Tuesday 19 May 2009
- Bible Book:
- Acts
"Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them." (v.25)
Background
Wearied, beaten, maltreated and bloody, these two missionariesuncomfortably sat in their inner dungeon cell with their feetsecured in torturous stocks. They were signing hymns, probablypsalms like "Out of the depths, I cry to thee" (
By their praying and singing they showed what 'believing' means. Itis not chiefly about having the right ideas; it is about keeping intouch with God and trusting God when things are seemingly not goingright. They may also have prayed, not so much for themselves as fortheir persecutors, for their fellow inmates and for grace tosustain them in this situation. All self pity was absent.
Their prayers and songs ascended to the ears of God and extended tothe ears of the other prisoners (verse 25). Even though they werecut from normal missionary activity, they were not withoutaudience. And we can surmise that without this prison experiencefor these missionaries, their fellow prisoners would not have had achance to hear the gospel (the good news of Jesus).
Reflecting on this and many other similar incidents, Paul isphilosophically able to say, "we know that all things work togetherfor the good of those who love God, who are called according toGod's purpose" (Romans 8:28).
Paul and Silas' incarceration also led to the conversion of thejailor and his household. This sounds like a classic case where thearrestor is arrested by God!
To Ponder
What was it about Paul and Silas that shouldcharacterise our witness for God?
In what ways do you think the jailor was anunlikely candidate for conversion?
What actions showed that the jailor hadexperienced genuine conversion? How does this inform our Christianwitness?