Christian Puzzles & Answers

INTRODUCTION

 

Our Study Lesson, will we pray will teach us some lessons that it is critically important that believers in the Lord Jesus Christ understand.

First, when we look at the experience of the apostle and his missionary group we observe that they have to be taught the lesson that God will direct their paths.

In this passage we are told of people of God who are determined to follow the instructions of the Lord Jesus Christ and carry out the Great Commission and attempted to go many hundreds of miles and spend weeks or more to go into different regions to serve Christ, but each time they did this they were repeatedly told “ No” by God Himself. 

So imagine the tension and the frustration that has been building up and the questioning as to why God was saying “No”.

The thought might have occurred to them that God had said “No” because He had something better in mind and so His forbidding them to go on the path that they felt was the path of faithful servants meant that they had to wait with excitement and not frustration at the expressed will of God.

So what a lesson for us today!

 

Does understanding who we are and who God is will bring us to the level of spiritual discipline that will please God?

 

The next Lesson is to understand the importance of anticipating what God will do in our lives and in our work for Him.  Frustration and anxiety is not one of the preferred characteristics for professing believers.

 

 The next Lesson it’s obviously a very important one in our modern world for we have to learn to focus on the idea that God often chooses people who in the eyes of the world might seem unlikely or ordinary. We should of course remember, for we choose to forget this principle, told us in 1 Corinthians 1:27. We are told “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise: and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty”.

 

Despite the repeated lessons in Scripture about the character of God showing us plainly that what is foolish in the world is generally used by God to shame the wise, we often choose our own way of looking at things.

We tend to overlook that God often chooses people who at least in the eyes of the world are not so grand. He chooses fishermen, a rather rough uncouth group, tax collectors, a hated group, and the prostitutes, the marginalized and the disenfranchised.

 

This chapter we will look at is very interesting for it tells us about three very unlikely people that were instrumental in founding the church at Philippi. We will look at the story about a Gentile businesswoman, and remember that women were not highly thought of, a demon possessed slave girl who tried to give compliments about the servants of the Lord Jesus Christ, compliments that were unwanted and very dangerous, and a Roman prison guard.

These were unlikely candidates and one would not expect that given the culture of their day, they would be involved  in the great undertaking of the establishment and growth of the church in Philippi.

 

Now the establishment of this church in Philippi is quite a notable one, for this was a pagan city which was a Roman colony and the Philippians prided themselves on that fact. Obviously this would be a tough nut to crack. About the century before the arrival of the Apostle a great battle had been fought  between the famous Brutus and Cassius the murderers of Julius Caesar,  and Antony and Octavian who later became the Emperor Augustus.  The people of Philippi had supported the right group and so when Octavian became Emperor he granted Roman citizenship to these Philippians and the city became a little bit of Rome where the people had all the rights of any Roman and were governed the same way as Rome. So it is to this pagan Roman city who were proud of themselves and certainly not going to accept any religion that they thought was in opposition to the Roman religion that the Apostle and his party was sent to by the Holy Spirit,

 

So here we are facing a situation in this Chapter where it is evident that God intends to encourage anyone who are feeling unlikely or ordinary, that they are absolutely wrong about themselves for God will use them to show them that they are precisely the kind of person that He is looking for.

God is looking for you who consider yourself to be an ordinary person, to include you in His glorious plan and accomplish extraordinary things with you.

 

So do not write off aggressive business women who are not afraid of much, or hustlers who are determined to make themselves a business success, and who are prepared to flout conventions, and even fierce hostility from some men. 

At the same time God’s actions are telling us that we are never to write off the homeless person, the drug addict, or the many other people whom the world considers losers, failures, rejects, or simply too commonplace and unremarkable to make any real difference in the world.

 

 So since you think you are fulfilling the Great Commission, the command of Jesus to go and make disciples of all nations, make sure you are seeking the direction of God and seeking God’s will about what to do next.

When the whole Holy Spirit seems to have closed the door and you try heading into another place and that door has been closed, think sometimes that God is revealing His will negatively by closing doors, understanding that He will open up the door that He wants you to enter through.

