Acts 16:32-40 – 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 34 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. 35 When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.” 38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. 40 After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.
“Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 34 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.” Sometimes people wear their suits a little too tight. Some want to overthink, and miss think, V31. What Paul and Silas replied to the jailer was for him to believe in the Lord Jesus and then he and his family would be saved. Isn’t that God’s design? The father comes to the Lord and his family likewise comes. No-one said that people could be saved without Jesus. The meaning clearly is that the jailer should believe and he would be saved and that his family would believe and likewise be saved. Let’s not split hairs, but rejoice in what the Lord did. He saved this man and his family. These people were lost, and then they were saved! Praise God.
When the joy of God lives within, jailers become healers. He took Paul and Silas to his home and lovingly made sure their wounds were addressed. Then he fed them a meal. How wonderful for Paul and Silas to be moved from being falsely accused, beaten, flogged and shackled and cuffed in jail to being lovingly cared for and surrounded by Brothers and Sisters who loved them. It is not a wrong reach to think that they, and the new converts, spent the night praising God in joyous song and praise! Praise God!
“When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” The jailer was happy to announce to them that God had moved and caused the magistrates to want to release Paul and Silas. God was indeed moving. The devil thought to destroy Paul and Silas but God turned it all around. God is faithful. When we pray for relief, and He seems to be silent, it is then the practice of listening for God and hearing Him, and the practice of looking for God and seeing Him, even when others cannot, is a discipline and gift from God that shines brightly and is dearly clutched. It would have been easy for the missionaries to become inconsolable, but instead they praised God and saw what physical eyes could not see, and physical ears could not hear, but spiritual eyes and ears could (Hebrews 11:1, Ephesians 6:12, 2 Corinthians 4:18).
“37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.” 38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.” What none of the magistrates had known is that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. It was bad enough the way Paul and Silas had been treated, but the fear would strike the magistrates as they discovered they had illegally treated Roman citizens. Isn’t this so like bullies? So the magistrates came quickly from their luxurious homes to apologize and escort Paul and Silas from prison, lest the magistrates lose their positions of authority, lose their homes and perhaps even lose their freedom. Yes, they came quickly to do as Paul demanded they do. The worm had turned. Not by the will of man but by the will of God.
Here we can draw from Paul’s actions concerning possible events in our life. While we surely are called to forgive (Matthew 6:14) and even at times not claim our rights (1 Corinthians 6:7-8) and so follow the example of Jesus our Christ, Paul did claim his rights as a Roman citizen. In doing so it is thought that he may have been doing so to benefit those Brothers and Sisters who would remain there. These authorities had thought they would not be challenged to beat and imprison Christians because they, the authorities, did not like what was being preached. That being so, they were likely to repeat, without reserve or remorse, the beating of Christians. That would mean Christians who lived there would be in peril of receiving like punishment. By standing up for their own rights, Paul and Silas were setting a precedence that Christians should not be attacked upon whim, or just because what they were saying was disagreed with. Paul also set an example that there are times when Christians in our day may also claim our legal rights. Of course, this should all be done as led by God. Sometimes we may forego a legal challenge, and other times we may vigorously pursue them. Yes, be humble. Yes, put others first. But no, being a Christian does not mean we have lost our legal rights.
So that we don’t become overly litigious let us remember that the example Jesus gave was that he did forego his legal rights so that the will of God would be done. Jesus chose to suffer indignities, torture and even death for our benefit and that the will of God would be done. Let us with humility and love consider all such things. Let’s believe that God is in control. And yes, when it is right, let us claim our rights. Let God be the guide. Let our motivation in all things be to praise and honor God (1 Corinthians 10:31). As we have seen from these scriptures, God is in control and watching over all that are His.
“After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.” Paul and Silas went to Lydia’s house to encourage them. What the enemy meant for evil, what evil he caused, he thought was a victory. But as with the life of Jesus, God turned it all around. The worm did turn (Psalm 22:6). Jesus who was murdered rose from the dead and will soon be coming back to bring justice for all, and to all. Jesus endured out of obedience to God, for His glory, and for our salvation. May we endeavor to live our lives as Jesus lived and thus be a living praise and testimony to our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. Praise God.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob withPsalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
Acts 16:31-40 – They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 34 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. 35 When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.” 38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. 40 After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.
