Acts 16:1-15

Discussion Questions

• How can we grow and mature as believers so that God might be “bigger” for us?
• Paul was forbidden by the Holy Spirit to go to Asia, and not allowed by the Spirit of Jesus into Bithynia. How often do you thank God for what He prevents? Why should we trust God even when He seems unpredictable?
• God wants us to make good decisions. When we don’t get a special vision or revelation from the Lord, what can we do to avoid becoming paralyzed?
• If we are struggling with discontentment, we can start by praising God for what He has already given. Do you tend to forget the gift of God’s provision of godly men and women in your life?
• Do you have a “Paul, Barnabas, and Timothy” in your life? (Spiritually supportive relationships with believers who are ahead of us, beside us, and behind us)
• During Paul’s time, God was on the move, spreading the gospel across the known world. What is the evidence that God is still “on the move” today?

Transcript

We do study through books of the Bible at The Village Chapel. If you want a paper copy, lift up your hand. We have some folks who are going to pass them along to you. It’d be good to have the text in front of you, whether it’s on your device, your own Bible, or if you need one, we have one for you. And by the way, if you don’t have a Bible or you know someone who doesn’t, feel free to take one home as our gift to you. Well, we are continuing our study of The Acts of the Apostles this week. If you would turn with me, once you have your Bible, to Acts, Chapter 16. For the past two weeks, we have seen Paul and the council in Jerusalem settle an important matter about the nature of salvation. The question on the table was: Are we saved by Christ alone or by Christ plus circumcision or Christ plus strict adherence to Mosaic law? In other words, did Jesus offer us a gospel of Jesus plus? Sounds like a streaming service, Jesus plus. The resounding answer of Paul and the whole council was no. In Christ alone. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. That’s what’s required. And with that critical matter resolved in their studies of the last couple of weeks, that period, by the way, took about a year, a span of a year.

Now the pace of the book of Acts is going to begin to pick up very quickly. When we open up God’s word to us in Acts today, we’re going to be given a firsthand look at the remarkable speed of the good news of Jesus actually going to a new continent. But the route that God chooses to go there is perplexing. Show of hands, who in this room has ever asked the question: What is God up to? Anyone? All right, we got a few. How about this week? Anybody ask that question? That is probably the most universal question for finite minds. Thinking about considering what an infinite God is up to. And when we read a text like this, what we see here today, we actually see God’s activity in the background revealed. We don’t always get to see it, but we get to see it revealed here in our text today. It’s a question that the apostle Paul must have asked often, and we’re going to ask that along with him today. So, Acts chapter 16, I’ll pray for us and we’ll get started. Lord, with our Bibles open, we turn to You. Open Your Word to us and open us to Your Word. May Your Holy Spirit convict and comfort and lead us to our only hope in life and in death. Our only hope for today and for tomorrow, our Lord Jesus Christ. And we all said, “Amen.”

Acts, Chapter 16: “Paul came also to Derby and to Lystra. And a disciple was there named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek.” So, we have a mixed family here: a Jewish woman who has turned in faith to Jesus, and a Greek, a pagan father. Keep that in the back of your mind. Verse 2: “He [Timothy] was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.” So “those places” would have been Iconium and Lystra, and probably some other regions there, some other cities. Verse 4: “As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in faith, and they increased in numbers daily.” And I love that sentence. Paul and his missionary team there. Strengthening these brothers and sisters in the faith, deepening, maturing, seeing them grow as disciples, and they increased in numbers daily. More people turned in faith to Jesus. And I love that we see both there. We should always see both in a healthy and vibrant church community. And verse 4: “As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for the observance the decisions that had been reached.” That was the Jerusalem Council that I talked to you about earlier, the question about are we saved by Christ alone or are we saved with Jesus plus something else. And that question had been answered. And so, they were telling these churches that they had been to before. You don’t have to be circumcised, you don’t have to follow strict adherence to the Mosaic Law. You can come to Jesus. Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.

