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unto himself through the ministry of his word by his spirit those that are given unto him by his father that they may walk before him in all the ways of obedience which he prescribeth to them in his word those thus called he commands to walk together in particular societies or churches for their mutual edification and the due performance of that public worship which he requires of them in the world and then paragraph six says the members of these churches are saints by calling visibly manifesting and evidencing in and by their profession and walking their obedience unto that call of christ and do willingly consent to walk together according to the appointment of christ giving up themselves to the lord and one to another by the will of god in professed subjection to the ordinances of the gospel so it is a great privilege and a delight for us to be able to receive into the membership this morning stephanie and then as well later after baptism noel and mack and clemens into the membership of our church so i will pray and then as i said i'll extend the right hand of fellowship to stephanie so let us pray our god and our father we acknowledge your power and your glory and your majesty displayed in the created order certainly as we see the sunshine today and the mountains surrounding this city we are led to consider such a great and awesome god as well as we considered in the last hour you govern all your creatures and all their actions and we see you in providence as a most excellent being and god we acknowledge in redemption it is you who saves we don't give credit for salvation to stephanie we know that she was a sinner called out of darkness into marvelous light by the by the god of absolute sovereignty and glory we thank you for your salvation of her we thank you for her addition to the life and ministry of this church we just pray that she would grow in the grace and knowledge of our lord and savior and that she would be a great help to all those in our local body as well we thank you for these men that will be baptized and identified publicly with our triune god and we thank you for adding them to our local church as well and we praise you through jesus christ our lord amen well for our call to worship you can turn to isaiah the prophet isaiah chapter 55. isaiah 55 i'll begin reading in verse 1. ho everyone who thirsts come to the waters and you who have no money come buy and eat yes come buy wine and milk without money and without price why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not satisfy listen carefully to me and eat what is good and let your soul delight itself in abundance incline your ear and come to me here and your soul shall live and i will make an everlasting covenant with you the sure mercies of david indeed i have given him as a witness to the people a leader and commander for the people surely you shall call a nation you do not know and nations who do not know you shall run to you because of the lord your god and the holy one of israel for he has glorified you seek the lord while he may be found call upon him while he is near let the wicked forsake his way in the unrighteous man his thoughts let him return to the lord and he will have mercy on him and to our god for he will abundantly pardon for my thoughts are not your thoughts nor are your ways my way says the lord for as the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts for as the rain comes down and the snow from heaven and do not return there but water the earth and make it bring forth and bud that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth it shall not return to me void but it shall accomplish what i please and it shall prosper in the thing for which i sent it for you shall go out with joy and be led out with peace the mountains and the hills shall break break forth into singing before you and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree and instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle tree and it shall be to the lord for a name for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off amen well please turn in your hymn books to psalm 32 psalm 32 be as in bravo and we'll stand as we sing together yes [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] me [Music] is [Music] r [Music] is [Music] is [Music] me [Music] my [Music] is [Music] [Music] well let us pray god most high it's a great joy and a privilege to gather together on your day in your house with your people we come to the father through the mediation of the son in the power of the holy spirit and we confess you as the one true and living god we confess that you made the world and all things in it by the word of your power in the space of six days and all very good we say with the psalmist in terms of providence that our god is in the heavens and he does whatever he pleases and we rejoice concerning the doctrine of salvation we rejoice in the gospel of the son of god we rejoice that in your time you sent him forth born of a woman and born under the law to redeem those under the law we give praise to you for that life of obedience of our lord jesus christ we give praise to you for his death in our place on the cross and for his resurrection again the third day such that all those who by grace look to him in faith receive the forgiveness of sins and a righteousness that avails with god almighty we bless you and we praise you for every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in christ that you have bestowed upon us we rejoice in your loving kindness and in your mercy to us and we rejoice that you've not dealt with us according to our sin nor rewarded us according to our transgression the psalmist says that as far as the east is from the west so you have removed our iniquity and we rejoice in that in that psalm that we just sang david begins by by counting himself blessed as a man in whom the lord does not impute iniquity god we pray that you would be glorified in this glad hour we praise you for your additions to this local church we praise you for your grace in keeping us together over these many years and we pray that as we continue forward it would be in the fear of god and in the comfort of the holy spirit we ask that you would forgive us now for our sins and transgression as we considered in the last hour there is remaining corruption in the hearts of god's people and we lament it and we cry out to you for forgiveness and we confess it in light of what we find in holy scripture john tells us that if we confess our sins you are faithful and just to to cleanse us from all sin and and and to fill us with grace and mercy from on high we ask that he would wash us afresh in that precious blood of the lord jesus christ and cause us to respond in gratitude with praise with worship and adoration we ask that you would look with favor upon this local church and the various needs encountered by your people we thank this morning of rebecca we pray for her we pray for matt and kathy that you had just filled our hearts with comfort today we know they grieve but they don't grieve like the world does and god in heaven may you be glorified in this bless our brother matt as he is called to preach today may you uphold him may you fill him with the spirit and may you enable him by grace to set forth the glories of jesus christ even in the midst of personal tragedy and tr and difficulty as well god we pray for mrs van sheikh we thank you for the report concerning the surgery we pray that you would recover well and fully and that you would just bless this dear woman as well look with favor upon mrs bolt god bless our sister bev in hospital we just commit them to you into the word of your grace and pray that you would undertake on their behalf and god as we gather here we may not have physical trials and challenges but all of us have the spiritual afflictions associated with life in this present evil age there are many things that vex our hearts there are many things that bring discouragement that god your word is that bomb of gilead your word speaks peace to us and we have the sure promise of god most high through the prophet isaiah that that word does not return unto you void so may you comfort us and may you encourage us and may you build us up in our most holy faith and if there be those in this place that are still dead in their trespasses and sins we pray that today would be the day of salvation that that voice of god that is able to to crush the cedars of lebanon would crush the heart and hearts of sinners that you would show men and women and boys and girls their rebellion and transgression against a holy god and may