Let the Lord encourage you

In Isaiah 7 there is a story about Isaiah trying to encourage Ahaz king of Judah and it resonated with me recently.

King Ahaz and his people had learned that the kings of Israel and Syria had formed a confederacy to try to dethrone Ahaz. King Ahaz and all of Judah were understandably freaked out by this. Then the Lord sent Isaiah to reassure King Ahaz:

4 And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.
5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,
6 Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:
7 Thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.
8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people. (Isaiah 7:4-8)

So the message is that in 65 years the kingdom of Israel would be gone. That’s all well and good, but how is that supposed to help Ahaz at that moment? I can imagine Ahaz saying, “Great, but what about NOW?! What do I do to deal with the challenges we’re facing NOW?!” Isaiah continues:

And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established. (v8)

Essentially the reassurance was that only the kings were causing the trouble, and if the kings were removed, then the trouble would go away. But ultimately, King Ahaz had to believe it was all going to be ultimately okay in order to get through the current troubles.

10 ¶Moreover the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying,
11 Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.
12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord.
13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? (Isaiah 7:10-13)

I had always been puzzled by this part because elsewhere in the scriptures we have Jesus’s words about not tempting the Lord our God. The difference here is that the Lord (through Isaiah the prophet) is inviting King Ahaz to ask for a sign. It seems the Lord meant this sign to be short-term reassurance to cling to over the time it would take to make it through the longer-term trouble.

So what was King Ahaz’s problem here? Essentially, King Ahaz doesn’t want to believe it is going to be okay eventually. This is really surprising; who in their right mind doesn’t want to feel it is going to be okay? It is hard to understand why unless you’re going through something that feels similar.

I realized the problem. King Ahaz understood that if he began to choose to believe it would eventually be okay, he would have to work very hard to keep his courage up in the long days to come. He would also have to strengthen his whole people. That felt like too much for him. Because he didn’t want to take courage, he had to be reassured over and over and over again (and that must have been really emotionally tiresome for everyone around him).

So this is the lesson for us today--when the Lord comforts us and reassures us, we must choose to believe that it will be okay and take courage in order to make it through.

How does this apply to me now? Welllll…at risk of being too self-revelatory…I’m starting some medicine that has some weird side effects and which I will have to take for a period of weeks before I will see improvement. I have to believe that it will eventually work, or I won’t get it established in my system enough to work. Part of me feels like, “Yes, I can do this!” and another part of me is worried about how hard it might get and whether I have the guts to make it through when it really gets hard.

One of Ahaz’s difficulties was that his people were freaked out too. This is completely understandable. When you talk to people who are alarmed, it is hard to not become that way yourself. In my case, before I started my meds, I made the mistake of looking on a forum and reading what a bunch of people wrote about the medication, and it was rather alarming. I think I was infected with their attitude, even though my side effects were really mild. What they reported made me really question whether my doctor knew what he was doing.

Since then, I’ve been trying to take Elder Uchtdorf’s counsel from women’s conference about appreciating the little joys and pleasures. I’m trying to live a little more in the moment to cut off my long-term worries. I’m trying to remind myself, “Self, you are safe now. Nothing is hurting you now.” I’m trying to remind myself to enjoy and appreciate putting tasty food in my mouth, being able to walk, choosing clothes to wear that I like, turning pages, feeling warm carpet under my feet, and the basic satisfaction of getting chores done.

Will you share with me any experience you had when you had to choose to believe the Lord’s reassurance and take courage over a long period? What did you do?

Something unexpected when Nephi explains the tree of life and the rod of iron to his brothers

21 And it came to pass that they did speak unto me again, saying: What meaneth this thing which our father saw in a dream? What meaneth the tree which he saw?
22 And I said unto them: It was a representation of the tree of life.
23 And they said unto me: What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?
24 And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction. (1 Nephi 15:21-24)

I always thought it was interesting that Nephi explains the tree as a “representation of the tree of life” to his brothers and they seem to accept this immediately and no other explanation was needed. It took me a very long time to realize this tree of life was representing the same tree of life in the Garden of Eden that man was to be kept from by cherubim and a flaming sword, lest they partake of the fruit and live forever in their sins. Seen in this way, Lehi’s dream takes on greater meaning. Now, rather than being kept from the tree of life, Lehi is led to it with the rod of iron. In a way, it foreshadowed how through Christ, the way of eternal life would be open to all who would come.