Now let’s put up on the screen a map to situate us. So, for a couple of weeks, we’ve been studying down at the bottom far right, we’ve been in Jerusalem, that Jerusalem council. Paul and Barnabas went down there. They answered that question unequivocally. We’re saved by Christ alone. And so, Paul and Barnabas and others were sent up to Antioch. You can see Antioch there, Antioch of Syria. And then Paul and Barnabas had a little rift. There was a separation there. And Barnabas goes with Mark to Cyprus. You can see there with a little dotted line to the far left. And then Paul and Silas will go up through Cilicia to Derby, to Lystra Iconium, and probably the city and Antioch as well. Now, if we go to the next map, this is zooming in to what our text is going to focus on today. So, they continue to go through Asia, which would be Asia Minor, that would be Western Turkey for us today, and then Mysia and Troas and Philippi. I’ve put in little red brackets there. Those are the two cities that we’re going to pay attention to most today. So, there’s the route, and we’re going to leave that map up as we continue to read.

Now we saw this man Timothy introduced for the first time here. Paul and Silas are on this journey, and now we have another team member. It says that Paul wanted to add him to their company. And we know Timothy from the letters, 1 and 2 Timothy. Paul had a unique relationship with Timothy. He loved this young man. He poured into this young man. Presumably, Timothy came to faith with his mother and his grandmother, Lois and Eunice, probably on Paul’s first journey. And so here they are on their second journey, and they see Timothy grown up a little bit. We don’t know how old he is, probably 15, somewhere around there. And Paul says, “You should join our team.” It’s remarkable the relationship. We’ll talk about it a little bit more. But there’s an interesting question here. Remember, the Jerusalem Council was asking, “Is it Jesus plus circumcision, or is it just Christ alone?” That answer came for just Christ alone. In Christ alone our hope is found. So why then is Paul circumcising Timothy? Timothy might have asked that question too, by the way. Good question to ask. The matter had been settled. It’s Jesus alone. But here what we’re seeing is let’s look at the text, Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and he circumcised him. Why? Because of the Jews who were in those places. That would have been Iconium, likely, Pisidian Antioch, maybe some other places in that region. They knew Timothy. They likely knew his mother and his father. Remember, this was a mixed family. We had a mother who was a Jewish believer and a father who was pagan. And circumcision was a sign of the covenant. And as Paul goes through these regions and bringing Timothy along, they’re going to meet a bunch of Jewish folks.

And Paul did not want the matter of circumcision to be a barrier to them coming to know Jesus. So, this was not an issue of salvation, this was an issue of mission. We’re going to take this completely off the table. Because they know you, they know your family. We’re going to take this completely off the table. You are a believer, you’re a part of this mixed family, we’re going to completely take the circumcision question off the table. It’s not going to be a barrier. So that’s what’s going on here. Not an issue of salvation. This is an issue of mission. So, verse 6: “So they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit [That’s interesting.] to speak the word in Asia. And when they came upon Mijah, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.” So twice they were told, “No, you’re not to go there. You’re not to go there.” What happens next? Verse 8: “So, passing by Mijah, they went down to Troas.” And you can see that in the map there with the red box around it. A little coastal community. “And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’” How did they know this was a Macedonian man? Or how did Paul know this? We don’t know. Maybe he was wearing some clothes that were, you know, indicative of that particular culture. We don’t know, but all we know is that Paul saw this vision.

Verse 10: “And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” Now take out your pen, verse 10. “Immediately we…” circle that word “we.” This is the first time, this is what we would call the “we sections” of the book of Acts. Likely Luke now, the author of the book of Acts, has joined the team. So, we have Paul, we have Silas, we have Timothy, and now Luke has joined this missionary band. At verse 10, if you underline the word “concluding,” at least in my English translation, “…they concluded.” So, Paul had this vision, and then they convened and they concluded that God had called them to preach. God first had said, “No, we’re not going there to the north. No, we’re not going there to the southwest. But yes, I want you to go over here.” And they concluded that this vision was a calling from the Lord. They brought their minds together. That’s what that word means. So, it wasn’t just Paul on his own having a vision and making a decision. No, the whole community discerned together. They brought their minds together. So, with that in mind, verse 11, they set sail from Troas and “…we made a direct voyage to Samothrace.” You can see that there. “…and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is the leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony.” This might have been where Luke was from, because he actually pumps it up a little bit. This is the leading city. This is not the capital of Macedonia. That’ll be Thessalonica, which we’re going to read about in a little while.

