日: 2014年1月25日

              After leaving Philippi, Paul went to Thessalonica, the capital of Macedonia. There was a synagogue in Thessalonica.  He was there preaching the gospel for about 3 weeks.  Some people at last accepted the Gospel and repented and entered the faith.  Some did not. Verse 5 tells us that the Jews did not accept the Gospel.  “The Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city.” (5) Then “They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas” (6), but they weren’t able to find Paul and Silas.  Therefore, “they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: ‘These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house.  They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.’” (6, 7)  Here there are 3 charges.

1.               They have “caused trouble all over the world” (6)

2.               They are “saying that there is another king.” (7)

3.               “They are all defying Caesar’s decrees” (7)

Christians are in some respects cause trouble all over the world, say that Jesus is another king, and follow something different that this world. In what way do Christians cause trouble all over the world? In what way do they follow another king, Jesus? Today let’s look at this  

I.            Reasoning from the Bible (vs.1-4)

In 16:10 Luke all at once starts using “We”, but here again Luke returns to “they”.  “We” ends in 16:17 so it is thought that Luke remained in Philippi.  Possibly Paul got better so Luke was not needed or possibly Luke was needed in Philippi to teach the new Christians. We don’t know the reason, but probably Paul left Luke in Philippi and Paul left and went to Thessalonica on his mission trip.

Thessalonica was about 160 km. Southeast of Philippi.  Since it was the capital of Macedonia, it was full of Jews.  Paul, as he always does, went to the synagogue and for 3 Sabbaths, he reasoned with the Jews from the Bible. The word “reason” means to arrange, display, or enumerate.  In other words, they arranged the teachings of the Bible and displayed them and used that as proof that Jesus was the Savior. This is what evangelism and preaching should do.  

After Jesus rose, two disciples were on their way to Emmas and Jesus joined them asking what it was that they were discussing.  They answered that they were talking about Jesus of Nazareth that had been crucified and that there were rumors that he had resurrected.  Then Jesus explained that all these things were taught in the Old Testament that Jesus must die on the cross and then 3 days later rise again.  Then he explained to them all the Old Testament teachings about Christ.  Jesus showed them through the Bible that Jesus was the Savior.  This is what it means to reason from the Bible.

Let’s look at how Paul reasoned from the Bible.  Here Paul is explaining simply from 3 points that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior.

1.               According to the Bible the characteristics of the (Messiah) Christ are that he “had to suffer and rise from the dead.” (3)

2.               Jesus modeled these characteristics in his death and resurrection.

3.               The conclusion is “This Jesus…is the Christ.” (3)

It was a very simple message.  This is the nature of argumentation that Paul used when he evangelized the Jews. Japanese have no background in the Old Testament so it may require more explanation, but evangelism in Japan is basically the same.  Explain, prove, and then conclude.  When we follow these 3 steps, then people will be saved.   Verse 4 testifies to this.

Paul’s message was very simple, but even so it reached people’s hearts and some of the Jews believed and followed Paul and Silas.  Especially notice that “a large number of God-fearing Greeks” also believed.  These were not Jews, but Gentiles that worshipped the God of the Old Testament and came to the Synagogue every Sabbath.   When they heard Paul’s message, they were saved and were the first people to start the Thessalonica church.  When the cross is preached, there are always people who are saved.

I Cor. 1:18, 21-24 

God decided to use the preaching of the Word of God to bring people to salvation.

When we evangelize some times we use wisdom or intelligence, and fervently

debate, trying to persuade the other person.  However the important thing is upon what we base our debate.  It must not be upon wisdom, intelligence, or zeal.  It must be based upon the Bible.  That is because “the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Cor. 1:18)

If we reason from the Bible, then the Holy Spirit will work, and through the Word will lead that person to salvation.   

II.              People who have “caused trouble all over the world” (vs. 5,6)

When the Jews brought Jason and some of the other brothers before the city officials, they shouted that these men “have caused trouble all over the world.” (6)  The literal meaning is “they upset everything under the heavens.”  In other words, “they turned the world upside down.”  This is an over exaggeration, but Christians in all ages are turning the world upside down.  The dynamite of the Gospel changes families and societies and causes revolutions.  It is actually strange for the Gospel to be preached and for no change to take place. 

When we believe in Christ we are able to experience a peace that we had never experienced before.  That is the deep peace of God we receive as a result of our sins being save. It is the peace of having Jesus living in our hearts. Not only do we experience this peace in our lives, but it has the power to turn our families, county and the world upside down.  By believing in Christ a revolution takes place in our lives.  It’s a revolution of love. Let’s take the Gospel of Jesus who causes revolutions and preach it everywhere.  Just as they were called, people who have “caused trouble all over the world”, may we live up to the same title.

III.            Jesus is another king (vs.7-9)

Another reason that the Jews gave for bringing Jason and some other brothers to the city officials is given in verse 7. They are “saying that there is another king.” (7)

Yes, Christians have another king and we are the citizens of his kingdom so we want to follow his leadership and obey Him.  We want to obey him because he is the ultimate authority.  He is what we base our life and action upon. However, Jesus is not in this world so he has given us people in authority over us and so we are to follow them.

