Salvation experienced by the keeper of the prison.

Acts 16:27-34

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself.” Acts 16:27

Today, the “keeper of the prison” can be anyone who lives and governs by the beast giving them what to speak, do, feel, and think. This entity opposes belief in God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every person of today’s culture is a “keeper of the prison” because by what they say and do they oppose Christianity. The “prison doors” are those doors which today’s atheistic culture ritualistically cannot allow to be open. This is the door leading into the presence of God to make us the home of the Holy Spirit by our faith in Jesus Christ.

When the “keeper of the prison” sees the door is open to release the Good News, the assumption is that the prisoners [who are every follower of the way of Christ] has fled. The “keeper of the prison” assumes Christianity has fled into the community network, which is unacceptable to the beast that governs through what people say and do. The beast fills the thoughts and feelings of the failed “prison keeper” with guilt, regret, sense of failure, and humiliation, to lower esteem, dignity, and erase all sense of honor and self-worth. “Name calling” is part of the beat down. Social disapproval and scrutiny plague the failed “prison keeper”. The degradation of the human being can lead to suicide and all sorts of self-destructive behaviors because the will to live diminishes. Massive amounts of suicides happen nowadays under the stress of living under an unGodly, uncaring, and ruthless system where love has gone cold.

“But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Acts 16:28-30

Paul called out to the prison keeper, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” As followers of Jesus Christ, we live with the prison doors open and the chains loosed, referring to our freedom from sin and death. Even in the freedom of the Holy Spirit, we have no desire to roam freely in the atheistic community where the Good News of Jesus Christ is not welcomed. We are not looking for a way out of this world but we keep our eye on the prize of eternal life in the new heaven and earth. We willingly come apart from the ways, values, and lifestyles of today’s culture. Our Lord Jesus prays, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” John 17:15-17

To those “prison keepers” who feel degraded, useless, and of no worth because they are not able to shut out the Holy Spirit from living within us, we say from the Holiness of the Spirit, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” We are here, in our private quarters, as we have shaken off the dust of our feet and departed from the atheistic community culture who rejects Christianity.

The “prison keeper” was in the dark and couldn’t believe that all the prisoners were freed from their chains but still in their quarters. He called for a light, ran into the quarters, and saw all the prisoners where he left them. Today, the failed “prison keeper” is in the dark as to why the followers of Christ are not trying to leave their quarters when obviously we are free within our spirit. When they grab a light and are able to see by the Light of Christ, they see we have no desire to cause an uproar among the atheistic culture. The Holy Spirit teaches us, “…to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.” Titus 3:1-2

The prison keeper fell down before Paul and Silas and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” In today’s culture, there are those who realize they will never be able to perform according to the beast that gives them what to speak and do. For one reason or another, they will always be beaten down in their thoughts and feelings. They see the life of a Christian living in the Holy Spirit by faith in Jesus Christ, and they say, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” As followers of Jesus Christ, we are eager for an opportunity like this to arise, to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We may be confined to our quarters, discouraged by the community population, but when that one opportunity arises, we are ready with the testimony of Jesus.

Sometimes, when I receive a call from a telemarketer, I use that as an opportunity to market the Good News of Jesus Christ. I figure they called me, not me them. I also have a 4-foot x 4-foot banner on my wall that reads, “Normal Isn’t Coming Back, Jesus Is”. If I do have visitors [usually for apartment inspections] they can read that. Usually, they purposely avoid looking at it which means they probably caught a glimpse of “Jesus”.

“So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.” Acts 16:31-32

When the prison keeper asked Paul and Silas what he must do to be saved, they replied, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” That should be our reply to anyone who asks us what they must do to be saved. Paul and Silas knew by the Holy Spirit that the whole household of the prison keeper would also be saved. Salvation is to be forgiven of our sin of rejecting God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. As Christians, our desire is to share the message of the Cross with those who have receptive hearts, those whose soul is good soil for the seed of the testimony of Jesus.

“And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.” Acts 16:33-34

The same hour the prison keeper said “Yes!” to Jesus Christ, he took Paul and Silas and washed their stripes [stripes were the wounds suffered from the beating they received]. Beating with rods left bloody stripes where the rods struck. A good sign that someone has received Jesus as their Lord and Savior is that they want to do good for Christians. They show their repentance by desiring to serve God, to live according to the way of Jesus Christ, and to live in the presence of the Holy Spirit. We want to heal the spiritual wounds we caused to Jesus Christ in all the years we lived against Him and His people [Christians].

“For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” Hebrews 6:10

Immediately after the prison keeper washed the wounds on the back of Paul and Silas, he and all of his family were baptized. When someone begins making amends to Jesus Christ by showing goodwill and kindness to His followers, the Holy Spirit will come to them. Holy Spirit filled people desire to have the family of Jesus Christ within their home, to feed them with fellowship in the Spirit, and to feast on the word of God. There is rejoicing in the Holy Spirit within the fellowship of members of the family of Jesus Christ. That rejoicing comes by believing in the Living God.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1