Sermon by Pastor Brent Kompelien
July 21, 2024
INTRO
Good morning! We’ve been studying the book of Acts for the last few months, and as we’ve been looking at the early missionary work of the first Christians, I have been sharing some stories about influential missionaries throughout church history. It is so important that we become acquainted with those who have gone before us and have inspired generations of believers with their zeal for the gospel and their willingness to do kingdom-work wherever God has called them.
You see, one of my prayers for this series is that God would awaken in you a heart for missions and a desire to see the gospel expand to new places and to see people you care about come to faith in Christ. Maybe God will call you to be a missionary. Maybe God will give you a heart for your friends, family, neighbors, or co-workers who don’t know the Lord. My desire is that we all would grow in our compassion for others and in boldness to share the life-changing message of God’s grace to us in Christ.
This morning I want to tell you about a man named Adoniram Judson. (SLIDE 2)
Judson was born on August 9, 1788 in Massachusetts. His father was a pastor in the congregationalist church, but Judson walked away from his faith while attending college at Brown University through the influence of his best friend Jacob who had adopted the skeptical views of popular Enlightenment thinkers of the time.
Yet God was guiding Judson’s steps. Even though he no longer considered himself a Christian, he decided to enroll at Andover Theological Seminary. During this time of theological study, Adoniram’s best friend Jacob tragically died, and this sudden shock caused him to come back to the faith of his youth. Suddenly his theological knowledge became real, now his heart was gripped with the gospel of Jesus Christ. In 1808, Judson wrote that he “made a solemn dedication of himself to God.” It was then that he decided to become a missionary.
During his time at Andover, Judson and a few other students convinced the Congregationalist church leadership in 1810 to form the first mission organization in the history of the United States, the (SLIDE 3) American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. This was the beginning of Judson’s influence in missions in America.
February 1812 was pivotal month for Judson. In the span of a few weeks, (SLIDE 4) he got married, was ordained as a minister, was officially commissioned to be a foreign missionary, and he and his new wife Ann set sail for southeast Asia.
The Lord put a burden on Judson’s heart for the people of Burma. (SLIDE 5) Buddhism had such a grip on the Burmese people that other missionaries said it was impermeable to the gospel. But Judson simply began to pray. And he began studying Burmese for 12 hours per day and started translating the Bible into the local language. (SLIDE 6)
Because the language was so challenging, it took 4 years for Judson to feel ready to preach in Burmese. Even then, he didn’t have his first convert for 6 years, and after 9 years there were only 18 believers in his fledgling little church. Yet Judson continued to faithfully share the gospel.
In 1817, an American missionary named George Hough brought a printing press to Burma. And the first ever printed material mass produced in the Burmese language was Judson’s translation of the Gospel of Matthew. 5 years later Judson finished his translation of the entire New Testament, and thousands of copies of the Word of God circulated throughout Burma.
But suddenly war broke out between England and Burma, and anyone who spoke English was assumed to be a spy. (SLIDE 7) Judson was violently arrested and thrown into prison for 17 months. Conditions were horrid and many western prisoners died. It was his wife Ann’s devotion that kept him alive. She pestered and begged and pleaded to provide food for her husband. (SLIDE 8) She was able to smuggle in some items he needed, even sowing a copy of his Burmese New Testament into the stuffing of a pillow.
All throughout this ordeal, Adoniram and Ann never lost hope and they continued to serve the Burmese people. Judson proved to be such a trusted person that he was released from prison in order to serve as a translator for the peace negotiations between Britain and Burma.
This new peace opened up the possibility of reaching new communities, like the Karen people of the jungles of Burma. (SLIDE 9) This minority group was hated by most Burmese Buddhists, and yet Judson felt a calling to share the gospel with them.
If you go back hundreds of years, many historians now believe that the Karen people had contact with Messianic Jews in the 12th century before their people migrated south out of inland China. When Judson made contact with the Karen people, he found that their village elders still held a belief in an all-powerful God who created everything, including human beings who were tempted by a demon to sin, and were awaiting the coming of a Savior-King who would rescue them. So Judson told them about Jesus! God had been preparing them to hear the gospel generations before Judson got there!
And by the time of Judson’s death in 1850, he had helped start over 100 Burmese Baptist churches with over 8000 people coming to faith in Christ. Following the missionary example of Judson, the Burmese churches continued to share the gospel and today the tiny country of Burma/Myanmar has the 3rd largest number of Baptist Christians in the world, only behind the United States and India. (SLIDE 10, title)
You see friends, Adoniram Judson faced deep-seated opposition from the spiritual darkness of Buddhism and the hostile government of Burma. It was said that Christianity couldn’t penetrate Burma. But nothing can stop the advance of the gospel! God was at work through Adoniram and Ann Judson. Even when jailed for their faith, they responded with patient endurance, waiting to see what God would do.
