“25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, ‘Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.’ 29 And the jailer[a] called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ 31 And they said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’ 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.“
Acts 16:25-34

 

“35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,
‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8: 35-39

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MARCH 6, 2025

It sounds silly and obvious to say that God has power over the earth. And yet, we behave functionally like he didn’t have that power. In our passage today, we see that Paul and Silas are unlawfully imprisoned because they freed the slave girl from her evil spirit. Instead of complaining about the injustices against them or fighting for their rights, they were singing. Singing! They worshipped the one true God amid their suffering because they loved God more.

We don’t know what they were praying for or about. But we know that at midnight, God activated an earthquake that shook the foundations of a prison. Interestingly, God didn’t just set Paul and Silas free. He broke the bonds of all the captives and opened the doors for all the captives. These were the same captives listening intently when Paul and Silas worshipped God through songs and prayers. And then, when Paul and Silas have the chance to flee and turn a blind eye to the jailer killing himself to avoid punishment for his failure to guard the captives, what they do instead is shocking. They stay! And they cry out for the jailer to not harm himself! A great earthquake, a great miracle, and great, beautiful mercy cause the jailer to fall to his knees. Who are these men who worship a God who has power over the earth and at the same time pours out such undeserved mercy? It defies human logic! And yet, through this act of power, an entire household, and likely more, come to believe in Jesus Christ, the son of God, Lord of heaven and earth.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;[a]
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;”
Isaiah 61:1 

“’The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’”
Luke 4:18-21 

 

Questions for reflection and discussion:

  • How have you seen or experienced God work through creation or mighty acts of nature?
  • How have you seen God use nature or mighty acts of nature to humble us, destroy our idols, lead us to repentance, and challenge us towards greater compassion?

 

Church Reading Plan: Exodus 17; Luke 20