Acts 16:25-26: But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 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.
When Paul and Silas were falsely accused (Acts 16:16-22) and then imprisoned (Acts 16:23-24), they began to worship God. They did not complain, find faults, wondering what went wrong, or got worried and anxious about their situation. They instead surrendered their situation to God in prayer and sang songs of worship (hymns) to God.
What is worship? It is ‘shachah’ in Hebrew, which means ‘to prostrate, fall down or bow oneself down.’ In other words, it means ‘to surrender ‘. In Greek, the word ‘worship’ is ‘proskuneo’, where the English word ‘prostrate’ come from. To prostrate is ‘to surrender, throw oneself in submission, or being yielded to a superior strength.’
So in Acts 16:25-26, Paul and Silas were worshipping God, surrendering their situation to God, resting and trusting God in total surrender. They chose not to worry, complain or sulk. Instead, they chose to worship, even in the middle of the night. Friends, when you are in your ‘midnight hour’, in the darkest hour in your life, and faced with a difficult situation, do not worry nor be anxious. Rest assured God is still here with you. And He is a great and awesome God, a miracle-working God. After all, He owns the whole galaxy. Put your trust in Him. Worship Him, just as Paul and Silas did. When we worship, we are actually surrendering our whole life, and the whole situation to God, allowing Him to take over.
You see, ‘worship’ and ‘worry’ are total opposites. To worship is to let God take over your situation, as you trust and rest in Him. To worry is not resting and trusting in God, but instead trying to figure out what to do with our own self-effort or strength. That’s the difference.
As Paul and Silas were worshipping, their breakthrough came. The ‘prison’ was shaken, the ‘chains’ loosed, and the ‘doors’ opened, by the power of God. Now don’t get me wrong. We do not worship God in order to get a result. In other words, we do not worship God to try to earn a breakthrough. Worship is not a human effort to earn something. We worship Him simply because of who He is, and how great and awesome He is, not because we want to try to earn a breakthrough or His acceptance. In fact, we are already accepted when He died for us on the cross. Our part is simply to believe on Him, and worship is an expression of our total surrender and trust in Him.
Beloved, it’s so good to worship God, and as you magnify Him in worship, trusting and resting in Him in total surrender, He’ll take over. Your ‘prison’ shall be shaken, your ‘chains’ shall be loosed, and your ‘doors’ shall be opened. Hallelujah!
