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Acts
15:36-41
“And some days after
Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city
where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do. 37 And
Barnabas determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark. 38 But
Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from
Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work. 39 And
the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from
the other: and so Barnabas took Mark,
and sailed to Cyprus; 10 And
Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the
grace of God. 41 And he went
through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.”
Introduction
[Audio
version: http://resources.ccphilly.org/SPM612]
“We have come through
the Jerusalem conference, Acts chapter 15, where Paul and Barnabas and others
came up to Jerusalem because there was a dispute in this new Church in regards
to whether the Gentiles that were being saved needed to be circumcised or keep
the law of Moses. And as this group
gathered in Jerusalem, there were believing Pharisees who were insisting that
these Gentiles that were coming in needed to be Jewish before they could really
be saved. And we understand part of
that, again, they thought ‘They can’t just live in some licentious lifestyle
like they’ve lived all along, if they’re coming to the Jewish Messiah certainly
there needs to be changes.’ And
there did, and this new Church was working through those issues. Peter then spoke and said ‘Why are you
laying this unnecessary burden upon them that neither we nor our fathers were
able to bear, we can’t put the Gentiles under the law, they’re saved by faith,
even as we.’ Then Barnabas and
Paul spoke up and shared the miraculous signs that God performed amongst the
Gentiles, confirming their message to the Gentiles, that God was working
miraculously, he was approving of the Gospel that they were preaching. And then James stood up and challenged them
all, and said ‘Look, it shouldn’t be any surprise to us, the prophets
have told us that the Gentiles would be gathered into the Kingdom, this is not
news, it’s something we should have been prepared for.’ And then as they prayed and sought the Lord,
they sent a letter to the Gentile churches saying ‘It seemed good to the
Holy Ghost, and to us,’ I love that, ‘that we lay upon you no
greater burden than these necessary things,’ and asked them ‘to
abstain from things strangled, from blood, from fornication, from idolatry,’ he
said, ‘if you keep yourself from these things you do well.’ And then Paul says in Galatians ‘they
also exhorted them to remember the poor, which thing we were more than willing
to do, it was on our hearts to do that anyway.’ And as they sent that letter from Jerusalem
back to Antioch, they sent it with Silas and Barsabas, who were notable men in
Jerusalem, just the wisdom of the apostles, that only if they just sent a
letter with Paul and Barnabas, it could be interpreted by some as being
disingenuous. So they sent Silas who was
a prophet and respected amongst the leaders in Jerusalem, and Barsabas to go
with them. And they came to Antioch and
stayed a good while with them, and the church in Antioch, of course, rejoiced
that they didn’t have to come under the Jewish law to follow Christ. But it says that Silas was pleased to stay
there, he remained in Antioch ministering there to the church. So we have a great church, Barnabas, Paul, Silas,
they’re continually teaching and preaching, it says, and the church is being
built up.
Paul
Decides To Go Visit & Edify The New Churches God Raised Up Through Him
A
Great Contention Takes Place Between Paul & Barnabas
Verse 36 says, chapter 15, verse 36, “And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let
us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the
word of the Lord, and see how they do.” ‘Let’s go to the territories,’ would have been Cyprus,
Pathos, the cities there into Phrygia, Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Derbe,
Lystra where all these new churches have started, ‘let’s go and see how
these fledgling churches are doing.’ “And Barnabas” then in verse 37 “determined to take with them
John, whose surname was Mark.” his nephew. “But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from
them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work.” (verse 38) So, Barnabas says ‘Alright, great idea,
let’s go, and let’s take John Mark with us,’ and Paul said ‘No
way, we were in a difficult situation, Pamphylia was an area where there were
robbers,’ historians tell us that there was typhoid raging at this
time, some feel Paul contracted in that area, and he said ‘When we needed
him, he bailed on us, and he went back, you know, it’s not a good idea, I don’t
want to take him back to the work.’ “And
the contention” verse 39, “was so sharp between them, that they” Paul and
Barnabas “departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto
Cyprus; and Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren
unto the grace of God.” (verses 39-40) now that’s sad in some ways. Now look, the contention was so sharp, the
Greek says “it was heated, it was hot” they were yelling at each
other, it was a heated contention. That
does me some good, by the way, to think that apostles can fight and argue like
the rest of us, you know. Here are two
guys, no doubt, who both thought they knew the leading of the Spirit, and
they’re banging heads. Who was
right? I’m convinced they were both
right. Barnabas is “the son of
consolation,” he was the perfect person to take John Mark and restore
him. Paul was not. Paul was cut from a different cloth, Paul
wanted to press onward, he didn’t have time, he was all business, a pragmatist,
and Silas the prophet would go with him, and the missionary endeavors would be
doubled, it would end up to be a blessing. But it’s interesting, and it’s sad in some ways, because Barnabas was
the one who initially brought Saul of Tarsus to Jerusalem and introduced him to