We are going to see the same thing in our passage today. Open with me to Acts 16:16-40. We are going to look at a passage where Paul and Silas are thrown in jail as they encounter opposition from spiritual powers and earthly powers. How do they respond? And what will God do to advance the gospel through this persecution? READ Acts 16:16-40.
ORG SENT — This passage has two parts. First we will look at Paul and Silas’ encounter with the demon-possessed slave girl in verses 16-18. Then we see how God uses their imprisonment to advance the gospel in verses 19-40. In this passage, Paul and Silas encounter the opposition of spiritual powers and earthly powers. How they respond is critical in bearing witness to the gospel.
MAIN 1 — Spiritual Powers (vv. 16-18). (SLIDE 11)
Go back to verse 16. Remember, Paul and Silas are in Philippi. This is a prominent Greek city in the region of Macedonia, and as we will see in this passage, this city was under the heavy influence of Greek culture and Greek mythology, and when you peel back the layers you actually see the spiritual darkness of the city.
Paul and Silas go to the synagogue to teach about Jesus, and a slave girl meets them on the road. The text says that she “had a spirit by which she predicted the future”, or some of your Bibles say “had a spirit of divination”. What does this mean?
The words in Greek literally read: (SLIDE 12) “she had a spirit of the python”. This comes from the Greek myth about a huge serpent called the “Python” that guarded the Oracle at Delphi.
In Greek mythology, the god Apollo was arch-enemies with Python and he slew the dragon so he could take over the oracle and establish the shrine of his kingdom.
In Greek religion in Philippi, it was believed that the power of this snake was embodied in “pythonesses”, who were female devotees of Apollo and were thought to have the ability to predict the future because the spirit of Python lived in their bellies.
They were often called “belly-talkers” in Greek and people paid large sums of money to receive predictions that protected them from misfortune or helped them learn how to harm their enemies. Here’s how it would happen: a demonic voice would call out incantations from deep within their belly.
What are we to make of this? Is it just trickery and slights of hand? Or was there truly something demonic and evil happening here? Listen carefully: The Bible takes very seriously reality of evil and the workings of evil beings in the world.
I need to make something really clear here: There is an unseen realm, and the Bible makes it very clear that (SLIDE 13) there is no neutral when it comes to the spiritual realm. Because of God’s utter holiness and absolute power, you are either with him or against him. You are either surrendered to the reality of God’s perfections and trusting in his goodness to you through Christ, or you have given yourself to evil and idolatry. There is no neutral. You can’t be agnostic about God. If he truly is the supreme being who deserves our full devotion, you must surrender to him. God is not a “take-him-or-leave-him” kind of God.
KEY: The Bible signals to us over and over that there is no confusion in the unseen spiritual realm about the true nature of God’s holiness, sovereignty, and power. (SLIDE 14)
Let me give you some examples. When we look at the gospels, we often see demons acknowledging the truth about Jesus LONG before any humans do:
When Jesus began his ministry in Galilee and healed many people, Mark 3:11 says, “Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.”
Or take the man who was possessed by a legion of demons who said, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?” (Luke 8:28).
Or in the synagogue in Capernaum, a man possessed by a demon cried out at the top of his voice, “Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” (Luke 4:34)
Or later that same day, crowds of people came to Jesus to be healed and Luke 4:41 says that “demons came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!”
And James warns in James 2:19, "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”
I’ll say it again: There is no neutral in the spiritual realm. Even the demons know that God is God. Even as they fight a losing battle, the powers of evil know who Jesus is and can’t help but call him the Holy One.
We see this in the words of the slave girl who follows Paul and Silas around saying these words in verse 17: “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.”
In one sense, she is saying the truth, just like we saw in the other examples from the gospels.
In another sense, she is trying to discredit them because the words she speaks were the common way that the Greeks would talk about their entire pantheon of gods. They called Zeus the “most high god” and they taught that the Greek gods would save them. So her shouting could be confusing for some people who may think that Paul and Silas are merely talking about one of the Greek gods of Philippi.
This is why Paul responds the way that he does. I love this passage because we see a bit of Paul’s personality coming through! He gets so annoyed with this slave girl that he turns around and said to the evil spirit in verse 18, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” And of course, the spirit left because, again, there is no confusion in the spiritual realm about the sovereignty and power of the Holy One of God, Jesus Christ!
You see, Paul and Silas are doing spiritual battle here in Philippi. Sharing the gospel is a confrontation with the powers of evil, make no mistake. But this now turns into a confrontation with the earthly powers of the city of Philippi. What will happen next?
MAIN 2 — Earthly Powers (vv. 19-40). (SLIDE 15)
Luke is very cleaver here. (SLIDE 16) He says that the evil spirit “left her”, and then he uses the exact same word in Greek to say that her owners realized that their hope of money had “left them.” This word has the sense of “floating away” or “evaporating.”