“They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Scripture interprets scripture. Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” If we believe, we believe. Nothing in the Bible explicitly contradicts this verse, there is no “wait and see” condition. What kind of comfort would that bring if after making a confession of belief and faith in Jesus we were then told to not be too sure of ourselves, and that we must see if our faith is borne out by the perseverance of our faith and belief. If that were true, and it is not, then there would be no assurance of our faith. In fact, it is not a Christian teaching, but it is a teaching of the cults. Neophytes are often asked before being baptized if they know that they are saved. They are baptized by the confession of their faith in Jesus. Because 1 John 5:13 clearly states “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” We see that upon the confession of our belief and faith in Jesus we then are to know that we are saved. Not in the future, but right then we may know it. The Word promises that if we believe in Jesus we are saved. We do not have to wait to see if our belief, our faith holds out, we are saved right then and there. Upon our confession of belief and faith in the works and person of Jesus, we are saved. Then we have the peace that belongs to people who know and love the Lord.
We know that we are saved solely by faith (Ephesians 2:8). So since we are saved by faith do we then need to remain in faith by working hard to maintain the faith? No, no, no! (Galatians 3:1-3) We are saved and kept in faith by God (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Galatians 5:16-17, 1 Peter 1:2, 1 Corinthians 6:11). Part of the mystery of the grace of God is that God requires us to have faith in Jesus to be saved (Hebrews 11:6). However, that could be seen as a condition that we have to meet to be saved. But the faith that we have comes from God (Romans 12:3). He is the one who offers grace to us and He alone is the one who creates and builds that faith so that we are enabled to believe. So God is the Great One who really has done it all, but yet credits us as if we have done something of merit. Also, as some who do not understand and so wrongly deduce, that would mean that, since grace is totally of God, since the faith we have is totally a work of God and not of ourselves, then those who do not come to Him must have been created for eternal damnation and they never had a chance to come to Him in faith. But do not be deceived, that assumption is incorrect, perhaps coming close to blasphemy against our Holy God. If what they believe were true, than the Word of God that says that Jesus died for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16), and that God does not want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9), are erroneous statements of scripture. That would mean that scripture contradicts scripture. And that would mean that some of the Word of God is wrong. And that would mean that what we have is not the Word of God. If what we have is not the wholly the Word of God but has errors, then what we have is not from an omniscient and omnipotent God. And, Family, that would mean we have no assurance at all. Scripture is either infallible, or we have no foundation for our faith.
Therefore, as the Word of God testifies, all that believe on the Lord Jesus as Savior and Lord are saved immediately. There is not waiting to see if we will “hang in there.” It is plain, that when we believe on Jesus in this way we are immediately saved from being eternally separated from God (Romans 10:13, John 3:15). There is not a test to see if the belief and the faith of the person stands. People who confess Jesus are immediately saved. That is an eternal truth.
Some may ask but what of the person who renounces faith, and lives a reprobate life, and never repents of their rebellion of God? What of them? Well, that is another topic which could be reviewed. The question here is does God say what He means and mean what He says. The answer to that is “Yes! Yes He does.” So what Peter and Silas had said to the jailer regarding the requirements of salvation, that one need only to believe in Jesus to be saved is true. Believe and be saved at that very moment. Because we can believe and trust what God said that we are then saved, then we can have the peace of God that transcends all understanding and that peace will be ours, right there and right then. Right then we can take as our own this promise from Jesus “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30) We have a right to the assurance of our salvation from the moment we believe in Jesus as our Savior and Lord. No waiting. Don’t let anyone steal your peace. Believe in Jesus and be saved. Then we have the peace of God and we look forward to an eternity with God. We can and do because of Jesus. Only because of Jesus.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob withEphesians 2:10 “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do
In the morning when I rise,
In the morning when I rise,
“Son, my son, where are you?”
“Here, Lord, Here I am,
In the bushes,”
“Why are you there?”
“Because I am naked.”
“How do you know that?”
“I ate the forbidden fruit.”
“It’s time to stop hiding,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
Come to me.”
“Abram! Abram!”
“Here I am Lord.”
“Where are you?”
“I am in the Land
Of my Fathers.”
“Come out,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have prepared you,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
Come to me.”
“Moses! Moses!”
“Here I am Lord.”
“Take off your sandals.
I’ll have nothing between
You and I.
I am the God of Your Father
“Come out,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have prepared you,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
Come to me.”
“Samuel! Samuel”
“Speak, for your servant is listening.”
“Where have you been?”
“Preparing to serve you Lord.
Serving under the High Priest.”
“Rise up Samuel,
It is your appointed time.
“Come out,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have prepared you,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
Come to me.”
“Saul! Saul!”
“Yes Lord”
“Why do you fight
Against me?