the apostles, and convinced them that he was to be received, that he was a
brother. Barnabas is the one who went to
Tarsus and found Paul and brought him back to Antioch, and had been used by the
Lord in Paul’s ministry in a huge way, and they’d been together these years,
and now the contention between them is so sharp they’re going to go in
different directions. Now, John Mark
ends up to be a significant person. Barnabas passes off the scene here in the Book of Acts, we don’t hear of
him anymore. He doesn’t pass off the
scene in Church history, but the history we’re given in the Scripture, he fades
away in this verse. In 1st Peter, chapter 5, we hear
Peter speaking of John Mark, who Peter ended up taking with him, and again
Peter must have been good medicine for John Mark, because Peter had denied the
Lord, and no doubt was able to encourage John Mark in his failing. But Peter ends his first Epistle by saying “the
church that is at Babylon, elect together with you, saluteth you and so doth
Markus,” Peter says, “my son.” So he had endeared himself to the apostle
Peter, he will write the Gospel of Mark, which I love, great, fast-moving
account of Christ, and no doubt most of that under Peter’s tutelage, and then
led of the Spirit he writes the Gospel of Mark. Paul, at the end of his life, in 2nd Timothy will say this in
regards to Mark, he says “Only Luke is with me,” 2nd Timothy
4:11, “take Mark and bring him with thee, for he is profitable unto me for the
ministry.” So there was
reconciliation and restoration. We’re
not sure how long it took. Paul seems to
me, a personality that could be cantankerous and stubborn. That was a weakness and a strength, in his
life no doubt he was a man who was determined to live out his life for the
cause of Christ. But it’s interesting to
see them here, come to odds over whether to take John Mark with them. ‘The contention, it says, was so great
they departed asunder one from another,’ “and so Barnabas took Mark, and
sailed to Cyprus; and Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the
brethren unto the grace of God. And he
went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.” (verses 39b-41)
Acts
16:1-15
“Then came he to Derbe
and Lystra: and, behold, a certain
disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a
Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek: 2 which
was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Him
would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of
the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek. 4 And
as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep,
that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem. 5 And
so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily. 6 Now
when they had gone throughout Phrygia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to
preach the word in Asia, 7 after
they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not. 8 And
they passing by Mysia came down to Troas. 9 And
a vision appeared to Paul in the night; there stood a man of Macedonia, and
prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. 10 And
after he had seen the vision, immediately endeavored to go into Macedonia,
assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto
them. 11 Therefore loosing from
Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, and the next day to
Neapolis; 12 and from thence
to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a
colony: and we were in that city abiding
certain days. 13 And
on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the
women which resorted thither. 14 And
a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which
worshipped God, heard us: whose
heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of
Paul. 15 And when she was
baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged
me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.”
Introduction:
Start Of Paul’s 2nd Missionary Journey
Now we come to the 2nd missionary journey. Barnabas will take
John Mark and go to Cyprus, Cyprus was his home, it was the island that he came
from, familiar territory to Barnabas, it was a wise decision for Barnabas, he
takes shipping and takes a boat with John Mark to the island of Cyprus. Paul determines on the 2nd missionary journey to take a different route, and to go overland. Matt, I think we’re just going to throw that
up and leave that there [see https://www.bible-history.com/Pauls_Second_Mission_Map/ ]
through the rest of the study, if you want to get an idea here of what’s going
on. Where is Antioch? There is Cyprus, you see that Barnabas and
Mark take a ship to Cyprus. Paul goes
overland, no doubt stopping at Tarsus, his hometown, here it is. And then he will go from there to Derbe, to
Lystra, then to Iconium, then all the way back up here to Pisidian Antioch,
which is not the Antioch he started from, and Paul then wanted to go into Asia,
from this direction, to Ephesus, to Miletus, but he was forbidden of the Spirit
to do that, and then he wanted to go to Bithynia, and if he’d had come up here,
there is Byzantium, which is Istanbul today, which was a huge city, but he was
forbidden of the Spirit to go to Bithynia and go into this area, so he will be
led to Troas, we’ll follow that along here, just so you don’t feel cheated. Here’s Antioch [of Syria] where they begin,
instead of taking a ship and going to Cyprus which he did on the first
missionary journey, that’s where Barnabas and John Mark go, Paul goes overland
this time, stops in Tarsus, his own hometown, no doubt from there to Derbe, to
Lystra, to Iconium, and then to Pisidian Antioch. The main Roman road that was paid to maintain
then went due west into what they considered Asia, where Paul later would get
to Ephesus and so forth, but the Spirit forbid him, heading north he wanted to
go then to Bithynia, and it said the Spirit forbid him from doing that. Again, up here was Byzantium, Istanbul today,
so instead he ends up at Troas. So, we
follow that and we’ll look at it together. So, let’s come back here.
