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Singing Jailbirds - The Book of Acts · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed
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  Speaker 1: and sang praises unto God, and the prisoners heard them.
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  Speaker 1: Acts 16.25 As words of Acts 16 resonate in my spirit,
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  Speaker 1: I stand excited because I now have a major key
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  Speaker 1: to my unending success. Today I acknowledge that prayer is
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  Speaker 1: should be my first response and not my last resort.
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  Speaker 1: As I look at Paul and Silas, I realize that
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  Speaker 1: my worship is a warship that can be used to
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  Speaker 1: break the oppression and chains of the enemy. Through my
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  Speaker 1: voice and through my praise and worship, you will send
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  Speaker 1: a shockwave and an earthquake that that will shake the
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  Speaker 1: foundation of my prison and free me. No matter where
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  Speaker 1: I am or what I face, I will never forget
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  Speaker 1: that one of the greatest weapons that I possess is
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  Speaker 1: my worship. With this truth, I will sing your praises
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  Speaker 1: everywhere I go. And when I do, the chains of
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  Speaker 1: hell and the chains of my enemy will not be
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  Speaker 1: able to hold me. In Jesus' name.
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  Speaker 2: Amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time
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  Speaker 1: with God by listening to today's Bible story. Brought to
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  Speaker 1: you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 3: Singing Jailbirds In our last story, we were able to
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  Speaker 3: read the letter Paul wrote to the Galatian church. Paul,
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  Speaker 3: with the love and wisdom of Jesus, implored the Galatian
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  Speaker 3: church to stop binding themselves to the law. He encouraged
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  Speaker 3: them to live under grace and living in the Spirit.
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  Speaker 3: Now we see Paul and Silas faced with a vexing demon.
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  Speaker 3: As Paul confronts the demon, he is met with imprisonment.
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  Speaker 3: As Paul and Silas dwell in the dark depths of
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  Speaker 3: a Roman jail cell, They are able to be lights
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  Speaker 3: of hope, inspired by the book of Acts.
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: We're so glad you joined us on the Bible in
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: a Year podcast today. The Bible in a Year podcast
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: is an outreach of PowerPoint Ministries and can only come
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: to you each week through the support of listeners just
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: like you. Your support today is so important that we
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: want to thank you for your gift by giving you
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: a copy of my book called The Jesus Book. It
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: is a powerful guide that shows how every book of
• 2:55
  Speaker 2: the Bible points to Jesus and how his living word,
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: the truth of God's word, will transform your life. So
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: to get a copy of the Jesus book, simply go
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: to jackgraham.org slash Jesus. That's jackgraham.org slash Jesus. And thank
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: you for your support. In our last episode, we heard
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: Paul's letter to the church in Galatia and his powerful,
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: beautiful explanation of salvation by grace alone in Christ alone.
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: He urged the Galatians to not let themselves be enslaved
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  Speaker 2: to the burden of the law now that they have
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  Speaker 2: received the liberty that is ours in Christ. He then
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  Speaker 2: encourages us to use our freedom in Christ to walk
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  Speaker 2: by the Spirit and not the flesh and to produce
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  Speaker 2: the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. Today, We'll
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  Speaker 2: find Paul and his missionary partner Silas confronting an evil
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  Speaker 2: spirit and facing a Roman prison. Yet even in the
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  Speaker 2: darkness of their cell, they are full of hope and
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  Speaker 2: praise as they glorify God with singing. And as a result,
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  Speaker 2: a man and his family comes to personal faith in
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  Speaker 2: the Lord. Let's listen now in this reading from the
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  Speaker 2: book of Acts.
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  Speaker 3: Servants of the Most High God, she screamed. Make way
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  Speaker 3: for the servants of God, she yelled even louder. These
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  Speaker 3: men have come in the name of God! She laughed
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  Speaker 3: and twirled around in circles. It had been days of
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  Speaker 3: her nonsense. Paul, Luke, Silas, and Timothy had been followed
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  Speaker 3: through Thyatira by a slave girl possessed by a demon.
