Last week, we learned: of a disagreement between Barnabas and Paul, over the inclusion of Barnabas’ cousin, John-Mark, on a missionary team. that, due to this heated impasse, Paul and Barnabas decided to part ways, Barnabas and John-Mark to Cyprus and Paul and Silas into Syria. that Paul and Silas, now accompanied by Timothy, were miraculously guided by the Holy Spirit to Macedonia. that Paul, Silas and Timothy set up shop in Philippi in the home of a woman convert by the name of Lydia.

“Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She 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.” She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed 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.”

“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. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.

“When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 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. 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.

“But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself. We are all here “But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 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.” 

“When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.”  The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” 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.” The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.”  

“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.” Acts 16:16-40

We are introduced to a “female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future” in our text. She was viewed as a conduit of divine revelation – one who communicated for the Greek god, Apollo. Whereas the residents of Philippi held this girl in high esteem as a conduit of the gods, Luke points out that she is in essence possessed by an unclean spirit. This girl was in a pretty pathetic position; under the control of both an impure spirit and her owners. To her owners, she had become a profitable prophet and was much in demand in Philippi.

As Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke made their way through Philippi preaching the good news of Jesus, this slave girl was consistently in tow. Her witness was involuntary – the product of an impure spirit - and not the true overflow of a life committed to following Jesus. Additionally, it was probably a very distracting and annoying thing to have this girl consistently interrupting their interactions in Philippi. After “many days”, Paul spoke up and simply commanded the spirit to come out of the girl in the name of Jesus, which it promptly did.

Whereas we might meet such an occurrence with joy and celebration, the owners of the slave girl were less than impressed - she was now damaged goods. Their anger aroused, the men seized both Paul and Silas and dragged them before the local magistrate. Anti-Semitism in the Roman world A crowd had been incited, so the local magistrates acted hastily, having the two men beaten with rods and thrown into the most secure place in the prison. They feared Paul and Silas to a significant degree.

First century prisons were dark, damp, overcrowded, lice and vermin ridden places, where prisoners were virtually ignored. In the deep, foreboding darkness of the prison, Paul and Silas were holding a worship service! They were not wasting even a moment in witnessing to others, for the other prisoners shackled alongside of them listened to their words of praise. Even in the depths of a Roman prison, Paul and Silas found opportunity for both praise of and witness to God.

We are told that mid-verse, an earthquake shook the prison so violently that the doors sprung open and the chains holding the prisoners were broken. Approaching the prison, the jailer saw the sight that he had feared – the prison was no longer securely locked; the prisoners must surely all have escaped. Preparing to end his life, Paul’s voice from the darkened prison called out - “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”. The jailer fell at the feet of these two men who had manifested some uncanny power, asking what he must do to be saved.

Removed from the prison and escorted into the jailer’s home, Paul and Silas assured him and his household of the salvation available in the name of Jesus, as their wounds were tended. At daybreak, the magistrates sent word that Paul and Silas were to be released. Paul invoked his Roman citizenship, and the magistrates appealed to Paul and Silas for forgiveness and escorted them out of prison. The magistrates encouraged the pair to leave Philippi. This they did, taking Timothy with them but leaving Luke behind.

Our passage presents us with the reality that there is an interruptive nature to the good news of Jesus. Following Christ is portrayed very differently in our world – it often appears as a tack-on to one’s life, a sort of tool to life betterment. As we’ve made our way through the book of Acts, has this been the sort of Christianity we’ve encountered? Because the message of Jesus directly confronts sin and the powers that flourish in sin, a disturbance ought to be expected. This happens at both a community and a personal level.

A disturbance, no matter how godly it may be, is still an uncomfortable thing to experience. There is a spiritual suffering that the gospel incurs as we experience it’s clashing against the strongholds of sin in our life. If truly become a disturbing force in our world, we will face hardship. Our hardship and suffering might just mean salvation for others … and is not this worth the experience of suffering?  

Might we become a people so disturbed by the good news of Jesus that we create a “godly disturbance in our community, facing the hardship that may come our way, rejoicing in the knowledge that through it, others are coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus.