How did the early church grow? Sermon preached by Pastor Julius Buelow at Mt Olive in Lincoln, NE for the Fifth Sunday of Easter, May 3, 2026. Sermon text: Acts 16:11-34 11After we put out to sea from Troas, we sailed straight to Samothrace, and the next day to Neapolis. 12From there we went to Philippi, which is a leading city in that part of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We stayed in this city for a number of days. 13On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate alongside the river, where we thought there was a place of prayer. We sat down and began to talk to the women who had gathered there. 14A woman named Lydia, who worshipped God, was listening. She was a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira. The Lord opened her heart to pay close attention to what Paul was saying. 15When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us. Paul and Silas Put in Prison 16Once when we were going to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us. She had a spirit that foretold the future, and she made a large profit for her owners by fortune-telling. 17As she followed Paul and us, she kept crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way to be saved.” 18When she kept doing this for many days, Paul became so annoyed that he turned to the spirit and said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment. 19When her owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities. 20They had brought them to the magistrates and said, “These men are throwing our city into a state of confusion. They are Jews, 21and they are teaching customs that are not lawful for us to accept or practice, since we are Romans.” 22When the crowd also joined in the attack against them, the magistrates tore off their clothes and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23After they had beaten them severely, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to guard them securely. 24Because he received such a command, the jailer threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. The Earthquake and the Jailer’s Conversion 25About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. Instantly all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27When the jailer woke up and saw that the prison doors were opened, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, because he thought that the prisoners had escaped. 28But Paul shouted with a loud voice, “Don’t harm yourself, because we are all here!” 29The jailer called for lights, rushed in, and fell down trembling in front of Paul and Silas. 30Then he brought them outside and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his home. 33At the same hour of the night, he took them and washed their wounds. Without delay, he and all his family were baptized. 34Then he brought Paul and Silas into his house and set food before them. He rejoiced, because he and his whole household had come to believe in God. Holy Bible: Evangelical Heritage Version (Milwaukee, WI: Northwestern Publishing House, 2019), Ac 16:11–34.