Something else stuck out to me as I read these verses. When Nephi explains the rod of iron to his brothers, he ascribes to it a quality of the tree of life—“whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish” (1 Nephi 15:24, emphasis added).

That is extraordinary. Of course, our bodies must die, but our spirits needn’t. Or if we’ve sinned, we needn’t stay spiritually dead. If we hearken to the word of God (and by this I don’t mean just read the scriptures, but obey every word from God) then we will never perish!

Lest you think I am espousing a gospel of works and leaving out Christ, we can also remember that “the Word” is another name for Christ. Christ’s life was like that rod of iron, taking the undeviating course to eternal life. Grabbing hold of the rod then becomes an act of faith in Christ and repentance of our sins. Then it becomes perfectly obvious that whoever hearkens to the Word will never perish.

It seems the symbolism of that dream has Christ everywhere. Where else do you see Him?

Image: from Rejoice in Christ blog, http://mormonchristianity.blogspot.com/2010/05/lehis-dream-interpretation.html.

How does the Lord make Nephi’s words strong?

We know Nephi considers himself a much better speaker than writer because he knows it is the Spirit that carries his spoken word into the hearts of men and he can tell when that is happening. He seems to feel a lot less confident of his writing because he can’t tell when it will make the right impression or not. (Aside: Every time I read his worries, I just want to yell," NEPHI, HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT!? YOUR WORDS ARE GREAT!!")

In spite of his feelings about his weakness as a writer, he tells us how he knows the Lord will make his words strong.

4 And I know that the Lord God will consecrate my prayers for the gain of my people. And the words which I have written in weakness will be made strong unto them; for it persuadeth them to do good; it maketh known unto them of their fathers; and it speaketh of Jesus, and persuadeth them to believe in him, and to endure to the end, which is life eternal.
5 And it speaketh harshly against sin, according to the plainness of the truth; wherefore, no man will be angry at the words which I have written save he shall be of the spirit of the devil. (2 Nephi 33:4-5)

There are six good purposes in that list. So to apply this to our lives, especially to those of us who blog about the gospel, even if we feel our gospel writing is weak, if our words

• Persuade others to do good
• Make known to people of their ancestors and families
• Speak of Jesus
• Persuade others to believe in Jesus
• Persuade others to endure to the end, which is eternal life
• Speak harshly against sin using the plainness of the truth

...then the Lord will make our written words strong. It seems having a righteous intent and sticking very carefully to that is a big part in the Lord’s ability to make our words strong. I am encouraged by this, especially since so much sharing the gospel is online through the written word and we have no idea who may be reading what we’ve written.

What did Abraham believe that the Lord counted him righteous for?

Of the following verses, verse 6 is quoted several times in the New Testament by Paul to show how faith justified Abraham.

5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
6 And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness. (Genesis 15:5-6)

The JST of this adds much more to our understanding of what Abraham believed the Lord about and what about his belief was counted righteous. Without the JST, we would think Abraham just believed the Lord would give him seed as the stars, since that is the context of the verse, and Paul’s assertion that Abraham’s belief was connected to Christ would seem out in left field.

9 And Abram said, Lord God, how wilt thou give me this land for an everlasting inheritance?
10 And the Lord said, Though thou wast dead, yet am I not able to give it thee?
11 And if thou shalt die, yet thou shalt possess it, for the day cometh, that the Son of Man shall live; but how can he live if he be not dead? he must first be quickened.
12 And it came to pass, that Abram looked forth and saw the days of the Son of Man, and was glad, and his soul found rest, and he believed in the Lord; and the Lord counted it unto him for righteousness. (JST Genesis 15:9-12)

The Lord uses deferred promises to help Abraham look forward to the resurrection and the coming of Christ. Abraham can inherit the land when he is resurrected, and he will be resurrected because Christ will eventually come, die, and resurrect first. (Note that just the mention of the Son of Man shows Abraham already knew about Christ, since there was no big in-depth explanation. It is actually the most direct mention we have for Abraham.)

