Acts 16:16-40: Joy in a Jail Cell

Acts 16:16-40: Joy in a Jail Cell

We’ve been working our way passage by passage through the book of Acts, and today the next passage we come to is Acts 16:16-40. It says,

16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour. 19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. 24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God. 35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.” 38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. 39 So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. 40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. 

May God bless the reading of his Word.

I think it’s fair to say that just about all of us have had times in our lives when circumstances feel overwhelming. We’ve experienced things that have tested our faith in a significant way and really been a struggle to get through. Perhaps, in some instances, they’ve even brought us right up to our breaking point.

One person who comes to mind in that regard is Elisabeth Elliot. Now, I’m sure many of you have probably heard the story of her husband, Jim Elliot, the missionary who—along with four of his associates—was martyred while bringing the gospel to the Huaorani people. The Huaorani were a tribe deep in the Amazon rainforest and were commonly called “Aucas,” which means “savages,” because they were so violent. Even the other tribes in that area called them that. But five missionaries, including Jim Elliot, decided to engage this tribe with the goal of bringing the gospel to them. Unfortunately, all five of them ended up dying in the process, leaving their wives, including Elisabeth Elliot, as widows. Elisabeth was 30 years old at the time and was left to raise their 10-month-old daughter, Valerie, on her own. So that was Elisabeth’s first experience of significant suffering. However, it wouldn’t be her last. If you’ve heard the story before, you know that Elisabeth and another of the widows returned to the Huaroni tribe, successfully shared the gospel, and saw the majority of the tribe become Christians. However, what you might not have heard is that, after all of that happened, Elisabeth remarried. Her new husband was named Addison Leitch, a professor of theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. However, just three years after the couple got married, they discovered that Addison had cancer. And after ten months of fervent prayers and unsuccessful treatments, Addison finally succumbed to the cancer, leaving Elisabeth as a widow again—this time in her forties. There are also several other instances I could mention from Elisabeth’s life, but suffice it to say that this dear woman knew what it was to suffer in very deep and profound ways. 

And yet, in the midst of her suffering and heartache, she never allowed herself to lose sight of God or God’s goodness or the fact that God has a plan—as mysterious as that plan might be at times. In fact, Elisabeth was even able to rejoice in the midst of her suffering. How in the world was she able to do that? Well, to put it in her own words, “The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.” Again, “The secret [to joy in the midst of suffering] is Christ in me, not [as is so often imagined] me in a different set of circumstances.” And that truth, stated so well by Elisabeth Elliot, is precisely what we’re going to see in our main passage of Scripture this morning—Acts 16:16-40. 

To remind you of the context here, Paul and Silas are traveling from city to city on what’s often known as Paul’s second missionary journey. Last week, we read about them arriving in the city of Philippi and seeing the Lord open the heart of a woman named Lyndia to embrace the gospel, along with her entire household. We then read this about Paul and Silas’s subsequent ministry efforts in Philippi, beginning in verse 16: 16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days…. So this girl has a demon in her that’s saying things that are technically true but, in reality, are meant to mock Paul and Silas. There’s also the danger that some onlookers might get confused and think that Paul and Silas are in some sort of partnership with this demon. 

So, finally, Paul has enough of these shenanigans.  We read in the second half of verse 18 that, …Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.  Now, there’s a lot of debate about whether Christians today can still do this kind of thing. Like, if we believe that someone has a demon, should we attempt to command that demon to leave in Jesus’s name, or should we simply pray to God for the person’s deliverance? There are good theologians on both sides of the issue. 

My personal view is that I don’t see anything in the Bible that says we can’t command the demon to leave. And, also, we do see several examples in Scripture not just of Jesus issuing commands like that but also of his disciples issuing such commands—verse 18 here being just one of those examples. However, I think we should also keep in mind Paul’s instructions in Ephesians 6:10-18 about the main ways in which Christians engage in spiritual warfare. Paul outlines the various elements of what he calls “the armor of God” and presents these things as essentially a ready-made toolkit for spiritual warfare. And one of the most notable features of that toolkit is actually what’s not in the toolkit—which is any mention of speaking directly to demons or commanding them to leave. Instead, the primary ways in which we engage in spiritual warfare are astonishingly ordinary—things related to Bible reading and prayer and remaining steadfast in the gospel. So, to sum it all up, I don’t think it’s inappropriate to command demons to leave in Jesus’s name. There are situations where I’ve done that myself and have also advised other Christians to do that. However, I don’t believe that’s the central way in which we engage in spiritual warfare either. And if you have questions about that or want to know more, feel free to ask me after the service.

But, continuing on in our passage here, we read about the aftermath of this exorcism of the servant girl in verses 19-24: 19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. 24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. 

So, as you can see, the situation quickly spirals out of control. Paul and Silas are dragged out into the town square, vilified by an angry mob, stripped of their clothes, beaten with rods until their backs are a bloody mess, thrown into the maximum-security wing of the local jail, and then forced into stocks that were specifically designed to make them as uncomfortable as possible. So if any of you have ever had a gospel conversation with someone that you don’t think went very well, I’m pretty sure Paul and Silas have you beat. 

And yet, we read the most amazing thing in verse 25: “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” And it’s from that that we see the main idea of this passage come into focus, which is that the joy of knowing Jesus transcends any situation we’ll ever face. The joy of knowing Jesus transcends any situation we’ll ever face.

Now, there’s a lot we could say about this joy, but the fist thing I’d like us to observe here is that this joy wasn’t in any way the product of Paul and Silas being in denial or not feeling the weight of their circumstances. Notice in verse 25 that they were not only expressing their joy by “singing hymns to God” but were also “praying.” Although we’re not told what exactly they were praying for, it’s hard to imagine their prayers not including numerous requests for help and for God’s intervention. So they were fully aware of the dire situation they were in. And yet…they were filled with joy. How was that possible for them? And how is that possible for us? 

Well, first and foremost, it’s because of Jesus. It’s the joy specifically of knowing Jesus that transcends any situation we’ll ever face. You see, all of the earthly blessings we often enjoy can be taken away from us. Things can happen to our family and to our health and to our money and with our job and on and on we could go. None of it is ultimately secure. It can all be taken away at any moment. Yet our relationship with Jesus and the blessings we have in him can never be taken away—the blessings of being redeemed from our sins, clothed with Christ’s righteousness, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, adopted into God’s family, and made heirs of an inheritance that’s greater than we could ever imagine. These are all blessings that can never be taken away. Therefore, even when other blessings are taken away, we can rejoice in the fact that these blessings won’t be. We’ll always have Jesus and the blessings found in him. And, friends, as long as we have Jesus, we’ll never lack anything essential to our joy. As I’ve heard one preacher say, Jesus plus nothing equals everything. 

In addition to that, the Bible actually gives us reason to rejoice not only in in the midst of our suffering—as we’ve been discussing—but even in the suffering itself. And there are three specific reasons the Bible gives us to do that.

First, suffering shapes us to be more like Jesus. Romans 8:28-29 states, 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son… So “all things work together for good,” and that “good” is then defined as being “conformed to the image of [Jesus].” We also find a specific directive to rejoice in our trials in         James 1:2-4: 2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. So, again, we can rejoice in our suffering because of the way that suffering refines our character and shapes into the kind of person God wants us to be. 

At the end of the day, there are things God desires to accomplish within us that simply can’t be accomplished any other way. So he uses suffering the way a surgeon might use a scalpel—making the perfect kinds of incisions in the perfect places to accomplish his perfect purposes. You could also compare it to an ironsmith working at his trade. In order to shape the iron into something useful or beautiful, he has to heat that iron in a very hot furnace and then put it on the anvil and strike it in just the right ways with his hammer. That’s the only way the iron can become what it needs to be. Likewise, we also have to have to go through that furnace of affliction so that we’re malleable and then be hammered into shape by God. Neither one of those things feels very good, but we know that the ironsmith is faithful. 

Second, not only does suffering shape us to be more like Jesus, it also strengthens our hope of heavenly glory. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17, 16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. So the reason Paul gives for not losing heart is the role that his afflictions play in turning his attention to—and, indeed, even preparing him for—the incomparable glories of heaven. And it’s because those heavenly glories are so great that Paul’s able to refer to all of the many hardships he’s suffered on earth as “light momentary affliction.” 