 

 Now we know that when we look at the story of this great woman named Lydia and her great contribution to the great Commission, let us not be turned aside by feminist claptrap which seemed to focus on the fact that, this is a woman and woman are to always be considered exceptional. It would be good if this were so but unfortunately it is not.

Our task as believers is to work with and encourage and mature both men and women even if they are marginalized.

 

Our fourth lesson is one which points out that the great work of God begins often with a very inauspicious start. We will see the Apostle and his party forced to move away from their normal missionary approach for there was no synagogue. They always started their work in a synagogue where Jews as well as proselytes and God- fearers were. But instead they went to the other place of worship that was not normal and that was a riverside and here the Apostle and his party met the people that God wanted them to meet.

So small beginnings fit into the work pattern of God. Not every magnificent work starts as it did on the day of Pentecost when 3000 people are converted.  Remember Jesus only had 12 disciples that were constantly around Him and that was sufficient to be the start of great things and the start of a revolution in the world.

 

Do not therefore fall into that “big result” trap.

 

Our Text is the account of an event considered pivotal in the spread of Christianity as the still emerging religion entered the continent of Europe for the first time. While Christianity may not have been totally unknown on the continent, it is the first recorded foray of an apostle on this virgin territory. Yet what is now seen as a watershed in the spread of Christianity had a rather inauspicious start.

                                                                                                                                                      

This was the conversion of a woman named Lydia.  She was successful businesswoman dealing in ‘purple’, a very expensive fabric typically associated with royalty and the rich and famous. So we know that this was a somewhat different kind of woman and she therefore is an example for the women who claim to be professing believers. What she was a woman who chose a rather strange business occupation and who was obviously successful at it making a good living for she had her own home that was large enough to accommodate Paul and his party.

But note that the apostles were not so keen to go to her house for she was a woman and being near her would likely give potential converts the wrong impression.

What we will note that she was quite persistent in pressing the disciples to stay with her.

We may gather from this she was a woman of considerable intellect and ability. She was from Thyatira (Asia) but presently domiciled in Philippi, a Roman colony.

 

So here is an example for professing believing woman today. Don’t let what people  think of your occupation and what you need to do to survive and to prosper as being something that God is against necessarily. Your determination to succeed in life might be exactly one of the qualities that God is looking for for a great contributor to His work.

 

The conversion  between Lydia and the Apostle and his party might have appeared routine, yet the Text specificity, the lead-up to and immediate aftermath of her conversion give much food for thought.

We read of the unusual actions of the Holy Spirit whereby He blocked the well- planned travel paths of the missionary team and eventually directed them to Europe by way of a vision!

 

The first convert was a woman (Lydia) of whom we read “The Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.” Many conversions will follow and Lydia’s is something of a prototype; at the least, a graphic description of the way all sinners are saved! Salvation is of God and He takes the initiative!

 

So first consider this question, Has God opened your heart?

If He has He certainly will use your personality,  change you from what you think you should be, and mature you and bring you into the image of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Almost immediately after her conversion, it was Lydia’s conviction she was a genuinely saved person and she challenged the great apostle to confirm her faith with an act of hospitality!

 

She is said to have ‘worshipped God’, a great tribute to any human being but the term here could also be seen in a technical sense as a designation of Gentiles attracted to the God of Israel but not as yet proselytes.

As our Study unfolds we will see that God has already prepared the hearts of those who will respond to the Gospel call. Our part is to deliver and substantiate that message with holy lives.

 

Two cardinal planks of salvation are evident in our Text;

1.      God always takes the initiative in salvation and

2.      Evidence of salvation is immediately evidenced in the life of the one saved. 

 

Acts 16, particularly the ‘Second Missionary Journey’ is the background to today’s Study and chronicles the continuing work of the Spirit in the lives of a group of believers, now missionaries in the ever-expanding church of Jesus Christ.

 

It recounts a part of Paul’s second missionary journey and introduces us to the particular circumstances of a young disciple named Timothy, whom Paul will recruit for their mission.

