By Tom Shanklin

“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?” (Acts 16:25-30, NKJV).

I love this story of the missionaries, Paul and Silas, and their encounter with the Philippian jailer. It shows that if you make the right choices in difficult situations, God can turn it around for the good—for you and for those around you. 

Paul and Silas were minding their own business, winning souls in the city of Philippi, bringing the Gospel for the first time to the continent of Europe. All was going well until Paul cast the devil out of a slave girl and her owners became angry because she could no longer make money for them through fortune telling. As a result, the missionaries were beaten mercilessly, thrown into prison, and put into chains. 

It’s times like that, when life beats you up, that the last thing you feel like doing is praising the Lord. The natural inclination in those situations is to have a big pity party. But Paul and Silas went against their feelings and took the high road. Instead of murmuring and complaining, they started singing hymns and praising God, and the Lord sent an earthquake and set the captives free. 

It reminds me of the scripture from Hebrews. “Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.” (Hebrews 12:12, 13, KJV). When you lift up your hands and praise the Lord in tough situations, it will not only help you, but it will also cause others to receive help from the Lord!

As a result of the earthquake and the release of the prisoners, the Philippian jailer was about to commit suicide, knowing that he would be killed if they escaped. Paul stopped him, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” That’s when the jailer asked a very crucial question, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

A Question Everyone Should Be Asking

Now here’s a question that every person on planet earth should be asking. However, I find it amazing that the Philippian jailer even realized that he needed to be saved. He was living, like many people today, in a culture that had very little knowledge of God. But somehow he realized that he needed to be saved.

Something happened which caused him to know that he needed salvation. Perhaps it was the songs that Paul and Silas were singing. No doubt those songs carried the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. The Bible says that God inhabits the praises of His people, and the prayers and praises of the missionaries carried the conviction of the Holy Spirit into this man’s heart. Through this circumstance, God was working on this man. When his world was shaken up by the earthquake, he cried out, “What must I do to be saved?”

Down deep inside, we all know that something is wrong, that the connection is broken, and that we desperately need God. There is an emptiness within the human heart. Everybody is looking for something. They just don’t know what it is. What we all need, as I found out many years ago, is a relationship with our Father in heaven through His Son Jesus Christ. As the Scripture says, “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5:12, NKJV).

Salvation is a free gift of forgiveness and acceptance by God to those who receive the Lord Jesus Christ. The words “saved’ or “salvation” pertain to deliverance from eternal judgment through the work that Jesus accomplished through His death and resurrection. This salvation is succinctly expressed in John’s Gospel, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16, NKJV).

Salvation is of vital importance because it delivers from eternal judgment. It is God’s mercy towards people who are lost. If a person leaves their body and goes out into eternity without Christ, they are separated from God eternally in hell. Hell is not God’s will for anyone. He wants everyone to be with Him in heaven. But by rejecting Christ, people choose to live without God throughout eternity.

The Bible says, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23, KJV). To sin means to miss the mark. In essence, sin is rebellion to God. Examples of sin are murder, worshiping other gods, sexual immorality, lying, stealing, and cursing. Sin has the effect of hurting people, but the worse thing about sin is that it dishonors God. Our Creator, the wonderfully powerful, awesome God of the universe, is to be honored and glorified. We were created to glorify Him, but our sin is like a slap in the face of God, and it also demeans us and separates us from our Creator. 

Jesus is the Answer

Jesus came to pay the price for our sin. His death on the cross was the sacrifice in substitution for our sins. Through His punishment, God forgives us and restores us to His family. We all need God, and we need Jesus to bring us to God. That is why He came. That is the Gospel! 

So when the Philippian jailer asked the question, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul and Silas answered, “‘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.” (Acts 16:31-32, NKJV). 

Believing in Jesus is what we call saving faith. It involves turning from sin and believing in what God has done for you through Jesus. It changes everything. Through salvation, we are made new creatures in Christ, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17, NKJV)

We see this in the life of the Philippian jailer. As a result of the message that he and his family heard, they all believed and were baptized. The jailer washed the wounds of the missionaries and fed them, and the Bible says he believed and rejoiced.

I tell you, salvation will make you happy! A relationship with the Father will quench your thirst, for you were created to experience His love and to live in His presence. When you live in His presence, you can experience victory over the circumstances of life, and bring a manifestation of God that will impact the lives of those around you. So, shout the victory and enjoy God, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

If you have never received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, pray this prayer: 

Dear Father, I believe Jesus died for my sins and rose again. I turn from sin and receive Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Thank you for forgiving me and accepting me into your family, in Jesus’ name. Amen.