I Peter 2:13-15

These authorities are ordained by God “to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.” (I Peter 2:14)  It is the will of God what we follow these authorities.  The problem is when these worldly authorities request us to do something that goes against what God would want. In that case we must say like it is written in this passage, “There is another king, one called Jesus,” (7) and stand up for what we believe.

Before we saw in Acts that one day when Peter and John were going to the temple for prayer at 3:00 pm, there was a lame man begging.  They healed the man who became so excited that he leaped up and danced praising God.  He went with Peter and John into the temple.  Therefore, when Peter preached many people believed in Christ.  The Jewish leaders didn’t know what to do so they arrested Peter and John.  They asked Peter and John by what authority and by whose name they had healed the man.  Then they boldly proclaimed that it was by the authority and name of Jesus Christ and there was no other name by which man can be saved.  The Jewish leaders were left wordless, but they didn’t want the Christian faith spreading so they said to Peter and John that they were not to speak in the name of Jesus Christ.  Peter and John’s answer is recorded in Acts 4:19, 20

This principle applies to present day Christians too.  Usually we must follow the authorities. However, if they require that we go against our King, Jesus Christ then we need to choose to follow the other king, Jesus Christ.  This is because all authorities are ordained by God.  If however, an authority requires us to do something that goes against God it means that the authority has overstepped the authority that God has given him and is making himself god.  In that case the Christian must decide that the authority is under the power of Satan and choose to follow Christ.

This is a clear principle, but the way we put it into practice is very difficult.  In present day Japan it’s difficult to know how far we should obey the people above us.  Therefore, one more thing we need to think about is why Christians would go that far to follow the other king, Jesus Christ.

The answer is clear.  That is because Jesus is our Savior.  His name is the only name by which we can be saved.  As we saw earlier, according to the Bible the characteristics of the (Messiah) Christ are that he “had to suffer and rise from the dead.” (3) In our long human history no one except Jesus has done this.  Jesus suffered and died.  However that suffering was for us.  He died on the cross in exchange for our sin.  He also rose for us.  That is why He is another King.

Is there any other king that has suffered for us?  Is there another government that showed its love by suffering and being shamed to the point of death? What cabinet died on the cross for us? There isn’t anyone.  Only Jesus Christ died on the cross and 3 days later rose.  Therefore, we want to give our final vote to Jesus Christ. 

In Japan’s history there were many Christians who were martyred.  The reason they refused to follow any other god and they gladly gave their life was because  they knew the love of Christ.  They knew that Jesus had died for their sins and then rose again.  When we know the love and grace of God then we can choose to die for this King

Romans 5:6-8

When we are touched by the love of Christ on the cross, then we are able to sacrifice our lives.  Please open your hearts up to him.  May the love of Christ fill your hearts. Then no matter what we will be able to follow the other king, Jesus Christ.

             Paul in the name of Jesus Christ cast the spirit out of the slave girl who was a fortune teller.  She was helped, but her owners were not happy.  They had Paul and Silas put into prison.  However, when Paul and Silas were praying and singing songs in the middle of the night, all at once there was a huge earthquake.  The doors of the prison opened and the prisoner’s chains all fell off.  The conversation between Paul and the guards is very interesting because in the conversation the way to be saved is asked and the answer is given.  Today let’s look at their conversation and what is necessary for salvation.

I.                Singing and praying in the middle of the night (vs.19-26)

After Paul cast out the evil spirit from the girl slave fortune teller, “the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone”. (19) Therefore, “they seized Paul and Silas” (19) and “brought them before the magistrates.” (20)  When we share the Gospel, the way it is done maybe different, but we always face such opposition.  The natural man thinks of only himself.  He wants to gain profit for himself only.  It is the gospel that can change a person from a self centered person to someone who can love others as they love themselves.  In reality the more self centered a person is the less he is open to the Gospel.  This is true of the girl slave fortune teller’s owners too.  When Paul cast out the evil spirit from the girl slave fortune teller, the owners of the slave girl realized that she could no longer tell the future and “that their hope of making money was gone”. (19) Therefore they began to see Paul as an enemy.  A girl was set free from an evil spirit, but they didn’t rejoice, but complained to Paul.  For them the casting out of the evil spirit was ruining their business. “Was gone” means “left”.  Therefore, when the evil spirit left the girl their hope of making money also left.  Therefore the owners brought Paul and Silas “before the magistrates and said, ‘These Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.  The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.” (20-22)

To be treated that way Paul and Silas must have felt terrible.  They must have felt uncertain about their future.  However, they didn’t complain.  They also didn’t give excuses for themselves.  In the midst of these painful and inconvenient circumstances “Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God”. (25)  Suddenly there was a huge earthquake.  Miraculously “all the prison doors flew open.” (26)  More miraculous was that Paul and Silas could pray and sing in the midst of these circumstances.  They came to Macedonia by the leading of the Holy Spirit so they probably anticipated that God was going to do a great work there.   Therefore when in reality it wasn’t so you would expect them to have uncertainties and to complain. However, they didn’t complain, but sang and praised the Lord with thankfulness.  They were able to do this because they trusted in God.  No matter what circumstances they found themselves. They believed that God would work for their good.