I am Jesus
Whom you have been
Fighting against
“Come out,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have prepared you,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
Come to me.”
“Child, my Child
Where are you?”
“Here I am Lord.”
“What are you doing?”
“I am here waiting and
Listening for You Lord.”
“What do you desire
From me?”
“Only your desire
For my life.
I seek to go from
Or to stay,
I am Your servant,
Called by You,
Prepared For You,
To do Your will.”
“Why do You want
To do my will?”
“Because I am Yours,
I live to please You.
Your wish Oh Lord,
Is my desire.”
“Child,
Beloved Child,
“Come out,
Come out from there.
Rise up,
I have prepared you,
I have plans for you,
To move forward.
Come out, come to me,
It’s time,
In the morning when I rise,
In the morning when I rise,
In the morning when I rise,
Give me Jesus.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
Acts 16:25-30 – About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27 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. 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” 29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” Lied about. Beaten with rods. Flogged to slice open their skin. Imprisoned into filthy conditions with untreated wounds. Bruised and bloody. Paul and Silas did not dwell on themselves as being the world’s victims, but on themselves being those who are victors through the blood of Jesus. Jesus died and gave them an eternal victory that none in the world, or in the spiritual realm could take away (Romans 8:37-39). They may have been beaten and imprisoned with open bleeding wounds in a filthy cell, but they were not defeated. They did not sing the blues but sang praises to God. They laughed, they cried tears of joy, for their Savior and Lord had never left them. They did not doubt. They did not curse God that He had allowed them to be wronged. They praised Him that He would consider them worthy of continuing His legacy of having been rejected, tortured and killed by the world. Jesus died to save the world (John 3:17), including the ones who tortured and killed Him (Romans 5:8). The Holy Spirit, who ministered to Jesus and who raised Him from the dead, was also with them. They were being allowed to share in, to continue the ministry of Jesus to the world. They couldn’t be happier! How dare anyone call themselves lovers of Jesus, His disciples, and then doubt Him or even yell at Him in anger because we don’t understand. None of us fully understand. How dare any pastors or teachers say it is okay to do so! It is not okay to doubt and scream angrily at Jesus because we don’t understand, or refuse to understand. Doing that is natural, but natural is not Godly. Doubting and being angry at God is a sin, whatever the reason. Can the sin be forgiven? Yes, of course, but it is still a sin. Those who tortured and killed Him and demanded His death yelled at Him. Let’s not be counted with them, as those who do such a thing. All the understanding we ever need is found in the Gospel. The Gospel has the answer for every hurt and every injustice. He whom we call Savior and Lord suffered more. He being innocent did it for us who are guilty. Let’s not doubt or be angry at God, but know beyond all doubt that He is always good to us and He always loves us. Let that be our guide and not doubt and anger. God is good and He loves us!
“Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.” Imagine the scene. It is late and even the guard was sleeping. But not Paul and Silas, they could still be heard praying and praising God in song. Not in loud voices meant to keep all the other prisoners awake, but in joyful but considerate voices. They did not have inconsideration as they praised God, which would have been contrary to the Holy Spirit who lifted their souls. They just had to praise God. They could not be silenced by the injustice they had just gone through. They had a heavenly perspective in their minds and hearts and nothing in this world could change that. Oh praise God! How we long to live out our faith, how we long to live out our love and gratitude to Jesus, in such a way. Lord Jesus, please prepare my heart that whatever may come I will be found, in any circumstance, to be praising You. Certainly there are more hard times ahead, but always in those times, and through those times, and beyond those times, You are with me, loving me, protecting me, and continuing with me in every step on the journey home to be forever with the Father, You, and Your blessed Holy Spirit. When the earthquake happened and the prison doors flew open and the chains fell off them, they did not immediately flee their situation because though their bodies suffered their spirits soared in the freedom and beauty that they lived in through Jesus. What about those chains? Okay, it could have been that the chains were shaken off the wall during the “violent earthquake.” But that would not cause the chains to fall off of them. But their chains that bound them fell to the ground. How wonderfully symbolic that as God had already freed them from the spiritual chains that bound them He also, through His own unlimited power, freed them from the physical chains that bound them. Nothing can bind of slow down the Christian who is ministering by and in the will of God.
“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.” The sleeping jailer who considered his prisoners secured by chains and prison cell, woke up to find the doors to the cells open and he naturally assumed his prisoners had fled. That would mean shame and death to him. He thought instead of going through the shame, the beatings and the death sentence he would just end his life right there. Of course his prisoners had fled. Who wouldn’t have? Why would they not?