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  Speaker 3: For days she rolled around on the floor, yelling and
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  Speaker 3: proclaiming their arrival. It had grown maddening. Even though what
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  Speaker 3: she was saying was true, she said it spitefully and jokingly.
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  Speaker 3: Every place they entered into, she yelled and screamed. It
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  Speaker 3: deterred people from listening to them. It scared people away.
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  Speaker 3: Sometimes truth spoken rudely can do just as much damage
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  Speaker 3: as a lie. The slave girl was clearly disturbed and
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  Speaker 3: fed multiple herbs to keep her mind trapped in a cage.
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  Speaker 3: Her owners would make money off of her, selling her
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  Speaker 3: off as a fortune teller. At first, it broke Paul's
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  Speaker 3: heart to see a girl so broken. However, after days
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  Speaker 3: of endless yelling, Paul was thrown into a small rage.
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  Speaker 3: These men are of God! Hear them! Hear them! she shouted.
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  Speaker 3: Her wicked cackles pierced the ears of people in the streets.
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  Speaker 3: Here are the men who have come to be— In
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  Speaker 3: the name of Jesus, come out of this girl, you
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  Speaker 3: unclean spirit! Paul interrupted and yelled. The girl fell onto
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  Speaker 3: the floor, rolling in the dirt. Her fists banged on
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  Speaker 3: the floor and her teeth bit into her tongue. But then,
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  Speaker 3: like a storm that had finally been broken by the sun,
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  Speaker 3: the demon left her. She wept where she lay on
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  Speaker 3: the road. Paul and Silas lifted her to her feet
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  Speaker 3: and brushed the dirt off her clothing. She gave a
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  Speaker 3: remorseful grin towards the men and then ran back to
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  Speaker 3: her masters. Even though the exacerbating noise was gone, Paul
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  Speaker 3: had a sinking feeling. that this was not over. The
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  Speaker 3: girl ran home to her owners, wailing with tears of
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  Speaker 3: joy and freedom. Her owners, however, were displeased with her restoration.
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  Speaker 3: They made a great deal of money from the demon
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  Speaker 3: inside her. The demon was able to tell fortunes and
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  Speaker 3: speak in ancient dialects. Many people paid a great amount
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  Speaker 3: to listen to a tongue of dark magic. They struck
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  Speaker 3: the girl, and she crawled back into the space she
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  Speaker 3: was kept. The owners would deal with her later, But
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  Speaker 3: for now, they set their sights on Paul. Silas and
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  Speaker 3: Paul were enjoying themselves in the marketplace. They bought food
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  Speaker 3: for their travels and spoke about Christ to the shopkeepers
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  Speaker 3: and vendors as they passed. Paul was walking towards a
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  Speaker 3: man selling dates and bread when he felt a swift
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  Speaker 3: blow to his right temple. Paul fell immediately onto the ground.
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  Speaker 3: He looked up to see a boot coming down on
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  Speaker 3: his ribcage. Paul felt the air leave his chest. He
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  Speaker 3: gasped and looked over to see Silas pinned onto the
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  Speaker 3: ground by another large figure. Paul was turned around and
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  Speaker 3: bound by ropes. He and Silas were tied up and
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  Speaker 3: marched to the magistrate courthouse. These Jews are disturbing our city,
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  Speaker 3: the slave owners declared before the court. They advocate for
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  Speaker 3: traditions that are not Roman. Paul and Silas looked at
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  Speaker 3: one another. They would not be receiving a fair trial.
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  Speaker 3: Paul opened his mouth to speak to the judge, but
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  Speaker 3: was interrupted by a right hook to the jaw. Their
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  Speaker 3: robes were ripped off their bodies, and the magistrates ordered
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  Speaker 3: for Paul and Silas to be beaten with rods. Paul
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  Speaker 3: watched the long and thin branch strike Silas' back. Silas
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  Speaker 3: did not scream. He was strong and knew what being
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  Speaker 3: a Christian entailed. He turned his back on those who
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  Speaker 3: whipped him. Paul received the same beating. The sharp branch
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  Speaker 3: broke through his bare skin. Blood and splinters caked onto
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  Speaker 3: his back. After a steady beating, Paul and Silas were
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  Speaker 3: thrown into prison. The stone floor was cold and jagged.
