This concerns Peter. He was the only man there, the only one that might have been seen by the prison guards. Yet there was Someone else—”They came.”

Peter was in prison. Herod was determined that he should stay there, and had taken every precaution to prevent his escape. But one night when Peter was asleep an angel came and awakened him, loosed his shackles, and led him through the prison ward to the great iron gate. The gate was the impassible barrier. But when the angel led Peter to it, something happened—it opened as of its own accord, which means that there was no explanation of the opening.

Have we not often had experiences like that? We came to the end of the path; there was nothing more to be done; but something was done for us, and the iron gate opened as by a miracle. There have been many times in my life when it seemed to me that I was shut in, when it seemed as though every door was closed before me; and then suddenly, in some unexpected direction, a door would open. How often, when our way ahead looks dark, some Divine providence changes the outlook. The restricted view opens into a wider vision. The cul-de-sac becomes an open road. The iron gate swings ajar, and we step out into a new-found hope, with the promise of a brighter future.

God is all the while doing for us the unexpected thing. When jail like circumstances close around us and there seems to be no way out, it is then that God comes to us in some unexpected way. If we trust Him, there will always be the unseen someone at our side when we come to the impassible barrier. He will put forth his mighty hand and bring the surprising deliverance; the thing that seemed impossible will be done; the insurmountable obstacle, like the great iron gate, will swing back and be removed.

It is not for us to bother about the iron gate; our main concern should be to hold on to our faith and be in condition to walk through it when it opens. And it will open! When we are at the end of our own resources, God delights to overwhelm us with the riches of His love and mercy.

You can be sure of it, God will not fail you when you stand baffled and helpless before the iron gate.