they see christ in all of his glory and in all of his offices to save needy sinners and may they by grace believe in him and turn from their sins as well our god we pray for the proclamation of your truth in this city throughout this country and to the uttermost parts of the earth for we know that this is most important we know that the word of god is that truth that we so desperately need in this age and we ask he would bless ministers of the gospel bless those who are set apart for the work of the the word of god and doctrine and may it be the case that that word would go forth powerfully as well we pray for your blessing upon mike and surrey we pray for the situation in vernon we ask god that you continue to bless ryan we also pray for the work in dryden thanking you for what you are doing in that part of northern ontario and praying for your blessing upon those saints as well we rejoice in the project going on in honduras we rejoice that our brother can be there on scene that he can give us updates frequently and we pray that that church would be established for the proclamation of the gospel of jesus christ in that part of the world bless pastors carlos and luis cause these men to to go about their task with great joy and as well with that reverence and esteem for the god of heaven and earth that is most necessary and father we pray finally for the persecuted church we know that many people in many countries around this world suffer in in untold ways for the cause of god and truth we think of those in various nations steeped and in islam or those nations steeped in communism or other forms of rebellion against the living and true god we pray for our brothers and sisters that you would uphold them that you would strengthen them and encourage them bless that compound in myanmar and continue to protect it continue to bless brother peter and help him to be faithful and help him not only to minister the word of god but to have the wisdom necessary to navigate in such difficult circumstances and god be gracious and merciful to your saints all throughout the earth and may you cause your face to shine upon them and may they all know the nearness of god as their good and we ask these things in the name and for the glory of our lord and savior jesus christ amen we can turn with me again in your hymn books to him four zero two four zero two we'll use a familiar tune and we'll stand together [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Music] oh [Music] [Music] is [Music] [Music] me [Music] is [Music] well you can turn with me in your bibles to acts chapter 16. acts chapter 16. our focus this morning will be on verses 16-34 the conversion of the philippian jailer also consider the imprisonment of saul uh paul and silas if they hadn't gone to prison they wouldn't have been the means to point this man to the lord jesus christ so we see god's providence in action where he governs all his creatures and all their actions for his glory and for their good so i'll read beginning in acts 16 at verse 16. now it happened as we went to prayer that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us who brought her masters much profit by fortune telling this girl followed paul and us and cried out saying these men are the servants of the most high god who proclaim to us the way of salvation and this she did for many days but paul greatly annoyed turned and said to the spirit i command you in the name of jesus christ to come out of her and he came out that very hour but when her master saw that their hope of prophet was gone they seized paul and silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities and they brought them to the magistrates and said these men being jews exceedingly trouble our city and they teach customs which are not lawful for us being romans to receive or observe then the multitude rose up together against them and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods and when they had laid many stripes on them they threw them into prison commanding the jailer to keep them securely having received such a charge he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stalks but at midnight paul and silas were praying and singing hymns to god and the prisoners were listening to them 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 chains were loosed and the keeper of the prison awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open supposing the prisoners had fled drew his sword and was about to kill himself but paul called with a loud voice saying do yourself no harm for we are all here then he called for a light ran in and fell down trembling before paul and silas and he brought them out and said sirs what must i do to be saved so they said believe on the lord jesus christ and you will be saved you and your household then they spoke the word of the lord to him and to all who were in his house and he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes and immediately he and all his family were baptized now when he had brought them into his house he set food before them and he rejoiced having believed in god with all his household amen let us pray our father in heaven thank you for the written word of the living and true god thank you for the book of acts and what it teaches us concerning disciple making and church planting and how wonderful it is to see the power of the holy spirit at work in the book of acts and the founding of the early church as well god we thank you for the missionary enterprise of the apostle paul and and his companions and the great uh distances they covered and the the truth that they brought to various parts of the world and god help us to be faithful in light of these things and help us as well to continually and always point sinners to the lord jesus christ may that be our response to those who say what must i do to be saved believe on the lord jesus christ god be merciful and bless the preaching of the word now fill us all with your holy spirit and again forgive us for all of our sin and transgression and we pray in jesus name amen well here in acts chapter 16 the apostle paul is on the second missionary journey remember the first missionary journey he primarily targets the churches of southern galatia here he goes back through those particular places and then he adds new places he spends the bulk of his time in this second missionary journey in the city of corinth after that there's a third missionary journey where he spends the bulk of his time in ephesus but here in chapter 16 very specifically he has come to the city of philippi there's obviously a book by that name and it is quite intriguing that the early members of the church in philippi were a woman that was quite an accomplished businesswoman that lady was called lydia then you have this slave girl who has this demon cast out from her and then you have this jailer who with his household belief and are baptized so the early members of the church in philippi a businesswoman a slave girl and a jailer well i want to look first at the imprisonment of paul and silas in verses 16 to 24 and then secondly the conversion of the philippian jailer in verses 25 to 34. so let's look at their imprisonment notice in the first place this exorcism of a python spirit it's an interesting passage notice in verse 16. now it happened as we went to prayer that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us so she was possessed and that position possession was with what was called a serpent or a a python and basically it was the serpent or dragon that guarded the delphic oracle it lived at the foot of mount parnassus and was slain by apollo later the word came to designate a spirit of divination uh hence our english versions then also of ventriloquists who were believed to have such a spirit dwelling in their belly so notice in the first place that this woman is possessed but notice as well that she is profitable not for herself she is a slave to masters that are exploiting this particular possession that she has she is under a horrific situation spiritually speaking she is under the powers of darkness and what do we have but two men who capitalize are men who capitalize upon that and try to make money with her notice the statement in verse 16 b who brought her masters much profit by fortune telling and then notice in 19a but when her master saw that their hope of prophet was gone then no love for her they had no concern for her there was no kindness for her there was no compassion for her but rather they seized upon this girl that had been possessed by this spirit and they use her for a money making enterprise but then notice as well with reference to this girl