Paul
Meets Young Timothy And Takes Him On Into The Ministry
We have then verse
40, “And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto
the grace of God.” and with Paul, because it says here they’re recommended
by the brethren, I’m sure that Barnabas and John Mark were also, but it’s very
clear that Paul and Silas end up with the Jerusalem letter, and they take that
with them on their journey. So Paul
chose Silas and departed, “being recommended by the brethren unto the grace
of God. And he went through Syria and Cilicia,
confirming the churches.” (verses 40b-41) “Then came he to Derbe and Lystra:” we can see where that is on
the map, he comes up to Derbe there, and as he comes then to Lystra, 20 miles
past Derbe, no doubt visiting the church there in Derbe confirming the elders
they had ordained, then to Lystra, “and, behold, a certain disciple was
there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and
believed; but his father was a Greek:” (Acts 16:1) We’re introduced now to Timothy. He must have said ‘Don’t call me
Timotheus, call me Timothy,’ if I was Timotheus that’s what I’d say
too. But Timothy will be his main
companion for the next 15 to 18 years. Paul will say at the end of his life, that it’s only Timothy who we
trust in regards to taking over the churches in a certain area. He will call him his own son in the
faith. And evidently on the first
missionary journey, as they came to Lystra, where Paul was stoned there,
remember, and he was thrown out of the city in the trash dump as dead,
“supposing him to have been dead.” I
believe in fact he was I believe again, in 2nd Corinthians it tells
us ‘I knew a man so many years ago, whether he was in the body, out of
the body I don’t know, caught up to the 3rd heaven, caught up to
Paradise, saw things unspeakable,’ I believe it happened there. And then it says ‘Paul rose up,’ and no doubt young Timothy with his mouth hanging open, was an eye-witness to
that, not only Timothy himself, but his family. When Paul writes 2nd Timothy, he says ‘When I called to
remember, the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy
grandmother Lois,’ evidently Paul knew, ‘and thy mother Eunice,
and I am persuaded that in thee also.’ He says to Timothy in the 3rd chapter, he says ‘Continue
thou in the things thou hast learned and has been assured, and knowing of whom
thou hast learned them, and that from a child thou hast known the holy
Scriptures,’ so his mother Eunice, his grandmother Lois had taught him
the Old Testament. Paul says ‘That
from a child you have known the holy Scriptures,’ Paul says, ‘which
are able,’ if you have Jewish friends take note of this, Old Testament, ‘which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through faith which is
in Christ Jesus.’ Paul clearly
says the Old Testament Scriptures themselves are able to make someone wise unto
salvation. So he says he’s writing to
Timothy, they’re his last letters, his own son in the faith, he said ‘I
call to remembrance your grandmother, your mom, how they instilled a pure faith
in you,’ and he says ‘that you from a child were taught the holy
Scriptures,’ and he encourages him to stay onward. So this young man, Timotheus, his name means
“one who honours God.” Paul in six of
his Epistles, that he’ll write to the churches, will mention, will introduce
himself “Paul and Timothy, bond slaves of the Lord,” he’s mentioned in at least
six of Paul’s Epistles, and Paul will write the two letters to him. This young man had been trained in ignorance,
like Joshua, like David, like so many others, like you and I. There had been things going on in his life
for years, little did he ever dream that that foundation of the Old Testament
would come into play. Little did he ever
dream he would accompany the great apostle. Little did he ever dream what God had for him, but God had faithfully
laid a foundation in his life for the things ahead of him. Look, if you grew up in a Christian family,
you’re here, who knows what God might have for you. Who knows what God might have for you. On the other side, some of my favorite men in
the ministry, grew up in alcoholic homes, abusive homes, and they get saved and
came to Christ, and they live with a broken heart for the lost. They live with a broken heart for the
downtrodden, and they are the most effective evangelists in some ways. Who knows how God might redeem that and use
that, God may have been training you, and you’re completely ignorant of those
years that God was investing something in you that he’s going to redeem and use
in a powerful way. That was Timothy’s
story here. “Then came he to Derbe
and Lystra: and, behold, a certain
disciple was there, name Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a
Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:” (verse 1) he’s the son of a certain woman, we know
from the 2nd letter to Timothy, Eunice, “which was a Jewess,” now
that in the mind of the Jewish community made Timothy Jewish, in their
tradition, if there was a mixt marriage, which they forbid, but throughout the
Mediterranean world outside of Israel, it was not uncommon to find that. But if a Jew and Gentile were married, they
considered the bloodline running through the mother. So, if they had been a Gentile mother and a
Jewish father, the Jewish community would not have considered Timothy then a
Jew. But because he had a Gentile
father, a Greek father, and a Jewish mother, the Jewish community considered
Timothy then to be Jewish. And that was
important and will come into play here. So he says “the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and
believed; but his father was a Greek:” (verse 1b) and some feel, the
way the grammar is constructed here, it indicates the father had passed off the
scene, we don’t know, “which was well reported of by the brethren that were
at Lystra and Iconium.” (verse 2) they knew of this young man, it was
evident there was a calling on his life. “Him would Paul have to go forth with him;” to the mission work,
a young intern, the next generation being raised up, Paul ready to invest his
life into Timothy. But listen to this,
it says, “and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in
those quarters: for they knew all that
his father was a Greek.” (verse 3) now he takes Timothy and circumcises
him, so he can go with Paul and tell the Gentile churches they don’t have to be
circumcised. Think about it. [No, actually, think about this. Paul’s main method of evangelism was to go
into every synagogue in a major city he would come into, and witness to every Jew
and God-fearing Gentile within that synagogue that Jesus, Yeshua of
Nazareth was the Jewish Messiah, the promised Saviour of the world. And Paul, being circumcised, could walk into
any synagogue. But heaven forbid if Paul
were to bring in Timothy, an uncircumcised “Jew” into the synagogue. It would have created mayhem, to say the very
least, and Paul may not have been permitted to speak freely because of
this. So Timothy had to be circumcised
to be a part of Paul’s evangelistic mission which brought him into almost every
Jewish synagogue he could find (see https://unityinchrist.com/history2/index3.htm] “he took and circumcised him because of the Jews” that is the
