When we concluded yesterday we found Paul and Silas singing the Lord's praises as they sat locked in stocks inside a prison cell. Today the Lord sets them free.
"Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. All at once the prison doors flew open, and everyone's chains came loose." (Acts 16:26) This is a miracle of Almighty God. A natural earthquake might be able to cause the doors to come loose from their frames, but it wouldn't be able to unlock the chains that held the prisoners to the walls inside their cells. But God is about to do more than loose physical shackles; He is going to set souls free from spiritual bondage.
The jailer has been sleeping, perhaps lulled into a peaceful slumber by the songs of Paul and Silas. "The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, 'Don't harm yourself! We are all here!'" (Acts 16:27-28) The jailer's superiors would have had the right to put him to death for losing prisoners who were in his custody. Potentially he was facing a long and torturous and shameful death by crucifixion. No wonder he preferred the idea of perishing by his own hand! We also have to keep in mind that in the pagan world suicide was regarded as an honorable death. Quite a few ancient kings and generals put themselves to death after losing wars, feeling it was the only honorable thing to do after failing to keep hold of their nation's security. Falling on his sword would have allowed the jailer to regain his lost dignity and it would have kept his family from being treated as outcasts.
Paul and Silas don't go anywhere when their chains and stocks fall off. Neither do the other prisoners. This in itself is quite a miracle. The natural instinct of anyone would be to run away as quickly as possible. But everyone in the jail seems to recognize they are in the presence of holiness. The God of Paul and Silas has shown up.
Luke doesn't tell us whether the other men in the jail come to faith in Christ or not, but the jailer does. "The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'" (Acts 16:29-30) The jailer has heard of what Paul and Silas have been doing in the region. He knows they've been preaching the gospel down by the river and baptizing new believers. He knows many lives have been changed by the gospel message. He knows a slave girl has been set free from demon possession by the name of Jesus Christ. He's witnessed the peace and the faith of these beaten men as they sang the praises of their God in the night. He felt something sacred while he listened to their songs. He saw the power of their God as He shook the prison and opened doors and unlocked chains. Falling down before Paul and Silas in an attitude of repentance, he is sorry for his mistreatment of them. He's sorry for the empty way he's been conducting his life. No god he has ever worshiped has loosed a prisoner, either literally or figuratively. He wants what Paul and Silas have. He wants to know the one true God and the salvation that comes through Jesus Christ.
"They replied, 'Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved---you and your household.' Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God---he and his whole household." (Acts 16:31-34) Paul prophetically foresees that the jailer and his entire family are going to believe the gospel message when they hear it. They do believe, and the jailer proves to us that his heart has been changed when he washes and dresses the wounds of Paul and Silas. Then he serves food to them in his own kitchen. He considers them worthy of honor and friendship. He doesn't look down on them for being Jews like the owners of the slave girl did. He doesn't consider them unworthy of civil rights as so many of the citizens of Philippi did. He offers them his respect as the ministers of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
What happened to the Philippian jailer and his family after their conversion? The Bible doesn't tell us, but I don't believe the authorities did any harm to him. In tomorrow's study Paul will announce the fact of his and Silas's Roman citizenship and the magistrates will be horrified to learn they have broken a number of laws by seizing, beating, and jailing Roman citizens without conducting a legal trial. At that point the magistrates will want to hush the whole matter up. They may or may not believe the story that the Lord opened the doors and loosed the chains, but the last thing they want is for Rome to hear about this. I think the Philippian jailer and his family were safe and that they shared the saving message of the gospel of Jesus Christ with others in their community. I believe they were responsible for the coming to faith of many of their fellow citizens.
Paul and Silas could have announced their Roman citizenship from the outset and saved themselves from a vicious beating and a night in jail. But then the souls of the jailer and his family wouldn't have been saved. The souls of those with whom the jailer and his family will share the gospel wouldn't have been saved. Paul and Silas demonstrate a sacrificial, Christlike love for their fellow man by putting the fate of human souls above their own comfort and well-being. I don't know of any way we can be more like Jesus than by putting the needs of others above our own.
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