Acts 16:26: Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.
In the physical world, a prison is a place to fulfill the judgment on those who have committed a crime. Did you know there is a spiritual prison? A spiritual “crime” is sin, and just as physical crimes will put you in a physical prison, so will a spiritual crime, or sin, put you in a spiritual prison. What does a spiritual prison look like? Well, imagine various corridors in a physical prison. Each corridor has a name signifying the sin that caused someone to be placed in his or her respective jail cells. One corridor is called “lies”, another is called “murder”, and another is called “adultery”. Not everyone belongs in every corridor, but everyone does belong in at least one corridor. The Bible is clear about this – all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
Every physical prison has a person in charge known as a jailer or warden. He or she is the one with the keys to each prison cell. However, the warden can’t open a prison cell and set someone free until he or she is given the orders from the appropriate authority. In the spiritual world, God is the authority that pronounces the judgment on your sin. However, a spiritual prison is very different from the physical prison in that Jesus is also the one with the keys (see Matthew 16:19; Revelation 1:18). What really makes the spiritual prison so different from the physical prison is God gives you access to the keys. Here’s the thing, He won’t give you the keys until you ask Him for them – until you ask forgiveness for what put you in prison – you spiritual crime(s) that were committed against God. If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9) Being saved means God has given you the keys of forgiveness to let you out of your prison cell.
Amazingly, though, so many people who have been given the keys of forgiveness stay in their cells. You see, there’s an unwelcomed prison guard called Satan that wants you to stay in your spiritual cell. He’s telling you lies that the keys of forgiveness God gives you won’t work on you. He renames the prison corridors calling them things like guilt, shame, fear, and depression. Any of these corridors sound familiar? Picture this….every true Christian has been sitting in a jail cell with the door open. However, because some have believed the lies of Satan that God’s act of forgiveness and redemption accomplished at the cross wasn’t enough, they remain in the cell as if it were still locked.
Today’s scripture speaks of a time when the Apostle Paul and Silas were in a Philippian prison, and they were praying and singing hymns. A great earthquake shakes the foundation, and all the prison cells were opened. God’s Word, the Bible, is the ultimate earthquake that will make you realize your spiritual prison has been opened. The epicenter of that earthquake of truth is the cross. What convinced you that the keys Jesus gave to you were not enough to get you out of prison? – Lies from Satan. Nothing conquers a lie faster than the truth. God wants you out of your spiritual prison, so He can build an intimate and loving relationship with you. He can’t do that, though, until you really believe you are out of jail. Therefore, the Holy Spirit will send you earthquakes that will shake your foundations of lies. You’ll be forced to seek a foundation of truth. From John 14:6, Jesus said He was the truth. 1 Corinthians 3:11 reminds us, “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
God will send earthquakes into your life, but He does this to get you out of your prison of lies and move you to a place of truth that you can stand firmly on and be free forever. God pronounced the judgment on your sin, but He also has the keys to forgive your sin and set you free. He’ll give you those keys if you ask Him. Will you?