Jailhouse Rock

A few months ago Sue and I decided to spend the afternoon of my day off watching a movie. So, after hurriedly getting our unavoidable “Thursday errands” done, we placed a carry out order at our favorite Chinese food restaurant and while it was being prepared we walked a few doors down to the local Blockbuster to make our selection. I had a coupon for a free rental from the “favorites” section so we ignored the newly released movies that line the wall and chose a film made a few years back entitled, Paradise Road. I think we picked it because we recognized the names of a few of the actresses-plus the movie was based on a true story and we both like films that are factual. And of course it was free!

Well, it turned out to be a very good selection-for adults anyway-not small children. I say this because it’s a very moving story but also a very realistic one that clearly shows the horrors of war.

The film tells what happened to hundreds of mostly British women and children who fled Singapore on a British destroyer when the Japanese invaded during WW II. Their ship was only a few hours out of port when it was attacked and sunk by Japanese war planes. The women and children who survived were taken to a prisoner of war camp on the mainland and from the moment they arrived, their captors treated them unbelievably brutally. These poor women were beaten, starved, and forced to endure back-breaking manual labor from daylight until dusk in the hot tropical climate. The food they were given was little more than garbage. Their captors provided them with almost no medical supplies-and under this harsh treatment nearly half the camp eventually died.

Morale was understandably very low. The women were sick, weak, and hungry-and had lost hope of ever being rescued. A few months into their ordeal one of the prisoners-a Christian missionary to China-felt led to start a “vocal orchestra.” Instead of instruments, the women would use their voices to “sing” the orchestral scores. Another prisoner who had a deep love of music agreed. So using any scrap of paper they could find to draw the musical score-and relying totally on memory they put the great classical works they had heard years earlier-into written form. Then they put together a choir and arranged SECRET section rehearsals, since their guards forbade them to meet together for any purpose, even for religious services.

Now, I want to show you a clip of the film taken from the night of their first performance. You’ll note that as soon as the women begin to gather, the Japanese soldiers come to force them to disband. They usually did this by beating the women ruthlessly with long rods or sticks, literally breaking up any meeting. But as the women begin to sing, something happens-watch.

PARADISE ROAD clip

As you can see, their singing had a powerful effect. First, it stopped the cruel guards in their steps and from this point on most of them treated the women with greater respect. Their singing also affected the women. It gave them courage and purpose-a reason to hang on. They performed about 30 more such works in the years they were there. In fact, all of their hand-written scores have been preserved. But, their music even helped those lying in the hospital sick with dysentery or malaria. The singing was a source of beauty and pleasure in the midst of the ugliness and pain of their existence. Now, to me, this film underscored the truth that SINGING can indeed be a very powerful thing. God can use it to touch us-to move us-to speak to us-in ways that mere words don’t.

Well, as I began my study of this next portion of Acts I came to the conclusion that the missionary to China must have gotten the idea to start her choir and sing in prison from another missionary-namely the Apostle Paul. I say this because the last part of chapter 16 records a time when, much like these women, Paul and Silas were arrested unfairly, beaten, and imprisoned. Their response to the pain and humiliation they were forced to endure, was to SING-songs of praise to God-and God used THEIR singing in a very powerful way, just as he used the singing of these poor but brave women two thousand years later.

Sermon: Now, let me take a minute or two to remind you of the setting of our text. You should remember from last week that on his 2nd missionary journey, Paul and his fellow mission trip team members had wanted to share the Gospel in parts of the Asian continent-but God had closed the doors. Then, prompted by a vision of a man from Macedonia they went through the only open door to them and set sail for the European continent. Acts 16:11 says that when they put out to sea in the Aegean they, “ran a straight course” and the Greek here is a nautical term for “sailing before the wind.” In other words there was no tacking back and forth required. The wind blew them straight toward Europe and the people of Macedonia. So, God not only opened the door; He gently “blew” them through it! This is a further reminder that if God calls us to do something, He will providentially open all the necessary doors. He’ll always “grease the wheels” and “fill the sales” to make it possible for us to do His will. And with His help these four missionaries sailed quickly to the port city of Neapolis and then walked ten miles inland to the city of Philippi-a very important Roman town in Macedonia.