Their prayer must have been a prayer of trust and obedience.  If not, their prayer would not have naturally led to singing. Hymns can be sung no matter what circumstances we are in.  No matter if we are in the pits of life we can sing hymns to God.  Gospel, the Christian songs of the blacks are an example of this.  When the blacks were struggling in slavery they sang Gospel songs. The Gospel songs were songs of the soul so the songs were able to lift up the depths of their hearts. Even in the depths of struggles their slave owners were not able to put chains on their souls. Through Gospel songs they were able to praise God and have freedom in their souls.  Paul and Silas who were in chains in prison were the same.  No matter how strong a prison, they weren’t able to shut out the joy of Christ in Paul and Silas’ life.  Even if not a ray of light entered the prison cell, there was no way they could make Paul and Silas’ heart dark.  By their prayer and singing they made the prison a heavenly place of worship.  The light that filled their hearts shone in the “midnight” darkness of the prison. The prison full of curses and uneasiness rang with joyful voices of praises to God and the other prisoners listened quietly to them.  A special characteristic of Christians is that they are not controlled by circumstances, but control the circumstances and have the power to change things.  Christians can experience that much joy. 

Romans 8:35-39

There is nothing that can separate us from the love of God.  There is nothing that can take away our hope.  We are victorious no matter what circumstances we are in. Even if we are in the darkness of a prison, those who believe in and live in Christ always have the love of God flowing in their hearts.  We have the power to change the pain and struggles in the deep parts of our soul to prayer and hymns. Let’s remember this and at all times look to heaven and pray and sing.

II.              Believe in the Lord Jesus (vs.27-32)

Next let’s look at what we must do to be saved.  While Paul and Silas were praying and singing to God, “suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.  At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.” (26)  The jailer who saw this thought that all the prisoners had escaped and drew his sword to commit suicide.  According to Roman law, if a prisoner escaped the jailor was given the same sentence as the escapee had.  Therefore if he was going to be sentenced to death, he thought it was better to commit suicide.  Therefore, “he drew his sword and was about to kill himself”. (27) But Paul shouted to him, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” (28) 

It is amazing that even though the prison doors opened and the chains fell off the prisoners, not one prisoner escaped.  Probably the other prisoners looked at Paul and Silas’ attitude and realized there was some king of amazing power at work.  The jailor shone his light on the prisoners and all their chains were off and they could easily escape, but not one prisoner had run away.  He was so shocked that he “rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.” (29) Then the jailer brought Paul and Silas out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (30)

Paul and Silas answered, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.” (31)

The jailer addresses Paul and Silas, “Sirs”, a very respectable title and one definitely not used towards prisoners.  Through these 2 evangelists the jailor felt God and was amazed that they could stop the prisoner’s desire to escape.  For most people the desire to be saved comes from the respect and trust the person has towards the person who is sharing the Gospel.  

Then the jailer asks Paul and Silas, “what must I do to be saved? (30)  By this question we don’t know how much the jailer wanted to be saved spiritually and how much he wanted to be saved from the situation that he was in.  However, Paul and Silas answered, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.” (31)

Paul and Silas’ answer was something that they had real confidence in daily.  That is that by believing in Jesus Christ that you will be saved.  Even if the jailor wanted to be saved from the present situation, Paul and Silas are answering about what he needed to do to be saved spiritually.  By believing in Christ you are saved spiritually and set free from all sin which is the root of all problems that we face in life. The way to salvation is through believing in Jesus Christ.  The problems that the jailor was facing were very difficult ones that seemed like there was no answer for them.  However, by believing in Jesus Christ not only would the jailor receive spiritual salvation, but believing in Jesus Christ is also the basic solution for solving the problems that we face in daily life.  If we believe in Jesus Christ then we are saved. This is salvation from sin, the salvation of our soul, but also is the solution for each individual problem that we face in life. 

To “Believe in the Lord Jesus” means to leave everything in His hands.  The words “Believe in the Lord Jesus” actually mean “Believe on the Lord Jesus”.  In other words, we are to put ourselves on top of our Lord Jesus and let Him carry us through life.  We leave everything up to the Lord. 

If we make a decision to believe in Christ, but we can’t leave everything up to Jesus, then we won’t really be able to experience salvation.  To be really saved we need to believe “on” the Lord Jesus, ride on His shoulders, and leave everything in His hands. If we believe in Christ, we are saved spiritually and we are given strength to be victorious in all areas of our lives.  No matter what comes our way unexpectantly we are able to stand firmly without being shaken.  That is because we have been saved spiritually and because of our faith.

III.            The happiness and joy of believing in God as result of the whole family believing in God  (vs.33-34)

Finally let’s look at the result of the jailor’s conversation with Paul and Silas over what he needed to do in order to be saved.  Paul and Silas told the jailor, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.” (31) Then Paul and Silas “spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house.  At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized.” (32, 33) Then the jailer brought Paul and Silas to his home and fed them. The jailor “was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God-he and his whole family.” (34) It happened as Paul said it would.  If you “Believe in the Lord Jesus,” then “you will be saved-you and your household.” (31)

Just as Paul said, when the jailor believed in Jesus, both the jailor and his family were saved.  From this we get the idea that if one person in the family is saved then automatically everyone in the family will be saved.  However, that isn’t what this passage is teaching.  It is said that this passage’s translation is not clear. The NIV translation of verse 31 is “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.” (31) A literal translation of this verse is, “Believe in the Lord, Jesus. Then you will be saved. You also. Your family also.”  Any one who believes will be saved.  However, if you don’t believe then you won’t be saved. If someone in your family is saved and you do nothing else, then everyone will not be automatically saved.  In verse 32 we can see that the jailor’s family as well as the jailor listened to the Word of God.  Then both the jailor and his household were baptized. Then the jailor was filled with joy because his family as well has himself had believed and were saved.  However, when one person in the family is saved, that salvation influences the whole family.