The salvation of three individuals; the aforementioned Lydia and her household, a slave-girl, a jailer and his household and are also recorded. In between we see the constant presence of the Holy Spirit prompting, leading and directing Paul and his party.

 

Note, perceived need on the part of the unsaved or logic, should not drive our outreach efforts but within the scope of the ‘great commission’, the Holy Spirit is the Administrator of missions. He is the One who is seen forbidding, guiding, directing, opening and closing doors. The Book of Acts is essentially the record of the Spirit’s work through the Apostles and early church and this chapter sixteen no less so.

 

The Lesson here for believers is an awareness of the critical importance of the Holy Spirit orchestrating our evangelistic efforts, individually and corporately. Clearly there are ups and downs in evangelism but it is imperative for God’s missionaries to follow His directions, even though they might have preferences.

 

Noteworthy and as mentioned, the missionary team did not sit back and wait for the Holy Spirit to take them by the hand but in obedience to Jesus’ commands, pressed forward in other directions, whenever one avenue was blocked. In all their efforts, there was an underlying submission to the leading and guidance of the Spirit; He confirming or denying all their moves. This close relationship is only possible with those who are filled with the Spirit.

 

THE TEXT – Acts 16:11-15, 40

 

1 – 5.   These verses deal with the personal circumstances of young Timothy and his recruitment to Paul’s team. Timothy, it would appear, must have been young at this time, since Paul addressed him as ‘young man’ several years after, when he asked Timothy to oversee the Church at Ephesus.

 

Paul expressed a concern his age might hinder his ability to fill the office, (1 Tim.4:12), given he would have to confront many that were old enough to be his parents. Even at this young age the text calls him a disciple and Timothy had already established a fine Christian reputation that went beyond his own town and showed great promise as a future ‘soldier’ of Christ; something Paul perceived. Interestingly, earlier Paul strongly rejected taking another young evangelist along and here we find him actively recruiting someone and this speaks to Timothy already established willingness to serve.

 

Timothy’s mother was Jewish but his father Greek and Timothy was not circumcised. Paul had him circumcised, likely to facilitate his ministry in the synagogues and among Jews. Later Paul will adamantly refuse to circumcise another of his companions Titus, since he was a Gentile.

 

Paul and his party continued along their circuit visiting various churches and delivering the edicts of the Apostles and Jerusalem Council, regarding those matters that had earlier caused such disputes among the brethren, (Acts 15). The result was that the churches were established in the faith, and increased in number daily. That is, the uncertainties were dispelled and the apostles’ doctrine was confirmed and accepted by the brethren.

 

We have to conclude that it was the Holy Spirit that prompted this trip in the first place (15:36) and all that transpired to this point was with His approval and under his direction.

 

6.  Starting from their home church in Antioch the party travelled in a generally westerly direction and continued along that path after leaving Derbe and Lystra. They were then not allowed to preach the gospel in ‘Asia’.

 

Asia here does not refer to the continent, but to the Roman province of that name. The seven cities mentioned in Revelation 2-3: Ephesus, Sardis, Smyrna, Philadelphia, Laodicea and Pergamum and Thyatira were located in this province. It is not to be understood that the Gospel was not preached in any part of Asia, but at this time the Holy Spirit directed them to just continue their journey in a particular direction. We are not sure how this prohibition was communicated to them but they clearly received the message. The Spirit might have communicated in some indirect manner (Acts 20:23 or through some recognized prophet, (Acts 21:10).

 

From this, Christians are to be reassured that when one is under the control of / filled with the Spirit, then one can confidently expect to receive the Spirit’s guidance in carrying out the work of God. The Gospel was eventually preached in all of Asia with great success and our attitude must be to press on with the ‘great commission’ under the direction of the Spirit, while recognizing the important element of God’s timing.

 

7-8.  Finally, the team veered northwesterly after their attempts to travel in other directions were blocked by the Spirit and so they arrived at Troas.  The Spirit was directing Paul toward Greece and westward from Asia, where he had intended to remain. Paul was about to take the Gospel across the Aegean to Europe.