unbelieving Jews “which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a
Greek.” And the idea is that his
mother was Jewish, so they would have considered him Jewish, if he had not been
circumcised he would never have had an inroad with the Jewish unbelievers [as
they entered into their synagogues, as I was pointing out], which Paul in
chapter 15 just settled that the Church is not demanding any Gentile believers
had to be circumcised. But Paul takes
this young man whose considered a Jew, but the Jewish communities who know
about his family, he had him circumcised, so then he will have an effective
ministry, because Paul initially in each city would try to go to the synagogue
and then to the Gentiles. Paul wrote
this in 1st Corinthians, he says ‘For though I
be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might
gain the more. Unto the Jews I became as
a Jew that I might gain the Jews, to them that are under the law, as under the
law, that I might gain them that are under the law. To them that are without the law, as without
the law, being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ, that I
might gain them that were without the law. To the weak I became as weak, that I might gain the weak. I am made all things to all men, that by any
means I might save some.’ And he
says it’s for the Gospel’s sake. So he’s
telling us, he didn’t have Timothy circumcised because it was
mandated by the Christian faith, it added no righteousness to him, it was to
make him a more successful evangelist amongst the Jewish nonbelievers that were
in that part of the world. [Considering
Paul’s main method of evangelism by entering into every synagogue he could to
preach the Gospel, this made perfect sense.] So he took him, he had him circumcised because of the Jews that were in
those quarters he says, for they all knew his father was a Gentile, “And as
they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that
were ordained of the apostles and elders which were in Jerusalem.” (verse 4) And he has Silas with him, as a prophet from
the church in Jerusalem, confirming that what they’re saying is true, and he’s
got Timothy with him, telling the Gentile churches they don’t have to be
circumcised to be saved. Interesting. [In reality, all of
these churches were composed of a mixture of real Jews and God-fearing
Gentiles, so they were what would be termed Judeo-Christian in composition
and worship practices.] “And so were
the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.” (verse
5) they’re hearing that it is just simple faith in Jesus Christ that is
required of God, and the churches are growing daily.
The
Specific Guidance Of The Holy Spirit Aims Paul & Silas Into Europe
“Now when they had gone
throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy
Ghost to preach the word in Asia,” (verse 6) now you see,
what they did was they came up here in this area of Derbe, Lystra, Iconium,
which is Pisidia there, they wanted to take, there’s a famous road, a Roman
road that went directly west to go into Ephesus, Miletus no doubt, Colossi, and
it said they were forbidden of the Spirit to do that, to go in this direction
and go westward [see https://www.bible-history.com/Pauls_Second_Mission_Map]. It doesn’t say they were forbidden of the
Spirit to preach the Gospel, so you can’t use that as an excuse ‘I was going
to share the Lord with that guy, but the Holy Ghost told me not to share the
Lord with that guy.’ I’m not saying
that can’t happen, that would be the exception not the rule. My advice to you, is when in doubt, speak
out. When in doubt, preach the
Gospel. Now that’s a terrible mistake to
make, when we get to heaven [into the Kingdom of heaven, which is going to end
up on earth] we’re never going to think and look back thinking ‘Ah
raspberries, I shouldn’t have shared the Gospel with that guy,’ when you
get to heaven you may think ‘I should have shared, I had an opportunity and
I didn't.' You’re never going to
regret sharing Christ with anyone. So
here, this is a different set of circumstances, the Holy Spirit is moving them
to Europe, and he forbids them to take a detour at this point in time. The 3rd missionary journey Paul’s
going to get there [actually at the end of this 2nd missionary
journey Paul’s going to get to Ephesus, as his last stop before heading back to
Antioch in Syria]. He’s going to
eventually go to those areas where the Holy Spirit is directing him away from
at this point. So, he says they “were
forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia, after they were come to
Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.” (verses 6b-7) So they come up into the area of Mysia,
should be right around here, they wanted to go to Bithynia, and it says the
Spirit forbid them, literally it says “the Spirit of Christ” or “the
Spirit of Jesus” as some of the Greek texts says, remarkable, “suffered
them not, would not allow them.”
The
Importance Of Being Led Of The Holy Spirit In Missionary Endeavors
Look, how important is
it in missionary endeavors to be led of the Spirit? One author I read said “There’s the sent
ones and the went ones,” and you certainly want to be a sent one when
you’re in the mission field. Back in
chapter 13, verse 2 is says they were praying and fasting, ministering to the
Lord, and the Holy Spirit said ‘Separate unto me Barnabas and Saul to the
ministry I’ve called them to,’ and it says ‘being sent forth of
the Holy Spirit.’ If you’re
going to be in mission work, how important is it when the Holy Spirit says ‘No,
don’t turn westward, don’t go northeast, I want you to go this way.’ They’re being directed by the Holy Spirit
in this work, and it says “And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas.”
(verse 8) now let’s look, [see https://www.bible-history.com/Pauls_Second_Mission_Map]
they come up here to Pisidia Antioch, and they end up here, they come to Troas
right there on the coast. So you guys,
ready? They come to Troas right there on
the coast, and from Troas they’re going to take a boat to Samothracia, this is
called the Hellespont, famous for major armies crossing here. Samothrace, it’s the height of Thrace,
Samothracia is an island, 69 square miles, and it has a peak in the middle of
it that is 5,200 foot, as they come to that island, Samothrace, it was like a
beacon in the middle of the Aegean Sea here, so they come to there and they
will come over to this area, and land here and then go to Philippi. So we’ll come to Troas, from Troas they will
take a boat and come to Samothrace, the island there, then over to
Philippi. So it tells us here that “they
passing by Mysia came down to Troas.” (verse 8) you see it there, “And a
vision appeared to Paul in the night; there stood a man of Macedonia, and
prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.” (verse 9) It doesn’t say a dream, it was a vision, it’s
not specific, so he sees. So over to
Macedonia, here southern what was Yugoslavia, Macedonia today, around this area
of Greece, there’s Corinth on the this missionary journey. A man from Macedonia, this is Europe, once
you cross the Aegean Sea here you’re into Europe, again, that’s southern
Yugoslavia, Macedonia today, and down here into Greece.
