that Paul has a new
companion in ministry, a man named Silas. Paul, Silas, and
Luke were in the Roman city of thyrah Tyra, where
they were staying in a home of a new believer
named Lydia, a wealthy businesswoman who dealt in purple fabrics.
As they went about town preaching the gospel, they were
(12:08):
constantly followed by a young slave girl who was possessed
by a demon that predicted the future. Her owners used
this young girl for personal gain, unconcerned about her or
her well being, and as Paul and Silas walked through
the city, the young girl would cry out loudly for
all to hear. These men are servants of the Most
High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.
(12:30):
Her words were true, but they did not come from God.
It is a reminder that all who proclaim Christ Jesus
are not true followers or true worshippers. There are false prophets,
their demon spirits that exist that proclaim a message. This
was a work of the enemy Satan himself, to distract
people from the message of Jesus and the Gospel, and
(12:52):
Paul saw write through it. Finally, when he had had enough,
he spoke to the evil spirit in this young girl.
With the authority given to him by the Holy Spirit.
He commanded the spirit the demon, to leave her, and
at once she was set free, just as Jesus had
called out demons. Paul continues the Lord's work in liberating
(13:13):
captives from the forces of evil and the powers of
Satan to experience the power of God. What a relief
this must have been for the young demonized girl. The
voices in her head had left her without peace, and
now these voices were silenced. But her masters, who profited
greatly from her condition, were very angry. Their trafficking had
(13:36):
come to a screening halt, and they knew who was
to blame, so they appealed to the local magistrate, saying
Paul and Silas were stirring up trouble and advocating practices
that were contrary to Roman law. Of course, this was
a huge lie, but when your enemies have no real
claim against you, they will come with lies and slander.
(13:57):
Once again, Paul and his friends find themselves persecuted, only
this time not by Jews but by Romans. He and
Silas were seized, beaten, and thrown into prison. But even
in this, Paul and Silas persevered with praise and saw
the opportunity to worship God as a testimony and a
witness of the power of Jesus. When bad things happened
(14:18):
to us, when circumstances turn against us, when we are
persecuted or set aside for our faith, do we continue
to praise God? Too often we miss the opportunity to
witness to the glory of God and the grace of
God in our lives, in our hardship. But Paul and
Silas didn't miss this chance. So as they sat in
their cell that night, rather than weeping and whining and
(14:42):
licking their wounds. These men sang great songs of praise
and worship, and the other prisoners could hear them lifting
up their God in the name of Jesus. We then
hear how at about midnight God sent a mighty earthquake
and rock the prison through open the prison doors and
cause the changed to fall off. All the prisoners. This
(15:03):
was their chance to escape, but they didn't. They didn't
run away. When the jailer awoke, he was certain that
the prisoners would be gone, and it would cost him
his life, because when commanders were found out that they
had not done their job, they would be executed. So
he resolved to take his own life, but Paul stepped in,
letting him know that no one had escaped. Listened to
(15:26):
the jailer's response. In Acts sixteen, verses twenty nine to thirty,
the jailer called for the lights and rushed in and
fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them
out and asked, sirs, what must I do to be saved?
That's the most important question that any one of us
can ask and be answered by the witnesses of the Gospel. Sirs,
(15:49):
what must I do to be saved. When we see
a miracle like this, when the earthquake came and shook
the house, there's a greater purpose and plan. The change
God wanted to were not merely those binding Paul and
Silas and the other prisoners, but the chains of sin
that held the jailer and his family. And as a
result of Paul's perseverance and praise, this man and his
(16:12):
entire family opened their hearts to the Gospel of Christ.
They were all saved. The men went with him to
his home, and his entire family worshiped the Lord with
the apostle Paul and Silas. And that next morning, the
magistrates that were that Paul and Silas were to be released,
they discovered that these men weren't merely Jews, but Roman citizens.