 

It is interesting to note here that we have no record of the party putting any kind of a halt to their evangelistic efforts. They knew they were sent to proclaim the gospel of salvation. The driving force was the Holy Spirit and the understanding was, if He closed one door, He would open another. So if one is operating according to the commandments of God, one only need to continue, confident God will provide direction as it becomes necessary.

Sometimes God lets us experience lack of success, closed doors and difficult relationships, instead of nice simple relationships, instead of making it easy for us and giving us clear and obvious directions.

 

One explanation seems to be that God wants our faith in Him to grow and mature. He does things in such a way that when we experience failures and disappointments, we will find that He proves Himself trustworthy.                  

 

Note, some translations render the Spirit in Verse 7 as the ‘Spirit of Jesus’.  One writer comments on this point: “The Spirit of Jesus is here recognized as exactly the same as the Spirit of God, indicating forcefully that the full deity and godhead of Jesus Christ was fully accepted and received by the Christians at that mid-point of the first century. Plumptree stresses the dogmatic importance of this verse as: Confirming the doctrine that the Holy Spirit stands in the same relationship to the Son as to the Father and may therefore be spoken of either as the Spirit of God, or of Christ (Romans 8:9), or of Jesus”.

 

Verses 9 – 10.   The team is at Troas, an Asian port city across an arm of the Aegean Sea from Macedonia and continental Europe.  Paul had a vision and saw a man of Macedonia begging him to come over and help them. The man was recognized as Macedonian, maybe by his dress, language or some other distinctive.

 

It is hard to know if this was a dream or some conscious communication. Either way, after the group conferred, considering the vision and their recent experiences in ‘Asia’, there was a strong consensus that the Spirit was directing them to preach the gospel in Macedonia.

 

…. help us … was indeed a cry to come and preach the gospel to us. Macedonia then occupied a large area of what would be modern-day southeast Greece. It was an ancient kingdom, and under Philip and then Alexander, had conquered all of Greece, then Persia and Western Asia and had spread the Greek language and customs all over the known world.  It was the first region in Europe in which we have any record that the Gospel was preached.

 

Of note, Luke the writer of Acts now refers to the group as ‘we’ rather than the ‘they’ he had previously used; thus indicating that he joined the party at this point, in Troas. Actually by using the word us with to preach has some believing Luke himself was a preacher of the gospel.

 

Convinced that God was directing them to preach in Macedonia, they immediately arranged to set sail for the place.

 

11 – 12.  Note that the party did not choose where to begin. The party took decisive action once convinced the Spirit desired them to preach in Macedonia. They seemed to have sailed the shortest distance from Troas to Macedonia; except for a stop on the small island of Samothracia. They practically sailed a straight line across that part of the Aegean known as the Dardanelles, also called the Hellespont. Landing at Neapolis on mainland Macedonia they continued inland to Philippi.

 

By the time of Paul, Philipi had become the chief city in the region and a Roman colony with many privileges; notably that of citizenship and was provided with military roads and fortifications.

It was famous for having been the place where several important battles were fought in the Roman civil wars between the axis of Brutus and Cassius, the murderers of Julius Caesar and the forces of Anthony and the man later to become Emperor Augustus.

 

The Philipians had helped the army of Augustus and in gratitude he made them Roman citizens and made this city a little piece of Rome. It was to the church in this city that Paul wrote the Epistle to the Philippians.

 

The problem was then how to start a work among people in this proud, strange, pagan city; so the missionaries spent some days ‘scoping’ the city. We do not know their expectations. It was likely that in view of ‘the call’ they expected that this would be ‘fertile ground’.         

 

It is always a good idea to familiarize one’s self with new surroundings and circumstances, before striking out in all directions at once; and we can be assured they were under the constant guidance of the Holy Spirit.

 

Still one might have expected them to be immediately plunged into feverish evangelistic activities, given their dramatic call in Asia. We are told however that they stayed in the city for some time. Our expectations and approaches however must at all times be in line with and according to the timing of the Holy Spirit, as Paul and his companions demonstrated.

 

The missionaries obviously found out that there was no established synagogue in Philippi where Jews and the God fearers could gather, read the Scriptures and worship. Ten adult male Jews were all that was needed to establish a synagogue, but it seemed the Jewish population was too small even to meet this requirement.