I love how this line that expresses the awesome power of God—“though thou wast dead, yet am I not able to give it thee?” It is like God can skip blithely across the bounds of mortality as if it were a chalk line on the ground. For all of us who have been promised blessings that seem deferred past mortality, this is a comfort (or can be) that God still keeps promises into eternity. It also seems that God may deliberately promise us blessings that aren’t delivered in mortality because He wants us to look beyond the veil with hope. After all, if all the promises are fulfilled in mortal life, what do we have to look forward to in eternity?

So, we learn from the JST that Abraham believed the Lord about the Atonement and resurrection of Christ and how it would make it possible for the promise to Abraham to be fulfilled. We also learn that because the promise’s fulfillment was deferred beyond Abraham’s mortal life, he had to make a choice whether to believe that Christ could and would make the fulfillment possible or to decide whether it was all some kind of nasty cheat and be embittered. Abraham chose to believe Christ could make it happen even though Abraham knew he’d never see it in his own lifetime. His choosing faith was what the Lord counted righteous.

This is a comfort to me, since God seems to be deferring one particular blessing I have been promised.. It don’t know if it will be deferred beyond mortality, but like Abraham, it is my choice to believe God or not. It is another way for me to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. It is an opportunity for me to be counted righteous like Abraham was.

The Lord reveals when we think He might conceal

11 Thus I, Abraham, talked with the Lord, face to face, as one man talketh with another; and he told me of the works which his hands had made;
12 And he said unto me: My son, my son (and his hand was stretched out), behold I will show you all these. And he put his hand upon mine eyes, and I saw those things which his hands had made, which were many; and they multiplied before mine eyes, and I could not see the end thereof. (Abraham 3:11-12)

I was thinking about that simple gesture of the Lord’s when He puts His hands upon Abraham’s eyes. It is fascinating that when a mortal puts their hand on your eyes, you can’t see, but when the Lord puts His hand over your eyes, you can see. But not only can you see, but you can see so much more, and not just “more,” but everything those hands made. God Himself becomes the lens by which to see the universe.

Sometimes I feel like I have that lens, but at the same time I still wish I could see what Abraham saw.

These days I’ve been praying that the Lord will open my eyes to better understand the scriptures. I sense that there is so much more there that I am just not getting because my mind can only hold so much and can only make so many associations. All I'm doing is analyzing phrases and words and trying to fit them into this big picture of gospel principles.

But maybe it is this line upon line learning that is gradually preparing me for the greater things that I’ll only be able to notice after having seen the smaller units. So maybe this is another sense in which it seems like the Lord is concealing, but He is actually revealing.

Christ is the savor of the scriptures

Here's something from the Joseph Smith Translation I ran across:

35 Then certain of them came to him, saying, Good Master, we have Moses and the prophets, and whosoever shall live by them, shall he not have life?
36 And Jesus answered, saying, Ye know not Moses, neither the prophets; for if ye had known them, ye would have believed on me; for to this intent they were written. For I am sent that ye might have life. Therefore I will liken it unto salt which is good;
37 But if the salt has lost its savor, wherewith shall it be seasoned? (JST Luke 14:35-37)

It is a little tricky to catch Jesus’s meaning about the salt losing its savor in this situation because we are so used to His previous teaching of “ye are the salt of the earth” about being an example. That is not what He means here.

Here Christ compares the scriptures, or the words of Moses and the prophets to salt and compares Himself to the salt’s savor. He is teaching that Moses and the prophets were teaching of Christ, and if you take Christ out of the scriptures, then the scriptures are like salt that lost its savor. Nothing but the teachings of Christ can give the scriptures that special flavor.

How have you seen this in your life?

Why did God choose the rainbow as a token of His covenant with Noah?