Philippi was interesting. It was established in the 4th century BC by Philip II of Macedon, a humble guy, naming the city after himself. But later it becomes this Roman colony and had a special status as a place for retired military to come and live. And as a part of that special status, there were no taxes. So, a lot of folks, I think, liked Philippi because of the no taxes, I imagine. So, what happens there in Philippi? “We remained in this city some days.” We don’t know how long. Verse 13: “And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and we spoke to the women who had come together.” Now, very interesting here. We know the pattern of Paul, even though he’s an apostle to the Gentiles, his pattern is typically to go to a synagogue first. So apparently there is no synagogue in Philippi. There’s some Jewish influence, but not a synagogue. You have to have ten men at least to form a synagogue. Remember, Paul had seen a vision of a man from Macedonia. There’s no synagogue. They come to the river and they see these women. And they’re praying and seeking after the Lord. And what happens next? “One who heard [verse 14] us was a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God.”

We actually learn a lot from her in this little bit of text. “A worshiper of God,” so likely some Jewish influence, a God-fearing Gentile woman who is praying at the riverside. We’re told that she’s a seller of purple goods. Purple goods would have been very costly, very expensive. And she’s from Thyatira. We can see Thyatira, if you see Troas in the little red box, down to the southeast, you see Thyatira there, in the middle of Turkey. So, she has a home, or at least a home base in Thyatira, and she lives in Philippi. This is a wealthy businesswoman. Thyatira was also well known in the ancient world as a place where purple goods were made. There were mollusks there or snails. I couldn’t quite figure it out in my research, but something there where one drop from each, from one mollusk would have one drop of purple dye. Another mollusk, purple. That’s why it was so expensive, so difficult to make this purple cloth. So, this is like the Gucci. This is like the Saint Laurent of their time. And she’s selling these goods. So, we know this is a businesswoman, a wealthy businesswoman. She has means, she has a home in Thyatira or a home base there. And of course she lives in Philippi. What happens next is miraculous. “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.” Divine initiative. We see that because she’s baptized next. Verse 15: “After she was baptized, and her whole household as well, she urged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ And she prevailed upon us.” Now that’s an interesting sentence because we all know that the apostle Paul is pretty thick-headed, pretty strong-willed guy.

So, Lydia prevailed upon Paul and these other missionaries and opened her home. The Holy Spirit opened her heart, she opened her home. And that’s the typical pattern we often see. Well, this is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. So, Paul and Silas, Timothy and Luke, were guided by the Spirit of God to bring the good news to the continent of Europe for the first time. Macedon or Macedonia would be the northern part of Greece. This is the first time we see the flag of Christianity being planted there in Europe. The name of Jesus, the power of His Gospel, has gone from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria throughout all of what we would call Turkey and now to Europe. Remember, Jesus said, “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria…” and what? To the ends of the Earth. And as you peer ahead at the end of Acts, it continues to go west, because Rome is outside the frame here, but Rome’s over here. And for the first century, Rome would have been the ends of the Earth. So, the mission of Jesus is happening just as He said it would. And from Europe, the Gospel would continue to spread to Africa and then to Asia and to the Americas.