 

Maybe it was a custom to meet at riverside if there was no synagogue. This would explain the missionaries having to go outside the city to a riverside, to find a place of worship. This would have been a known place where people were accustomed to meet. Meeting beside the river would enable the ceremonial washings that preceded any Jewish worship service.  

 

Knowledge of this place of worship likely came about from inquires they had made in the city and naturally the Sabbath would be the day to find ‘God worshippers’ of all stripes gathering for the purpose. Note even at this stage of the church’s growth, it was still Paul’s habit to first seek out the Jews whenever he came to a new city.

 

Paul and his group might have been delighted to learn that there were some Jewish worship after all, but to their surprise they found that there were only a small group of women worshipping. But Paul was not biased. He was not afraid of a woman’s club. He had no objection to starting a church from a group of ladies. There were only women at the gathering and from the name of one of those gathered, these seemed to be proselytes rather than Jewish women. The missionaries were not discouraged at this small, inauspicious beginning, but sat down and spoke to the women present.

The atmosphere was as called for in the Law, and the missionaries presented Jesus to a humble congregation. They preached as was their custom to available people. They presented the Gospel   obviously in straightforward and direct fashion to these devout and faithful women.

Let us review quickly what Apostle would be telling them. Paul would be telling them about the story of a man who came to Israel and did remarkable things and lived a remarkable life. But despite his great work, in a dramatic series of events, he was taken and crucified in the city of Jerusalem.

But despite this crucifixion He did not remain dead but arose from the grave and appeared over a period of 40 days to witnesses who saw Him, touched Him, and ate with Him.

 

Paul would certainly be stressing that God arranged these series of events to enable God to meet the needs of the human heart, those that were searching for meaning, in their life, for relief from guilt, for deliverance from bondage to habits that limit and frustrate them. 

What a message to these women and others that were searching for salvation and eternal life.

They accepted this astounding message.

 

Note that these few women were not ashamed of their faith and their reputation had spread among the pagan, Gentile and Roman populace. Their small numbers did not diminish their obvious faithfulness. Neither did this small numbers deter Paul from opening the Scriptures and introducing the women to the Messiah.

 

It is our responsibility to preach and teach the Word when we have an opportunity to do so. We do not have the ability to open peoples’ hearts. Rather, our responsibility is to be there, at the scene, sow the seed, leave without worrying. The Holy Spirit will produce the crop without failing, as He wills.        

 Nothing stopped the Apostle and his party from proclaiming the Word of God, and as a result the Lord opened the heart of Lydia to give heed to what was said by Paul.

 

14.   Among the women was Lydia, a businesswoman who traded in purple (dye/garments). Purple was an expensive purple dye made from a shellfish and was used to dye cloth. It was one of the most valuable commodities of the times. One writer notes that this was the dye that gave rise to the term “royal purple,” suggesting her clientele would have been royalty and the very rich. Lydia was clearly a woman of substance. We learn that her home was large enough to accommodate Paul and his associates.

 

She was from Thyatira, a city in Asia Minor, where the missionaries had of late been forbidden to speak. Now here she was in Europe receiving the gospel that up to then was not being preached back home.

 

Lydia was a God-fearer; she had forsaken idolatry and joined the Jewish religion as a sincere worshipper of God. God opened her heart and she listened attentively to the truths that Paul and the missionaries spoke.  She believed them and was saved by faith. God had turned and prepared her heart to accept the truth. 

 

The ultimate test for all those who are the true worshippers of God is; what will you do with Jesus? All true worshippers and God fearers of all stripes will accept Jesus as their Messiah, when the gospel is presented to them.

 

Whose heart the Lord opened….One commentator writes: “As she was a sincere worshipper of God, she was prepared to receive the heavenly truths spoken by Paul and his companions; and, as she was faithful to the grace she had received, so God gave her more grace, and gave her now a Divine conviction that what was spoken by Paul was true; and therefore she attended unto the things-she believed them and received them as the doctrines of God…;”

 

….she attended… meaning she gave sustained attention; she kept on listening to each word; she was on the edge of her seat and hung on to the words of each of the speakers. Hers’ was a heart awakened to the truths of God.