she's a proclaimer look at verse 17 this girl followed paul and us luke is one of the us or one of the parts of us there this girl followed paul and us and cried out saying these men are the servants of the most high god and proclaim to us the way of salvation and this she did for many days this happens in the gospel narratives as well persons that are subject to demonic possession cry out to the lord jesus christ things like what have we to do with you son of the living god john stott says nor is it strange that the evil spirit should have cried out in recognition of god's messengers for luke has documented the same thing during the public ministry of jesus but why should a demon engage in evangelism perhaps the ulterior motive was to discredit the gospel by associating it in people's minds with the occult i don't think that's a far stretch he's aping true preaching in order to bring true preaching into discredit and disrepute to associate it with this python spirit now notice the response of the apostle paul in verse 18. he is greatly annoyed by this and i don't think it's because of the girl i don't think he just has an issue with this young woman but they're trying to minister they're trying to preach the truth they're trying to proclaim jesus as the way to solve a shed and this girl keeps crying out what she's crying out so in verse 18 b it says paul greatly annoyed turned and said to the spirit he felt burdened as the result of someone's provocative activity to be greatly disturbed or annoyed is what the verb means there he's upset not again because of this woman but rather because of what this demon is doing via this particular woman to bring discredit upon the gospel of our lord jesus see that's how you know uh the apostle paul that man if you cut him he bled gospel when he writes to the corinthians if there's anything that would detract from the message that he had preached to them he would condemn it not in his own interests not oh paul the apostle the mighty reverend dr sir that wasn't his attitude remember i've shared with you in second corinthians paul takes a defensive posture throughout that epistle defensive in terms of his own self and ministry not so that persons will hold him in high regard but so that persons will not discredit the message that he is preaching and the same thing is true in this instance he doesn't have an axe to grind against this poor pathetic girl that is possessed by a python spirit rather he has an axe to grind with the demonic activity that is trying to associate true gospel preaching with the activity of demons so notice what he does he rebukes the demon this she did for many days but paul greatly annoyed turned and said notice to the spirit i command you in the name of jesus christ to come out of her the power for the exorcism is not paul's but christ's notice what he says i command you in the name of jesus christ doesn't say i command you in the name of the apostle paul i'm on the second missionary journey and i've been doing that's not what he does it's the name of jesus christ that vanquishes the foes of the gospel it is the name of jesus christ that deals the death blow to satan and to all of his minions it's the name of jesus who brings healing to this particular girl it's the name of jesus who brings healing to all of us go back to acts chapter 4 for just a moment to see something intriguing about that name acts chapter 4 at verse 12 the apostle peter says nor is there salvation in any other for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved you may not be possessed today by a python spirit you may not have that particular issue in your life but if you're not a believer in jesus christ it's just about the same it's just about the same net effect in terms of your place before authorized holy god and so the way of healing is through the name of jesus christ to believe on him to look unto him in faith to turn from your sins by god's grace and to receive the gift that god gives to needy sinners it is most blessed most wonderful and most excellent what paul does in this instance and notice i command you in the name of jesus christ to come out of her and he came out that very hour wasn't a series it wasn't i'll see you next week we'll come back together and i'll make that same pronoun no it's an immediate thing some of these hucksters in the professing church that cast out demons they don't do it this way they do it in their own name they do it as their own designate they do it in a in a series of conferences they do it in a series of meetings i remember going one time many years ago to a conference in vancouver at a rented a hotel conference room for that very purpose i didn't go as a willing participant i simply went to see what was happening on the other side of the tracks i don't mean vancouver i meant theological tracks it was weird i don't know how better to say it but it was weird bizarre outlandish incredibly odd and blasphemous because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world this man's whole ministry was predicated on the the falsehood that christians can be demon-possessed so it was christians that had to undergo this therapy session and go through the incantations and go through the self-healing led by this guy and having purchased his dvd set or back then it was probably cds or cassette tapes i'm dating myself here but you had to go through a process in order to achieve what this man said you were going to achieve which again at the very entrance of it was faulty christians are not demon possessed we are spirit possessed the holy spirit greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world so it's odd it's nonsensical it's strange and it's weird and for whatever reason professing christians are still attracted to that people of god need to wake up they need to read their bibles they need to commit themselves to sound theology and if they did so a lot of these hucksters would be out of business it is the case that they're making lots of money because there's a lot of willing dupes that want to pay them to give them this so-called wisdom on how to deal with demon possession paul commands in the name of jesus and the spirit flees from her that's the reality of dealing with exorcism now notice the anger of her masters again i can't say enough bad things about these characters can't say enough bad things about these wretches here is this poor pathetic girl possessed by a spirit paul the apostle casts out in the name of jesus this spirit what are they upset about no more money it's going to affect our bottom line no more cash flow of course it's on that basis that they then cry out for the civil magistrate oh these are these men are troubling our fair city really it troubles the fair city to cast a demon out of a young girl no they're troubling your pocketbook they're troubling your bank account they're troubling your wallet they're troubling your lucrative business notice in verse 19 when her master saw that their hope of prophet was gone the same verb is used notice at the end of verse 18 and he came out that very hour when her master saw that their hope a prophet came out bruce says when paul exercised the spirit that possessed her he exercised their means of income she could no longer tell fortunes again these men are horrible they're just bad dudes they are capitalizing on a girl's misery and they are making money at it there really is nothing new under the sun brethren i mean the sorts of things that we see today they're wicked but it's not as if the roman empire didn't have wickedness either it's not as if the the babylonian captivity didn't have wickedness either didn't it's not the case that there was no wickedness at the time of moses and the prophets there's always been wickedness and the gospel has always been the answer so notice the prophet is gone and the missionaries are seized verse 19. when her master saw that their hope a prophet was gone they seized paul and silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities that's as vicious and as hard as it sounds they didn't say come on with us fellas we want to introduce you to the magistrate we want to have tea we want to have crumpets and we want to discuss your current conduct in this fair city they seize them and drag them into the presence of the magistrate now notice their statement of accusation at verse 20. they brought them to the magistrates and said these men being jews exceedingly trouble our city again how did they exceedingly trouble the city what was it that they've done what was it that they produced what hardship did they introduce into the city of philippi in this first century context what is it