This should challenge the way we live out our faith.  In other words, our faith shouldn’t be one fishing pole, but a net in which the whole family should be saved.  We should pray that not only we will be saved, but that our whole family will be saved.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.” (31) To be saved the only thing we need to do is believe in our Lord Jesus. We don’t have to study anything.  Of course studying the Bible is important, but the most important thing is believing。God’s son who became man, Jesus Christ died on the cross to forgive us of our sins. Three days later he rose and completed the way to salvation.  What is important is whether we have accepted this salvation or not.

John 6:47

Do you believe in Jesus Christ?  If there is anyone here who doesn’t believe, this morning please believe in Jesus Christ.  Is there any one here that has family members who have not saved?  Let’s pray for their salvation.  And then like the jailor let’s have joy because our whole family is saved.

              Timothy joined Paul and Silas in Lystra and then Luke joined the group in Troas. The group realized that God was calling them to Macedonia so immediately they set sail from Troas for Samothrace.  The next day they went on to Neapolis. From there they traveled on to Philippi.  There they met 2 women.  One “was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira”. (14)  The other was “a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.” (16)  Both of these women teach us the importance of having our hearts opened by the Lord.  The Lord opened Lydia’s “heart to respond to Paul’s message” and she believed in the Lord and was baptized. (14)  She was so overwhelmed with joy that she invited them to her house and showed hospitality to the group. On the other hand, the fortune teller seemed to recognize the evangelism of Paul, but in reality she didn’t. That was because she didn’t have a relationship with Christ nor was she saved. Therefore, having our hearts opened is so important so today let’s look at 3 aspects of the Lord opening our hearts.

I.                Lydia who had her heart opened by the Lord

First let’s look at Lydia who had her heart opened by the Lord.  Paul who had been led by the Holy Spirit to go to Macedonia first went to Philippi, which was the major city in Macedonia.  This was the way Paul always evangelized.  He always went to a major city and then from there went to large cities, then smaller cities, and then towns, and then villages. The capital of Macedonia was Thessalonica.  Paul probably chose Philippi because it was only around 10 Km. from Neapolis where the ship had landed.  Not only was it near Neapolis, but it was a major city and it was a “miniature Rome,” under the municipal law of Rome and governed by two military officers, the duumviri, who were appointed directly from Rome. Philippi was established by the King of Macedon, Philip II so the city was called Philippi. In 41B.C. Mark Antony and Octavian were victorious in the final battle.  They released some of their veteran soldiers, and colonized them in the city. In 30 B.C. Octavian became Roman emperor, reorganized the colony, and established more settlers there gradually making it into a “miniature Rome”.  For Paul who was striving to evangelize in Europe, this “miniature Rome” was a town that he really wanted to evangelize in.

After staying their several days, on the Sabbath they went outside the city gate to the river where there was a place of prayer, “sat down, and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.” (13)  At this time, there was barely a Jewish community and there was no synagogue.  Those Jews present met by the river, a common meeting place in the absence of a synagogue.  If there are 10 Jewish men, they could build a Jewish synagogue, but the Jewish population was so small that there was no synagogue.  In verse 13 men are not even mentioned.  Paul spoke to the Jewish women.  This shows us how strong the Roman influence was in Philippi and how small the Jewish population was. 

Therefore, the meager Jewish population met at a place of prayer down at the river every Sabbath.  It was to this group of women that Paul spoke.  In the group of women there was a woman named Lydia “who was a worshiper of God.” (14)  To be called a “worshipper of God” meant that she was not Jewish, but she believed in the one and only God which the Jews believed in, and she worshipped God every Sabbath.  She probably entered the Jewish faith while she was in Thyatira.  Even though she was probably extremely busy as a business woman, she made the worship of God the center of her life.  This day too was the Sabbath so she took the day off and went to the place of prayer and worshipped God.  She desired to worship God and that is why she went to the place of prayer.  It was this desire to worship God that led her to Paul.

Paul “sat down, and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.” (13) This “worshipper of God” Lydia listened intently to what Paul was saying and “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.” (14)  This is a really important thing.  There were other women there.  Everyone there probably believed in the God of the Old Testament.  They all prayed.  They all heard the message.  However, the person who was saved by the message was only the person whose heart was opened by the Lord and responded to the message.  Even though all heard the same message, not all believed.  Only those who had their hearts opened by the Lord were saved.