The
Gospel Recently Going Back Into This Area
When I first years ago
travelled to Austria to do the pastors conference there in Spital, where
Calvary Chapel has a schloss, a castle there, very interesting, when you go to
Europe, this is just free information…a burg is a fortress, usually with a mote
around it and a big gate, a schloss is a mansion, like the Beverly Hillbillies
mansion, and there is there in Spital a schloss, called Schloss Herldeck, and
it is the exact replica of a mansion that was on the French Riviera that a
Jewish businessman had built for his wife, who fell in love with a mansion on
the French Riviera, he had it reconstructed there (in Austria). The beginning of World War II, Hitler came in
there with Goering and Goebbels and drove the family out and took over that
mansion. In fact they had painted on the
outside a blond husband and wife with blue eyes with little blonds kids around
them with blue eyes, very eerie to go in there and realize that down in the
showers that Hitler and Himmler, they held Goering there until the Nuremburg
trials, and it fell into disarray, and Chuck Smith, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa
bought it and turned it around, got a team over there, helped them to refurbish
it, and today it’s used for conferences, Christian conferences. I was there once and this guy walks in, this
is a free story, do you mind, this guy walks in, about six-foot-three, sits in
the back, and it was a German, this was a West German pastors conference, he’s
got a patch over one eye, he looks about 75 years old, just a huge guy, sits
there, and tears are running down his face, running out from under his
patch. And afterwards he came up, and he
said “I’m a pastor in town here in Spital,” and he said “I’ve been
terrified to come into this building for years, because he said the last time I
was in this building I was with Hitler and Himmler,” he said “I was an
SS agent,” and he said “I fled Austria towards the end of the war and
got into Sweden and I got saved, and I got born-again. And I came back to the area and I’ve been
pastoring in this town for years, and could never bring myself to come back
here, but for some reason today I came in and sat down, and it was a German
pastors conference here today,” and he just sat there, and he wept. And how wonderful God is to redeem, and to
take those things that are cast away and broken down and to restore them and
use them. Wonderful to see those kinds
of things go on. But the first time I
was there, the Berlin Wall was still up, it was almost impossible to get
pastors out of then Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and
invitations would be sent out, but you never knew who could come, you had to
get visas, who could sneak across borders, very remarkable. And a Greek Orthodox priest from Macedonia
had gotten the invitation somehow, and had ridden a bus for 48 hours, got up
into Austria, and got out and was standing there with his suitcase, in his civvies,
and looking around, completely lost, and the wife of the man who was running
the conference came over and said “Can I help you,” and he said “I’m
looking for this castle,” Oye Vye, and she took him and she drove him up to
the castle. And I had opportunity, it
was in the 70s then to serve him communion, serving a Greek Orthodox priest
communion, and at that conference, when he came up there, he accepted Christ
and he got saved, and he said “I can’t believe, 70 years, 70 years it took
me to know the truth.” And he went
back and started a verse by verse, chapter by chapter Bible study with Greek
Orthodox priests in Macedonia. How
incredible, the Gospel coming back, the Word of God coming all the way back to
Macedonia. God is still working in
Macedonia, after all of these years, how wonderful. I had an opportunity to see him once again
several years later, and he was just lit up, and he was sparkling. He had one crooked eye too, but he looked
beautiful, he was a remarkable guy.
