Tuesday, October 14 – Acts 16:27-29
- Josh Breslaw
- Oct 13
- 1 min read
As Christians, we are supposed to think of others more than ourselves. The spirit of worship that Paul and Silas were in when the earthquake came allowed them to think of the jailer above themselves.
The Romans were not forgiving people. If the prisoners escaped, they would have killed the jailer for his negligence. The excuse of an earthquake unfastening their bonds was not good enough. So, when the jailer thought that the prisoners had escaped, he was going to kill himself. I imagine falling on his sword would have been a quicker way to die than whatever form of execution the Romans came up with.
Paul and Silas had every opportunity to escape. And obviously, God wanted them to be free. He sent an earthquake! But Paul and Silas care about the life of the jailer, so they stay. Because the other prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas sing and pray, they recognized that this was also from God. They’re afraid to do anything other than what Paul and Silas do, so they stay as well.
Worship prepares you to listen to God and care for others. Worshipping God prepares your heart to do the hard work, even when that hard work benefits others more than it benefits you. Worship or serving God puts you in the right frame of mind to make a godly decision. In this circumstance, the godly decision was not to escape the prison. And that choice by Paul and Silas had eternal effects. We will read that part of the story tomorrow.
Comments