This “opened heart” (14) is the same as “their eyes were opened and they recognized him” in Luke 24:31 and “opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” in Luke 24:45.  In other words, for a person to really understand the Word of God, our hearts need to be opened when we read the Bible and listen to the sermon.  The Bible was written by God’s Spirit in order to tell us about God. Therefore, to understand it we must ourselves read it and listen to messages and at the same time have God open our hearts to it.  Those who have their hearts opened to God, receive new grace daily from God as they read the Word of God.     

We often say that we meet the Lord in worship.  By this we mean that we understood the message of the Word of God that was being preached.  Our eyes are opened and we realize that the passage is about Jesus Christ.  For example it is the experience like Joseph who slept using a stone for a pillow.  When he woke up, he proclaimed, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it. How awesome is this place!  This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16, 17)  It is to know that God is here. It is like the experience of the 2 disciples on the way to Emmas when they recognized Jesus.  We too when we hear the sermon or read the Bible we come to the realization that this is Christ or Christ is our savior.  It is times like this that our hearts have been opened by the Holy Spirit. We need to seek to meet the Lord and be touched by the Lord’s hand as we read the Bible and listen to the message.

Jesus told the parable about the sowing of the seeds to teach about this type of heart.  In this parable Jesus is teaching us that sometimes the Word of God is snatched right out of our hearts.  In other cases the Word of God never takes root so that person is o.k. for a short time, but when problems or persecution comes, that person falls away.  For others their hearts are hard and the things of this world keep the Word of God from taking root and bearing fruit.  The word of God which is planted in good soil grows up and bears much fruit, 10 times, 30 times and 100 times over.  (Matt. 13:19-23)  In other words, the way we listen is of very big importance. 

When the word of God is spoken through the message and there is “response” in our hearts, the Lord will always work and will open our hearts. In other words, a person that hears a message and is not moved at all has a heart that is closed hard. That type of person needs to pray for the Lord to break up their heart until the soil is soft. Our hearts need to be soft when we hear the Word of God.  Then God will work and save our souls.

II.              “A believer in the Lord” (vs. 15)

When the Lord opened Lydia’s “heart to respond to Paul’s message”, Lydia “and the members of her household were baptized.” (14, 15)  For Lydia who worshipped the one and true Jewish God, and who had entered the Jewish faith to be baptized meant she believed that Jesus was the Savior that they had been waiting and waiting for. Even if a person believes in the all powerful God of the Old Testament, if he doesn’t believe that the Messiah is Christ, then that means that he really doesn’t believe in the God of the Bible.

John 10:30

John 12:44

We must believe in Jesus Christ in order to be saved.  To believe in Christ means to believe that Jesus is Messiah.  Lydia accepted Christ as the Messiah, her Savior.  Not only that, but she led her whole family and those who worked in her home to Christ, and they were all baptized.

After the baptism she said to Paul, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord…come and stay at my house.” (15)  She said “If you consider me a believer”  because it means that Lydia too would be taking part in the ministry of sharing the Gospel and that she too like Paul would be making many sacrifices and facing many troubles.

Paul did not from the beginning make plans for going to Europe.  Therefore, he probably didn’t have all the money he needed for the trip. When he went to Corinth he made tents to support himself.  Lydia realized the greatness of the Gospel and therefore, she too wanted to live for the Gospel.  She wanted to be a part of the ministry of sharing the Gospel and help Paul who led her to a wonderful salvation. She did this by being hospitable to Paul and the missionary team.

This wasn’t just an emotional commitment for a moment.  We can see that Lydia’s commitment continued by Paul’s words in Philip. 1:5. Lydia’s service came from love and dedication that sprang up from belief in Christ.  “From the first day until now” (Philip. 1:5) Lydia continually shared in the ministry of the Gospel. It wasn’t just a one time commitment.  She must have been overflowing in joy as a result of being saved.  This was the root of the Philippian evangelism and as a result a great Church was built up.

Today we often hear people complain that the church is full of women only and there are few men.  However, women have always been a huge strength in the Christian church. Women have supported and help up the church.  For example, Romans 16:2, 4, 13.  Probably Lydia too helped Paul but understanding him, co-operating with him, by being like a mother and friend to him.  She was someone who lived a life of a beautiful faith.

However, in the Church being a man or a woman makes no difference.  Both men and women can be considered as believers and help and minister.  They both can dedicate themselves and help set the foundation of the church and help build up the church.

III.            Being touched by God’s love (vs. 16-18)

Paul evangelized in Philippi for some time after Lydia was saved. During that time another amazing episode occurred. Another time when Paul and the team were going to the place of prayer they met “a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.” (16)  This girl followed Paul and team, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (17)  This happened not just one day, but “She kept this up for many days.” (18)  Finally Paul got so frustrated with her that he cast the spirit out of her.  The question is why Paul cast out the spirit.  It doesn’t seem like what she was doing was bad.  She was shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (17) That’s the purpose that Paul and the team came to Philippi to do.  Especially when you consider that Philippi was a “miniature Rome” so probably no one was really interested in what Paul was saying.  Therefore, it would seem to be to Paul’s benefit that a good fortune teller would be shouting to everyone, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (17) More people would be apt to listen to Paul.  Therefore, you would think that Paul would be happy for her help.  However, Paul cast the spirit out.  Why did he do that?