(16:34):
It is the first indication that Paul will wisely use
his Roman citizenship to advance the Gospel of Jesus far
and wide, all across the Roman Empire. And we'll hear
more about that in our next reading. Dear God, we
thank you for this great scripture in Acts chapter sixteen,
(16:54):
and the power of the Gospel to change lives. Lord,
in the midst of our trials and tribulations. May we
always praise you. You have told us to give thanks
always that we can praise you even in the darkest
of times, because when we do, You are glorified and
Jesus is magnified, and people will see and hear our witness.
(17:15):
Because of what Christ has done for us, we can
stand firm in the midst of life's greatest challenges. May
it be so in our lives. In Jesus's name. Amen.
Thank you for listening to today's Bible into your podcast,
and before we go, I wanted to let you know
that the Bible into Your Podcast is an outreach of
PowerPoint Ministries and can only come to you each week
(17:38):
through the support of listeners like you. Your support today is
so important that we want to thank you for your
gift by giving you a copy of my book called
The Jesus Book. This book is a powerful guide that
shows how every book in the Bible points to Christ
and how you can better read and understand the Bible
and how God's Word informs our lives. So to get
(18:02):
your copy of The Jesus Book, simply go to Jaggraham
dot org slash Jesus. That's Jagraham dot org. Slash Jesus
and thank you for your support.
Let us pray, and at midnight, Paul and Silas prayed
and sang praises unto God, and the prisoners heard them.
Act sixteen twenty five. As words of Act sixteen resonate
in my spirit, I stand excited because I now have
(00:21):
a major key to my unending success to day. I
acknowledge that prayer should be my first response and not
my last resort. As I look at Paul and Silas,
I realize that my worship is a warship that can
(00:42):
be used to break the oppression and chains of the enemy.
Through my voice and through my praise and worship, you
will send a shock wave and an earthquake that will
shake the foundation of my prison and free me. No
(01:03):
matter where I am or what I face, I will
never forget that one of the greatest weapons that I
possess is my worship. With this truth, I will sing
your praises everywhere I go, and when I do, the
(01:23):
chains of hell and the chains of my enemy will
not be able to hold me. In Jesus name, Amen,
thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time
with God by listening to today's Bible story brought to
(01:43):
you by Bible in a year dot.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Com singing jailbirds.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
In our last story, we were able to read the
letter Paul wrote to the Galician Church. Paul, with the
love and wisdom of Jesus, implored the Galician Church to
stop binding themselves to the law. He encouraged them to
live under grace and living in the spirit. Now we
see Paul and Silas faced with a vexing demon. As
(02:17):
Paul confronts the demon, he is met with imprisonment. As
Paul and Silas dwell in the dark depths of a
Roman jail cell, they are able to be lights of hope.
Inspired by the Book of Acts.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
We're so glad you joined us on the Bible and
of your podcast today. The Bible any of your podcast
is an outreach of PowerPoint Ministries and can only come
to you each week through the support of listeners just
like you. Your support today is so important that we
want to thank you for your gift by giving you
a copy of my book called The Jesus Book. It
(02:52):
is a powerful guide that shows how every book of
the Bible points to Jesus and how his living word,
the truth of God's works, will transform your life. So
to get a copy of the Jesus book. Simply go
to Jack Graham dot org slash Jesus. That's Jack Graham
dot org slash Jesus, and thank you for your support.
(03:14):
In our last episode, we heard Paul's letter to the
Church in Galicia and his powerful, beautiful explanation of salvation
by grace alone in Christ alone. He urged the Galatians
to not let themselves be enslaved of the burden of
the law now that they have received the liberty that
is ours in Christ. He then encourages us to use
(03:35):
our freedom in Christ, to walk by the spirit and
not the flesh, and to produce the fruit of the
Spirit in our lives. Today we'll find Paul and his
missionary partner Silas confronting an evil spirit and facing a
Roman prison. Yet even in the darkness of their cell,
they are full of hope and praise as they glorify
God with singing, and as a result, a man in
(03:57):
his family comes to personal faith in the Lord. Let's
listen now, in this reading from the Book of.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Acts, servants of the Most High God. She screamed, make
way for the servants of God. She yelled even louder.
