Paul goes to jail--part 1

 

PAUL GOES TO JAIL—PART 1

  

     You can be right and do what is right and still end up in a mess of a situation. It could be because you have missed time or misjudged a moment. Or sometimes the situation is so broken that setting things straight makes things so foreign to everyone else, disturbing their peace.

 

     Disturbing the peace is a criminal offense in our society. And turns out, disturbing the peace was a crime in the Roman Empire. A crime that the Apostle Paul would commit. Before we can get to that, we first must look at the events leading to his arrest.

 

     Acts 16:16-18(CSB)

 

Once as we were on our way to prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She made a large profit for her owners by fortune-telling. As she followed Paul and us she cried out, “These men, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation, are the servants of the Most High God.” She did this for many days.

 

Paul was greatly annoyed. Turning to the spirit, he said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out right away.

 

 

This is the Word of God.

For the people of God.

Thanks be to God.

 

 

 

     The beginning of verse 16 says that Luke (the author of Acts) was traveling with Paul, Silas, and Timothy to a prayer meeting. To fully comprehend where they were headed, we must look back to the previous section in verses 11 through 15. This shares that the missionary team had sailed from Troas to Philippi.

 

     On the Sabbath, they decided to go down by the river to pray. Upon arriving, they found a group of women, so they shared the message of Jesus with them. A businesswoman named Lydia was among the ladies, she placed her faith in Jesus, which led to her whole family being baptized.

 

     It was most likely on the team’s way back to this spot, or at least that crew when they encountered the slave girl in our text for today. This slave girl was a fortune-teller. If the authorities were seeking the identity of thieves from a big heist, if someone had lost their keys at the park, had relationship concerns, or were debating between the black sheep or the red sheep, they would come to this slave girl.

 

     To her community, this slave girl’s voice was that of a god, Apollo. The word for “divination” or “fortune-telling” literally means “python.” According to pagan mythology, Apollo killed a mythical python or dragon, so those with the ability to practice fortune-telling were thought to be inspired by Apollo. Of course, in the Jewish tradition, fortune-telling was thought to be a practice of evil, outlawed by God. And the idea of a serpent related to Satan.

 

     Nevertheless, this slave girl was very successful. Verse 16 says, “She made a large profit for her owners.” Her success only led to outward captivity as well as inward. She was held prisoner and her ability was trafficked for the benefit of her human captors.

 

     As Paul, Silas, Luke, and Timothy went about the Kingdom work, this slave girl began to follow them. The Greek word implies that the slave girl went everywhere the team went, like a lost sheep. While she followed, the slave girl cried, “These men, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation, are servants of the Most High God.”

 

     At first glance, it would seem the girl’s cry was a good thing, a proclamation of truth. Why not let her keep shouting? Her shouting could potentially draw others to the missionaries, so it would seem counterproductive to silence her voice. While it was true, the enemy was attempting to have the truth washed over in a sea of confusion. The pagans believed in salvation, but the term came attached to all these other pagan beliefs and rituals, potentially reducing the Way to a way of many ways. You will remember that Jesus encounters demons who recognize Him and proclaim Him as “the holy one of God” and “God’s Son.” (Mark 1:24; Luke 4:41) Jesus does not allow these demons to testify about Him, so Jesus silences them before casting them out of people.

 

     Continuing into verse 18, it says after many days, “Paul was greatly annoyed.” The phrase “greatly annoyed” means Paul was deeply offended at the evil spirit’s testimony and gravely pained for the slave girl trapped in its talons. Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, was reacting like Jesus, and he was ready to act.

 

     This challenge went beyond Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke. These servants were willing followers of Christ facing an enemy of darkness. A cosmic battle was taking place with an evil spirit challenging the authority of the Holy Spirit. Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit, but the authority in question was not that of Paul, it was evil calling out the Alpha and the Omega.

 

     “Paul turned to the spirit.” He was not attacking the slave girl but the darkness who had no right to her. The Apostle said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” These words were not a magical chant, nor was there any laying on of hands, nor the use of any luck charms. Paul confessed the name of Jesus Christ appealing to He who was able to break loose the chains of darkness holding this slave girl. Immediately, the demon had to flee.

 

     Now, here is the question I have after reading these verses: Why was the girl following them? Why was she shouting, “These men are the servants of the Most High God”? I already mentioned why the evil spirit was compelling the slave girl to speak, but this case is different from the ones in the Gospels. The evil spirit made no visibly recorded attempt to keep the slave girl from following the missionaries, none of the demons in the Gospels were following Jesus. Jesus met them along the way, was led to them, or someone brought the person possessed to Him.

 

     Perhaps the following and the shouting, not the words but the act itself, were of the slave girl. Something inside this girl was desperate to find salvation through Jesus, and she knew these servants of God could help her. Like an island castaway, she was rowing against the tide for all she was worth, trying to get to the land of the living. The evil spirit acted as the waves, trying to push her back to the deserted island, hijacking her voice in a drastic attempt to keep the girl in chains. And because Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit, he noticed her! The power of Jesus reached through Paul to set this girl free from evil.

 

     Do you know what this means? The power of Jesus has not diminished. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And just like the name of Jesus had the power to set this slave girl free, it has the power to break every chain of darkness that shackles us in our lives!

 

     Sin may have chains on you, but Jesus can break those chains! Death may have you crippled in fear, but Jesus can remove death’s sting! Addiction might be destroying you, your family, and your life, but Jesus can put a stop to that today! Poverty might have you stuck in a generational curse of victimhood and believing all things are hopeless. (Being poor or a victim is not a sin, but can suck you into a vacuum of darkness) Jesus can pull you from that pit of despair to higher ground! The enemy can have you entangled in webs of confusion, hatred, bigotry, and any other form of darkness, but they are no match for Jesus! At the sound of His name, the darkness must flee from you. Inside and outside.

 

     The real question then is, “Are you desperate like the slave girl?” Do you recognize the impossibility of escaping the deserted island, but are you willing to take that chance of getting in the boat anyway? Willing to row out against the tide and its crashing waves to get to Jesus? What is amazing is that it does not even take that kind of effort! We do not have to lift an oar or get in the boat! All it takes is us taking a breath of faith toward Jesus and He will come to you!

 

     Will you find freedom in the name of Jesus today?

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