Acts 16: 16-30-34

(Acts 16: 16-30)

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:  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.  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.  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,  And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,  And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.  And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.  And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.  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.  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. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.  Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,  And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

The situation that puts Paul and Silas in trouble begins with a woman servant who met while going to a place of prayer. This demon-possessed fortune-teller lived in a regretful manner being taken advantage of by evil masters. And the maid r comes along and yells at the work of Paul and Silas. Paul was very afflicted and turned to the demon who was afflicting the girl, commanded in the name of Jesus Christ.

『I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her』 And the demon comes out immediately, and the poor demon-possessed maid is cleansed in the name of Jesus. But there was a problem. They are the owners who benefit from the demon-possessed slave girl. It is shown through the words "The masters of the slave girl" that there is more than one owner who uses this poor slave girl who was possessed by a ghost. When the owners of this maidservant saw that their hopes for profit had been cut off, they seized Paul and Silas, took them to the marketplace, and told them in front of their superiors.

『 These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,  And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. 』 Now, the crowd rose up and accused him, and his superiors began to beat Paul's party when ordered to tear it off and strike it with a spear. After hitting a lot, he even gave a special order to the guard to keep it firmly. Paul and Silas were imprisoned not just in prison, but in a deep prison, and their feet were also filled. That night, in a deep, dark prison, Paul and Silas prayed and praised God, and the prisoners heard them. 『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. When praise and prayer rang, a great earthquake broke out. The octagon of that deep prison moved, the doors opened, and the sturdy chains that bound not only Paul and Silas, but all men were loosened, and everything that was bound was taken off.

The guard tried to take his own life because he was asleep when he saw the prison gate opened and the chains were all loose. Then Paul shouts out loud and says we are here. The jailer knelt in front of Paul and Silas, who had been imprisoned, and cried. 『Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 』Paul said, ``Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 』The jailer began to fear God. Those who fear God repent and are saved.

Paul, a Roman citizen, could have escaped this suffering. He could have protested the jailer and claimed his rights. However, he silently believed in God's will to allow this situation and walked with the Lord through the difficult path. Paul and Silas depended on each other and gave thanks, praised, and prayed in all things, even in difficult and joyful times. After all these things that the Lord's will has done to those who have been unjustly treated without justifiable reason, without legal proceedings, Paul, who revealed himself to be a Roman citizen, did not let them do anything like that for their own self-interest After realizing the injustice, she went back to Lydia's house and comforted her and took the next step.

Paul said two conditions for salvation. It is repentance to God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance is said in 16:27-30, ``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. . But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 』This person was not a person who feared death. This is repentance.

Upon hearing Paul's sermon, he was pierced. Those who need to repent know what to do. Today it is said that you will be saved if you just believe in Jesus. There is nothing we can do about faith. Jesus' disciples trembled in fear before the storm. Woke up Jesus. Jesus said, "Why are you afraid, you who have little faith?" There is nothing to believe. Faith awakens Jesus. In the Bible, Jesus praised the centurion, ``There is no need to come. Please do it with the Word alone” and I praised it. Faith is not a concept of something to be done. The disciples said, "Add faith, I don't have faith." Faith is a gift and grace. It is to give freely.

(Acts 16: 31-34)

『And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house. 』

Most church people think that if they believe in Jesus, they will be saved. But Paul spoke of two conditions of salvation. Repentance for God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus also said『 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.』

We can understand through the tabernacle. When a sinner first enters the tabernacle, he meets the altar of brass. Meets the second water basin. Repentance is to forsake and die. Faith is gaining. It means that sinners need both. Without two things, the sinner cannot enter the sanctuary. If there are no two things, the sinner will only step on the sanctuary. Acts (16: 27-30) speaks of repentance.

『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. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?』 This man was not afraid of death. This is repentance.

He listened to Paul's sermons and was pierced. Those who repent learn what they need to do. Today, church people say that they are saved if they believe in Jesus. Faith comes from God. We do not believe, but we must deny ourselves and enter into the faith of Jesus. Jesus' disciples trembled in fear in front of the storm. They woke up Jesus. Jesus said, "Why are you afraid?" In the Bible, Jesus praised the centurion. He said, "You don't have to come, just speak." Jesus praised him. Faith is not a concept of something. The disciples said, "Add faith, there is no faith." Faith is a gift and grace. God gives freely to those who repent.

Repentance bears fruit. The word "bear fruit" means "do." This is all about salvation. So we must not only believe in Jesus, but also bear the proper fruit of repentance. This faith applies only to those who repent. So it is illegal to believe in Jesus without repentance.

When the jailer found the gates open, he realized that Paul and Silas were people of God. The jailer was not afraid of the Roman Empire, but of God. He trembled with fear of God with Paul. Those who repent fear only God. So repent and enter into the dead who died on the cross.

『Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. 』 Acts (8:13) tells the story of Simon the Magician. Acts (8: 20-22) says:

 『But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. 』 Through all our thoughts and words, light and darkness are revealed. Today, many church people may think, "We still lack faith."

The Holy Spirit shines upon us so that we may realize the fruit of the Spirit in the light so that we can know whether we have repented. We do not know if we love money more than the Word of God unless the Holy Spirit shines on it. Peter said to Simon, "You are destroyed with silver." It's because of Simon's money. That is why Peter told Simon to repent. In Acts (8: 23-24):

『For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the LORD for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me. 』 Peter said to Simon, "You are filled with poison." Simon had to repent. But he tells Peter, "Do not let this happen to me." Today, people talk about repentance: Some people say, "The Holy Spirit must help me, how can I repent." Repentance is not helping. Reading what the great saint said is not repentance.

『Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. 』 (Acts 2:41) Soul means not yet being born of the Holy Spirit. Acts (2:47) says:

 『Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. 』The person to be saved is not yet saved because he is not born again. They were inspired by Peter's sermons. But if they do not repent, inspiration does not lead to salvation.

 Today "Indulgence" is sold for $ 300 on the Internet. Many churches say, "If you believe in Jesus, you will be saved." Salvation cannot be done unless we deny ourselves. Faith must deny self, give everything to the Lord, and accept the Lord's whole without price. Hymns are songs by repentant people. If we do not deny ourselves and we sing hymns without repentance, we will be in contradiction.

Humans need righteousness, not love. Righteousness is keeping our promise to God. The parable of the prodigal son is corrupted even when he is loved by Heavenly Father. To sing only love is to be deceived by Satan. Those who repent deny themselves and bear their crosses. If the church does not speak of repentance, it cannot be called the true church. The church is the bride of Jesus. Someday the saints will ascend to the kingdom of God. The church that does not speak repentance cannot go up to the kingdom of God. The fake church is judged. "Behold, the old is gone" is the same as "the heaven and the earth are gone".

If we are not born again as new people and remain in old people, we are not saved. So we must repent to be new. It is in front of Canaan that I realize whether I am old or new. It is not a change of mind but a change of body that old man becomes a new man. It is obvious. In one body, old and new cannot be at the same time. We must deny the body received from our parents and receive the gift of the spirit body from God. Repentance is not just words, but the fruit of repentance. The fruit of repentance is to die on the cross with Jesus.