 

When we are evangelizing, we must remember that even though most non-Christians might give us a cool reception, there often is one or two whose heart God has prepared. Do not let the reaction of the crowd stop us, for there are some that are listening.

And the Lord said to Paul by a vision at night, “Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent; ¹⁰ for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many people in this city.” Acts 18:9-10

 

God had cracked the wall, and the Gospel message reached Europe.  The church would find great leaders in Europe who would spread the message of Christ, but it would also find great heretics who would corrupt the Gospel. But in every case where the Gospel spread, the Spirit was there to make sure that the “good soil” was well cultivated.

 

Let us not underestimate Lydia’s bold step. She had no group encouragement or supporters; but she accepted that Jesus was the Messiah and responded to God’s grace with a personal decision to lay hold on Him.       

 

15.   And when…baptism is presented here as something that should naturally follow salvation or confession of faith in Christ. She was baptized without delay, along with her household, which would have included her servants and friends.

 

Clearly, Lydia’s belief in the true God was also a wonderful blessing on the lives of her household. They too were present for worship, accepted Christ and were also baptized.

 

Note carefully the encouragement that God has given to you. This is that when you are talking to people in a group remember that God has prepared some of the hearts and there are always one or two whose heart God had prepared.

So look for them and try to talk to them and ignore the hostile reaction of others that might be there.

 

Christians must spare no quarter, particularly in living an exemplary lives, as we speak and live the truths of God before those over whom we exercise a measure of control.

 

Her hospitality immediately came to the fore as she invited the missionaries to stay at her house. Paul was not in the habit of taking support from his converts and they must have declined the invitation at first. Paul and his group also had to be careful about the social niceties. He would not have wanted to damage Lydia’s reputation, something that could easily occur in that kind of society.

Lydia however was very determined and persuasive. She was prepared to risk a lot to prove that she was now a faithful and trustworthy follower of “the Way”.  

 

She argued that if her acceptance of Christ was proof that she had been faithful to the truths she had previously received and would likely be as faithful to the new truths, then she would not bring discredit to their work and so it was fitting that they come and stay at her home.

Her persuasion overcame their reluctance, for Paul and the missionaries accepted her invitation and her home became the base for missions in Philippi.  Philippians 4:15-18 and Acts 16:15, 40 further tell us that her home provided long-term support for Paul.

 

Hospitality is an important plank in the spread of the Gospel and support must be forthcoming for those who work for God. Believers must do all they can to assist the spread of the Gospel. Note however that they must be discerning and support only the workers of the true God.

 

A great work had begun among a group that would hardly have been expected to do much.  But it was the few women believers that were faithful and gathered by themselves to worship God.

Paul and the missionaries did not look down on this humble group, but gave them as much attention as was necessary.

The Holy Spirit highly regarded the women and opened their hearts. It was from this small, seemingly unimportant and lowly group that a powerful Philippian ministry emerged. So as one of the elect of God she showed her new nature, loving God and loving God’s people.

 

But note carefully that she illustrates one writer says, “the fact is you may be very near and yet far from God. Religious, zealous, attended religious meetings, probably a prayer warrior—it was a prayer enclosure—wealthy, influential and cultured, intelligent…  and yet unsaved”.

 

The lesson for us is that we must not equate our privilege, our success, and our position with special divine favor. Recognize our privilege to come to Christ but we must act for the benefit of others by showing our love for them.

Lydia submitted to baptism to show that her heart was awakened by God and that she accepted what the Apostle taught. So, this was an illustration of the God inspired reaction to the Good News by the Good soil.

 

But while the missionary party was in Philippi they were going to the place of prayer and a girl possessed by a demonic spirit that allowed her to do fortune-telling accosted them. Paul performed an exorcism and drove the demon out of the girl and because of that they were taken before the magistrates for disturbing the peace, beaten, and put in prison. The prison was opened supernaturally and the jailer and his family came to believe and were baptized, tending to the wounds of Paul and Silas and opening their house to Paul and Silas. And the message of Jesus Christ spread into prison and outside.

