Acts 17:6 But when they failed to find them, they dragged Jason and some brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too;

In the verses before the above scripture, we read that Paul and Silas had went to Thessalonica to tell everyone about Jesus. They spent three sabbath days explaining the scripture in the synagogue. This was not acceptable to the local folks. So, they stirred up trouble for Paul and Silas. This leads us up to the point that says, these men have turned the world upside down. That’s a powerful statement! So, what did Paul and Silas do to get such a reputation?

In Acts 16, several things happened during their travels that may indicate why they turned the world upside down. First of all, they were going around city to city encouraging the churches in the faith. While, this blessed the believers by enabling the church to grow, it made the devil mad. This caused a demon possessed woman to be dispatched to remedy the problem. But, she was no match for Paul and Silas. The Spirit of God gave them wisdom about this situation and they rebuked the devil in her and she got saved. This only made her owners mad and Paul and Silas were thrown in Jail. While in jail, these two mean of God began to worship and sing praises to God so much that an earthquake occurred and the jailer almost killed himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. Instead, the jailer got saved when he was assured all were present and accounted for. Afterwards, Paul and Silas were released and asked to leave the city. In Thessalonica, they faced a religious attitude, that stirred up the locals against them. Wow! That’s amazing stuff. In fact, that’s down right radical living. Now the term radical simply means very new and different from what is traditional or ordinary. Paul and Silas certainly did that. They went against what was traditional and ordinary everywhere they went.

So, what does that mean to the believer today? How can we turn our world upside down for Jesus? In other words, how can we experience radical living? We do what Paul and Silas did.

1. We encourage the body of Christ around us.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage and comfort one another and build up one another, just as you are doing.

Everyone needs a word of encouragement every now and again! Let’s start building each other up in the Word. Start sharing the love of God that’s in your heart. Tell someone they’re doing a great job or let someone know how nice they look today. You don’t have to preach a sermon. A smile can speak volumes. Instead of speaking negative words all the time, speak positive ones, even if the situation looks bad. As the world sees us happy about being around each other, then we will grow in number making us an unstoppable force in these last days.

2. Rebuke the Devil

Satan is not going to like you spreading the Word of God. He may dispatch his imps to derail you. He may even throw a circumstance or two to get you off track. It’s no fun when people or things come against us. Many believers just sit back and say, “poor, pitiful me. I can’t stand this. The devil is after me. I can’t take this any longer.” That’s why the world sees us as wimps! We need to do what the Word tells us to do.

James 4:7 So submit to the authority of God. Resist the devil stand firm against him and he will flee from you.

God has already given us His authority to rebuke the devil. So get radical and stop him in his tracks. As you do, those around you will see a new you, someone who is untraditional, an extraordinary believer.

3. Praise God at all times

It doesn’t matter whether things are going good or bad, keep on praising God. Let His joy be your strength (Neh. 8:10). Yes, continue to work on that fortress of joy. It’s radical to be happy all the time. Even if the gas prizes go up, praise Him. Even if you have stressful situations at work, praise Him. Even if your family gets on your nerves, praise Him. Even if your sick, praise Him. If Satan can’t get your joy, he can’t get your goods!

4. Come against religious attitudes

Break out of all those religious thoughts! Get in the Word and find out what God has to say about your situation. God’s not making you sick to teach you a lesson. The Word says by His stripes you were healed (Isa. 53:1-4). You don’t have to live in poverty and lack. The Word says that He will supply all our need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19). Stop living from church service to church service on what the Pastor tells you. Get in the Word of God for yourself and find out what it has to say. Before you know it, God will show you things you’ve never thought of before. Who knows, He might even show you the key to getting that lost friend or loved one saved.

If you’ll follow these guidelines, you’ll be on your way to turning your world upside down and experiencing the radical life God created you to live!