These men have come in the name of God. She
laughed and twirled around in circles. It had been days
of her nonsense. Paul, Luke, Silas, and Timothy had been
(04:25):
followed through Thiaterra by a slave girl possessed by a demon.
For days. She rolled around on the floor, yelling and
proclaiming their arrival. It had grown maddening. Even though what
she was saying was true, she said it spitefully and jokingly.
Every place they entered into she yelled and screamed. It
(04:46):
deterred people from listening to them. It scared people away.
Sometimes truth spoken rudely can do just as much damage
as a lie. The slave girl was clearly disturbed and
fed multiple herbs to keep her mind. Trapped in a cage,
her owners would make money off of her, selling her
off as a fortune teller. At first, it broke Paul's
(05:08):
heart to see a girl so broken. However, after days
of endless yelling, Paul was thrown into a small rage.
These men are of God. Hear them, hear them, she shouted.
Her wicked cackles pierced the ears of people in the streets.
Here are the men who have come to be in
(05:28):
the name of Jesus. Come out of this girl, you
unclean spirit, Paul interrupted and yelled. The girl fell on
to the floor, rolling in the dirt. Her fists banged
on the floor and her teeth bit into her tongue.
But then, like a storm that had finally been broken
by the sun, the demon left her. She wept where
she lay on the road. Paul and Silas lifted her
(05:52):
to her feet and brushed the dirt off her clothing.
She gave a remorseful grin towards the men, and then
ran back to her master's Even though the exacerbating noise
was gone, Paul had a sinking feeling that this was
not over. The girl ran home to her owners, wailing
with tears of joy and freedom. Her owners, however, were
(06:13):
displeased with her restoration. They made a great deal of
money from the demon inside her. The demon was able
to tell fortunes and speak in ancient dialects. Many people
paid a great amount to listen to a tongue of
dark magic. They struck the girl and she crawled back
into the space she was kept. The owners would deal
(06:34):
with her later, but for now they set their sights
on Paul. Silas and Paul were enjoying themselves in the
market place. They bought food for their travels and spoke
about Christ to the shopkeepers and venders as they passed.
Paul was walking towards a man selling dates and bread
when he felt a swift blow to his right temple.
(06:54):
Paul fell immediately on to the ground. He looked up
to see a boot coming down on his rib cake.
Paul felt the air leave his chest. He gasped and
looked over to see Silas pinned onto the ground by
another large figure. Paul was turned around and bound by ropes.
He and Silas were tied up and marched to the
(07:14):
magistrate court house. These Jews are disturbing our city, the
slave owners declared before the court. They advocate for traditions
that are not Roman. Paul and Silas looked at one another.
They would not be receiving a fair trial. Paul opened
his mouth to speak to the judge, but was interrupted
by a right hook to the jar. Their robes were
(07:37):
ripped off their bodies and the magistrates ordered for Paul
and Silas to be beaten with rods. Paul watched the
long and thin branch strike Silas's back. Silas did not scream.
He was strong and knew what being a Christian entailed.
He turned his back on those who whipped him. Paul
received the same beating. The sharp branch broke through his
(08:01):
bare skin, blood and splinters caked onto his back. After
a steady beating, Paul and Silas were thrown into prison.
The stone floor was cold and jacket it ripped Paul's
feet underneath him. Before the two men could catch their breath,
the jailer arrived. He was a large man, clearly well
built for his job. His grip was violent and hard
(08:23):
as he fastened their ankles into chains. However, there was
something different about him. Paul could see that behind the
scowl was a face of a lost sheep. It was
midnight and the cold prison walls enveloped the prisoners in darkness.
A dim torch light could be seen from the distant
hallways where the jailer slept. Paul could hear a steady
(08:43):
drip of cold water fall on to the jagged stone.
