To Encourage You

Acts 16:32 “And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.”

In the verse above we have a statement that summarizes one of the most awesome privileges of the Christian. This statement comes from the account of Paul and Silas after they had been arrested and imprisoned for preaching the gospel in the city of Philippi.  While they were chained in their cell, the Lord miraculously delivered them by means of an earthquake.  The jailer, fearing that all his prisoners had escaped, was in the act of trying to kill himself with his own sword when Paul cried out “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.”  It was then that we are told, “And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ And they said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’ And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.”  It was in the act of opening the doors of this prison that God opened the heart of the jailer.  He suddenly had ears to hear the message of the gospel, and Paul and Silas were in the right place at the right time to share it with him.  They had the wonderful opportunity to tell this man how to be saved and have eternal life, and they further instructed his new-found faith by speaking to him the Word of the Lord. 

What an incredible privilege Paul and Silas had to share the wonderful words of life with this man.  What an awesome privilege all Christians have to share the wonderful words of life with others in our sphere of influence.  There is nothing better we can say to anyone than the Word of the Lord.  Our opinions matter very little.  Our interests, hobbies, the weather, or whatever other things we may talk to others about pale in comparison with the opportunities we have to share with others the Word of God.  Do you realize that you have the opportunity to speak words to others around you that can change their eternal destiny? Do you realize that our awesome God has ordained that you and I serve as His mouthpieces through whom He can “deliver. . . (people) from the domain of darkness and transfer. . . (them) to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14)? 

So, are you ready to do this when the opportunity comes?  Are you living in a state of readiness and are you “always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15)?  So many people do anything but. They are ashamed to speak about the God who saved them.  They are so hesitant to share the greatest story ever told. Do we recognize the awesome thing it is to speak to others the very word of God?  May the Lord give us the heart and wisdom of the apostle Paul who boldly spoke the message that God had given him and about which he wonderfully said, “ I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).  And that power is available to anyone who will speak it.  It’s a power that can change the world!