1.                                  “Paul became so troubled” (18) The girl who had a spirit was so loud and disturbing.  What she was saying was not wrong, but why she was saying it was wrong.  Satan wasn’t concerned with the contents.  He just wanted to disturb and disrupt Paul. If what she was doing was right, then she herself should have believed in and followed Christ.  However, in her heart she had no intention of doing so.  This proves that her words were not from the Holy Spirit, but from Satan.  In this age, this is one thing that we must be careful about is the thinking that if the contents are good, then no matter who says it or for what purpose they say it, it is good.  Doctrine needs not only to be correct, but the motive of the person who is speaking it is also important.  If the person is not following his own doctrine, then it can’t be doctrine at all.

2.                                  As long as a heretical fortune teller is spreading, “the way of the Most High God”, those who hear her would assume that “the Most High God” was a god, not the God of the Bible. In fact, the name “the Most High God” was used for Roman and Greek gods.  “Salvation” was also talked about in Greek and Roman religions.  Therefore, the fact that this girl followed Paul and team, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (17) could have been a source on confusion making people think that Paul was preaching about other gods.

Therefore, what the slave girl who had a spirit was saying was not wrong, but it was a big problem.  It was because what she was saying had no content to it.  She had no salvation.  She did not open her heart to the Lord. When she said, “the Most High God” (17) her meaning was much different than Paul’s meaning of the Savior, Jesus Christ.

Lydia was the same.  Before she was a “worshipper of God”.  Before she met Paul she believed in the God of the Old Testament, the creator of heaven and earth.  However, just knowing about God wasn’t enough.  There was no salvation.  In order to be saved, she had to have her heart opened by Jesus Christ. She had to believe in Jesus Christ.  We receive the Christian faith by meeting Christ and being touched by him.  There are a lot of people who say that they believe in god.  The difference in believing in god and having faith in Jesus Christ is when we have a relationship with Christ believing that Jesus died for me on the cross, paying the price for my sin. Jesus rose for me.  That’s how much Jesus loves me. When Lydia entered the faith, the reason she dedicated herself and wanted to minister so much came for the realization that Jesus loved her so much and died for her.  Therefore, she was overflowing with thankfulness and was willing to give herself and her home to the Lord.

Romans 5:7, 8

God loves us so much that he was willing to die for us sinners.  Therefore, we should be willing to give ourselves and our home to the Lord who loved us so much that he died for us on the cross and touched our hearts.

Lydia was touched by the love of Christ.  We have been touched too.  We are really changed when we realize how much Christ has done for us. When we realize that Jesus died on the cross for us and loves us then we will be changed and be willing to give are all to Christ.  May the Lord open our hearts. May the grace of salvation from the love of the Lord’s cross be abundantly upon each person here today. Then our lives will be completely new.

         After the disagreement over whether to take Mark or not arose, Barnabas took Mark and went to Cyprus and Paul took Silas and left for Cilicia to Derbe.　This was the beginning of Paul’s second missionary trip.  From here on Paul is the central figure in the book Acts.  From Derbe Paul went to Lystra, then Inconium, and then Antioch.  From there he planned to go to Asia and preach the Gospel there, but the Holy Spirit would not allow them to.  Paul had gone to Phrygia and Galatia and when they came to the border of Mysia and were going to enter Bithynia, the Holy Spirit would not allow them to enter Bithynia.  “So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.” (8)  There he has a vision.  In the vision a Macedonian begged Paul, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” (9)  Therefore Paul went to Macedonia. As a result the Gospel went from Asia across the sea to Europe.  When we consider that in the present day Europe is the center of Christianity, this was a huge historical event.  This all took place by the amazing leading of the Lord. Today let’s look at 3 aspects of this amazing leading.

I.                God has a plan for our lives. (vs.6-9)

Paul took Silias and went to Derbe, then Lystra.  From there on he took Timothy and went to Inconium.  Then he probably went to Antioch.  From there “as they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.” (4) These towns are the towns that they had evangelized in on their first missionary trip.  They went there to see how they were doing and to encourage them. These were the towns in Galatia which were under the Roman rule.  If they would have continued west they would have come to the province of Asia. In the province of Asia besides the towns of Colossia and Laodea, there was the capital city, Ephesus, which was quite large.  Ephesus was a lot like Antioch in that there were a lot of Jews living there, and it was a large Grecian style city.  Therefore, Paul probably wanted to go there and evangelize.  However, the Holy Spirit did not allow him to go there.  Therefore, “Paul and is companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia.” Then they came to the border of Mysia. This means from Antioch they had traveled north to Mysia.  They planned to travel even further North to Bithynia, “but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.”  (7)  In verse 6 Luke says that the “Holy Spirit” would not allow them to go west to Asia and in verse 7 he says that the “Spirit of Jesus” would not allow them to go north to Bithynia. The “Holy Spirit” is the “Spirit of Jesus”. We can see this in I Cor. 15:45

Luke may have changed and said the “Spirit of Jesus” because Jesus’ Spirit spoke face to face with Paul.  However, in this passage there is no record of that happening and there are no direct words of Jesus’ recorded.  It doesn’t say that the Holy Spirit told him not to go.  It says “kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.” (6) and “the Sprit of Jesus would not allow them to” (7) Therefore, it seems more likely that rather than the Holy Spirit saying face to face not to go, that the Holy Spirit closed the doors to their going. The Holy Spirit showed them that going there was not the Lord’s will. 