it is intriguing that they offer up this baseless accusation and then notice the magistrates run with it where is the whole concept of due process see in the roman empire they were supposed to be committed to law they were supposed to be committed to the rule of law and to concepts like due process that's absolutely vacant in this passage these men are treated horribly the apostle is treated like a wretch for having done the good thing of casting out the spirit from this particular woman so notice they are the jews who trouble the city and they teach things that are unlawful look at verse 21 they teach customs which are not lawful for us being romans to receive or observe again that's not accurate one man who is very familiar with the state of jurisprudence in the roman empire says officially the roman citizen may not practice an alien cult that has not received the public sanction of the state but customarily he might do so as long as his cult did not otherwise offend against the laws and usages of roman life i.e so long as it did not involve political or social crimes where's the political crime in casting out a spirit from this poor pathetic girl where's the social crime in casting out the spirit from this poor pathetic girl you have to appreciate there's no crime here there is simply an allegation there is simply a charge there is simply a guilt by association they're jews and they are stirring up you know they're stirring up our city they are teaching things that it's unlawful for us as romans to to believe brethren history is not like a a a a a a away from or apart from this kind of conduct even in our own day it's the same sort of thing guilt by a sh association well these people are troubling the city so they're bad they're evil they're horrible let's gang up on them notice what happens the punishment imposed in verses 22 to 24 then the multitude rose up together against them and the magistrates tore off their clothes not the magistrates tearing off their clothes sometimes commentators take it that way in light of matthew 26. remember when jesus is standing before the high priest and the high priest adjourns him is he the son of the living god and jesus says as uh he says it is as you say he affirms it so what does the high priest do he tears his clothes he rents his garments he thinks he's in the presence of blasphemy and so this is the humiliation process so some have read it this way that the magistrate told that's not it they tore the garments off of paul in silence so notice verse 22 the multitude rose up together against them the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods commanded them to be beaten with rods now when it comes to this beating with rods the apostle expresses in second corinthians 11 that he was no stranger to this he had had this inflicted upon him in fact let's look there for just a moment because i think what we see in this passage is something of backbone in a christian minister second corinthians chapter 11. specifically at verse 22. it's one of those passages i mentioned earlier where paul is defending himself he's defending himself against men who came in on the heels of his ministry and suggested to the church at corinth well he's not really interested in you he's only interested in his own money he's not really interested in you he's only interested in his own prestige he's not really interested in you he's just all about paul so that's why paul defends himself again not to show that these detractors are right but to silence them and to show the corinthians that if they hold him in disrepute then they're going to reject the message and paul doesn't want the corinthians to reject the message of the cross so he engages in a personal bit of apologetics a defense of himself so notice in verse 22 are they hebrews so am i are they israelites so am i are they the seed of abraham so am i are they ministers of christ i speak as a fool i am more in labor's more abundant in stripes above measure in prisons more frequently in deaths often from the jews five times i receive 40 stripes minus one that's a reference to deuteronomy 25 verse 3. see deuteronomy chapter 25 gives the gives the the law the legislation on the punishment of a criminal now when you look at that particular passage that criminal needs to be treated with dignity even though he's a criminal and one of the ways we know he's treated with dignity is because you're not to exceed 40 lashes you're not to exceed 40 latches that is to dehumanize this man and even though he's a criminal we don't dehumanize him even though he's a criminal we treat him with respect even though he's a criminal he's an image bearer of the living and true god see people have this concept that the old testament is barbaric the old testament is antiquated the old testament was great for the hordes sort of roaming out on the uh the pneumatic hordes roaming around on the on the deserts i would suggest that our present law is far more barbaric than what you find in the old testament you have present law that sanctions endorses and at times publicly subsidizes the murder of babies you have the public law today that's okay with euthanasia if you're elderly or you're infirm go ahead we're going to help you to get to get out of this life that's barbarism brethren going to prison for 40 years to be treated like uh uh to to be sodomized by by other criminals there is more humanitarianism in the death penalty than there is with life in prison now i think that when it comes to the old testament we should be a lot better readers because in deuteronomy 25 the infliction of corporal punishment upon a criminal offender who has been convicted in lawful court using the rules of evidence was given no more than 40 lashes so back to our passage there's a point here three times i was beaten with rods that's most likely the civil magistrate in the roman empire now i ask you do you think that they gave a care at all about deuteronomy 25 3. you're a civil magistrate in the roman empire and you've got a criminal what are you going to do you're going to beat him with rods is there any legislation that prohibits you from violating his rights and going over 40 no we have no understanding in terms of how many times paul had actually been beaten with these rods so back to the text once i was stoned three times i was shipwrecked a night and a day i had been in the deep in journeys often in perils of waters and perils of robbers in perils of my own countrymen in perils of the gentiles in perils in the city in perils in the wilderness and perils in the sea in perils among false brethren in weariness and toil in sleeplessness often in hunger and thirst in fastings often in cold and nakedness besides the other things what comes upon me daily my deep concern for all the churches who is weak and i am not me and i am not weak who is made to stumble and i do not burn with indignation now brethren i suggest that this says something amazing about the apostle paul that he would undergo that but it says something even more amazing about the lord jesus christ that paul would willingly go through that for him in the language of the bride in the song of solomon christ is all together lovely and he's chief among ten thousand he's worth being beaten with rod's floor he's worth being beaten with whips for he's worth going to prison for he's worth going to the lion's den for he's worth disenfranchisement from friends or family or government he is worth all that because he is the king of kings the lord of lords and the savior of sinners who loved us and who gave himself for us so back to acts chapter 16 we see one of those instances where the apostle was inflicted or given a beating with rods and then according to verse 23 when they had laid notice many stripes on them they threw them into the prison commanding the jailer to keep them securely having received such a charge he put them in the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks brethren i got to tell you if i get a cold i'm one of those guys that lays on the couch and asks for seven up and saltines honey i'm just miserable and i'm weak can you serve me i'm you know that's the kind of man i am sorry you gotta learn bad things about me from time to time i can't imagine having been beaten with rods and having been inflicted with many stripes and then being put into an inner prison and then having my feet locked in stocks again this isn't cushions and pillows and for your comfort we've brought that's not what's happening what did they do wrong they cast out a demon from a slave girl that was their crime that was their sort of rebellion against the empire that was the the the