[Praise of the Holy Spirit]
Acts 16:16~25
Did Paul praise the Lord with joy and happiness after when refused by the Holy Spirit and going straight of the Holy Spirit thanks to fair wind?
Today, we find Paul praised the Lord for the first time.
How happy he was to praise the Lord?
Now let us think about when was the time Paul praised the Lord.
1. It was when Paul went through Evils harassment. (16:16~18)
Paul and Silas stayed at Lydias for some days.
They were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.
She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling.
She saw Paul and Silas and shouted 'These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.' for many days.
Paul had pity on her.
But Paul became so troubled for days as they might be in jail if they expel ghost.
There were several owners of this slave girl and the owners were influential people.
Paul thought of her and focused on one soul.
He decided to sacrifice himself for one person, a slave girl.
This is the same principle Jesus came to Earth.
2. It was when Paul sacrifice himself for others (16:19~24)
Paul said to the spirit to come out of the slave girl and the spirit left her.
And they were put in prison predictably.
The owners of the slave girl seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities.
They brought Paul and Silas before the magistrates and accused them of being Jews and planning to the city into an uproar.
The crowd joined in the attack and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.
After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison.
We have to sacrifice ourselves to save one person like Paul and Silas did.
But what comfort to Paul most was Silas being with him.
This was a time when Paul praised the Lord.
3. It was when Pauls praying was heard in the middle of the night. (16:25)
Paul could praised the Lord because he was kept in prison.
Decisively, the jailor woke up and heard the hymns.
The jailor were unexpectedly heard the songs and were happy.
There were prisoners, politicians and bureaucrats as well.
They heard the hymns and Pauls gospel.
This is Going straight of the Holy Spirit.
No jails can detain those who know their sin and face them.
As they already owned the Heaven by accepted Jesus who saved them from sin.
Paul was beaten and put in prison only for a slave girl, but he praised the Lord.
My song and prayer are heard by my family and sinners beside me.
Though environment doesnt seem to change, those who are put in prison together hear them.
The song of redemption echoes in the darkest night of my life.
I wish you have a week when our song in the darkest night will be heard by and save others in the name of the Lord.