“But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” 29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.” Somehow, before the lights were called to turned on, there was enough light in jail for Paul to see the jailer about to kill himself. Paul, to save him, called out to him. This man, who was an employee of the government who had beaten and imprisoned them, Paul had compassion for and called out to save him. This should not surprise us, Paul was in the business of calling out to people to save them. Paul, in preaching the Gospel, every day was calling out to save the souls of people who were about to kill their own everlasting souls. He did that because of the love of God living within him. This jailer, or the men who beat and flogged him, were loved no less than any other Paul ministered to. Jesus died to save the souls of all people and Paul counted every shed drop of the blood of Jesus as precious. He lived to continue to fulfill the mission of Jesus. None, even the most hateful, the most despicable, were out of the eye of Jesus when He died for the sins of all. Yes, Paul loved his jailer and did what flowed from his heart, he called out to save him.
“The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” The amazed jailer called for the lights and ran to Paul and Silas and fell before them, trembling at what had just happened. He had heard of supernatural miracles that had been performed through these men. He had seen how they had suffered the indignities of the false accusations. He, like surely many who had been at the trial, saw through the lies of the accusers. He had seen and heard that these men had not become forlorn, they had not become angry and denounced God, they had not lost their joy and they had not lost their peace as they had sang praises to God. They had even thanked Jesus for being counted worthy to suffer in His name. Before the earthquake the jailer thought it a strange curiosity. After the earthquake, and after their obvious concern for his welfare, the jailer understand that these men truly were representatives of the one and only God. Realizing that, he wanted to know what must he do to be saved? They had shown their care for him, now he trusted them to tell him how to save his immortal soul. And this, Family, is why walk in faith every moment of our lives. This is why we, not being omniscient, unfailingly live in faith in the One who is Omniscient.
The Gospel that saves us, the Gospel we live in, is the product of the infinite wisdom and knowledge of God for the saving of all who will come. Oh Family, what more do we need to be firmly convinced that God is always good and that He always loves us? Praise God and never doubt. We have more reason to have faith than to doubt. Praise God and do not doubt! Yes, always and in all circumstances, praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob withNothing can hurt me,
I’m impervious to the attacks
Walking on any street
Not worrying about being
Attacked or beat
Bring it on I think
Man or woman
I can use jiu-jitsu
Borrowed from Him
To turn it around
Not afraid from
Assault from
Right or left
No need to worry
Says me
And then it happened
From a friendly face
Kryptonite was found
In what I trusted
Instantly I sensed
My weakening
In an instant
It was too late
I thought I could
Fight the power
Of the Kryptonite
I deceived only
Myself
Or was I
Deceived
Perhaps I was willing
To surrender
To fall down
And die
To stay near to
Kryptonite
That instantly became
Dear
My heart reached
And grabbed for
What would hurt me
What would kill me
But I could not stop
Desiring to be close
To Kryptonite
No fool like
An old fool
No cure for
Kryptonite
And even if
There were
I wouldn’t take it
Kryptonite is within me now
Forever
Never to be
Released
I would rather live
With the pain
Then be healed
Forever Kryptonite
Lives within my heart
My very soul
Sweet, sweet Kryptonite
Oh Dear Sweet Kryptonite
You’ve changed my blood
My heart now beats
A different rhythm
Dear Kryptonite
Till my last gasp,
I can see you
Till my last breath
You are with me
Though in reality
You left
Long ago
9-21-19
by Bob withJames 1:2 – Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
2 Corinthians 12:7c-10 – I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Family and Friends I want to confess something. I have been allowing the enemy to rip me off. I have allowed him to steal some very great blessings. But, by the might of God through Jesus Christ my Lord, that ends now. Yes, it ends now! Praise God!
These last few years I have been given a thorn in my flesh. I have been largely either unemployed or underemployed. I have erred in allowing it to be a shame to me. Thinking I have had the victory because I did not doubt God’s ability to provide in whatever way He planned to provide, I thought I had the victory, the full victory. And I have had victory, to the praise of God! I thought I was doing well because I can honestly tell you I have never doubted that God is good, that He loves me, and that I have completely trusted in God to provide and protect us as He always has. I have not doubted God. I have had a supernatural and, to the natural mind what is inexplicable, peace through it all. I have not doubted God and that gives me joy and peace. Not that I am strong. No, not at all, but that I know I am weak so I don’t trust in myself but in God. I cannot protect or provide for myself. Any number of evil things could happen if I were my protector and provider. I cannot take my next breath by my own might and determination. It is not I that blesses me, but in all these things I am blessed by God. So I am not proud of me, no, not in any way! It is God who loves me that I give all credit to a faith in Him and knowledge of Him. Without God I am a pitiful, evil and weak person. In God, in and how His will determines, I stand strong. I resist and I war against evil, but it is not by my might or power but by the Spirit of God that all victories are given (Zechariah 4:6, Isaiah 41:10). In these things God has graciously given me peace and joy through this desert. He gives me shade during the day, springs of fresh water when I am thirsty and sustenance is brought to me and I need not even search. He lifts my heart and soul and brings me laughter and joy as He continuously and always blesses me. I am blessed because of Him. Yet, I have erred.