You and I have a direct connection to what happened there in Troas, where he gets this vision, this dream of the man from Macedonia, and they decide, okay, the Lord is calling us to Europe, calling us there to what we would call northern Greece. It’s good to be reminded that, friends, He is still on the move. He is still on the move. Just to borrow from C.S. Lewis, “Aslan is on the move.” What happened in that port city? Underline that, circle that. It’s just such an amazing text for us in verse 8. What happened in Troas changed the rest of human history. It connects to me and you. They were utterly bewildered while they were waiting in Troas. The Lord had told them “Not that way, not that way,” until they get this vision. They obeyed the call of God. This week and next, I’d love to draw our attention to a few ways that we see what God is up to in this text. And I pray it opens our eyes to see a greater vision of His power as we see what He’s up to in our own lives, homes, and cities. C.S. Lewis in one of my favorite books in the Narnia series, Prince Caspian, Lucy said, “Aslan, you’re bigger.” Aslan’s the Christ figure. “Aslan, you’re bigger.” “That is because you’re older, little one,” answered he. “Not because you are?” “I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.”

And when we open up the text of Scripture and we see what the Lord has done, and our eyes are open to see what He’s doing in front of us. Not all the time. Often, we don’t know what’s going on, but we see that He is much bigger. Our vision expands. I pray that’s what happens this week and next. So, number one, I think we see the multifaceted guidance of God. Kent Hughes, actually, I’m borrowing this from him. He said, “The guidance of God is a multifaceted jewel. He guides us in all kinds of ways.” Look again with me, if you would, at verse 6. “They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.” And when they come up to Myasia, they are tempted, they attempt to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. Interesting. “So passing by Myasia, they went to Troas.” And a little side road here, we see there at verse 6, the Holy Spirit forbid them. And next the Spirit of Jesus forbid them. And then when you continue to read at verse 10, we see that God, presumably God the Father, told them to go to Macedonia. So, we have the Holy Spirit, God the Holy Spirit, the Son, and the Father all in our text here. Now, Paul seems to me, as I as I read Paul here in Acts and through his letters, to be a guy who prayed fervently, who thought carefully about his mission, about the direction that he was supposed to go. I would consider him a planner type. Any planners in the room? Any planners? Okay, we got a few. A little shy. That’s all right. This is an overgeneralization, I’m sure, but I think our world can be divided into two camps. We have the planners over here, and we have the improvisers over here. Any improvisers in the room? Okay, more improvisers at the 11. That’s interesting.

The planners set their coffee pot at exactly the right time every morning. They set their clothes out for the next day before bed. And they tend to get really nervous, a little minor emotional crisis when their three-point plan for the day is thwarted. But we can give thanks for planners because God allows planners to have bills get paid and airplanes depart on time and construction moves forward. Okay, so that’s good. Improvisers wake up when it seems right to them and the Holy Spirit. Improvisers decide at the moment if it’s a coffee day or maybe it’s a tea day, whatever the vibes are, and they tend to get nervous if someone suggests a three-point plan for their day. But we should give thanks to God for them because we’d never stop to delight in the sunrise. We’d never stop for a moment to savor a poem, an unhurried conversation. Remember that life is a gift from God. We need both. I’m going to go out on a limb though and suggest that Paul was a planner. And perhaps Barnabas, we know they split, maybe he was an improviser, I’m not sure. But can you imagine what his emotional, what his spiritual state was in Troas? After, I assume, they had prayed fervently, “Lord, where do You want us to go? Okay, we’re going to go to Asia. No. Okay, we’re not going to go there. We’ve prayed, we sought out, we should go to Bithynia. There’s not many people who know the Lord there. No.”

So they go down to Troas, this port city, and they wait. Can you imagine what he was feeling like at that point? Someone might have asked Paul in Troas, “So where do you think you want the Lord wants you to go next?” And exasperated, I can hear him in my mind saying, “I have no idea.” Who’s been there? What is God up to? Closed door after closed door. I heard one of my favorite preachers, his name’s Robert Smith Jr. say, “We praise God for what He provides, and we should. But how often do we praise God for what He prevents? For the first billion years in heaven we’re going to praise Him for what He prevented.” We don’t know why Paul and his companions were prevented. We don’t know why. And we don’t know how they were prevented. Did they receive an audible call from the Lord to say stop? Did they see a vision of a big stop sign? We don’t know. But their mission hadn’t changed. The direction did, but their mission hadn’t changed. God was still interested in seeing the Gospel go to all the nations. That hadn’t changed. But in the wisdom of God, it was not for Paul or for Silas or for Timothy to do. What we do know, though, I think this is just amazing, the apostle Peter later would write to the churches in Asia and Bithynia in his first letter. We also know that in the book of Revelation, the letters that open up that book are to many of those cities that they weren’t allowed to go to on this trip.

The purposes of God are that the good news of Jesus would go to all the nations, but for reasons, again, that we don’t know, it was not for Paul, it wasn’t for Timothy or for Silas. And in the special providence of the Lord, and that’s an important term there, the special providence of the Lord, he receives this vision. He didn’t often see visions. He’s seen some, but not often. But he’s given this vision, and I would actually say we see double guidance in this text. Sometimes the Lord is correcting, don’t go there. And sometimes the Lord is directing, go there. The “no” is just as important as the “go” from God. I would actually add a third. I think he was also perplexing in Troas, confused. What in the world are we supposed to do? I would think that the Lord’s guidance, though, is rarely predictable. It doesn’t always happen like we see here in this text. We need to pay attention, though. Here’s what we do know. We need to stay close to the Shepherd so that we might hear His voice, attuned to His Word so we might ask the question: What’s God’s will for my life? Many of you might be asking that question right now, wrestling with that question. What’s God’s will for my life? And we need a whole other sermon to unpack that, but actually I think there’s a prior question we should ask first: What would please you, Lord? What would please you? That’s a good question to begin with.

Now, when we consider particular questions like that, it can become tempting for us, and I’ll just say for myself, to skip past the ordinary means of grace that the Lord gives us to guide us: searching the scriptures, seeking godly and wise counsel, then making decisions. We’re allowed to make decisions. We’re actually given the provision of a mind and a heart to act. John Stott would call it “sanctified common sense.” It’s okay to make decisions. And so often when making decisions, I desperately want something else. I want a sign, I want a vision of a man from Macedonia. I want a quiver in my liver. I want an angel to come down and say, “Move to Iowa.” Or not. When we don’t get those kinds of very specific, determinative instructions, and we typically don’t, and those in Scripture typically don’t either, we can become paralyzed. Which Jesus would say, “anxious for tomorrow.” We’re not walking by faith. We don’t need a Macedonian vision to make every decision. Paul typically, ordinarily, did not. This was a special providence. That doesn’t mean that God doesn’t move through dramatic means like this. He does. It shows us in the text here, and we see it today. He moves in all kinds of ways. But look again at the end of verse 10. When Paul had seen the vision, “immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding…” Again, that word means bringing our minds together. They prayed and discerned together that this was the call of God. So perhaps Paul told his missionary team, “Okay, here’s the vision I had. Hold on for a second. Just bear with me. Here’s the vision I had last night. Help me discern whether this was bad fish I ate last night or whether this is a call from God.” So, they discerned together. I presume they prayed together. They saw it and said, “What would please you, Lord? And they made a decision.

And it’s worth noting, though, that the Lord did not give them GPS level precision. God told them in this call to come to Macedonia, but he didn’t say, When you get there, now take a left at this road here, walk 10 miles and go to Philippi, and then walk down to the river, and you’re going to meet a name, a lady named Lydia. God didn’t say that. They walked by faith, making the best decision they could. The outcome always belongs to the Lord. They understood that. I need to understand that more. The outcome belongs to the Lord. So, all the planners in the room just relax a little bit. We see the multifaceted guidance of God. I think we also see the surprising provision of God. The surprising provision. After the dramatic separation of Paul and Barnabas because of this disagreement with John Mark or about John Mark, we now have two missionary teams, one to Cyprus, which we don’t know a whole lot about, and now one to Philippi, God’s provision through separation. What a surprise. Now, even though Paul had lost confidence in John Mark at that point in his ministry, Paul had not given up on the importance of apprenticeship and mentorship and discipleship of the next generation that would come after him. In fact, I would suggest that much of Paul’s life is characterized by pouring into young leaders, Timothy and Titus, and even John Mark later when we read our New Testament. Paul’s life is characterized by this consistent pouring into others so that they might be strengthened in the faith which we see here in verse 5 with these churches that he visits.