situation in which they find themselves notice having received such a charge he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks now we turn to the next section the conversion of the philippian jailer and here i want to look first at the jailer's problem verses 25 to 30. but before we look at the jailer's problem we have to notice the missionaries disposition if i'm the guy whining on the couch asking for saltines and 7up look at what paul and silas are doing but at midnight paul and silas were praying and singing hymns to god and the prisoners were listening to them brethren there's a what we should do and what we probably would do this is what we should do but can we possibly envisage that this is what we would do oh yeah i've been beaten with many stripes my feet are now placed in the stalks i'm in the inner prison to make sure i have no chance of flight or escape and in that posture and and it's midnight i should also tell you that about myself the older i get the earlier i want to go to bed 12 midnight is way too of an unholy hour for me to even think about but let alone after having been beaten after having been wrongly accused after having been putting with my my feet in the stocks to then at midnight to have the energy to sing and to praise god most high that's what these men were about again it says something incredible about the men but it says something more incredible about the savior he's worth it brethren in acts chapter 5 the apostles are beaten and they leave from that place of beating and it says they went with joy or they went out boldly and they were rejoicing that they had been beaten for the name of the lord jesus christ that's kind of a religion that that is contrary to us today it's kind of a religion that that we really don't have any taproots with the moment there's difficulty the moment there's challenge the moment there's hardship the moment there might be something just a little untoward we're ready to run and we're ready to hide not these brothers these brothers are not going to shrink back from declaring the whole council of god they're not going to shrink back from preaching the way of salvation through faith in our lord jesus christ john stott said not groans but songs came from their mouths instead of cursing men they blessed god see brethren that's a lesson again don't want to be too autobiographical here that's a lesson i would need because i would want to be on that phone calling my attorney to get me out of this situation i would want to be cursing men instead of blessing god but we see just the opposite approach instead of cursing men instead of crying foul instead of invoking their citizenship which paul is not a stranger to doing but at this particular vantage point he doesn't do that he is simply praising god most high tertullian the church father made the observation the legs feel nothing in the stalks when the heart is in heaven this is a great illustration of that principle at midnight paul and silas were praying and singing hymns to god and the prisoners were listening to them now notice the jailer's problem there's an earthquake verse 26 suddenly there was a great earthquake wasn't that lucky wasn't that fortuitous wasn't blind fate just smiling upon the believers on that day no god governs all his creatures and all their actions he typically uses ordinary means to fulfill his decree there are instances though where he uses miracle there are those where he chooses to work above apart or without means i would suggest this is a miraculous earthquake with a specific purpose so there is the earthquake in verse 27 so suddenly there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken uh shaken and immediately all the doors were open and everyone's chains were loosed let's just suppose it just happened to be a day when there was an earthquake that as far as i know and i've been in a few because i lived in southern california never did shackles pop open when there was an earthquake never were feet loosed when there was an earthquake never were doors opened in a in a prison when there was an earthquake it takes a lot to provide a naturalistic interpretation of this particular passage it really is the lengths that people will go to try to say oh no god isn't who god says that he is yes god is who he says that he is and there's an earthquake and as a result of the earthquake immediately all the doors were open and everyone's chains were loosed now notice the fear of the jailer verse 27 the keeper of the prison awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open supposing the prisoners had fled drew his sword and was about to kill himself this happens in chapter 12 at verse 19. when the angel busts peter out of jail the guards who allowed it to happen who were on duty at that time were executed in terms of the roman state j.a alexander says self-destruction was considered by the soul or by the romans as not only lawful but a duty or a virtue under certain circumstances in the shipwreck later in acts chapter 27 when the ship wrecks what do the guards plan to do they want to kill all of the persons that were prisoners why because if they escaped they were going to get killed by their by their supervisors so this philippian jailer has a real issue he has a real understanding he has a real practical problem if all the prisoners under my charge escape then i'm going to have to stand before my supervisor in the morning and he's going to order my execution it is that simple now notice the reassurance given by paul in verse 28 but paul called with a loud voice saying do yourself no harm for we are all here you have to appreciate god's providence look at how these two disparate persons were were brought together on this day look at the way god plants the church in philippi lydia at the riverside the casting out of this demon from this slave girl and now he is brought into contact with this jailer a jailer who knows the score that in the midst of the earthquake in the midst of the open doors to the prison in the midst that the shackles have unloosened themselves all these persons are going to escape and when they escape i'm gonna be executed so the apostle paul says don't do yourself any harm don't do it we're all here no one's gone anywhere could you imagine being that what do you mean you're all here the doors are open your shackles are off why didn't you run for it that's the time you run for the fence when those sorts of things converge not when the sorts of things converging include the salvation of a sinful man who stands in need of jesus christ providence is a beautiful and a wonderful thing now notice verses 29 to 30 then he called for a light ran in and fell down notice trembling before who paul and silas why paul and silas why didn't he fall down trembling before some of the other guys why that john or or bill or or frank why doesn't he fall down before those men because he knows there's something about those men he know there's he knows there's something unique about paul and silas and i would suggest he knows that because he lives in the city of philippi i would suggest he knows that because it wasn't like vancouver and he would have had some inkling as to who these particular men were remember he's the man that oversees the prison so they would come and bring these men to him and he would put them in the stocks but there would have to be some charging order there would have to be some expression as to who they were and what they did i mean the equivalent of mug shots would have had to been taken you just didn't throw people into jail in complete denial of roman jurisprudence but it is intriguing calls for a light he runs in and he falls down trembling before saul paul and silas and he brought them out and said sirs what must i do to be saved now this is the the million dollar question right sirs what must i do to be saved this is what every evangelist every zealous christian every pastor every blood-bought children child of god whenever they talk to people wouldn't you love to hear this you're on an airplane and you happen to talk about oh i'm a christian wouldn't you like them to say sir what must i do to be saved has that ever happened to you probably not that's not the typical response this is the you know the fastball right down the play this is the man ready to rock and roll this is everything where it ought to be similar to the rich young ruler who comes to jesus and says uh sir what good thing must i do to inherit eternal life again wouldn't you like a crack at that ball we have to deal with people that just don't want to have anything to do whatsoever with religion we can't even begin to talk about religion