So Paul and Silas are publicly stripped, beaten, and thrown in jail. (SLIDE 17) This kind of treatment was meant to humiliate you and publicly shame you. Think about this. How would you respond at this moment. (SLIDE 18) Look at your text: READ v. 25.
This is astonishing. The only way you can respond like this is when your hope doesn’t lie in your public image or in your own reputation or in your own power to save. These two men are praising God while they sit naked and bleeding in a dark jail cell. These are two men whose joy does not come from circumstances. And others are watching; the text says that the other prisoners were listening to them pray and sing. APPLY: Who’s watching you and listening to you when you encounter difficulties and when you are experiencing pain in this life?
Look at what happens next: God shows up in power! In the middle of the night a powerful earthquake shakes the foundations of the prison and the jail doors fly open and the chains come loose! And as soon as the jailer finds out, he is ready to kill himself because he knows that it will be his head if the prisoners escape.
But something astounding happens. No one moves. Why?
Remember, all the prisoners had just watched Paul and Silas be stripped naked, beaten, and locked up, only to listen to them sing praises to God that they would be counted worthy of suffering for the name of Christ. Their joy in the midst of suffering spilled over to the rest of the prisoners and they couldn’t help but stay put in their cells, even when the doors flew open and the chains fell off.
This was God’s plan to show the jailer the incredible transformational power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. (SLIDE 19) Did you notice what the text says in verses 29-30? READ vv. 29-30. The jailer literally turned the lights on, and this symbolizes the coming of the Light of the World into his life. The light of the gospel is flicked on when Paul and Silas reply: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.”
The jailer gathered his whole family to hear Paul and Silas preach the gospel, and immediately they accept Christ as Savior and Lord, and the jailer invites Paul and Silas into his home, which was likely attached next to the jail. It is the middle of the night! And he washes their wounds and puts a hot meal in front of them.
Don’t miss this: His kindness indicates that he understood deeply the kindness he had been shown through the gospel. He washes their wounds because his sins have been washed away. He gives them nourishment because his soul has been nourished by the grace of God and the lavish love God has shown to him.
ILLUST — John Chrysostom, the 4th century theologian, wrote about his moment: “He washed them and was washed; those he washed from their stripes, himself was washed from his sins.”
The text says in verse 34, “He was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God.”
It is at this moment that daylight breaks and the jailer receives news that the city magistrates ordered the release of Paul and Silas.
Remember, we see Paul’s personality coming through in this passage! Paul is indignant at this moment! He says, “Hold on. We are Roman citizens and what you did was illegal. I’m not going anywhere until those magistrates come and personally escort us out!” Yikes!
Paul was right. Roman law elevated the privileges of citizens. They could not be beaten or jailed without formal charges and without a trial. There were heavy penalties for those who violated the due process rights of a Roman citizen. And so the magistrates came with their tails between their legs and tried to appease Paul and Silas.
KEY: In every way the threat of the earthly powers of the city of Philippi was destroyed. The hardened jailer turned into a joy-filled believer. The public shame was vindicated. And the city magistrates were humbled and were made to be a public spectacle of the power of God.
APPLY (SLIDE 20, blank)
Remember Adoniram Judson? It was said that Christianity couldn’t penetrate Burma. How about Philippi? How about the spiritual darkness of Greek religion or the opposition of the city government? What about public beating and jails and chains?
Let me remind you of a central theme of the book of Acts: Nothing can stop the advance of the gospel!
In light of this truth, our passage this morning presents us with a sobering reality: The advance of the gospel against the powers of evil may bring with it pain, suffering, or public shame. If this happens to you, how will you respond? And how does your response reveal what you believe about God or about the gospel?
If you respond with anger, what does that say about your heart toward others in light of God’s call to love your enemies?
If you respond by fighting with the weapons of this world, what does that say about your understanding of God’s power?
If you respond by getting down and depressed, what does that say about the source of your joy?
If you respond with despair and hopelessness, what does that say about your view of God’s goodness and God’s love for you even when you encounter difficulty?
What if you respond like Paul and Silas?
What if you choose to take everything to the Lord in prayer?
What if you choose to sing praises to God no matter your circumstances?
What if you realize that others are watching and listening, and your attitudes and actions in the midst of severe trials and suffering are often the best witness to the truth of the gospel and how you have a joy that doesn’t come from circumstances because you are a beloved child of God through Christ who saves you!
When we respond in these kinds of ways, God will do incredible things through the witness of our lives. Just like Adoniram Judson and his long-suffering testimony of faithfulness to Christ in Burma, may we spend our lives for the sake of the gospel and for the advancement of God’s kingdom, come what may.