In fact, Philippi was a very loyal Roman colony. You see, the townspeople had earned their citizenship by helping Caesar Augustus defeat his enemies-Brutus and Cassius- in 42 B.C.

Since then it had evolved into a very “Roman” city populated with retired Roman soldiers and their families who brought with them many of the customs and even architecture of Rome itself.

Because of this Romans back then thought of Philippi as sort of a “Rome away from Rome!” In any case, it’s citizens were proud Romans and they were also thankful for their Roman roots because Augustus had rewarded the residents of Philippi by exempting them forever from taxes.

Think what this did to property values! Surely everyone wanted to move to Philippi! Well, Paul and his three companions walked into this very Roman city-as the first followers of Jesus Christ ever seen by anyone in that part of the world.

Now, as you may know, Paul’s usual church-starting tactic was to go to the synagogue. You may remember that last week I told you this is why he had Timothy circumcised. Otherwise he would not have been permitted in a synagogue. So, when they arrived in Philippi they inquired and discovered this city had none. This indicates there were not many Jews living there because to have a synagogue you had to have at least ten men. Well, Saul knew that any Jews who did live there would customarily gather near a river for prayer on the Sabbath. So he went down to the banks of the nearby Gangites river and found several women gathered for this purpose. Their leader was named Lydia and she earned her living by selling purple cloth. This color of cloth was very expensive to make but she apparently had no shortage of customers because Lydia was wealthy enough to have a good sized house a house big enough to provide space for the new church start-which she did.

Okay, with this in mind, let’s look at what happened next. Take your Bibles and turn to Acts 16:16-40 and keep them open…but first let’s LOOK at the NIV text via the VISUAL BIBLE.

16 – Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling.

17 – This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.”

18 – She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

19 – When the owners of the slave girl 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.

23 – After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.

24 – Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

25 – 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 everybody’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?”

31 – 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 family 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 family.

Okay, let’s review has happened here. Dr. Luke diagnosed this slave girl as being demon-possessed. This demon gave the girl the power to predict the future-for a fee of course-and she was known for the accuracy of her predictions which of course brought her owners a steady source of income because everyone back then was willing to pay to discover their future. And, at this point, I think we should all note that not everything in fortune-telling is fraud or humbug. If you’ve seen or heard someone who, like this Philippian girl, gets it right when it comes to talking to the dead or telling the future-then you can be sure this is a demon-powered thing. Any form of psychic predictions or astrology is not of God and we should stay far away from it. Merrill Unger writes,

“The girl told the truth, receiving her knowledge from demons…The incident shows how satan frequently parades as an angel of light, especially under the guise of alleged religiosity.”

Well, this demon inspired this girl to say, that Paul and his companions were servants of the most high God-something that also repeatedly happened during Jesus’ earthly ministry. Remember? People possessed with demons would follow Him and the demons within would shout out Who Jesus was. Well, this demon also had her say, “These men…are proclaiming to you A way of salvation.” In other words, in fear the demon was saying, “You have a way of salvation, we have a way of salvation…no need to fight…let’s join forces.” Well, this girl proclaimed her statements about Paul day after day and finally, annoyed by her incessant ploy to poison the ministry he turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” and according to verse 18, “…it came out at that very moment.”

Be sure to note a couple things here. First this girl was not a Christian, and I point that out to remind you that the Bible teaches Christians can NOT be possessed by demons. There are no examples in Scripture of Christians being indwelt by the devil or his minions. There ARE examples of Christians sinning-yielding to the devil’s temptations-but not being possessed because as Christians, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God Himself-and as 1 John 4:4b says, “Greater is He Who is in you than he who is in the world.” No demon can abide the omnipotent presence of the Spirit of God. I also want you to note Paul’s METHOD in casting out this demon. First, he was not intimidated but in full control. He knew that as a Christian he had nothing to fear. Second, He spoke directly to the demon, not the girl. Third, he didn’t ask-rather he COMMANDED it to come out of her-and in an instant it did. No ifs ands or buts about it. He spoke and the demon fled. It didn’t take hours or multiple sessions. There was no real “spiritual warfare” involved. The battle had already been won because it was done in the Lord’s strength and not man’s.