or politics because everybody loses their minds wouldn't it be nice if everybody lose their minds and they could actually discuss things like grown adults and even disagree like grown adults and not cancel each other not destroy each other and not ruin each other could it possibly be that image bearers could conduct themselves in that manner i'd like to think so but back to our text look at what we find sirs what must i do to be saved he asks the most important question the fact that he comes to paul and silas indicates to me he's not talking about safe from my superiors he's not talking about being safe from my supervisor he's not talking about being saved in terms of my own earthly bacon he's talking about sirs what must i do to be saved from damnation what must i do to be saved from hell itself the jailer likely was familiar already as i've suggested with the gospel look at verse 12 and from there to philippi which is in the foremost uh which is the foremost city of that part of macedonia a colony and we were staying in this in the in that city notice for some days and then drop down to verse 17. this girl followed paul and us and cried out saying these men are the servants of the most high god who proclaim to us the way of salvation and this she did for many days it's quite feasible the jailer on his way to work passed by and heard this from this python spirit in this poor pathetic girl and then notice as well specifically in verse 18 and this she did for many days but but paul greatly annoyed turned and said to the spirit i command you in the name of jesus christ to come out of her and he came out that very hour again it's not that there was no gospel in philippi it's not that this man didn't have some inkling it's not that this man didn't have some clue but even if so let's suppose this he is a sinner made in the image of god who knows that there is a god so romans chapter 1 tells us that if you you might be an unbeliever here today that says you know i just don't believe in god there's a lot of people out there that say i just don't believe in god do you know what god says god says you do believe or you do know but you work very hard to suppress that truth and unrighteousness because what can be known of god is made evident through the created order and in romans 1 paul details that so even if this man hadn't heard the girl even if this man hadn't heard paul even if this man hadn't heard the name of jesus christ he knew there was a god and he knew he was not in a good state before him it reminds me of john owen the puritan he says when men are under any dreadful providence thundering lightnings tempests and darkness they tremble not so much at what they see or hear or feel as from their secret thoughts that god is nigh and that he is a consuming fire i think that's a very perceptive observation that we don't always give a lot of credence to men know in their heart of hearts that there is a god and men know in their heart of hearts typically that they're not right with that god and so this jailer comes to paul and silas and he says to them sirs what must i do to be saved now notice the missionaries response in the first place they make this declaration so they said believe on the lord jesus christ think about that sirs what must i do to be saved well you need to try harder in your life you need to be more virtuous towards your wife you need to be more kind and patient with your children all of those things were most likely true but paul and silas point him to the savior see christianity isn't a self-help program christianity isn't simply behavior modification try a little bit harder be a little bit better do a little bit more and on that grand day god will say well done good and faithful savior a servant that's not what happens they say believe on the lord jesus christ look in faith and they are thus consistent with our lord's teaching for just as moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so must also the son of man be lifted up that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life so you see the apostle understood the doctrine of justification by faith alone he understood what jesus taught that it's not more works it's not more action it's not more vigorousness on your part but it's faith in the savior the one who lived in obedience to the law of his father the one who died as a sacrifice and a substitute on the cross and the one who was raised again the third day see the gospel isn't about you the gospel is about our lord jesus christ his life his death his resurrection the bible tells us it's good news not good advice again not self-help not therapy not some sort of moralism but rather it is faith in jesus for salvation unto everlasting life the moment that a sinner looks to christ in faith that moment the sinner is forgiven of his sins that moment that sinner receives a righteousness by which he may enter into heaven that is the doctrine of justification by faith alone and that is precisely what the apostle underscores in his response so they said believe on the lord jesus christ so it's not just belief sometimes you hear that well it doesn't really matter what you believe in it's all about your faith we are pathetic when it comes to these sorts of things our fundamental default disposition is always man-centered of course it has everything to do with the object of faith if you believe in a rock however good that belief may be that rock can't save you your faith is only as good as the object and christ is the object he's all together lovely he's chief among ten thousand his life is death as resurrection is all that a guilty sinner needs so they say believe on the lord jesus christ and then notice the promise that is made there and you shall be saved not yet maybe if he so feels it might possibly be the case in another hundred years the moment you believe you are saved the moment you look you are saved that's why in our church we don't say come on forward we're gonna have an altar call every head bowed every you know uh every head bowed every eye closed no no no no believe the gospel where you sit believe the gospel where you are believe the gospel when you hear it remember jesus to that woman at the well he said if you knew who it was that was offering this water you would have asked him and he would have given it to you so many times persons do not act in light of the knowledge and information that they have if you know or have heard or do believe in some small sense that jesus is who jesus says he is then believe in him for salvation that's the emphasis of the apostle in this part believe on the lord jesus christ and you will be saved and then notice you and your household verse 32 then amplifies for us so that's the initial contact sirs what must i do to be saved believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved you and your household and then notice in verse 32 then they spoke the word of the lord to him and to all who were in his house yes this teaches a household baptism and yes all the participants in this household heard the word of god they believed the word of god and then they were baptized by the apostle with reference to their entrance into the christian life then they spoke the word of the lord to him and to all who were in his house and he took them the same hour of the night and wash their stripes so you have that expression of kindness this is how you know that the man has believed right we're not saved by faith plus works but those works are the fruits and the lively evidences of the faith that is there this is this is james's point in james 2 james is not different from paul james does not teach faith plus works in order for salvation but james is teaching along with the apostle paul that those who believe the gospel of our lord and savior jesus christ will not only have that that justifying faith but it's accompanied by all other saving graces so that they live now in light of that and that's what happens with this philippian jailer it says in verse 33 he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes they had been beaten to a pulp they had been bloodied they had been bruised and battered and now this man cleanses them he could have cleansed them earlier well what happens the great change comes he believes the gospel he's justified freely by his grace he is forgiven and he receives the righteousness by which he'll enter into heaven and so he responds in kind chrysostom says he washed them and was washed those he washed from their stripes himself was washed from his sins when you're washed from your sins when you're saved by grace you live a life of sanctification you pursue those things