They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn’t escape. So the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks. Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. But Paul shouted to him, “Stop! Don’t kill yourself! We are all here!” The jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Acts 16:23-30 (New Living Translation, NLT)

Most Christians have read the account of Paul and Silas’ miraculous jail break. And we are reminded of how praise brought the power of God on the scene to free them. But let’s pause a minute and consider the situation.

Paul and Silas were in the worst possible mess. They had been beaten; severely beaten. They had lost a good amount of blood and they were in great agony. Combine that with the fact that they were tightly shackled in a hideous, filthy jail. This wasn’t like our clean, dry prisons of today. Imagine a pit in the ground with sewage flowing through it. Their wounds hurt. The shackles hurt. They were bound in an awkward, uncomfortable position, and the stench of the sewage was everywhere. And there was no light. It was midnight and it was pitch black. How easy it would be to lose hope and allow despair to set in.

However, at their darkest point, Paul and Silas made a decision based out of love for God. They loved the Lord and they knew the Lord loved them. And out of that love, they began to pray to God. Then they sang to the Lord. They decided that whatever may happen, no one would take their song from them. I can imagine that maybe one of them started it off and then the other one joined in- encouraging one another by their praise. They released their love to God and it filled the prison, and it touched the other prisoners. That place was full of the melody of their love. And God responded- did He ever respond! Their love brought the powerful manifestation of His love. First they were freed in their hearts, then they were freed physically. There is nothing more powerful than the delivering love of God. Chains cannot bind it. Locks cannot hold it. No prison can stand against it. An earthquake of God’s love rocked the place and brought freedom to everyone there.

Love delivered Paul and Silas, as well as those around them- including the jailer. There is no more powerful force in the universe than love. Won’t you release some today?