 

Verse 40. The magistrates sent a message to Paul and Silas that they were free to go in peace and they went from the prison to the house of Lydia. They were comforted and refreshed by their hostess; enjoyed Christian hospitality, encouraged the brethren and then left the city. Lydia’s faithfulness did not waver in the face of hostility from officialdom!

 

CONCLUSION

 

 Let us therefore now look at how we are challenged by our Study Lesson.

 Lydia was a misfit  for she was not even a Philippian,  not even a Jew with knowledge of the Old Testament to draw on, and she was not even a Roman. She was from outside from Thyatira and so she probably spoke with an accent.

 She was not a man and she was not married for Luke says her whole soul believed and was baptized along with her and if she had been married it would have been her husband’s household.

 But note that she was successful in business because of her own efforts and that would have been very difficult for women in that time and it was extraordinarily difficult in the time of the Roman Empire.

 

 Yet this woman, had gone to a brand new place, bought her goods sold them and had succeeded and had a household of her own. A success in business was certainly peculiar. One writer therefore tells us “Lydia was a misfit, but look at the example she gives us. She was hungry for the presence of God; she went to the meeting, even though many because of the persecution of Jews had ducked their heads and stayed out of sight. She sought the opportunity to pray with others who prayed.

 Her heart melted upon hearing the gospel of the love of Christ, and she not only opened her heart, but she opened her home.  She responded with generosity.

 Having been given a great gift, she wanted to give something in return. She listened to the voice of the Lord in the message of salvation, and she listened to the voice of the Lord saying that it was his desire to use her. She was told no, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer, because she listened to a greater authority who said yes”.

 

 So we are looking at a stubborn woman because she knew the truth and she had heard from her  Lord and she would serve Him.  So we have to commend her for her stubbornness.

 Note also that despite the difficulties in her life she was not defensive or whining or awash in grievances at the unfairness of life.

 She had a great confidence that God wanted to use her and eventually she would be able to persuade everybody else to believe that about her.

 

So God chose and He knows whom He will choose.

 Depending on the level of your spiritual maturity it might even pain you to know that in your community or in your church there are women who have been overlooked though. They are gifted they might be single people who question themselves when they should not be questioning themselves. They might be immigrants with rather strange accents and that causes you to pass them by. But then they might have great wisdom even though they might not have been educated at the best schools. Some might have great courage and ability. They might be too young to have a resume to prove their ability.

 

But because of your spiritual knowledge you have the experience to help them and to make the decisions that would involve them in the work of God.

You have to be careful for they too have to learn that God has established the position in which they can be fitted into. If they try to claim more than they should they will run into serious trouble and you do not want that.

 

Just remember that God chooses the unexpected people and Paul faced that situation and he did exactly what God wanted him to do.

 

Lydia was certainly faithful to the ‘light’ she had received and demonstrated it in the godly influence she exercised over her household. Knowledge of the true God and belief in the Lord Jesus should be urgently shared, particularly with those most dear to us.

 

The missionaries’ route to Lydia was long and took an unexpected turn but in all this the missionaries stayed the course, as they continually followed the leading of the Holy Spirit. Those in the Master’s service can be assured that as He closes one door, He opens another and they must understand that God is already at work preparing the hearts of those who will respond to the Gospel.

 

God speaks through His Holy Spirit, the Bible, our prayers, circumstances and the members of His church, to reveal Himself and His purposes and His ways.

 

When engaged in the work, believers should not agonize over knowing God’s will or fear we might have missed it. A sovereign God will be sure to make his will known and ensure it is not missed.

 

When the missionaries were convinced of God’s will, they acted immediately. Let this be our response to the revelation of God’s will in our outreach efforts and all areas of our spiritual lives.

 

The Apostle was often at pains to ensure he was not a burden to new converts or any convert for that matter. Still despite his reticence, Lydia’s bold ‘ … “If you have judged me to be faithful …” was compelling! Let us also be confident and assured of God’s gift of salvation in our lives.