Similarly, in Romans 5:3-5, Paul talks about rejoicing in suffering and specifically ties it to the way suffering strengthens our hope of heavenly glory. He writes, 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Notice the logical sequence there. Paul rejoices in his suffering because suffering produces endurance, endurance contributes to and is a key aspect of our overall character, and increasingly godly character confirms that we’re genuinely saved and thus produces greater hope within us. So, again, we see that suffering strengthens our hope of future glory. 

Then, finally, a third reason to rejoice in suffering is that suffering weans us from earthly pleasures so that we might find infinitely greater joy in Christ. It’s pretty easy—even natural—for us to get caught up in pursuing the treasures and pleasures of this world. Even though these things are lamentably shallow and temporary, they’re also right in front of us and offer some measure of immediate gratification. Yet God has a plan for weaning us off these earthly pleasures so that we can experience more of the infinitely greater pleasures found in Jesus. And God’s plan for that weaning process consists of one element that’s especially important. I’ll give you a hint: it starts with an “s” and ends with “-uffering.” You guessed it—it’s suffering that God uses for that purpose. God’s method is to temporarily take away from us everything that’s been functioning as a cheap substitute for the pleasures found in Jesus so that we’re essentially left with no other choice but to start looking to Jesus for those pleasures and that joy. 

And when God brings us to that place where Jesus is, more or less, all we have, we discover that Jesus is all we need. In fact, we discover that he’s more than all we need and that the pleasures found in Christ infinitely surpass all of the earthly pleasures that we once thought were so wonderful. It’d be kind of like taking a child who might have been having an okay time playing in their room and bringing that child to Disneyworld and giving them no choice but spend time in Disneyworld. That child might, at first, resist the idea of going to Disneyworld and tell you that they’re having fun playing in their room and don’t want to stop playing in their room. They might say that—especially if they’ve never been to Disneyworld before—but what are they almost certainly going to do once they arrive at Disneyworld and see what it’s all about? They’ll never want to leave the park, right? Because the fun to be had at Disneyworld vastly surpasses the fun to be had playing in their room. And the same is true for us when God takes away certain earthly pleasures. He’s actually showing his love for us by weaning us off of lesser pleasures so that we’ll discover in greater measure the infinitely superior pleasures that are found in Christ. As David says to God in Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” No other pleasures rival the pleasures found in Christ—and suffering drives us to the full enjoyment of those pleasures.

So these are three of the key reasons why we, as Christians, can rejoice in our suffering. Suffering shapes us to be more like Jesus, strengthens our hope of heavenly glory, and weans us from earthly pleasures so we can find infinitely greater joy in Christ. Of course, that’s not to say suffering isn’t difficult. Sometimes, it’s incredibly difficult—even to the point of being almost unbearable. But someone who has Jesus has infinitely more to rejoice in when they’re at their worst than someone who doesn’t have Jesus has to rejoice in when they’re at their best. Again, someone who has Jesus has infinitely more to rejoice in when they’re at their worst than someone who doesn’t have Jesus has to rejoice in when they’re at their best. 

And when we’re able to rejoice in Christ even when life’s difficult, that also says something to the people around us. It’s a powerful testimony to those who aren’t yet Christians about the difference Jesus has made in our life and the difference he can make in their life as well. 

Returning to our main passage in Acts 16, look at verses 25-34: 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God. We then read in verses 35-40 that the city magistrates gave orders to release Paul and Silas, and, at Paul’s request, even personally escorted them out of the jail as a public recognition of their innocence.

But going back to verse 25, look at the effect that Paul and Silas’s rejoicing had on the other prisoners. It says that, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” So the other prisoners were fascinated by Paul and Silas’s behavior. I imagine they were probably wondering, “What’s up with these two guys? Don’t they know they’re in jail?” Many of them were probably more than a little intrigued about how Paul and Silas could have such joy even in the midst of such suffering.  

