Can God Shake This Place?
In our lifetime we have heard of, and seen on the news, the deadly destruction that earthquakes, in various parts of the word have left.
Mass destruction.
Cities have been decimated.
Homes and buildings completely destroyed.
10’ of thousands have been injured and 100,000’s have died.
Just like the power of water and fire,you have to have respect for the power of an earthquake.
Their power is destructive and they move with great power and speed.
It is something to be feared.
But can an earthquake be a good thing?
On first thought we would say no.
Something so destructive can not be good.
Something so devastating can not be good.
Something so deadly can not be good.
But in the hand of God anything can be good.
God can take anything that seems bad and use it for something good.
This evening we ask the question, “can God shake this place?”
(Paul and Silas were at a prayer meeting in Philippi.)
Acts 16:16-34
16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.
18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.
19 And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,
20 And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,
21 And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.
22 And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.
23 And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
24 Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.
27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.
28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.
29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.
33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.
34 And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.
Paul and Silas were courageous.
Paul and Silas were arrested for their work.
After all, they delivered a woman bound by Satan.
Isn’t it strange that people would love sin so much that they would fight you and resist you, even to their own destruction?
First, Paul and Silas were flogged. Literally they were beaten with rods.
Then, they were thrown into prison.
They were placed under tight security.
They were also placed in stocks. They made sure that these two fanatics were not getting away.
Oh yes, these guy’s were dangerous. They ran the devil out of this woman’s body and life, they’ve made sickness behave, caused death to flee, recruited people and promised them freedom if they would accept Christ as their king, taught them to hate the system and reject it’s teaching. Oh yes, they were dangerous. They had to be taken off the streets.
But Paul and Silas never gave up – They had courage and spirit.
And give up what?
There were souls that were lost, that need Jesus and they were determined to give their lives to bring them to Him.
Isn’t it amazing that everywhere you go or are placed, there is always someone who needs Christ? Tell them that Jesus loves them.
But Paul and Silas never gave up – They were driven by a love for souls .
Paul and Silas were consistent in worship. (We can’t go to church tonight so we’ll worship here.)
Paul and Silas continued their ministry in prison.
Paul and Silas began to sing praise in prison.
They also began to pray.
Their worship began to have an impact.
They impacted their own hearts and spirits.
They had an impact on the rest of the prisoners.
The sympathy that shook the house.
Katie Fisher, 17, entered the Madison County Ohio Junior Livestock Sale hoping the lamb she had for sale would get a good price. For months Katie had been battling cancer. She had endured hospital stays and been through chemotherapy a number of times. Before the lamb went on the block, the auctioneer told the audience about Katie’s condition, hoping his introduction would push the price-per-pound above the average of two dollars. It did-and then some. The lamb sold for $11.50 per pound. Then the buyer gave it back, and suggested the auctioneer sell it again. That started a chain reaction. Families bought it and gave it back; businesses bought it and gave it back. Katie’s mother said, "The first sale is the only one I remember. After that, I was crying too hard." They ended up selling the lamb thirty-six times that day, raising more than $16,000 in the process.
Paul and Silas began to sing and pray.
The jailer lost control
(When you began to worship God sincerely, the enemy looses control.)
God began to shake the prison.
The prison’s foundations were shaken.
Every prison door opened and every prisoner’s chains fell off.
I wish that God would shake this place so that the things that bind you would fall off and that you could experience the freedom that God wants you to experience.
The jailer saw that everyone was freed and lost hope.
The jailer saw the open doors and assumed the prisoners had escaped.
The jailer prepares to commit suicide – why?
A guard who allowed prisoners escape would be executed – All of the guards who were responsible for Peter were executed when he escaped.
The jailer was going to kill himself to avoid the Roman execution.
Paul and Silas shows concern.
Paul was concerned for the jailers safety.
Paul stops the jailer from killing himself.
Paul reports that none of the prisoners were gone.
Paul was concerned for the jailers soul.
Paul had drawn the jailer to Christ.
Paul shares the gospel with the jailer.
Wonderful things began to happen when God shook that prison.
The jailer was converted.
The jailer was ready to receive Christ.
There could be little doubt that the jailer already heard Paul preaching.
This was a crisis moment and he was ready to receive Christ.
The question, “what must I do to be saved?"
Paul shares the gospel in that prison – The jailer received Christ.
The jailer’s home was changed.
The jailer cares for Paul and Silas.
The jailer cleaned and bandaged their wounds.
The jailer gave them a meal.
Paul wins the whole household.
The entire family was won to Christ and was baptized.
The household was filled with joy.
Conclusion
Is God still in the business of shaking places? Yes
God wants to shake this church with His Holy Spirit.
God’s desire is for us to be bold and courageous.
Bold in the way we pray and courageous in the way we share the love of Jesus.
Bold in our faith and courageous in our service.
God wants us to never give up.
God wants us to serve Him even when the times get tough.
God wants us to be willing to hope and look to Him even in the most dismal situations.
God wants to shake this church with compassion for the lost.
The power of love is a very strong thing.
A love goes a long, long way.
Jesus loved us enough to die for us and we should love lost people enough to share the truth and grace of Christ with them.
God wants to see our concern for other people.
We must have a deep concern for the physical welfare of people.
We must have a greater concern with the spiritual welfare of other people.
God wants to shake this church to bring about salvation.
The purpose of the church is spread the good news.
God will provide the opportunity.
We must be willing to step through the doors that God opens for us.
Michael W. Smith song says, Love isn’t love until you give it away.
Now is the time that we give away the love of Jesus.
The church will be changed when this begins.
The fact of transformation is that a person can not remain the same once Jesus comes into their life.
People will be drawn to where God is moving.
Our church needs to be shaken by the power of God.
God can do it.
God shook that prison in Philippi. He can shak our church with His power.
God hasn’t changed from that day to this one. He did it then and He can do it now.
God wants to do it.
God wants to shake this church with His power and His presence.
God wants to shake your personal life with His power.
God will do it.
God will shake this place if we will believe.
The question is do you believe God is going to shake this place?
Parts of this sermon may have been borrowed from sermons contributed to Sermon Central and adapted to fit the ministry to my congregation, thanks to you great pastors and preachers.
