Through the Bible - Exodus 29-30, Matthew 22:1-22
Good morning,
Sometimes the trials and temptations we face make us feel like we're being oppressed, virtually locked up in our emotions with no chance or opportunity of escape from the gloom.
For today's verse we'll go to Acts 16 where Paul and Silas had been beaten and thrown in prison for taking a stand for their faith, with no conceiveable way out. Their actions may startle you, it startled the other prisoners, who must have wondered what brought this joy in the aftermath of their being beaten and thrown in jail, into the inner dungeon with their feet placed in stocks.
Acts 16:25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. 26 Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! NLT
The way we react to our difficulties, the chains that can keep us down and rob us of joy, will be observed by others. No matter what we face, no prsion, no prison of circumstance is too difficult, for God to break through and deliver.
J.R. Miller wrote in 1904:
Blessings,There is no prison too strong for God to break open;
there are no chains too heavy for Him to snap asunder,
there are no walls too thick for Him to shatter.
There are other kinds of prisons besides those built
with stone--prisons of trial, of temptation, of trouble,
of circumstances. If we are in any of these prisons,
God is just as able to bring us out of them!
Chris Tomlin captures the feeling in his modernization of the hymn "Amazing Grace".
My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace
Notice what else happens in the passage. Not only did the chains fall off of Paul and Silas, they fell of the other prisoners as well. If God delivers you, when you are freed from your fears, what might be the effect it has on those who are watching you?
Blessings,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
mikesvotd.blogspot.com Acts 16:22-32
22 A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods. 23 They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn't escape. 24 So the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks.
25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. 26 Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! 27 The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. 28 But Paul shouted to him, "Stop! Don't kill yourself! We are all here!"
29 The jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
31 They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household." NLT
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