• 

  Scripture: 

  
  

  Acts 16:35-37
  "35 When morning came, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported the message to Paul, saying, “The magistrates sent word to let you go; therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul replied, “They have beaten us in public, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they going to discharge us in secret? Certainly not! Let them come and take us out themselves.” 
  

  Observation:

  Paul and Silas had been thrown into jail on trumped up charges of disturbing the peace. The action of the authorities was meant to intimidate and silence them. Notice that in this story the magistrates are unaware of the miraculous force that freed all of the prisoners from their chains. The magistrates have not been cowed by a miracle into releasing their captives; rather, they assume that their actions have had the desired result. They assume that after such a display of their authority and power, Paul and Silas will gladly remember their place and "go in peace". What they could not have known or imagined was how God had acted to transform the vulnerability and weakness of Paul and Silas into a new kind of strength: one that looks an awful lot like weakness; one that can neither be shackeled nor submitted.

• Application:

  Paul and Silas learned about the true nature and source of power. This emboldened them to stand up to an injustice they encountered despite the real possibility that it could cost them a beating, more jail time, or worse.
  
  

  Can you think of a time, past or present, when you have 

  
  

  
  

  been invited (tempted even) to "look the other way" when 

  
  

  you had experienced injustice? 

  
  To go placidly "in peace" in such a case is to take the words "justice" and "peace" in vain. Might it even be true to say, "Unless (and until) justice and peace are for all, then they don't really exist at all?"
  

  Prayer:

  Father God, You alone are the creator and sustainer of justice and peace. Forgive me when I succumb to the temptation to accept injustice out of a fearful desire to avoid conflict or trouble. Grant me grace to know You as the true source of power and authority so that I might be bold in confronting those who trade in counterfeits. Amen.