Yes, God gave me a thorn. We notice that the Apostle Paul did not say that God cursed him with the thorn, but that God gave him the thorn. God also gave me, and did not curse me, with this thorn of mine. He gave it to me because He loves me. He gave it to me to bless me. He gave it to me to give me a joy that cannot be stolen. God gave me the thorn that my joy would run over and fill me with laughter. I knew, but now understand more deeply, that not losing faith, and not doubting God through the trials is a blessing, but not the end. In the past I have even looked forward to the blessing and deepening of faith that God was surely going to bless me with through the fire. And He has. Today I state to you that I have, at times, allowed myself to think I did well by enduring, by standing strong. Like that was the fullness of it. The enemy would give me that thought as long as I did not follow the God given path to its end. At the end of path was freedom, joy, laughter and great fun, yes fun, walking with God. I am freed by the Son of God! (John 8:36) Free, from the burdens of enduring, or worrying, or merely standing strong. No, the Lord Jesus Christ has freed me to joyously and for no reason except for belonging to Him, love the life He has given me and all the circumstances in it. As Job said to his wife “…Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (Job 2:10) When our eyes are filled with God, when we know Him, we will trust Him. I trust God. Now the increasing depth of my trust is bearing fruit of joy. I am not afflicted by a thorn, I have been blessed with a thorn. I cherish my thorn and trust God. I cherish the thorn because it is from God. I am a very blessed man with more blessings than I can count. I am a very blessed God because I belong to Jesus my Savior and Lord. I am a blessed man with a thorn called unemployment because with the thorn comes not only the wound, but blessings that make the wound insignificant. Joy flows as God loves me and blesses me. I am a very blessed man! Joy and laughter have been added to enduring faith and peace. Oh Family and Friends, I am a very blessed man. Please, with me, have a laugh at our enemy. Praise God is always so good to me. Praise God!
What is your thorn? Don’t let the enemy rip you off. Know God. Trust God. And let His peace and joy, full of laughter, flow through you! Be saturated with Him and know and live in the joy, peace and laugher that our God gives! Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob with1 Peter 1:6-7 – In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Job 23:10 – But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
The highest praise, the most sincere praise, is the praise the heart utters when in the greatest pain. For those who know Him, really know Him, trials don’t bring doubt but praise, because we know He is faithful. Trials bring out what we already have. If within us we doubt God, then trials shake what is within and doubt rises to the top. If within us we have genuine faith in God, then trials shake what is within and faith in God, and praises for Him, rise to the top. For the faithful who love God, trials both reveal and strengthen faith. For those who lack faith, some turn from God, others turn to God and build the faith that was lacking.
Be ready, walk closely with His Holy Spirit and ravenously ingest His Word. Then when suffering comes, only love of God and faith in Him, will rise from within us and praise Him. At that time we will praise God for the faith He has built in us. Then we will see the fruit of His labor within us and we will praise our God as the proof of our adoption will be manifest to us. The revealing of our faith is not revealed to God, He already knows it. The proof of our faith is for our blessing, and the blessings of others. We will praise God, and others will too. Faith revealing faith and building faith and all that by the hand of God. Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob withActs 16:19-24 – When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
“When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities.” These “owners” were contemptible. The fact that having slaves was permissible and was accepted in those days, does not make it any less reprehensible. We may also deduce that these men were not only taking advantage of a girl possessed by a demon, but they were doing so because they could not make a living on their own as “their hope of making money was gone” makes clear. They were contemptible persons who made money off the misfortune of another.
They seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace where civil matters were brought to recognized authorities. What was the clear reason? Obviously it was because when the demon was cast out of the girl they could no longer make money off of her. However, what would they say was the reason they had seized Paul and Silas?