12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:
13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.
14 And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud:
15 And I will remember my covenant, which I have made between me and you for every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. (Genesis 9:9-15, JST included)

Then verse 16 and 17 are expanded as JST Genesis 9:21-25:

21 And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant, which I made unto thy father Enoch; that, when men should keep all my commandments, Zion should again come on the earth, the city of Enoch which I have caught up unto myself.
22 And this is mine everlasting covenant, that when thy posterity shall embrace the truth, and look upward, then shall Zion look downward, and all the heavens shall shake with gladness, and the earth shall tremble with joy;
23 And the general assembly of the church of the first-born shall come down out of heaven, and possess the earth, and shall have place until the end come. And this is mine everlasting covenant, which I made with thy father Enoch.
24 And the bow shall be in the cloud, and I will establish my covenant unto thee, which I have made between me and thee, for every living creature of all flesh that shall be upon the earth.
25 And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and thee; for all flesh that shall be upon the earth. (JST 9:21-25)

I was thinking about the rainbow as a token and I wondered why God chose the rainbow for this. After pondering a while, I realized that it has a number of characteristics that make it an ideal token of these promises the Lord makes.

First, rainbows appear during/after rain. This makes it perfect for a divine reminder to man that the rain isn’t going to be as bad as it was in Noah’s time.

Second, rainbows are lines and thus connect together whatever is at both ends. In this way, they serve as a great symbol of the covenants connecting God and man, especially when one end of the rainbow comes from the sky and the other end seems to connect with the earth. A connection of light—what more beautiful symbol of the everlasting covenant could you ask for? (Forget finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow; finding God would be awesome!)

Third, the rainbows that arch from the earth to sky to earth are a great symbol for the trajectory of Enoch’s city of Zion, which was once on the earth, was taken to heaven, and is promised to return to earth in a day of righteousness. The glory of that rainbow certainly symbolizes the miracle of that ascent and promised descent, as well as the glory of holiness that the city attained. It gives us something to work for and look forward to.

Fourth, the rainbow reminds us to embrace the truth and “look upward” and reminds God and Enoch’s Zion to “look down.” The rainbow becomes an occasion of remembering the covenant, which will give us all great trembling joy. (Have you ever had joy so great that you trembled? I don’t know that I have yet.)

Fifth, each color in the rainbow can remind us of one of the covenants that we make with the Lord.

How can this help us today? Rainbows are beautiful, and they will give us even more joy if we know the gospel meaning behind it. If our covenants define our lives, then we have great reason to be happy when we see a rainbow because we can know that the Lord is also looking at it and is thinking of the covenants He made with us. Won't that be a great feeling to know that you and the Lord are both looking at the same thing and thinking of the same thing? What a great connection that can be!

Can you think of any other things that rainbows teach about the everlasting covenant?

Image of Noah and rainbow: “Notes to Poem: Michalangelo’s Bow,” http://www.wisdomportal.com/Poems2011/Notes-Michelangelo%27sBow.html, accessed 9/17/11.

Image of rainbow to cloud: “Finding the Li” blog, http://liology.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/re-weaving-the-rainbow/, accessed 9/17/11.

Image of rainbow arch: Rainbow gallery on Flickr, http://www.flickr.com/photos/16154905@N04/galleries/72157622809052156

Where does the Second Coming fit in the allegory of the olive tree?

As I looked over Zenos’s allegory of the olive tree in Jacob 5 recently, I noticed there was no big production at the exact moment when the Second Coming happens, which I thought was really odd. But there is a lot of previous warning; there are a lot of repetitions of “this last time” and “the end draweth nigh” and “only this once” and “the season speedily cometh.” The urgency to prepare is great, yet when the season or the end comes, it seems so normal that you don’t even notice it!

There are two ways of looking at this. One way is that it is a message of great assurance for the church members who stay faithful—all the careful efforts to prepare for the Second Coming will pay off and there will be no need for panic about our status in that day. Another way of looking at this is that it is an allegory and is not required to depict every element of coming prophesied events and to do so would have wrenched the reader completely out of the text. I choose not to worry about which way to interpret it.