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  Speaker 3: It ripped Paul's feet underneath him. Before the two men
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  Speaker 3: could catch their breath, the jailer arrived. He was a
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  Speaker 3: large man, clearly well built for his job. His grip
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  Speaker 3: was violent and hard as he fastened their ankles into chains. However,
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  Speaker 3: there was something different about him. Paul could see that
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  Speaker 3: behind the scowl was a face of a lost sheep.
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  Speaker 3: It was midnight, and the cold prison walls enveloped the
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  Speaker 3: prisoners in darkness. A dim torchlight could be seen from
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  Speaker 3: the distant hallways where the jailer slept. Paul could hear
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  Speaker 3: a steady drip of cold water fall onto the jagged stone.
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  Speaker 3: It echoed across the silent prison. All the prisoners were
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  Speaker 3: in the corners of their cells, shivering and waiting for
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  Speaker 3: morning light. Paul and Silas thought about Jesus. how he
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  Speaker 3: had suffered the scorn of men, yet still loved them.
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  Speaker 3: He maintained hope and joy, so they would do the same.
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  Speaker 3: One by one, the prisoners lifted their heads as they
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  Speaker 3: heard voices singing hymns to God. Paul and Silas sang
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  Speaker 3: with joyful shouts and beautiful melodies. Their songs bounced off
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  Speaker 3: the cold stone walls. Its echo was hauntingly powerful. The
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  Speaker 3: frigid prison air was filled with the warm praises of
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  Speaker 3: God's children. The songs became louder as other prisoners joined
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  Speaker 3: in on the melody. An orchestra of hope erupted from
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  Speaker 3: the dark depths of the Roman dungeon as hurting men
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  Speaker 3: turned to their God. As they sang, the earth itself
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  Speaker 3: began to shake. As if God was joining in on
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  Speaker 3: the music, a mighty earthquake shook the foundation of the prison.
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  Speaker 3: The hinges of the doors were shaken open, and the
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  Speaker 3: iron bars fell like the walls of Jericho. Paul and Silas'
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  Speaker 3: chains were unfastened, and there was a clean escape made
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  Speaker 3: ready for them. However, Paul and Silas did not move.
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  Speaker 3: They could hear the footsteps of the jailer approaching. He
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  Speaker 3: turned to the corner to see the gates busted wide open.
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  Speaker 3: Assuming that Paul and Silas had escaped, the jailer drew
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  Speaker 3: his sword. He wept, knowing that he had dishonored his country,
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  Speaker 3: and to allow escape was inevitable death. The jailer pressed
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  Speaker 3: the tip of his blade against his throat and mumbled
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  Speaker 3: a last word before stepping forward to fall on his sword. Stop,
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  Speaker 3: Paul yelled. The jailer stumbled forward and was caught by
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  Speaker 3: Silas before he could fall on his blade. Do not
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  Speaker 3: harm yourself, Paul said. We are all here. The jailer
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  Speaker 3: trembled in the arms of Silas. He was bent over
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  Speaker 3: before them, weeping at the fact that they saved his life.
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  Speaker 3: Paul and Silas guided the jailer out of the prison
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  Speaker 3: into the moonlight. There they sat, speaking about the hidden
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  Speaker 3: brokenness in the jailer's heart. What must I do to
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  Speaker 3: be saved? the jailer asked with tears in his eyes.
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  Speaker 3: Paul and Silas smiled. Believe in Jesus and you will
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  Speaker 3: be saved. You and your household will be blessed, they answered.