God
Speeds Them All The Way To Philippi, A Roman Colony
So anyhow, this man
from Macedonia appears to Paul in a vision, and prayed him, begged him saying ‘Come
over into Macedonia and help us,’ asking the Gospel to come into
Europe. “And after he had seen the
vision, immediately we endeavored to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering
that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.” (verse
10) Look, “immediately” now
please take note of this, “endeavored to go to Macedonia,” “we” there
places Luke in the picture for the first time in the Book of Acts. We’re not told why Luke happened to be at
Troas. But Luke now hooks up with Paul
and Silas and Timothy there at Troas, where they cross the Hellespont
there. And very interesting, from now on
in the Book of Acts, whenever we hear “we did this, we did that,” we know that
Luke whom the Lord used to write, the Holy Spirit wrote through, wrote the Book
of Acts, wherever we hear “we” we know Luke is with Paul in his journey, and
whenever we hear “they” we know Luke is somewhere else, at Paul’s bidding no
doubt. But it says here, ‘After he
had seen the vision, immediately we,’ now Luke is with him. And wonderfully “we endeavored to go into
Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the
gospel unto them.” (verse 10b) Now I
don’t know if some of the other guys, earlier in this, Paul wanted to go one
way, the Holy Spirit said “no,” wanted to go another way, the Holy Spirit said
“no,” now Paul says ‘Hey, I had a vision last night,’ I don’t
know if the guy’s were saying “Are you sure you’re hearing the Holy Spirit
here?” Paul said ‘Ya,’ and Luke tells us ‘we were all assured,’ they must have prayed
and they all said ‘Ya, we believe this is right, let’s do this.’ “Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with
a straight course to Samothracia, and the next day to Neapolis;” (verse
11) they’re all concurring on this. He’s telling us something interesting here, “we came with a straight
course,” it’s a nautical term, and what it means is the wind was blowing at the
back of the boat [they headed before the wind], they come in a day to
Samothracia, and in less than a day then to Philippi, it’s a day and a half,
it’s less than two days for them to travel from Troas to Philippi. In chapter 20, verse 6, when they’re coming
back in the other direction it takes five days to cross the same body of water
[all that is saying is the wind hadn’t changed direction, and they had to tack
back, whereas they were sailing before the wind on the way there. I’m a sailor.] And sometimes if the wind was contrary the
boat had to tack back and forth with the sail to capture the wind. Paul says ‘When we got here and we set
out [trying to head west to Ephesus on the Roman road], and the Holy Spirit
said ‘Don’t go this way, don’t go that way [into Bithynia],’ and there was a
man calling us to come over into Europe, Macedonia,’ he said ‘When
we hit the boat, the Lord blew us straight across the Hellespont right into, in
two days we crossed that area and came into Philippi, into Macedonia,’ just
wonderful to take note of the details that Luke is giving to us here. And he says “And from thence to Philippi,
which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony: and we were in that city abiding certain
days.” (verse 12) Notice, Philippi
is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, it’s literally the first amongst
cities, it was listed first, the chief city in that part of Macedonia, and he
says, probably telling us why, it was a colony, “and we were in that city
abiding certain days.” This will be
important to our journey through Philippi. Philippi is a colony, Augustus Caesar had granted Philippi what was
called Juice Italicum, they were a Roman city, which meant none of the
magistrates in the city were from Greece or from Macedonia, none of the
officials of the city were from that area, all of the officials, the
magistrates, the prefects were all from Rome itself. And what had happened in this city, Phillip
of Macedon, Alexander the Great’s dad, had subdued it and the city had been
named after him originally. And 42 years
before Christ, 42BC if I remember, Octavius and Anthony defeated Cassius and
Brutus, this is just free information, in a major battle there, and then
Philippi becomes a Roman province, many retired Roman officers and soldiers
were there. So all of the things that
hold true in Rome would hold true then in Philippi. Chapter 18, verse two, you don’t have
to turn, I’ll read it to you, it comes to play in our story here, it says “After
these things Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth; and found a
certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife
Priscilla;” here’s why “(because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to
depart from Rome:) and came unto them.” (verses 1-2) Claudius [Caesar] had made a decree that
all Jews had to depart from Rome.
Paul,
Keeping The Sabbath Outside The City By A River, Meets Lydia
So we come to this city
Philippi, it says here “which is a colony: and we were in that city abiding certain days.” Look at verse 13, “And on the sabbath” Saturday “we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont
to be made;” the Gangites river, it’s still there today, you gotta love the
King James, where else, “and we” there’s Luke again, “sat down” I
love this, “and spake unto the women which resorted thither.” The first sermon in Europe is a discussion,
[on the Sabbath, which apparently Paul and his company were observing, and take
note of this, since Jews were driven out of Rome, and Philippi was a special
Roman city, there may not have been any synagogues there at this time, or at
least not occupied ones, maybe due to the decree of Claudius.] Now, it’s telling us there aren’t ten Jewish
males in the city of Philippi to have a synagogue. That was probably because Claudius had
expelled the Jews from Rome, and Philippi was a colony would have done the same
thing. But there was a place, and that
place would have been official and sanctioned by the leaders in Philippi, by
the river, where prayer was allowed to be made by other faiths, and it was a
place then where those who had turned from the Roman pantheon of many gods and
idols to the Jewish God, to a monotheistic faith would come to pray [i.e. this
would be the God-fearing Gentiles as well as the Jews who probably had
proselytized them], on the sabbath, so we know this is the God of the Jews
these woman have turned to. [So Paul,
finding out where the few Jews in the area were meeting on the Sabbath, was
still following his method of evangelism, but going to where they were meeting
and evangelizing to any attending Jews and their God-fearing Gentile converts. His methods haven’t changed a
bit.] And this is a strange day, as they
come down to the place where they normally pray on the Sabbath, Saturday
morning, Saturday afternoon, here are these men seated there. And they must introduce themselves, Paul says ‘My name is Paul, I’m of Tarsus, I’m from the School of Gamaliel in
Jerusalem, I’m a member of the Sanhedrin,’ how excited they must have been,
Silas must have said ‘I’m from Jerusalem, I’m a prophet,’ Luke said ‘I’m
a doctor,’ that’s always nice to find, and Timothy must have said ‘Don’t
look at me, I’m brand new, I’m just joining the team.’ They’re there, and these women start to
sit and talk with them, and it says they have a discussion, they’re sharing the
truth of Christ with them in a conversation, the first sermon in Europe, and it
says “And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of
Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she
attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” (verse 14) That verse is loaded, this woman is from
Thyatira, which is here [see https://www.bible-history.com/Pauls_Second_Mission_Map],
she is now over in Philippi, Thyatira there, which was famous for purple dyes
and so forth, she is in Philippi. She is
a seller of purple, this was a dye that was taken from a conchilium, a
shellfish called the murex, and it was an important trade in the Roman world,
because Roman robes were dyed scarlet, Roman clothing, and the process was,
they would take this shellfish, and the less expensive dye was made just by
crushing the whole shellfish with the shells and everything and it would come
out kind of a reddish, faded reddish dye, which was popular. But the purest dye, they would take that shellfish,
and what they found is that there was a little sac in the throat of the
shellfish, and there was one drop of dye that was in that sac and they would
milk that out of there and get that single drop, so this dye was very
expensive. Don’t ask me who the first
guy was to open one of those, he probably ate one and his wife said ‘Your
tongue is all purple!’ you know something, I don’t know. Don’t ask me how you decide where the throat
is if you look at a clam, I couldn’t figure out where the throat is, but they
figured it out, and they would milk those single drops out, and what they would
do is, that dye was extremely expensive and extremely potent, they would put it
on wool, because the wool absorbed it. And after it was into the wool, it would then after awhile, it would
turn blue. Once it turned blue, from
scarlet to blue, purple to blue, they would then lay it in the sun. As time went by it would turn to green, and
in the sun as time went by it would change back to purple again, and then they
would put it in water with other cloth, and you could take that wool, dip it on
a pot and boil it with other clothes to dye them. It was a very good trade, and evidently Lydia
must have had a husband. In this world,
gals, sorry, women did not have their own businesses.