The only hint we get that the Second Coming happened in the allegory is this verse:

And it came to pass that when the Lord of the vineyard saw that his fruit was good, and that his vineyard was no more corrupt, he called up his servants, and said unto them: Behold, for this last time have we nourished my vineyard; and thou beholdest that I have done according to my will; and I have preserved the natural fruit, that it is good, even like as it was in the beginning. And blessed art thou; for because ye have been diligent in laboring with me in my vineyard, and have kept my commandments, and have brought unto me again the natural fruit, that my vineyard is no more corrupted, and the bad is cast away, behold ye shall have joy with me because of the fruit of my vineyard. (Jacob 5:75)

Notice, the vineyard is no more corrupted, so all the bad stuff is gone. (This tells me that the Second Coming had happened just before that place in the text.) The Lord’s speech to His servants turns from instructions to celebration, as indicated by the past tense:

• this last time have we nourished my vineyard
• thou beholdest that I have done according to my will
• I have preserved the natural fruit, that it is good
• ye have been diligent in laboring with me in my vineyard
• [ye] have kept my commandments
• [ye] have brought unto me again the natural fruit
• my vineyard is no more corrupted
• the bad is cast away

All of these things will be real causes for celebration too, considering they will have occurred as the rest of the world ripens in iniquity for destruction. To nourish the vineyard when there is a famine of the word of God is no small task. That the Lord does according to His righteous will to bring about His purposes even in these times of wickedness is an AMAZING testimony to His power. His preservation of the good fruit in the midst of corruption and destruction will be similarly amazing (and this should help us trust Him more).

Additionally, the Lord knows how hard it will be for us, hence His strong commendation of His servants for their diligence (when others have only been sporatic), His tribute to their obedience (when so many others were disobeying), and His praise for their righteous influence toward repentance (when others were such a negative influence).

This verse gives us reason to hang in there and be diligent servants. Our efforts will not be forgotten in the end.

The angel’s prophecy to Nephi of the coming events of the church in the latter days

Throughout the second half of 1 Nephi 13 and 1 Nephi 14, we get a bird’s eye view of the main events of the church in the world. I don’t know why I didn’t get this before, but just a few days ago I finally started to see it for what it was and understand it better.

1) The Lord brings forth much of the gospel in writing from Nephi’s seed (1 Nephi 13:34-35). Clearly this is the publication of the Book of Mormon.

2) Those who seek to bring forth Zion and publish peace are blessed (v37). Clearly this is the early days of the church, the attempt to build Zion in Missouri, and the declaration of the restored gospel. (I like to think that any of us who are sharing our testimonies and gospel principles in writing are “publishing peace,” and we still have part in this promise.)

3) Other books come by the power of God to convince that the Bible is true (v39). This could mean the Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price at the very least, but I dare not limit it to just them.

4) The Lord manifests Himself in word, in power, and deed to take away stumbling blocks (1 Nephi 14:1-2). I’ve already discussed this in my post “How the Lord takes away our stumbling blocks.” He does this for people whether they are in or out of the church.

5) The marvelous work and the wonder is done by God to either convince men to peace and eternal life or to deliver them to hard-heartedness and captivity of the devil (v7). This, I believe, is missionary work, since the Book of Mormon has already come out at this point. Also see my post "What is the marvelous work and the wonder?"

6) There are two churches – the church of the Lamb of God, and the church of the devil, the mother of harlots . The church of the devil has great dominion in all nations, and the church of God has only small dominions, but it is also on all the face of the earth. (v10-12). I don’t think we’ve gotten to the point where the church is established legally in all countries with permission to proselyte, so I think this is where we are. I think our temples are a very small dominion of the Saints. I think places where the Saints set the standards are places our dominion. Where else do you think our dominions are?

7) The mother of harlots gathers multitudes in all nations to fight against the Lamb of God (v13). I think this is militant atheism, and we’re beginning to see some of it, but I don’t think we’ve seen anything yet. When it happens, we should not be surprised and dismayed, but remember that this was prophesied long beforehand, so God is still in control, even though ignorant mortals reject Him.

8) The power of God descends on the church and they are armed with righteousness and the power of God in great glory (v14). Obviously when atheism gets much more militant, we will need even more power from God than ever before. This also tells us the key to win our future battles—we need the righteousness that comes from obedience to the commandments, we need the Spirit, and we need power of the priesthood.

9) The wrath of God is poured out on the great and abominable church in the form of wars in all nations belonging to the mother of harlots (v15-16). This is an interesting natural consequence of fighting the truth. People who fight against the church ultimately can’t achieve unity and harmony among themselves either. They become captives of hostility and turn it on everyone who disagrees with them. The more violently they fight against the church, the more violent will be their fights among themselves. If they murder the saints, in about 30 years, they will murder each other.

