The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
Acts 16:27-30

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I have a friend who was in a severe car wreck earlier this year. To say they were shaken up is an understatement. In fact, their whole world got turned upside down. I’ve seen the damaged vehicle and the torn-up road at the scene of the accident. It’s a miracle they’re still alive. My friend says the same. They’re grateful no one else was involved, and that nothing besides their vehicle was totaled. But now they’re trying to make sense of why God let this happen. Their deeper question is how did they end up surrounded by God’s loving family instead of shamed for being imperfect?

My friend is in awe that the followers of Jesus in their life didn’t react to what happened like many people. No one pointed fingers. No one labeled them a bad driver or criticized them for messing up. And honestly, no one would have blamed them if they decided to run away embarrassed. Instead, the Church showed up in remarkable ways, demonstrated the heart of God, and my friend has concluded, “You all are unlike anyone I’ve ever met.”

A solo car crash isn’t the same as an earthquake so strong that it unshackles prisoners and opens prison doors. Or is it? Paul and the others stuck around instead of bolting when the doors blew open. This incident is different from Peter’s miraculous release in Acts 12. But maybe the jailer had heard the story and feared the worst. He was shocked to find everyone acting in the opposite way than most people would. To his own surprise, this remarkably divine situation and the Christ-centered community around him unlocked his heart spiritually.

When lives get transformed by Jesus, onlookers often ask the jailer’s question: “What must I do to be saved?” My friend keeps asking a similar question: “What purpose did God save me for?” So often what starts as a crisis turns spiritually catalytic. I keep discovering that how the character of Christ shows up through His church is a big factor in what draws people closer to God. When someone meets you and says, “You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met,” that’s a clue that it’s not you but Jesus that they’ve just met.

Next Steps

Who has said of you, “You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met,” and why did they say it? If that’s never happened, who is someone that follows Christ that you have said this to? How did their character and treatment of you or a situation draw you closer to God? Talk about these questions with a friend or your small group this week.