December 6th~Preaching From Prison

Acts 28:1-31

Ephesians 1:1-2:22

After having to stay three months on the island of Malta, Paul and the others arrived safely in Rome. Though he was technically a prisoner awaiting a trial before Caesar, “Paul was permitted to have his own private lodging, though he was guarded by a soldier” (Acts 28:16). He would live there for the next two years.

For most of us, being a prisoner of Rome would mean the end of all things normal to us, but Paul didn’t let it stop him. His ministry continued despite his circumstances. In fact, “He welcomed all who visited him, proclaiming the Kingdom of God with all boldness and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ...” (v.30, 31). He even invited Jews from the city to come and listen to the Gospel. “A large number of people came. He told them about the Kingdom of God and taught them about Jesus from the Scriptures...” (v.23).

In his spare time, Paul wrote letters to churches he had started. For example, today we read from his letter to the Ephesians. His letters are rich with spiritual truths and encouragement, priceless pieces from prison. “Long ago, even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ; and this gave Him great pleasure” (Ephesians 1:4, 5).

Paul also wrote these wonderful words, “God saved you by His special favor when you believed; and you can’t take credit for this. It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things He planned for us long ago” (2:8-10). Prison did not keep Paul from ministering to others for the Lord.

Daily Reflection

Most of us, including me, if we landed in prison would consider that to be the end of the line. We would be more concerned about our well-being than the well-being of others. Our attitude would be “Woe is me.” But, Paul viewed prison as an opportunity to meet people he couldn’t have otherwise, just another avenue to influence others for the sake of Christ. Later, in his letter to the Philippians, Paul reported that even the Roman guards were getting saved (1:13). How is it that he could view such a negative situation in a positive light?

Have you ever watched God use a “negative” situation to produce positive results? Explain.

We regularly ask for opportunities to share Christ with others but when the Lord provides them, we are seldom prepared to use them. What can you do to solve this problem?

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