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  Speaker 3: So the jailer brought them back to his home and
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  Speaker 3: they preached the gospel to his entire family. He hid
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  Speaker 3: them in his home until it was the appointed time
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  Speaker 3: for them to be released. It is time for you
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  Speaker 3: to leave in peace, the jailer said. The magistrates have
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  Speaker 3: asked for you to go quietly and in peace. But
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  Speaker 3: Paul knew why they wanted them gone. Paul and Silas
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  Speaker 3: were Roman citizens and they were imprisoned without a trial.
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  Speaker 3: What they had done was condemnable under Roman law. So
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  Speaker 3: the magistrates were forced to apologize to Paul and Silas.
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  Speaker 3: After the magistrates groveled, Paul and Silas were content to
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  Speaker 3: leave with joy.
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  Speaker 2: We begin today's reading learning that Paul has a new
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  Speaker 2: companion in ministry, a man named Silas. Paul, Silas, and
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  Speaker 2: Luke were in the Roman city of Thyatira where they
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  Speaker 2: were staying in a home of a new believer named Lydia,
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  Speaker 2: a wealthy businesswoman who dealt in purple fabrics. As they
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  Speaker 2: went about town preaching the Gospels, They were constantly followed
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  Speaker 2: by a young slave girl who was possessed by a
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  Speaker 2: demon that predicted the future. Her owners used this young
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  Speaker 2: girl for personal gain, unconcerned about her or her well-being.
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  Speaker 2: And as Paul and Silas walked through the city, the
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  Speaker 2: young girl would cry out loudly for all to hear,
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  Speaker 2: these men are servants of the Most High God who
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  Speaker 2: are telling you the way to be saved. Her words
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  Speaker 2: were true, but they did not come from God. It
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  Speaker 2: is a reminder that all who proclaim Christ Jesus are
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  Speaker 2: not true followers or true worshipers. There are false prophets.
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  Speaker 2: There are demon spirits that exist that proclaim a message.
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  Speaker 2: This was a work of the enemy, Satan himself, to
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  Speaker 2: distract people from the message of Jesus and the gospel.
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  Speaker 2: And Paul saw right through it. Finally, when he had
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  Speaker 2: had enough, he spoke to the evil spirit in this
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  Speaker 2: young girl with the authority given to him by the
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  Speaker 2: Holy Spirit. He commanded the spirit, the demon, to leave
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  Speaker 2: her and at once she was set free. Just as
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  Speaker 2: Jesus had called out demons, Paul continues the Lord's work
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  Speaker 2: in liberating captives from the forces of evil and the
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  Speaker 2: powers of Satan to experience the power of God. What
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  Speaker 2: a relief this must have been for the young demonized girl.
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  Speaker 2: The voices in her head had left her without peace
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  Speaker 2: and now these voices were silenced. But her masters, who
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  Speaker 2: profited greatly from her condition, were very angry. Their trafficking
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  Speaker 2: had come to a screening halt, and they knew who
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  Speaker 2: was to blame. So they appealed to the local magistrate,
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  Speaker 2: saying Paul and Silas were stirring up trouble and advocating
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  Speaker 2: practices that were contrary to Roman law. Of course, this
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  Speaker 2: was a huge lie. But when your enemies have no
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  Speaker 2: real claim against you, they will come with lies and slander.