We don’t know what the circumstances were that the Holy Spirit used to show them that going to Asia or Bithynia were not the Lord’s will.  A clue maybe found in verse 10 where the subject becomes “we”.  In other words, from this point on Luke, a doctor, joins the team.  Possibly Paul or someone was sick.  In Galatians 4:13-14 Paul tells the Galatians, “It was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you.” (13)  We don’t know whether Paul is writing about his first missionary trip or this missionary trip.  However, it is a possibility that because of Paul’s health he was not able to go on to the places that he wanted to go to and instead went to Europe.  However, when Paul thought about it he realized that because the Lord closed the door  to the places that he wanted to go to through his sickness, the result was the Gospel was spread to Europe.  He realized that the Holy Spirit really led them down a wonderful new road. 

This same thing happens in our own lives often.  The door that we wanted to go through shuts. We wonder why this happened to us.  The Bible’s answer is we were “kept by the Holy Spirit from”… (6) or “the Spirit of Jesus would not allow“…(7)  This happens because God has a plan for our lives.  Therefore, we shouldn’t worry about why these things happened to us but leave everything in the hands of the Lord and walk down the road that He is leading us on.

Later on in Acts, when Paul is in Philippi, Paul throws out an evil spirit from a woman fortuneteller.  When her master realized that he could no longer make money from her fortunetelling, he became furious and had Paul put in prison.  For Paul who helped the woman by throwing out the demon and who had been preaching salvation, he probably couldn’t understand why this was happening to him. When Paul was in the prison singing and praying, a huge earthquake occurred.  The doors to all the prison cells opened.   The guard thought that all the prisoners had escaped so he was going to commit suicide.  However, Paul called out to the guard telling him that they were all there and not to commit suicide.  As a result the guard wanted to know how to be saved and Paul preached to him and his family.  They all believed and were baptized. For Paul, being imprisoned probably made him question, “Why?”, but as a result a Roman guard, who was very closed to the Gospel, became a Christian.  The Lord performed a mighty work.  This was the plan of God.

There are a lot of things that happen in our life that we wonder, “Why?”  However, for those who love God and follow His plan those things are not disasters. God works all things for the good of those who believe in him.  God has a plan for each of our lives. Let’s live by that plan.

II.              We will understand later (vs. 9,10)

Paul wanted to go to Asia, but was stopped and then he thought that he would go to Bithynia, but that plan was stopped too. Therefore, he went to Troas probably more out lack of other options rather than from really wanting to go there.  He was probably discouraged.  When he was in Troas, he had a vision. In the vision a Macedonian begged Paul, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” (9)  Through this vision Paul understood why all other doors had been shut. We can see this in verse 10 “After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” 

The word “concluding” means “to tie everything together”. In other words, they “tied all the evidence together” and realized the Lord’s leading.  The reason they weren’t able to go to Asia, the reason they weren’t able to go to Bithynia, the vision of the Macedonian calling Paul to Macedonia, these things all tied together into one leading that God had called them to preach the gospel in Macedonia.  Therefore, they “got ready at once to leave for Macedonia”. (10)  As a result the Gospel was spread to Europe.  The reason doors were closed was for this purpose.  Paul understood this clearly.

The things that happen in our lives are part of God’s plan for the all of God’s kingdom. Each little event has a big meaning.  Each event is one little piece in a huge puzzle. At first we don’t know what the picture is, but as we put the pieces together all at once we know.

Esther was the same.  She was chosen to be the queen of a foreign King.  She didn’t know why she had to do that.  However, when the Jews were about to be killed she realized that she was in that position so she would be able to save the Jews from being killed.  Therefore, she was able to take action.

Ruth was the same.  She faced famine, became a widow, and followed her mother-in-law to Jerusalem which was for her a foreign place.  They had no money so she worked in the fields collecting the grain that the workers had dropped.  However, she meets Boaz and marries and has a child that later becomes an ancestor of Jesus.  Ruth’s name is recorded in the ancestry of Jesus in Matt. 1. When she married Boaz she probably realized that everything that happened up until then led up to her marriage to Boaz.  However, it probably wasn’t until she went to heaven that she really realized the greatness of her life.

God doesn’t see things up close like we do.  He sees the total picture.  He sees the entire kingdom of God.  We don’t understand what is happening to us right not, but some day we will understand.  Therefore, we need to believe that God will lead us in the best way and move forward down the road that God is leading us on.

III.            Being led by the Holy Spirit (vs. 10)

Last let’s look at how we should respond to being led by the Holy Spirit.  When Paul realized what the Lord’s will was, he got ready at once and left for Macedonia. Paul did the Lord’s will.  Not only when he felt the call to Macedonia did Paul follow the Lord, but also when he wanted to go to Asia or Bithynia and when he realized that wasn’t the Lord’s will he didn’t go. If he would have insisted on going where he wanted to go, then the Gospel would not have spread to Europe.  Even if it did, it would have been by a different way.  However, it was the Lord’s will that Paul take the Gospel to Europe.  Paul didn’t respond to the Holy Spirit’s leading by his own thinking or emotions. Instead he listened to the Holy Spirit and followed Him.  As a result the Gospel spread to the entire world.