What
Was Lydia Like? Her Conversion Was Real
Tradition, Church
tradition tells us that she was a widow, that she had children, she was in
Philippi which was a Roman colony, and this purple dye was very good business
there, that she was self-sustained, a sizeable home there in the city of
Philippi, and she sold this dye. Well it
tells us that this woman comes on the Sabbath day to the place of prayer. Which tells us something about her, it says
she worshipped God. We can believe that,
because in a Roman colony, Saturday was the big business day, but she would
close down shop on Saturday, and have to tell all of her customers, hey, I’ll
see you tomorrow, whatever, and she would go out by the river to pray, to a God
she didn’t know fully. I mean, how many
of us in the church today are willing to set aside business on a Sunday to
gather with God’s people? How many in
the church today are willing to make God on a regular basis more important than
mammon? This woman indeed was a
worshipper of God. [Sabbath-keepers, and
I know from experience, have had to exhibit great faith, often loosing jobs
over Sabbath-observance, and having to trust God in faith to find a new
one. They set aside a full day for God
every Saturday, along with their regular devotionals. Desmond Doss observed the Sabbath the best he
could throughout his service as a medic in the Army during WWII, and also
refused to carry a rifle or gun or to kill on the battlefield. He lived his faith, and saved over 75
soldiers on Hacksaw Ridge, Okinawa, the only Conscientious Objector to ever win
the Congressional Medal of Honor on the battlefield.] Because on the day she could have made the
most money, she had to close shop, and come out by the river, and be there for
prayer to worship a God who she was drawing to, that she longed for things in
regards to this God that were not clear in her heart. [And she could have been Jewish or a
God-fearing Gentile, we’re not sure.] And it tells us here, as the apostles spoke, she was a woman that
worshipped God, and Luke says ‘she’ “heard us: whose heart the Lord opened,” Paul
said that faith of course comes by hearing the Word of God, but he says if you
confess with your mouth, and believe in your heart. Faith is an act of the heart, not of the
intellect, it is not based on IQ or I could never be pastor. I just about got through high school. This is an issue of the heart, the deeper
part of the human being is the spirit, and it says that man believes in the
heart of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it
says here that the Lord opened her heart. Remember John 16, it said the Holy Spirit would come, and convict the world
of sin, and of righteousness, and judgment. The interesting thing is, this word is used by Luke in his Gospel, it
means “to thoroughly open.” Luke says
that ‘she heard us, and the Lord then thoroughly opened her heart.’ In the end of Luke’s Gospel the two
men on the Road to Emmaus, they said one to another, “Did not our heart
burn within us, when he talked with us in the way? And while he opened” that’s our word, “to us the Scripture,” the guys from Emmaus said “he
thoroughly opened,” it wasn’t a partial opening, “he thoroughly
opened the Scripture to us.” And
then it says, verse 45, in Luke 24, “Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand the scriptures.” that’s again the same word, “to thoroughly
open.” Here it says ‘the Lord
thoroughly opened her heart,’ in regards to the Word of God. And we know that, look what it says, “that
she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” (verse 14b) her heart was so open that “she attended unto the things which were spoken
of Paul.” You know what it means “to
attend” unto something? You have a toddler at home? And you don’t attend unto that toddler, that
toddler will be dead, you know the way they are. If you have something you have to take care
of, you have to attend to it. This is a
word that means “she obeyed, she yielded, her life came into line.” That’s how you know someone’s heart is
open. People can say ‘Oh ya, I
believe, I believe in Jesus,’ but are you attending to the things that the
Word of God sets in front of you? Do you
attend unto them, do you care for them, yield to them and obey them? That’s the way we know that your heart is
thoroughly opened to the Word of God. To
just pay lip-service and still live in sin and compromise means that you need
to get something straight with Jesus. And he’s patient, he’s forgiving, he’s willing. But this woman, it tells us, she worshipped
God, and as she heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ from Paul the apostle, that
the Lord “thoroughly opened her heart,” it’s causative, “that she attended
unto the things which were spoken of Paul” she began to serve those things,
and yield to those things that were spoken of Paul.