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  Speaker 2: Once again, Paul and his friends find themselves persecuted, only
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  Speaker 2: this time not by Jews but by Romans. He and
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  Speaker 2: Silas were seized, beaten, and thrown into prison. But even
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  Speaker 2: in this, Paul and Silas persevered with praise and saw
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  Speaker 2: the opportunity to worship God as a testimony and a
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  Speaker 2: witness of the power of Jesus. When bad things happen
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  Speaker 2: to us, when circumstances turn against us, when we are
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  Speaker 2: persecuted or set aside for our faith, do we continue
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  Speaker 2: to praise God? Too often we miss the opportunity to
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  Speaker 2: witness to the glory of God and the grace of
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  Speaker 2: God in our lives in our hardship. But Paul and
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  Speaker 2: Silas didn't miss this chance. So as they sat in
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  Speaker 2: their cell that night, rather than weeping and whining and
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  Speaker 2: licking their wounds, these men sang great songs of praise
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  Speaker 2: and worship. And the other prisoners could hear them lifting
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  Speaker 2: up their God in the name of Jesus. We then
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  Speaker 2: hear how at about midnight, God sent a mighty earthquake
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  Speaker 2: and rocked the prison, threw open the prison doors, and
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  Speaker 2: caused the chains to fall off all the prisoners. This
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  Speaker 2: was their chance to escape. But they didn't. They didn't
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  Speaker 2: run away. When the jailer awoke, he was certain that
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  Speaker 2: the prisoners would be gone and it would cost him
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  Speaker 2: his life because when commanders were found out that they
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  Speaker 2: had not done their job, they would be executed. So
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  Speaker 2: he resolved to take his own life. But Paul stepped in.
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  Speaker 2: letting him know that no one had escaped. Listen to
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  Speaker 2: the jailer's response in Acts 16, verses 29 and 30.
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  Speaker 2: The jailer called for the lights and rushed in and
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  Speaker 2: fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them
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  Speaker 2: out and asked, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
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  Speaker 2: That's the most important question that any one of us
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  Speaker 2: can ask and be answered by the witnesses of the gospel. Sirs,
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  Speaker 2: what must I do to be saved? When we see
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  Speaker 2: a miracle like this, when the earthquake came and shook
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  Speaker 2: the house, there's a greater purpose and plan. The chains
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  Speaker 2: God wanted to break were not merely those binding Paul
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  Speaker 2: and Silas and the other prisoners, but the chains of
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  Speaker 2: sin that held the jailer and his family. And as
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  Speaker 2: a result of Paul's perseverance and praise, this man and
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  Speaker 2: his entire family opened their hearts to the gospel of Christ.
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  Speaker 2: They were all saved. The men went with him to
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  Speaker 2: his home and his entire family worshiped the Lord with
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  Speaker 2: the Apostle Paul and Silas. And that next morning, the
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  Speaker 2: magistrates said word that Paul and Silas were to be released.
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  Speaker 2: They discovered that these men weren't merely Jews, but Roman citizens.
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  Speaker 2: It is the first indication that Paul will wisely use
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  Speaker 2: his Roman citizenship to advance the gospel of Jesus far
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  Speaker 2: and wide, all across the Roman Empire. And we'll hear
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  Speaker 2: more about that in our next reading. Dear God, we
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  Speaker 2: thank you for this great scripture in Acts chapter 16,
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  Speaker 2: and the power of the gospel to change lives. Lord,
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  Speaker 2: in the midst of our trials and tribulations, may we
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  Speaker 2: always praise you. You have told us to give thanks always,
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  Speaker 2: that we can praise you even in the darkest of times,
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  Speaker 2: because when we do, you are glorified, and Jesus is magnified,
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  Speaker 2: and people will see and hear our witness because of
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  Speaker 2: what Christ has done for us we can stand firm
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  Speaker 2: in the midst of life's greatest challenges. May it be
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  Speaker 2: so in our lives. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. And
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: before we go, I wanted to let you know that
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: the Bible in a Year podcast is an outreach of
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: PowerPoint Ministries and can only come to you each week
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: through the support of listeners like you. Your support today
• 17:43
  Speaker 2: is so important that we want to thank you for
• 17:45
  Speaker 2: your gift by giving you a copy of my book
• 17:48
  Speaker 2: called The Jesus Book. This book is a powerful guide
• 17:52
  Speaker 2: that shows how every book in the Bible points to
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: Christ and how you can better read and understand the
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: Bible and how God's Word transforms our lives. So to
• 18:01
  Speaker 2: get your copy of The Jesus Book, simply go to
• 18:04
  Speaker 2: jackgram.org slash Jesus. That's jackgram.org slash Jesus. And thank you
• 18:11
  Speaker 2: for your support.