10) The work of the Father commences to prepare the way to fulfill His covenants with the house of Israel (v17). This can be very puzzling at first. It can’t be the restoration of the gospel because that has already happened. The fascinating thing is that this commencement of preparation happens in the midst of all the wars in the world, and that is a testimony to the power of God that He can do such a thing.

But what are the covenants that are to be fulfilled at this stage? Is it the Abrahamic Covenant? [thy seed shall inherit this land, in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed, in thy priesthood shall the kindred’s of the earth be blessed] It seems like that is already being fulfilled. What remains to be done? Is it coming forth in the first resurrection?

I finally had to look up a footnote for “work” in the phrase “work of the Father” in that verse and it led me to 3 Nephi 21:20-29, which showed a close repeat of the above steps until it began talking about assisting the remnant of Jacob to build a city, the New Jerusalem, then to gather in the people to their lands of inheritance.

23 And they shall assist my people, the remnant of Jacob, and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem.
24 And then shall they assist my people that they may be gathered in, who are scattered upon all the face of the land, in unto the New Jerusalem.
25 And then shall the power of heaven come down among them; and I also will be in the midst.
26 And then shall the work of the Father commence at that day, even when this gospel shall be preached among the remnant of this people. Verily I say unto you, at that day shall the work of the Father commence among all the dispersed of my people, yea, even the tribes which have been lost, which the Father hath led away out of Jerusalem.
27 Yea, the work shall commence among all the dispersed of my people, with the Father to prepare the way whereby they may come unto me, that they may call on the Father in my name.
28 Yea, and then shall the work commence, with the Father among all nations in preparing the way whereby his people may be gathered home to the land of their inheritance. (3 Nephi 21:23-28)

Aha! This covenant the Lord will fulfill will be the establishment of the actual city of Zion! (So I suppose in a certain sense, that is still part of the Abrahamic covenant about the promise of lands of inheritance.)

So here we have an idea of at what stage in general events Zion will be built. It seems like it is a long way off, doesn’t it? Well, guess what, we don’t know how soon these things will happen. We can’t just relax, we have to prepare for it. And we’ll need all the spiritual power and righteousness possible to get through the days of multitudes fighting against the Lamb of God, and fighting each other.

After this stage of building Zion, the prophecy of events is passed over to John in Revelation, so if we want further intelligence, we have to study what he wrote.

This sequence of events is presented in such plain and precious language that it can become a guide to us as we march ever closer to the Second Coming of Christ. I for one am grateful for it.

Stop procrastinating repentance: The lesson from the Philipi jailer's conversion

23 And when they had laid many stripes upon them[Paul and Silas], they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
24 Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
25 ¶And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
26 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.
27 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.
28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.
29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.
33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. (Acts 16:23-35)

An odd thing about this story is the jailer’s immediate question about what he must do to be saved, once he learns all the prisoners are still present and accounted for. It seems to happen without warning or gospel introduction; the jailer was asleep when Paul and Silas were singing hymns. It’s almost unprecedented.

Recently I realized Paul and Silas’s jail visit must have been suffered to happen just to reach the jailer. (Yes, that sounds a bit obvious, but hear me out..) I suspect that the jailer had heard of Paul and Silas’s preaching before this. I suspect that the jailer had previously held back from joining the church, thinking that he had plenty of time in life to repent.

Fast forward to when the jailer awakes and finds the prison doors wide open. He knows the consequence would be execution for dereliction of duty if any of the prisoners are gone. It is a shock that shows him that he has hardly any time left to his life at all.

When Paul and Silas tell him everyone is there, which removes the immediate prospect of death, he becomes willing to stop procrastinating repentance, and he immediately asks how to obtain salvation.

Seen in this way, the story shows that the Lord knows when we are procrastinating our repentance, and He has ways of showing us there is no time to waste. The time of reckoning may come sooner than we think, so it is best to begin repentance now.

If you’re interested, here is another post about this story from a different perspective—Spiritual freedom allows us to transcend physical captivity.