Zambia Hunt

Acts 16:19-34

No thinking person would go to the chemist with a prescription and have the chemist take all the various medicines off the shelf and lay them on the counter and then say to you, ‘choose whatever you like, whatever feels right to you.’

Neither must we, as New Testament prophets of Almighty God, stand and offer to you a theology of salvation made up to your liking. There is but one God and one way to Heaven, and those who add or take away from this are in error and must repent of their great crime against a sovereign and holy God.

Satan sought to compromise the gospel of Paul by associating it with the Greek god Apollo. The slave girl followed the messengers of Jehovah, authenticating their message with the words, “These men are servants of the Most High God who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” This diabolical plot of Satan to join himself to the messengers of the truth, thus equating himself and his message on the same level as God and his message, was thwarted by the casting out of the demon spirit of divination.

A compromised message is not a compassionate message – it is the ‘doctrine of demons.’ 1 Timothy 4:1 warns: “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.” Just as H2O is water but H1O is an explosive gas, the difference is the removal of just one part hydrogen. Likewise, any addition or removal from the doctrine of salvation destroys it. It cannot, it must not be tampered with.

Any stand for God and truth will not be popular and will bring about opposition. Those who reach out in compassion to deliver those in bondage to sin and Satan will face persecution from the world and her god.

Let’s discover this morning how God turns persecution into triumph!

The Persecution They Faced

Their motive was greed for gain. This message affected their exploitation of the girl and the people of Philippi. 1 Timothy 6:10 reminds us: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

They did not care for the slave girl and the world does not care for you! They only want to use you to their own ends. The powerful and wealthy have throughout history taken advantage of the weak and poor. The world is not happy when someone they are using is set free in Christ. They are filled with rage at the affect it has upon their own selfish agenda.

Their methods were corrupt. They made false accusations – racial accusations claiming “Jews exceedingly trouble us” and cultural accusations about “customs” – the rites, manners, the habits and manners of life, the way we live (Acts 6:14, Hebrews 10:25).

They incited the people – multitudes and magistrates. Then came incarceration – they beat Paul and Silas and threw them in jail.

The world is not a friend of the gospel, God or His people. Three teen girls on their way home from a Christian school in Indonesia were attacked and beheaded on October 29, 2005. This is the reality we face.

John 7:7 explains: “The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.” John 15:18-19 adds: “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 17:14 states: “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” And 1 John 3:13 counsels: “Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you.”

Though man is motivated by selfishness and greed and dominated by sin, God uses them nonetheless to further His gospel message.

The Praise That Rose Up

We find it easy to praise God in the hour of great blessing or miraculous answer to prayer. When the poor are provided a satisfying meal, they can praise God (Psalm 22:26). “I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works” (Psalm 9:1).

But here they were in prison – wrongly accused, unjustly imprisoned. At midnight – the darkest hour, in painful condition – and they were praising God!

Are you willing to face persecution if it will provide an opportunity to praise God and proclaim His name?

The nature of their praise was a blending of petition and praise. In the New Testament, we get the word doxology from this word – a good opinion of one resulting in praise, honor, and glory. In the Old Testament, it means a song or hymn of praise, adoration, and thanksgiving to God. To praise means ‘to give thanks with the mouth.’

1 Thessalonians 5:18 commands: “In everything give thanks (to be grateful, to feel thankful) for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Romans 5:11 says: “And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.” See also Hebrews 13:12-15.

Their praise was public – the prisoners were listening, and the word means to listen with pleasure, wondrously attractive. Psalm 40:3 says: “He has put a new song in my mouth– Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD.”

The Proclamation That Followed

God engineered the great opportunity. Through an earthquake, He opened the prison doors and loosened everyone’s chains. Paul seized the opportunity when the jailer, thinking all had escaped, was about to kill himself.

The great question came: “What must I do to be saved?” This is the deep burden on the heart of mankind (Romans 1:18).

Saved means to rescue from danger or destruction, to deliver from the penalties of Messianic judgment, to save from the evils which obstruct the reception of Messianic deliverance.

The great answer – the only answer – was given. There are many answers to this question but only one is the right answer! Some say trust Christ and live the Christian life. Others say be baptized, take communion, and become a member of the church. Still others say to do good works.

But Paul’s answer was simple: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” (31)

Believe means to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to place confidence in – used in the New Testament of the conviction and trust to which a man is impelled by a certain inner and higher prerogative and law of the soul.

The object of this faith is the Lord Jesus Christ:

• Lord – sovereign ruler, owner of all
• Jesus – Jehovah is salvation
• Christ – anointed, Messiah

The origin of this faith came as they spoke the Word to them. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).

The great assurance was given: “You will be saved” – is the absolute surety found in 1 John 5:11-13. The message is also for all in the household: Wife, children, house help, yard workers, everyone.

The Power That Transformed

There were changed actions. The jailer showed kindness and caring for others – he washed their stripes. There was immediate obedience to God – he was baptized. He provided service to others – brought them to his house and gave them food.

There were changed attitudes. Joy was a result of believing in God through Jesus Christ. This joy is not manufactured by outside influences – entertainment, acquisitions etc. “Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice” (Philippians 4:4).

The Protection That Came

God provided protection against false accusations and against future assailants. When the magistrates sent word to release them, Paul demanded they come personally since they had beaten Roman citizens without trial – turning the tables on their accusers.

The Challenge for Today

Have you received the answer to the great question: what must I do to be saved? The answer remains the same today as it was in that Philippian jail – believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.

Are you willing to suffer persecution for the opportunity to praise God and proclaim the gospel?

Paul and Silas discovered that God can turn the darkest persecution into the brightest triumph. Their imprisonment became an opportunity for praise that attracted listeners. Their suffering opened doors for proclamation that led to salvation. Their persecution revealed God’s power to transform lives and provide protection.

The same God who turned their midnight into morning, their prison into a pulpit, and their persecution into triumph stands ready to do the same in your life. The question is not whether persecution will come to those who stand for truth – it will. The question is whether we will respond with praise, proclamation, and trust in God’s power to turn every persecution into triumph.

Sermon transcript edits by Claude.ai