that are pleasing to your blessed god in the language of jesus in john 14 if you love me you will keep my commandments and with reference to the love here you see it expressed notice the end of verse 33 and immediately he and all his family were baptized now when he had brought them into his house he set food before them and he rejoiced having believed in god with all his household again brethren the pedos who bring this up as a as an instance of of household baptism yeah absolutely positively we see that we affirm that we cheer that he believes with his household therefore they're baptized in the name of the triune god and with reference to that expression of love again it's not that he has faith in jesus sirs what must i do to be saved believe on the lord jesus christ and now his works come along and seal the deal now the works come along because christ had saved him you see this in galatians chapter 5 for in christ jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything but faith working through love matron says love according to the new testament is not the means of salvation but it is the finest fruit of it a man is saved by faith not by love but he is saved by faith in order that he may love that's what happens with this philippian jailer and in conclusion just a couple of thoughts and then we'll move into the water of baptism but in the first place be astounded at the grace and the goodness of god let's just say for a moment you are going to build a new organization a new society of people you could pick from any sort of persons in in that society this is an odd combo a businesswoman in the first century a slave girl who had a demon cast out and a and a jailer you know usually we wouldn't do that we'd want you know the heavy hitters in the community we'd want the magistrate we'd want you know the doctors we want the lawyers we want those guys to make up our church what does paul say in the epistle to the corinthians not not many wise not not many noble it's not the the glorious things of the earth that are inevitably the objects of god's salvation the typical manner is that it's the wretched ones on the earth remember jesus didn't come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance and so your qualification to be saved by grace through faith in jesus is not that you're a lawyer it's not that you're a doctor it's that you're a sinner and if you're a sinner listen to the language of the apostle and believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved as well we should appreciate something about these missionaries the persecution was instigated by wretched men who made money off of a slave girl who was possessed with a spirit they were arrested falsely false charges they weren't troubling the city they had every right to do exactly what it was they were doing but they submit to this they understand that this is the will of the lord just as good things are the will of the lord for his people there are at times and i know this is a tough pill for us there are bad things that are the will of the lord for his people i would submit that in terms of the physical in terms of the earthly in terms of the temporal this is just about as bad as it gets being falsely charged being falsely beaten being falsely arrested and yet in god's providence this was the mechanism by which he brought the apostle paul to the philippian jailer to tell this man believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved how many of us as we survey passages of scriptures like a scripture like these do we just scratch our heads for a moment and go wow that's pretty amazing the way this happened that's pretty amazing the way that god orchestrates that it's pretty amazing that we have two persons whose paths were probably never going to cross unless paul is beaten dragged and then thrown into jail as well we have the courage of the the courage of the missionaries and and i think as i've said twice now that emphasizes not only their courage but the magnificence of jesus but in terms of baptism this is a baptism passage look at verse 33 and he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes and immediately he and all his family were baptized it's an important ordinance or sacrament it is commanded by jesus in the great commission go therefore and make disciples of all the nations baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit so it's important because well we see in this the subjects of baptism it's those who believe the gospel it's those who when directed to jesus christ believe on him sirs what must i do to be saved believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved well who gets baptized those saved by grace through faith in christ jesus our lord and then in terms of the baptism itself it is the response to what god has done when noel and mack and clemens go into that water there's no magic there's no sacramental efficacy it's not that their sins are actually being washed away christ's blood does that christ's blood cleanses us from all sin that tank is emblematic symbolic representative of what christ has done in their hearts and notice it isn't a reward for exemplary behavior okay noel and mack and clemens you've all done well for this past few months therefore you get the reward of baptism that's not why these brothers are going to the water today these brothers are going into the water today because they've been conquered by sovereign grace these brothers are going into the water today because they've been shown their sin by the power of the holy spirit these brothers are going in the water today because they've been directed to the lord jesus christ and belief in him and when they by grace have believed on him they're forgiven of their sins they're given a righteousness that avails with god these brothers probably if i know their hearts as i suspect i do can't wait to get into the water again not as a work to earn their favor with the lord but to demonstrate to all of us what the lord has done in their hearts what the lord has done in their lives what the lord is able to do for any other guilty sinner that tank preaches the forgiveness of sins not through water but through blood atonement that tank tells every sinner there is hope to be had in our lord jesus christ that tank represents what god most high does in the christian gospel in the language of our confession baptism is an ordinance of the new testament ordained by jesus christ to be unto the party baptized a sign of his fellowship with him in his death and resurrection of his being engrafted into him of remission of sins and of giving up unto god through jesus christ to live and walk in newness of life it's not a reward it's not a work it's not something that you have to do in order to be saved some in the history of the church have taught that no it represents in a powerful and symbolic way there is imagery there is representation there's romans 6 there they die with christ they're buried with christ and they rise with christ that emblem is absolutely crucial in baptism some suggest the mode isn't that important the mode is important that immersion represents that union with christ in life death and in resurrection and the apostle underscores that in romans chapter 6. now in terms of some encouragement to the brothers i always like this quote from c.h spurgeon if i've preached your baptism i may have quoted spurgeon on that same occasion but i think it's very indicative or very much a beautiful illustration of how we should how we should approach the doctrine or the the the practice of baptism he says may third in the afternoon i was privileged to follow my lord and to be buried with him in baptism blessed pool sweet emblem of my death to all the world may i henceforward live alone for jesus accept my body and soul as a poor sacrifice tie me unto thee in my strength i now devote myself to thy service forever never may i shrink from owning thy name witness ye men and angels now if i forsake the lord i vow to glory alone in jesus and his cross and to spend my life in the extension of his cause in whatsoever way he pleases i desire to be sincere in this solemn profession having but one object in view and that to glorify god blessing upon thy name that thou hast supported me through the day of it it is thy strength alone that could do this thou hast thou wilt thou hast enabled me to profess thee help me now to honor thee and carry out my profession and live the life of christ on earth amen brothers that's my exhortation to you be faithful men be godly men all of us should be reminded by this baptism of the glory and the majesty and the beauty and the excellence of jesus christ it isn't us that commands ourselves to god it isn't our works it isn't our our our virtue but it's solely and alone grounded upon the finished work of our lord jesus christ and as baptized men and women we live in light of that reality and seek by his grace to pursue holiness and those things which are pleasing in his sight if you're not a believer here this morning listen to paul's words to this philippian jailer believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved let us pray our father we thank you for your word and we thank you so very much for the power of the christian gospel we see it in the conquest of lydia and of this slave girl and of this jailer we see it in the founding of the church in philippi we see it in the power of the holy spirit to come upon men and women we see it in the confession of faith made by these sinners and the grace of god most high magnified we thank you for the life and the death and the resurrection of jesus christ and we pray god in heaven should bless these men bless these brothers bless stephanie and these new additions to our church life and may we seek to encourage one another to exhort one another daily while it is called today lest we be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin and may we as well shine as lights in this crooked and perverse generation and give us the boldness and the courage to hold forth your word of truth and we pray this in the name of the lord jesus christ amen well if the brothers would go change their clothes we'll meet in the baptistry and then steve could you come up and lead a hymn it will be him 433. before we begin uh singing if you have children in the nursery downstairs if you don't mind giving relief to the to the to the workers down there so everyone can participate in the in the baptismal service so 433 i believe you said okay i'll ask you to please stand so [Music] i see is [Music] first yes [Music] foreign yes [Music] foreign [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Music] themselves before i actually ask you the questions i wanted to read a passage i don't typically do this but in this instance i would like to it's from first timothy chapter six it may not seem to be uh an apparent baptismal text but i'll explain in first timothy chapter six at verse 13 verse 11 the apostle says but you o man of god flee these things and pursue righteousness godliness faith love patience gentleness fight the good fight of faith lay hold on eternal life to which you are also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses so timothy was paul's young ministerial companion not young in terms of 20 probably a 40 year old 30 year old somewhere in there but timothy was set apart at a young age the apostle commands timothy's mother and grandmother for having catechized him having taught him the truth as it is in jesus i think it's common in the christian life to sort of see the the person that you know the profligate sinner the man that has gone out into the world he's done horrible things he's been a vicious wicked sinner god saves him and we all rejoice well the same power that god uses to save the wicked profligate sinner is the same power he uses to save young men who are brought up in a christian home and who faithfully attend church my heart is warmed brethren to see god's power in the effectual call of a young man brought up in a christian family brought up in a church and who has made that determination to side with the savior in the waters of baptism this is as much a demonstration of the effectual call as these other two wretches that will be coming up i'm kidding it's just glorious it's wondrous and it's awesome to see so by way of reminder in terms of baptism what this signifies is that it is an ordinance of the new testament ordained by jesus christ to be unto the party baptized a sign of his fellowship with him in his death and resurrection of his being engrafted into him of remission of sins and of his giving up unto god through faith through jesus christ to live and walk in newness of life now i give the opportunity for the persons baptized to either a make a testimony or be for me to ask questions and then they answer in the affirmative so clemens has asked that i ask the question so i will do that now do you believe that there is one true and living god who exists eternally as father son and holy spirit yes do you believe that you have sinned against god and justly deserve his punishment for your sins do you believe that jesus christ the son of god lived in obedience to god's law died as a sacrifice and substitute for sinners and rose on the third day yes do you believe in jesus christ alone to save you from your sins and do you commit to walk in obedience to god through faith in jesus christ amen all right you can turn that way i'm gonna call fellow so we're gonna have to make sure i don't bang right now all right i baptize you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit [Applause] and then mackenzie cross mack is going to make uh give a brief testimony go ahead so uh my name is mackenzie cross i'm from brandon manitoba i grew up in a christian home and i always assumed i was a christian because i knew of jesus and acknowledged his existence but i still lived in a life of sin wrongfully thinking i was saved almost two years ago i heard the frightening chapter chapter matthew 7. not everyone who says to me lord lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven but he who does the will of my father in heaven many will say to me in that day lord lord have we not prophesied in your name cast out demons in your name and done many many many wonders in your name and then i will declare to them i never knew you depart from me you who practice lawlessness i then realized i was suspended over eternal damnation and there was no foundation in which i stood this was the greatest thing to ever happen to me suddenly the fear of god filled every fiber of my being and repentance was granted to me i then knelt at my bed cried admitting i was a sinner and needed a savior which he graciously gave me my lord and savior jesus christ he removed my heart of stone and gave me a heart of flesh since that day everything has changed and i now long to be a faithful servant soldier and slave to the king of kings and the lord of lords jesus christ amen i baptize you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit [Applause] [Music] [Applause] and then there's noel and joy uh it's been a pleasure to meet them over the last uh several months i think it was as a result of the pandemic that they first came to our church joy of course has been baptized here i think this church is new to them in terms of doctrine in terms of the reformed faith and that sort of thing but what i don't think is new to them is christ and christ's people and church life so it's a real blessing and the privilege to see noel follow christ and then follow joy in the waters of baptism and so i have the questions for him do you believe there is one true and living god who exists eternally it's father son and holy spirit i do do you believe that you have sinned against god and justly deserve his punishment for your sins i have do you believe that jesus christ the son of god lived in obedience to god's law died as a sacrifice and substitute for sinners and rose on the third day yes do you believe in jesus christ alone to save you from your sins i do and do you commit to walk in obedience to god through faith in jesus christ amen all right i baptize you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit [Applause] how about if i pray our father our hearts are full with love and worship and praise to you we know god again this isn't a reward for good behavior it's a symbol a sign an element a representation of what christ has done in the gospel for these brothers we thank you for their addition to our church we thank you for this local church we pray that you would cause us to to walk in the fear of god and in the comfort of the holy spirit and may we glorify you may you bless the proclamation of your word here and elsewhere may sinners everywhere hear those words believe on the lord jesus christ and you shall be saved we ask in his most blessed name amen let's stand and sing the doxology in praise to god page 568 in your hymn books kids y'all can stand right there and sing with us [Music] [Music] [Music] me [Music] father go with us now cause your face to shine upon us cause us to know your nearness as our good help us to keep the sabbath day holy and bring us back together tonight that we may worship and serve and glorify you and we ask in jesus name amen and please be seated you you