Then, a few verses later, we see the effect Paul and Silas’s behavior had on the jailer. Not only did Paul and Silas rejoice in the midst of their suffering, but when the earthquake hit, they saw the situation not as an opportunity for escape but as an opportunity for witness. So they stayed right where they were. And, sure enough, verses 29-30 record how the jailer fell down trembling before Paul and Silas and asked them, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

Now, I don’t know how many jailers you’ve encountered, but from what I’ve experienced in my ministry at the Allegheny County Jail, jailers are usually pretty tough-skinned people who have seen a lot of things and dealt with a lot of things and aren’t afraid to speak their minds and “tell it like it is” whether someone likes it or not. They don’t mess around. And I’d imagine jailers in the first century were probably similar to that. So what convinced this jailer to approach Paul and Silas the way he did? Well, there were probably several factors at work here. First of all, Paul had literary just saved this guy’s life. A few moments earlier, the jailer had thought his life was over. You see, Roman law dictated that any jailer who let prisoners escape would receive the same punishment those prisoners would have received—in many cases, death. So, that’s why verse 27 records the jailer getting ready to kill himself before Paul calls out to him and stops him. 

However, I believe another very important factor in the jailer’s conversion was the remarkable joy Paul and Silas exhibited even when they were sitting in their jail cell before the earthquake hit. Jesus had changed Paul and Silas in a radical way through the gospel so that they now had a unique kind of joy. And this joy stood out as an anomaly from anything else that jailer had ever seen. 

And likewise, today, when we’re in the midst of suffering, what a powerful testimony it is when we, as Christians, exhibit a joy that transcends our circumstances. Don’t underestimate the impact you can have on the people around you by the way you respond to suffering. Will you continue trusting God and finding your strength in God and even praising God in the midst of whatever trials may come your way? That will make a greater impact on the people around you than almost anything else you could do or say. If you want to show someone who’s not yet a Christian that the gospel has real power to change people’s lives, let them see you rejoice in your sufferings. That’ll probably speak more powerfully to them than a hundred other conversations ever could.

And maybe that’s even part of God’s purpose for allowing you to go through that suffering. Have you ever considered that? Have you ever considered the possibility that God may have allowed that trial into your life, at least in part, specifically because he wants you to rejoice in the midst of that suffering and thereby bear witness to people in your life about the God you worship and the gospel you believe? 

So let me encourage you, no matter what your circumstances may be, to vigorously, relentlessly pursue joy in Christ. Push through anything and everything that might be weighing you down and fight for that joy every day. It might be a battle, but it’s a battle worth fighting. 

And, as I’ve already alluded to several times, the ultimate source of our joy is Jesus. Understand that there’s not a single path of suffering you’ll ever travel that Jesus hasn’t already traveled ahead of you. He knows from experience how broken and messed up this world is. He lived in it for 33 years and experienced—among other things—the premature death of his father, financial hardship, temptation from Satan, exclusion from society, the scorn and slander of his enemies, betrayal by one of his closest friends, and, of course, the public humiliation and excruciating pain of his death on the cross. So whatever you’ve experienced, Jesus has been there. He’s felt your pain and offers to walk with you on that journey every step of the way. There’s never a single moment where he’s not present with his people in their suffering.

Yet, that’s not all. Jesus has endured not just what we’ve endured but, in reality, far more than we’ll ever endure—because, as Jesus was crucified on that cross, he endured not just the physical pain of crucifixion, which itself is beyond our comprehension, but also the full, undiluted wrath of God the Father against sin. You see, our sins deserved God’s judgement. We might even say they cried out for God’s judgement. But Jesus suffered that judgment in our place on the cross. He loved us so much that he took on himself the judgment we deserved. Then, of course, after Jesus died and was buried, he didn’t stay in the grave but rose triumphant from the dead. As a result, we also can share in that cosmic victory as we repent of our sins and put our trust in him. 

So, in case you're ever tempted to doubt the love of Christ for you in the midst of your suffering, just look at the cross and see what he suffered to purchase your redemption. Even when you had rebelled against him, he voluntarily took on himself the judgment for your sin. If that's not irrefutable evidence of his love, then I don't know what it is. You may not be able to understand everything you're going through, but you can still have the unshakable confidence that God loves you and is with you and for you in the midst of it all.