“They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” How pathetic a charge it would have been if the men had honestly aired their grievance that they were enraged because their money making device (the demon possession of the girl) had been healed. So they lied. The most effective lies usually have an element of truth, just as the devil twisted truth to Eve (Genesis 3:1-5) and also as He tried to deceive Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11). Yes, these men were Jews. Some reason that Paul and Silas were the ones singled out from the missionaries because they were the only full Jews among them. This was important because at this time the Jews were not trusted in Rome and had been expelled from the city by Claudius about AD 49-50. The Jews were not then endeared by the Romans. So these men may have been contributing to the abuse of the girl, maybe they were unemployable or unable to find another occupation, but they were not unintelligent. They knew how to weave a lie that would work. Proclaiming that Paul and Silas were Jews put them in an immediate bad situation. How hypocritical because they likewise were Jews.
How hypocritical for these men to say that Paul and Silas were causing an uproar. Causing an uproar was precisely their intent in accusing Paul and Silas. They knew the political climate and they knew how to ignite a fire.
As the truth was twisted against Jesus (Matthew 26:60-61) so these accusers twisted the truth against Paul and Silas. The missionaries were not causing a riot as was claimed, but were causing a peaceful commotion as the Gospel was preached, and they intended to. When they preached the Word then previously held beliefs were shattered and that would cause the Word to spread more and for souls to be saved. Jesus even said that He would be the cause of division (Luke 12:51-53). When people hear the Word of God they either have hearts ready to respond or they do not. If not, they become divided with the ones who are ready to call Jesus Savior and Lord. Yet, the truth was that the missionaries were not causing a dangerous riot, it was the accusers who were riling up a dangerous mob.
When they claim that Paul and Silas were advocating customs that were unlawful for Romans to accept, that was true. But then again, these accusers were also Jews and so also claimed a religion that was against Roman beliefs. Roman religion was polytheistic. True and loyal Jews worship only God. Christians worship the same one God who is more clearly revealed in the New Testament as the Triune God. So, though the missionaries were not advocating any violence, they were teaching what the Romans would oppose. This is no different in our day when Christians hold to the eternal truths of the Bible that run against what the governments of the world now confess as their beliefs. The exclusivity that only the Gospel of Jesus will get one to heaven makes people mad. Not erasing scriptures to bend to the sin of modern culture is considered wrong by all world governments and that angers the people who have placed government on a higher pedestal then one True God.
“The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.” So the accusers successfully riled up the crowd with their false charges. Yet, it is doubtful that the false charges were the only reason the crowd was worked into a frenzy. It was the same as it is today. Those who are either rich, physically attractive, charismatic, eloquent or passionate, or all of the preceding, deceive masses of people. People who have these qualities tell lies that are not supported by truth. People believe them. It happened then and it happens now.
The magistrates ordered that Paul and Silas be beaten. They likely ordered this to appease the crowd, but we may suppose that they also may have been influenced by the passionate appeal to punish, or kill, Paul and Silas. Now beating, flogging and imprisoning Paul and Silas should not have been done even by their order of law. These authorities had the power to hold them and bring them before the proconsul, but they should not have inflicted the punishment that they did. Romans were proud of their brand of justice, in fact justice was one of their prized virtues. Yet justice was denied to Paul and Silas as they were: 1) not given the opportunity to dispute the charges. 2) No witnesses were called to substantiate or disprove the charges. 3) No cross-examination of the accusers was performed. 4) They never allowed Paul and Silas to defend themselves and so the authorities did not know they were Roman citizens and had all the rights of being Roman citizens.
The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Why? Perhaps because they feared a jailbreak? Or maybe because supernatural miracles had been being performed through these two and it was feared that they may supernaturally be freed?
“When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.” The jailer knew that his life depended on explicitly guarding these prisoners from being stolen from his guard or from them escaping. He put them in a center, innermost cell and had them bound hand and foot. He did all a person could do to make sure that these two did not escape.
Paul and Silas, wrongly accused, beaten, flogged and falsely imprisoned were now in prison. They likely had open and bleeding wounds. Their bodies aching. What was their emotional and spiritual status? What would ours be? We hope that our faith would not falter. A lot of that depends on how we are yielding to God and clinging to Him before some immense trial happens. Sure we want Jesus to come and take us all away with to heaven. But are preparing for that. But are we preparing for future hardships? Jesus is coming back and we yearn for Him. But part of our prize is to be proven, to ourselves and to each other, that we consider it an honor to suffer in His name (Acts 5:41). We do, don’t we?
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob withPsalm 24:8,10 – Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty—He is the King of glory.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”
by Bob with