Well, her healing was of course a wonderful thing! Imagine how she felt to be freed from demonic control! But that was just the beginning. This slave girl put her faith in Christ and was welcomed into membership in the new church as its second recorded member! So, just as the video showed, Paul and the others rejoiced! But not everyone was happy about this miracle. Angered by their sudden economic downfall, the slave girl’s greedy masters roused the crowd to riot. These “proud Romans” wrongfully accused Paul and Silas of throwing the city into an uproar and in their accusation they acted as if this was typical behavior for any Jew…a foolish thing to say, since there were hardly any jews in town!

Well, Paul and Silas were immediately seized, viciously beaten with rods and thrown deep into a Roman dungeon with their feet fastened in stocks. And-this beating was no little thing. The Scripture infers that they received the same kind of flogging, that Jesus did-so remember that scene from The Passion where it depicted the first part of Jesus’ beating, when those two cruel Romans beat Him with long limber rods and you have the idea. And then after this beating Paul and Silas were then thrown into prison cell deep in the jail. Their legs were secured in stocks so they couldn’t move-further adding to their discomfort.

Now-as far as I know, none of us have been behind bars or barbed wire but I know we all have felt imprisoned-imprisoned by hard times. I mean, we’ve all endured heartache in one form or other-tough times not of our own making that we could not escape or avoid. I know this is true because I know you. I mean, as your pastor, I’m well-acquainted with some of the burdens you have borne or even now are bearing. We’ve weeped together a great deal over the years. But I also know that the Bible teaches that even for Christians, trials are a part of life. You can’t “get away” from this fact. As Job 5:7 says, “Man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward.” I mean, like people who want to get out of prison but can’t-so many times we want to be freed from hardship-but we can’t. It’s part and parcel of being a sinner living in a fallen world. I say this to help you realize there is truth here in this text that we need to understand. The record of Paul and Silas’ response to their imprisonment can teach us things we need to know as we face the inevitable heartaches and tribulations of life. Okay, let’s get to it then. What can we learn from this example of singing in prison? What can this particular instance of “jailhouse rock” teach us?

1. Well, first, this text tells us that in order to sing in hard times we must be able to SEE things other “prisoners” don’t.

Think of it. Paul and Silas were wrongfully accused. They were beaten within an inch of their lives and then they were thrown into a dark, dank prison cell. As they sat with their legs in the stocks I’m sure their muscles cramped and every breath reminded them of their cracked ribs and bruised kidneys. I imagine the blood was still flowing freely down their backs since their wounds had not been treated so they were weak and growing weaker. Then as the cold began to seep into their bones they must have listened to the rats that always plague places like that scurry across the floor in the dark. But instead of cursing their guards and groaning about their treatment-like the rest of the prison population-these two began TO PRAY out loud. And understand-the Greek here would not be translated as “prayers of petition”-you know, “Get me out of here God!” No-this word should be translated as prayers of praise to God, like, “God You are so good to us! Thank You God for Your great faithfulness!”

Can you imagine praying like that in a situation like that?-Probably not because the truth is, so many of our prayers are ONLY selfish petitions with no praise on our lips. All we do is tell God how bad things are. And if this is all we pray then it is no wonder that many times we feel worse after we pray than when we began. I mean, so often our prayer life is just one long pity party where we remind ourselves of how hard life is, so it just reinforces our fears, grief, and sorrow.

LISTEN! Prayer is only complete and meaningful when it includes PRAISE to God. Remember when Jesus gave His followers a prayer “template” to follow it BEGAN and ENDED with praise. Jesus said, we should begin by saying something like,”Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name! Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!” And He said it should end with out saying something like, “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever…”

Well, Paul and Silas followed Jesus’ teaching because in spite of the situation their prayers were filled with praise. And as they did this-as they praised God-He did the same thing He did for King David. He “…put a new song” in their mouths… “a hymn of praise to God.” (Psalm 40:3)

So these two began to SING-not sad songs but joyful songs-SONGS of praise and in this way they turned their dank, dark cell into a sanctuary!