The
First Church In Europe, A House-Church, Was In Lydia’s House
“And when she was
baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged
me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.” (verse 15) Notice “and her
household,” so that wasn’t in the same scene, there must have been a time
period gone by here, where she actually went back to the house, shared the
Gospel with her servants, with her kids, she must have said ‘I finally
learned the truth,’ whatever. Evidently, they listened to the things that Lydia said, she was that
kind of woman. “when she was
baptized, and her household, she besought us,” ‘she begged us,’ “saying,
If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord,” now she was faithful,
because she “attended unto the things that were spoken,” and there was an
evidence of obedience, she brought her life in line with those things. “If you judge me to be faithful to the
Lord” she said, “come into my house and abide there. And she constrained us.” Luke
says. This is a great businesswoman, she
out argues an apostle, a prophet, a doctor and an intern, Timothy. She constrains them, her home is big enough
to come to, I don’t know if there was any level of uncomfortableness initially,
but eventually Paul and Silas and doctor Luke and Timothy end up staying at her
home, and if you look over to verse 40, it says when Paul’s let out of prison,
we’re going to find out he’s in prison, him and Silas, “And they went out of
the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia: and when they had seen the brethren, they
comforted them, and departed.” (verse 40) The first church in Europe ends up to be in the home of Lydia. The man of Macedonia was not a man at all, it
was a woman. Paul saw a vision of the
man of Macedonia, after he wanted to go in one direction the Holy Spirit said ‘No,’ if he saw a woman from Macedonia the guys would have said ‘Are you
sure you know what you’re talking about?’ A man from Macedonia wanted them to get over there, the name of the man
was Lydia. God called them to come to
Macedonia, and this incredible woman hears the first sermon preached in Europe. Her home is opened up and becomes the first
church in Europe. And what an impact the
Gospel has had in Europe over the centuries. Of course, sad, I’ve been there several times to see how cold it has
become. The official church, the state
church in Germany and some of the countries, you know, is the Catholic church
[see https://unityinchrist.com/history2/earlychurch3.htm].
If you are a registered member of the Catholic church in Europe, they take your
taxes out of your paycheck and they take your tithe from your paycheck. It is given to the Catholic church before you
even get your check. I don’t know how
happy the Lord is about that, whether you like it or not you’re tithing, but
this is the State sanctioned church there. But listen, in Germany, the evangelical church is thriving, and it’s
alive, in socialism. Everybody’s screaming
[over here], ‘Socialism, Socialism!’ [we Americans think “socialism” is
a dirty word, but over there the social democracies have thrived, chosen over
capitalism by Europeans coming out of Nazi servitude, which all but wiped out
the middle class, the group which capitalism thrives in. It’s not a dirty word, it is merely another
form of government. No governments in
this world of man, without Christ and his coming Kingdom of God, are
perfect]. Look, when I was over there
last year, the Church is thriving, there were pastors that I met with in
Kosovo, from Poland, from Austria, from Scotland, England, from Ireland, from
Germany, from Cyprus, from Macedonia, from Israel, from Jordan, ministers from
Jordan, North Africa, from 22 different countries, and the Church [Body of
Christ] in those places is thriving and alive and teaching the Bible, chapter
by chapter, verse by verse, there’s amazing things going on, in Hungary,
Romania and so forth, remarkable to see what’s going on. It started at Lydia’s house, this woman. What a woman she must have been.
In
closing
Now we’re going to move
from the house of Lydia to this demon possessed girl. I think we should wait a week to do
that. There is a little bit of a
contrast there, between this demon possessed girl, she’s the next girl we meet
in Philippi, she’s not a great gal. Read
ahead, settle yourself into this next portion where we see Paul and Silas deal
with this demon possessed girl, they get beaten, they get thrown into prison
because of it, and finally then they’re set free, and they will move on in
chapter 17 where they come to Thessalonica, to Athens, to a remarkable part of this
journey. Let’s have the musicians come,
we have time I think for two songs tonight. Let’s stand, let’s lift our hearts, lift our voices. I encourage you, look, don’t be discouraged
if you argue with another Christian, even apostles argued. In time, please make up, Paul was reconciled,
those things settled back down again. Don’t be discouraged if you think the Lord’s leading, and the Lord said ‘No,
no, I didn’t tell you to do that.’ If you’re patient, he will lead. The Shepherd is never dependent on the IQ of the sheep, that’s a great
consolation for me. If my heart is
willing to follow, he will do the job, and he will lead. And when we are on his path, the wind will be
at our back, so to speak, he will make us move with his own speed where we need
to end up. And I encourage you, look at
that first church, look at this woman, mammon was not her god in a world where
money was everybody’s god. She was
willing to set all things aside to come and to pray to a God that she really
didn’t know. He was the right God. And there she discovered the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, her life was changed, and our lives are changed because of Lydia’s life
being changed. First sermon in Europe,
first church in Europe, Lydia…We have our own Lydia here, and I appreciate her
after all these years…[transcript of connective expository sermons on Acts
15:36-41 and Acts 16:1-15, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of
Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19116]
related links:
Audio version: http://resources.ccphilly.org/SPM612
Map of the apostle
Paul’s Second Missionary Journey:
https://www.bible-history.com/Pauls_Second_Mission_Map
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