It echoed across the silent prison. All the prisoners were
in the corners of their cells, shivering and waiting for
morning light. Paul and Silas thought about Jesus, how he
had suffered the scorn of men, yet still loved them.
He maintained hope and joy, so they would do the same.
(09:06):
One by one, the prisoners lifted their heads as they
heard voices singing hymns to God. Paul and Silas sang
with joyful shouts and beautiful melodies. Their songs bounced off
the cold stone walls. Its echo was hauntingly powerful. The
frigid prison air was filled with the warm praises of
God's children. The songs became louder as other prisoners joined
(09:29):
in on the melody. An orchestra of hope erupted from
the dark depths of the Roman dungeon. As herding men
turned to their God. As they sang, the earth itself
began to shake, as if God was joining in on
the music. A mighty earthquake shook the foundation of the prison.
The hinges of the doors were shaken open, and the
iron bars fell like the walls of Jericho. Paul and
(09:53):
Silas's chains were unfastened, and there was a clean escape
made ready for them. However, Paul and Silas did not move.
They could hear the footsteps of the jailer approaching. He
turned to the corner to see the gates busted wide open.
Assuming that Paul and Silas had escaped, the jailer drew
his sword. He wept, knowing that he had dishonored his
(10:13):
country and to allow escape was inevitable death. The jailer
pressed the tip of his blade against his throat and
mumbled a last word before stepping forward to fall on
his sword. Stop, Paul yelled. The jailer stumbled forward and
was caught by Silas before he could fall on his blade.
Do not harm yourself, Paul said, We are all here.
(10:37):
The jailer trembled in the arms of Silas. He was
bent over before them, weeping at the fact that they
saved his life. Paul and Silas guided the jailer out
of the prison into the moonlight. There they sat speaking
about the hidden brokenness in the jailer's heart. What must
I do to be saved, the jailer asked, with tears
in his eyes. Paul and Silas smiled. Believe in Jesus
(11:01):
and you will be saved. You and your household will
be blessed, they answered. So the jailer brought them back
to his home, and they preached the gospel to his
entire family. He hid them in his home until it
was the appointed time for them to be released. It
is time for you to leave in peace.
Speaker 4 (11:18):
The jailer said.
Speaker 3 (11:20):
The magistrates have asked for you to go quietly and
in peace, but Paul knew why they wanted them gone.
Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, and they were imprisoned
without a trial. What they had done was condemnable under
Roman law, so the magistrates were forced to apologize to
Paul and Silas. After the magistrates groveled, Paul and Silas
(11:41):
were content to leave with joy.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
We begin today's reading learning that Paul has a new
companion in ministry, a man named Silas. Paul, Silas, and
Luke were in the Roman city of thyrah Tyra, where
they were staying in a home of a new believer
named Lydia, a wealthy businesswoman who dealt in purple fabrics.
As they went about town preaching the gospel, they were
(12:08):
constantly followed by a young slave girl who was possessed
by a demon that predicted the future. Her owners used
this young girl for personal gain, unconcerned about her or
her well being, and as Paul and Silas walked through
the city, the young girl would cry out loudly for
all to hear. These men are servants of the Most
High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.
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Her words were true, but they did not come from God.
It is a reminder that all who proclaim Christ Jesus
are not true followers or true worshippers. There are false prophets,
their demon spirits that exist that proclaim a message. This
was a work of the enemy Satan himself, to distract
people from the message of Jesus and the Gospel, and
(12:52):
Paul saw write through it. Finally, when he had had enough,
he spoke to the evil spirit in this young girl.
With the authority given to him by the Holy Spirit.