Now, I don’t know about you, if you’re like me, when you think of the provision of God, the thing that comes to my mind is finances or material provision. But how often do we, do I, think about other people, other godly men and women in my life as provision from the hand of God? It’s a good way to frame this. A godly friend who speaks the truth of God’s word or offers encouragement when I desperately need it, or the mom and the dad, the grandma, the grandpa who introduced you to the love of God in Christ Jesus, a pastor or mentor who’s walked patiently with you as you ask hard questions of the faith, or maybe you’re wrestling with something that has a grip on you. Those people come into your life and point you to our only hope in life and death, Jesus. I would go as far as to say that God’s provision of godly men and women is one of the, maybe even the greatest gift to your walk with the Lord, second only to God giving Himself and His Word. The provision of godly men and women in your life can be the greatest gift in your walk with the Lord. In other words, we should never underestimate the power of God working through the godly people He has put around us. Even take a moment right now. Think about those people who have made an impact in your life, pointing you to Jesus. Pursue those relationships, nurture those relationships. They are life. They’re life.

So, in the surprising provision of God, we see Timothy in our text here today. Paul would not have known at that point in Philippi what Timothy’s life would actually mean ultimately to Paul, the extent of his provision and God sending Timothy into his life. But when you survey the letters of Paul, Timothy is mentioned 24 to 26 times, depending on how you count it. Paul calls him the true son, his true son in the faith. Later on, Paul will actually write a letter to the church that’s being established in Philippi and says, “I hope in the Lord to send Timothy to you soon, so that I may be cheered by news of you, [Listen to this.] for I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.” I have no one like him. The provision of God through Timothy. People, godly people, that God provides in your life. Modern research, I saw this this week, has actually pointed out, we can see from the data the intrinsic value of good relationships, even to the most basic human flourishing. One of the former surgeons general of the U.S. in a study just a couple of years ago said, “Loneliness [Listen to this.] and weak social connections are associated with a reduction in lifespan similar to that caused by smoking 15 cigarettes a day, or even greater than that associated with obesity.” Loneliness and weak social connections. We live in a lonely world. And here at The Village Chapel, loneliness is an emergency, physically and spiritually. I love that we have data to back it up. The Bible’s been telling this from the beginning. We have data to back it up now.

At The Village Chapel, loneliness is an emergency. Friendship is a priority. And a world is growing increasingly artificial, increasingly synthetic. Relationships are disposable. This is going to be an outpost of the kingdom of God. It already is. That’s why I love that we have such a robust ministry of groups here at The Village Chapel, home groups and all kinds of other groups. We push back against that kind of emergency with the very basic, I know it’s basic, but the very basic hard work of nurturing deep friendships. The basic hard work of knowing one another, discipleship across ages and stages. We are a multi-generational church, but we are also intergenerational. I love our college students who are back this week. I can’t wait to meet many of them later. It’s a simple illustration. And we’ve used it before, but I think it’s largely true that we need three, at least three, godly relationships in our life. We need a Paul, someone ahead of us who calls us out when we need to be called out, who tells us a hard truth. We need a Barnabas, or you could actually add Silas to that, to our side, encouraging us, the default encouragers, you know who they are. We need a Timothy, someone behind us that we’re pouring into sacrificially. And we may not have all those relationships all at the same time, and praise God if you do, but I think those are three good things for us to consider. Even this week, when you go home this afternoon, who are those people in my life? How can I be pouring into them in my life?

