The most important question of my life
They said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household."
—Acts 16:31
What causes someone to trust you with the most important question of their life?
"What must I do to be saved?" is the question the Roman jailer poses in the sixteenth chapter of the book of Acts. He has contributed to the incarceration of Paul and Silas by throwing them into the innermost prison after they have been stripped bare and beaten severely with rods. He knows that society is against them, as the crowd and the authorities in Philippi have sanctioned their punishment for disrupting business and profit.
What a confusing scene that leads to the prison sentence for Paul and Silas, as a slave girl who practices fortunetelling to collect money for her masters follows Paul and his delegation, publicly affirming that they are men of God and their message is valid. However, every spirit that gives affirmation is not of God. After a few days of hearing her speak highly of them, Paul became greatly annoyed and turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" The spirit came out immediately. Paul did not need the affirmation, the kind words, the flattery of this spirit, nor of one led by this spirit to do the Lord's work.
Here is a crucial lesson for us: while extending the mission of Christ, we do not need the affirmation of those who are against Christ. In our lives, we may each face our fork-in-the-road moments where our ministry must discard the confusion and lack of clarity generated by an antichrist spirit to continue the mission.
Once her masters saw their hope of profit was gone, they turned on Paul and Silas and handed them to the jailer. However, after being dismissed by society for speaking the truth, after being beaten with many blows, and being sent into the depths of a dark prison, Paul and Silas are praying and singing hymns of praise to God at midnight.
History teaches us that when the politics of society and the actions of oppression have accosted the freedom of God's children, the soul will often sing. It's in singing that we see the hope of God. It's in the melody where we become satisfied with God's abiding presence, knowing that my singular life has a purpose. It's in the harmonies where we experience the joyful communion with God, knowing that I'm not alone and that my life abides in His and His in mine. Even when our earthly freedoms halt, our heavenly freedoms persist even through our song.
Paul and Silas didn't let their environment or societal pressure dictate their faith in God. There is power in knowing that our environments and circumstances are subject to God because He is in control. Their song moved heaven, and God dispatched angels to bring deliverance.
The deliverance was not only for those imprisoned geographically but for those imprisoned spiritually. Upon the angels' arrival, a great earthquake shook the prison, loosening the chains, yet the prisoners remained. They desired the true freedom that Paul and Silas presented to them: the gift of eternal life. The jailer woke to see the doors open, instantly assuming the prisoners had escaped. However, Paul and Silas assured him everyone was present and accounted for. He knew that the penalty for losing a prisoner was the loss of his own life, and when he recognized that there was a freedom more significant than the freedom he was preventing, he fell and asked the question, "What must I do to be saved?" Paul and Silas responded succinctly with the foundational statement of our freedom in Christ, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved…"
What causes someone to trust you with the most important question of their life? They trust you enough to ask the question, and they trust the answer that will come from you because they see how Christ lives in you.
May the Lord bless us with His Holy Spirit so that we can be trusted by those who seek true freedom.
Action Item
The ministry of Paul and Silas was not popular, as it ran counter to Philippian business and culture. However, at every turn, their ministry yielded fruit as they shared the freedom of Christ, which brought deliverance to the girl, the prisoners, the jailer, and his household. Take a moment to ponder what lessons of freedom and salvation you can learn from this story. Create a list and reflect on these lessons as you continue the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus Christ.
—Carl Ricketts Jr., MDiv, BCC, is director of Chaplain Services for Loma Linda University Medical Center.