He commanded the spirit the demon, to leave her, and
at once she was set free, just as Jesus had
called out demons. Paul continues the Lord's work in liberating
(13:13):
captives from the forces of evil and the powers of
Satan to experience the power of God. What a relief
this must have been for the young demonized girl. The
voices in her head had left her without peace, and
now these voices were silenced. But her masters, who profited
greatly from her condition, were very angry. Their trafficking had
(13:36):
come to a screening halt, and they knew who was
to blame, so they appealed to the local magistrate, saying
Paul and Silas were stirring up trouble and advocating practices
that were contrary to Roman law. Of course, this was
a huge lie, but when your enemies have no real
claim against you, they will come with lies and slander.
(13:57):
Once again, Paul and his friends find themselves persecuted, only
this time not by Jews but by Romans. He and
Silas were seized, beaten, and thrown into prison. But even
in this, Paul and Silas persevered with praise and saw
the opportunity to worship God as a testimony and a
witness of the power of Jesus. When bad things happened
(14:18):
to us, when circumstances turn against us, when we are
persecuted or set aside for our faith, do we continue
to praise God? Too often we miss the opportunity to
witness to the glory of God and the grace of
God in our lives, in our hardship. But Paul and
Silas didn't miss this chance. So as they sat in
their cell that night, rather than weeping and whining and
(14:42):
licking their wounds. These men sang great songs of praise
and worship, and the other prisoners could hear them lifting
up their God in the name of Jesus. We then
hear how at about midnight God sent a mighty earthquake
and rock the prison through open the prison doors and
cause the changed to fall off. All the prisoners. This
(15:03):
was their chance to escape, but they didn't. They didn't
run away. When the jailer awoke, he was certain that
the prisoners would be gone, and it would cost him
his life, because when commanders were found out that they
had not done their job, they would be executed. So
he resolved to take his own life, but Paul stepped in,
letting him know that no one had escaped. Listened to
(15:26):
the jailer's response. In Acts sixteen, verses twenty nine to thirty,
the jailer called for the lights and rushed in and
fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them
out and asked, sirs, what must I do to be saved?
That's the most important question that any one of us
can ask and be answered by the witnesses of the Gospel. Sirs,
(15:49):
what must I do to be saved. When we see
a miracle like this, when the earthquake came and shook
the house, there's a greater purpose and plan. The change
God wanted to were not merely those binding Paul and
Silas and the other prisoners, but the chains of sin
that held the jailer and his family. And as a
result of Paul's perseverance and praise, this man and his
(16:12):
entire family opened their hearts to the Gospel of Christ.
They were all saved. The men went with him to
his home, and his entire family worshiped the Lord with
the apostle Paul and Silas. And that next morning, the
magistrates that were that Paul and Silas were to be released,
they discovered that these men weren't merely Jews, but Roman citizens.
(16:34):
It is the first indication that Paul will wisely use
his Roman citizenship to advance the Gospel of Jesus far
and wide, all across the Roman Empire. And we'll hear
more about that in our next reading. Dear God, we
thank you for this great scripture in Acts chapter sixteen,
(16:54):
and the power of the Gospel to change lives. Lord,
in the midst of our trials and tribulations. May we
always praise you. You have told us to give thanks
always that we can praise you even in the darkest
of times, because when we do, You are glorified and
Jesus is magnified, and people will see and hear our witness.
(17:15):
Because of what Christ has done for us, we can
stand firm in the midst of life's greatest challenges. May
it be so in our lives. In Jesus's name. Amen.
Thank you for listening to today's Bible into your podcast,
and before we go, I wanted to let you know
that the Bible into Your Podcast is an outreach of
PowerPoint Ministries and can only come to you each week
(17:38):
through the support of listeners like you. Your support today is
so important that we want to thank you for your
gift by giving you a copy of my book called
The Jesus Book. This book is a powerful guide that
shows how every book in the Bible points to Christ
and how you can better read and understand the Bible
and how God's Word informs our lives. So to get
(18:02):
your copy of The Jesus Book, simply go to Jaggraham
dot org slash Jesus. That's Jagraham dot org. Slash Jesus
and thank you for your support.
Host
Jack Graham
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