In providing Paul, this apprentice, this friend, this co-laborer in ministry, God was also providing for the greater body of Christ. So, Timothy joins the ministry here, but later Paul sends him to Ephesus to lead and pastor that church. The church at Ephesus, pouring into that next generation of believers, proclaiming the name of Jesus. May the Lord give me, give you eyes to see just how generous He is. Amen. He is a generous God. Think about the people in your life. So not only did God provide a new ministry companion in Timothy, but he also provided Luke. And again, we see that in verse 10 in the “we sections.” We have Timothy, we have Luke. Now, why did Luke join the ministry here? We don’t know with certainty. I actually think there’s a good possibility that Luke joins this ministry team because Paul needed a physician. We’re told later when Paul writes to the church at Galatia that Paul has some kind of bodily ailment that he got on one of the missionary journeys, probably the first one. And it was likely a vision issue. So, it’s very possible that Luke joined this missionary team because Paul needed a physician. We don’t know that for sure. But whether or not he joined as a physician, he was also a writer and a historian. And all of a sudden, God provides this Gentile writer, Luke, a front row seat to see God’s work as He continues to spread the Gospel throughout the world to the ends of the Earth. And Luke, of course, goes on to write by volume more words in the New Testament than any other writer, a Gentile, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

So, Timothy, Luke, and also Lydia. This remarkable, God-fearing businesswoman burst onto the scene. Again, this must have been a surprise. They were looking for that Macedonian man, whatever he might have looked like in his vision. And when they come to the river to pray, they’re introduced to this powerhouse of a woman whose heart was opened by the Spirit of God. She opens her home, providing, again, a place for their team to stay, to lodge, which is likely the birthplace of the church at Philippi. So, the Lord provides Lydia, and the Lord provides Lydia’s home and her and all of her financial wealth. She’s not only the first person to come to faith in Europe, she provides the first church facility in Europe. She becomes one of the first church leaders in Europe. Now we have to think back. This is the first century. And in the first century, this would have been very surprising. A traditional morning prayer for a devout Jewish man would have sounded something like this: “Lord, I give thee thanks for not making me a woman, not making me a slave or a Gentile.” That would have been a traditional devout prayer. We’ve all got lists of people who count and don’t count, but the kingdom of God turns our man-made value systems upside down. And here in our text, the Holy Spirit establishes the truth at Philippi by what? Providing a woman, a slave, which we’re going to meet next week, the slave girl, and a Gentile jailer. And that becomes the core group at the Church of Philippi, the first church in Europe. The Lord is a providing. Might be a good question to ask this afternoon, this week. Where have I been blind to the Lord’s provision in my life? And ask Him to show you, reveal it to you. He’s good. Write it down. Send a text to a friend who’s meant to honor them with how they’ve shown you the Lord. “[God] is constantly flinging gifts at you faster than you can catch them,” Bobby Jameson says. “What gifts has God flung at you lately? [Great question.] What gifts is He flinging at you right now? Have you been too busy… to notice or ask where they came from?”

So, they have the multifaceted guidance of God, the surprising providence of God, and the saving power of God. And next week in the second part of this little series here on Acts 16, we’re going to get into this more. But again, if you look at Chapter 16, verse 14, it says, “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.” Two things. The Spirit of God opened her heart, and she paid attention. The Spirit of God, God’s sovereign grace, and Lydia’s response of faith. And the word “opened” here, that the Spirit opened her heart, the Lord opened her heart, it’s the same word that’s used, if you remember that story on the road to Emmaus, when Jesus Himself sidles up next to these two folks who were despairing because Jesus had just died on the cross. They didn’t realize He was risen. Jesus stands next to them, walks with them, and opens up the Scriptures to give them a greater vision of what God is doing in His redemptive work. Jesus opens up the Scriptures to them. Jesus, the Holy Spirit, opens up Lydia’s heart and the sovereign grace of God ran after Lydia, opened her heart to the treasure of Jesus, and through her, the Church of Philippi would proclaim the name of Jesus to the rest of Europe and beyond. Forgiveness of sin, life in His name. He’s a saving God. Aslan told Lucy, “As you grow older, you will find me bigger.” As we grow and mature as disciples, paying attention to the work of God, all His hand provides, paying attention to the way He guides through His Word and through His Spirit, what He’s done for us in Christ to save us, I think there’s a direct correlation between our trust of God and our vision of just how big He is, just how good He is. And I hope we get a little bit more of that today. If you’re struggling with contentment in work or life or relationships, stop for a moment and ask the Lord to open your eyes to see where He’s already provided and give Him thanks.