Okay-how could they do this? How were they able to sing songs of praise under those CIRCUMSTANCES?

Well, first we must note that these two were mature enough to know that when a Christian is in the center of God’s will, he or she is never UNDER the circumstances. We have a loving Heavenly Father Who is sovereign OVER every circumstance of life-the good and the bad. These two had enough confidence in God to know that He was still in control-that He could and would use even this painful, dark situation for their good and His glory. This reminds me of a quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon who once said,

“It is easy to sing when we can read the notes by daylight; but the skillful singer is he who can sing when there is not a ray of light to read by. Songs in the night come only from God; they are not in the power of men.”

Paul expressed this same confidence in God once again, later in his life as he was imprisoned in Rome. He wrote young Timothy and said that even in the midst of that time of suffering, “I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12) Paul believed that God’s sovereign power and knowledge was absolute. He also had faith that God’s love for Him was infinite and unconditional. And these beliefs enabled Paul and Silas to “see” things-even in the dark-that others don’t. This week I came across a sermon my dad preached on this text years ago. In his message he referred to this principle by saying that Paul and Barnabas had “SEEING HEARTS.” In other words, they looked at their situation not just through PHYSICAL eyes-but through the “eyes” of their hearts, which is a way of saying they looked at their beating and imprisonment through the eyes of faith. In other words, these two missionaries didn’t let their circumstance choose their attitude.

No-they made a conscious CHOICE to trust God-to praise God-to have faith in God no matter how bad things appeared to be. And if we are to “sing” in those times when we feel imprisoned by hardship, we must make the same attitudinal choice. Victor Frankl was a prisoner in Nazi a concentration camp during World War II, and as such was well-acquainted with suffering and deprivation. He SAW life at its worst. Over the years, he observed that some of his fellow prisoners survived the horrors of prison camp while others did not and he became curious as to why this was so. In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, Frankl shared the conclusion he came to after carefully studying his fellow captives. He wrote,

“Everything can be taken from men but one thing: the last of human freedoms-the ability to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”

And Frankl was right in his deduction, for attitude really is a choice. It is a conscious decision. Some people choose to embrace an attitude of OPTIMISM-like the ninety-year-old man who married a twenty-four-year-old girl. For the wedding, he bought a new suit with two pairs of pants. Then he financed a new house with a thirty-year mortgage, located next to an elementary school so their future children wouldn’t have far to walk. Others, for whatever reason, choose instead to look at life from a PESSIMISTIC perspective, like the little boy who was preparing for a test. He told his dad, “I’m going to fail this test because I don’t understand the material.”

His father responded, “Son, you have to try harder. Be positive!” “Okay,” the boy replied, “I’m POSITIVE I’m going to fail this test!”

Attitude is a choice. This reminds me of Ella Wheeler Wilcox’s poem. Its words go like this:

Well Paul and Silas chose to “fill their sails” with a steady trust in God. They decided to look at their situation through the eyes of optimism.

Now, when I say optimism I’m not referring to wishful thinking or naivete. No, for maturing believers like Paul and his companions, optimism is based on FAITH-a hope that is sure and steadfast. It is a conscious decision to look at life from the perspective that confidence in God provides. It’s a commitment to put our trust not in the ever-changing circumstances of life, but rather in our God, Who, as James 1:17 says, “…does not change like shifting shadows.” And, one of the wonderful blessings of choosing this attitude-one of the benefits of deciding to put our who faith in God-is that in enables us to notice…to SEE…things that other, more pessimistic people miss. Paul referred to this in 2 Corinthians 10:7 when he said that people who don’t put their confidence in Christ, “…are looking only on the surface of things.”