There’s a little bit of homework for us, all of us. And here’s where you begin. You begin with all that we have in Christ Jesus. You start there. Or maybe you’re seeking guidance for your next step in life. Stay close to Him. Stay close to other godly men and women. Seek them, pray, and then make decisions. Trusting the Lord for the outcome. Asking the question, what would please You, Lord? That’s the question to ask. Sometimes we’re given a glimpse of what He’s up to. Most of the time we don’t know the half of it. Elizabeth Elliott, another Powerful woman, she said, “God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will, a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to.” She’s right on. Paul’s letter to Philippians tells us that “he who began a good work in you will see it through to completion.” That’s a rich promise that the work of God is not just one and done. We are forever bound to a Savior who never stops working all things together for the good of those who love him. Amen? Amen.

Would you pray with me this morning? We’re actually going to be aided by a prayer from George Matheson, a 19th-century Scottish preacher, who longed for greater trust. And I pray the same for me and for you. Let’s pray. “Restore my soul, O God. There are green pastures around me for which my eye has no lens. There are quiet waters beside me for which my ear has no cord. Restore my soul. May I be content to know that Your goodness and Your mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” And Lord, we agree with George Matheson. We recognize that You are good, Lord. Thank You for everything that we have in Christ. All that we need is found in You. For all those who are anxious among us, I ask that Your Spirit would grow in us a capacity for greater trust in Your power and in Your presence. You go before us. For those curious about the claims of Christ or who have been far from You, Lord Jesus, by Your Spirit, do the work that only You can do in opening hearts to see Jesus in His splendor and His glory, our only hope for today, and our only hope for tomorrow. Holy Spirit, continue to be on the move in this place. In the precious name of Jesus, we all said, “Amen.”

Songs, Readings & Prayer

Songs

“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God“ by Martin Luther
“All Hail The Power Of Jesus Name“ by Oliver Holden, Edward Perronet, and John Rippon
“Holy Spirit, Living Breath of God“ by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend
“Our God Will Go Before Us“ by Keith Getty, Matt Boswell, and Matt Papa
“Doxology” by Thomas Ken and Louis Bourgeois
All songs are used with permission. CCLI License no. 2003690

Looking for our Hymns of the Week or resources to worship anytime? We’ve curated a playlist of hymns TVC Worship has led on our YouTube Channel!

Call To Worship

Come, Let Us Worship

Come, let us worship God the Father, the Maker of heaven and earth!
Let us worship Jesus Christ, the resurrected King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
Let us worship the Holy Spirit, the promised Comforter and Counselor!
All glory and praise be to the One true God, now and forevermore, amen!

Confession of Faith

Treasuring God’s Word – Psalm 86:5

“For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.”

Leader: What does the Psalmist mean when he says, “For You, Lord, are good”?
People: God is perfectly just and perfectly righteous, the very definition of goodness. “God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.”

Leader: What does the Psalmist mean when he says, “Ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You”?People: God’s desire is to be reconciled to all things on earth or in heaven, making peace through the blood of Christ shed on the cross, wanting all people to come to repentance. Therefore, He is eager and ready to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Classic Prayer

Dimitri of Rostov

Open, O doors and bolts of my heart, that Christ the King of Glory may enter!
Enter, O my Light, and enlighten my darkness;
Enter, O my Life, and resurrect my deadness;
Enter, O my Physician, and heal my wounds;
Enter, Divine Fire, and burn up the thorns of my sins;
Ignite my inward parts and my heart with the flame of Thy love;
Enter, O my King, and destroy in me the kingdom of sin;
Sit on the throne of my heart and reign in me alone,
O Thou, my King and Lord.

TVC Prayer Ministry

TVC Ministry: Home Groups
Vocation: Supply Chain
Mission Highlight: Freedom’s Promise
Praying for the Persecuted Church: United Arab Emirates

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