Well my Dad was right. Paul and Silas had a HEARTS that could “see.” They saw that in the midst of all their present difficulties, they were still in the presence of God and that He was at work even in their current painful situation. They believed that as Paul put it in later years, “In all things God works for the good of them who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

One of my favorite TV shows years ago was Gomer Pyle, USMC. Perhaps some of you are old enough to remember it as well. Gomer was just a naive country boy from the hills of North Carolina and his drill Sergeant in boot camp, Sergeant Carter, constantly yelled at him and put him through all kinds of tough times. When others would say things like, “Gomer, Sergeant Carter is so mean to you! He’s so unfair! Don’t you hate him for the way he’s treating you?!” Gomer would reply, “Oh no, Sergeant Carter is the wisest man I know. He knows everything there is to know about being a marine. He’s just doing this for my good. You’ll see.” Gomer, had confidence in his sergeant so in the midst of countless pushups and midnight marathon runs in full gear-and even one time when Sgt Carter ordered Gomer to move a huge pile of sand from one place to another and then back again-in all this Gomer SAW something his peers missed. He “saw” that His superior had his best interests in mind-that all this was for his good. Well, we must have the same kind of faith-filled confidence in our Superior, if we are to sing in tough times-confidence that opens our eyes so that we can SEE His loving hand at work, even in times filled with heartache and pain.

Let me ask you-are you being treated unfairly this morning? Does your life seem like a prison? Then, hear me-trust God-He will never leave us or forsake us. He is truly LORD of all-this includes school troubles or marital problems or work stress or sickness-or even death itself, and if we are committed to furthering His purposes, He will work all things-even these “prison times of life” to our good. So open the eyes of your heart and SING!

2. And then there’s one other thing we can learn from this particular prison music. When we sing in times like this the world NOTICES-and wants to learn to SING along.

Verse 25 says that as Paul and Silas were singing, the other prisoners were listening. This was something new-they’d never heard this kind of response to their situation before. So, as the Greek here literally says, “They listened attentively.” Then when God miraculously responded by sending an earthquake that opened the doors and released the chains and locks around their stocks, well, they knew this had indeed been very SPECIAL singing. So they didn’t take advantage of the situation and run away. They went to Paul and Silas to ask them about their singing such that when the jailer thought they had all run away and was about to take his own life in desperation, Paul was able to say, “Don’t harm yourself. We are all here.” Well that particular “lyric” made the jailer want to “sing along” as well and so he asked life’s most profitable question, “What must I do to be saved?” In other words, he said, “Teach me to sing too! Tell me what I need to do to be like you?” Ironically he was no longer the captor but captive to what his prisoners had to offer. They were so serene and calm in the midst of tragedy that he knew he had to have what they had.

So he listened to Paul’s response to this question and became a Christian and then apparently urged Paul and Silas to share the gospel with his family as well, because verse 34 says that his entire family was baptized. The jailer invited them into his home and the same man who had inflicted their wounds washed and bandaged them. Then he fed them. Think of it-God truly prepared a table for Paul and Silas in the presence of their enemies. But I don’t think any of this surprised Paul and the others. Remember, the fact that they had chosen to have faith in God no matter what enabled them to SEE things others missed. They knew that they served a God Who worked miracles like this.

Listen fellow Redlander-the world is listening for our “song!” They are listening to hear how we respond to the unfairness of life. So, we must realize that in the darkest times of our lives we need to be at our BEST as Christians. There must be SINGING instead of SIGHING. You see, if we respond as Paul did, then those around us will be asking us the same question the jailer asked Paul. I mean, if you “sing” even in the midst of heartache, you’ll find people drawn to you. And then you can lead them to the cross. This is one way to be a truly contagious Christian.

Invitation:

This morning I invite you right now to pray with the Psalmist and say, “God, open my eyes that I may SEE wonderful things in Your law.” (Psalm 119:18) “Open my eyes wide enough that I can see Your great faithfulness.” Let’s all ask God to give us “seeing hearts.”

And, if you are here today and are not a Christian, then I hope and pray that today’s worship has opened your eyes to see your need to follow Jesus as Savior and Lord. God promised way back in Deuteronomy 4:29 that, “If you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you LOOK for Him with all your heart and all your soul.” If you have never made the commitment to follow Jesus I urge you to seek Him today. There may be other decisions that other see the need to make public today…to join this church…to rededicate your life to God in some way. And we invite you to make share those decisions with us now by walking an aisle and sharing them with me as we stand now and sing.