Jeremiah29:11

God has a plan for our lives and that plan is not to harm us, but for our prosperity, to give us hope and a future. We need to believe that and following the leading of the Holy Spirit, walk forward one step at a time down the road God shows us.

From today’s passage and on in the book of Acts Barnabas does not appear and Paul’s ministry becomes the central focus of the book.  This is because Luke, the writer of the Book of Acts, was a disciple of Paul and he went with Paul on his missionary trips.  It was not because Barnabas had done something wrong. If Luke had gone with Barnabas, he probably would have written about Barnabas. However, he went with Paul so Paul’s ministry is recorded.  In today’s passage Paul “came to Derbe and then to Lystra” (1) where he met Timothy.  Paul wanted to take him along on the missionary trip, “so he circumcised him”. (3)  This seems strange because in Acts 15 we saw how strong Paul stood up for his belief that circumcision was not necessary for salvation.  Today let’s look at three aspects of this passage and at the same time understand why Paul circumcised Timothy when Paul believed so strongly that circumcision was not needed for salvation.

I.                A person well spoken of (vs. 1,2)

Paul left on his second missionary trip to encourage and give strength to the churches that he had evangelized and started on his first missionary trip.  First he went to the area of Cilicia and then went over the mountain ranges of Tarsus to Derbe.  From there he went to Lystra, the place that he had been stoned and almost died at on his first missionary trip.  There he met a disciple, Timothy.  Timothy had believed in Christ and become a Christian along with his mother and grandmother on his first missionary trip.  When Paul returned on his second missionary trip Timothy had grown into a wonderful young man.

Here Timothy is introduced as having a mother who “was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek”. (1)  At that time it was almost unheard of for a Jewish girl to marry a Greek.  For the Jews purity of blood was very important.  In Palestine such a mixed marriage was unthinkable, but in this area a little far from  Palestine there were a few such marriages.  We don’t know how Timothy’s mother happened to marry a Greek, but the fact that she did shows that she didn’t have a pure faith.  Even so, later through Paul’s evangelism she believed in Jesus Christ and became a Christian.

              One reason that “Paul wanted to take him along on the journey” was probably that Timothy was from this type of mixed marriage so he had been influenced by and knew both cultures.  Paul thought that Timothy would be a great asset on his missionary trip.  However, that is not the only reason Paul wanted to take Timothy.  In verse 2 a deeper reason is given.  That is “The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.”  “To be spoken well of” is a very important thing for Christians.  In the Jerusalem church, the criteria for the first deacons were that they were “known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.” (6:3) Also they “must also have a good reputation with outsiders”. (I Timothy 3:7)  In other words, they must be well spoken of.  This is the result of being a good Christian testimony. 

              We don’t know what kind of life Timothy led, but his lifestyle was spoken well of by the brothers in Lystra and Iconium.  However, we can get a hint of why he was spoken so well of in the letter that Paul wrote to him.

II Timothy 1:5

              His pure faith was passed down from his mother and grandmother.  Education based upon the Bible has such a great influence upon on the person and their life.  Even if we know nothing else if we know through the Bible the way of God, that’s enough.   That type of person receives God’s wisdom through the Bible, his personality is formed, and he is well spoken of. Just as Timothy was used on Paul’s missionary trip, that type is person is used for God’s work.

II.              Everything is for the Gospel (vs. 3,4)

This seems really strange, but Paul wanted to take Timothy on the missionary journey, “so he circumcised him” (3) This is difficult to understand why Paul would do such a thing considering the fact that he had stood up so strongly insisting that you do not have to be circumcised in order to be saved. Paul definitely believed very strongly that neither circumcision nor following the law were needed for salvation.  He believed that faith in Jesus Christ was the only requirement for salvation.  This can be seen in verse 4. “As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.”  If Paul believed so strongly that circumcision was not necessary for salvation, then why did he circumcise Timothy?  The reason is given in verse 3. “because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.”  If Timothy was not circumcised, the Jews would not accept him because they knew that he was the son of a Greek.  Therefore, evangelism would be very difficult.  Uncircumcised people can not speak in the Jewish temple.  No matter how much Timothy wanted to evangelize there, he would not be able to speak there because he was not circumcised.  For Paul the fact that Timothy had not been circumcised was no problem. (Galatians 5:6)  However, Paul circumcised Timothy because he felt that that was better for evangelizing the Jews. This was because Paul realized that to evangelize the Jews he needed to honor their culture and feelings. This was his basic philosophy: in order to reach the Jews become like the Jews; to reach the Gentiles, become like the Gentiles.

I Cor. 9:13-23

Paul was free from all, but he was willing to become a slave so that others would be saved. He became as a Jew to the Jews and a Greek to the Greeks.  He became weak that he might reach the weak. He was willing to give up anything that people might be saved.  He did everything for the sake of the Gospel.  That was the reason too why he circumcised Timothy.  He didn’t need to be circumcised or follow any part of the law, but so that the Jews could be saved he was circumcised.

This is an important principle for us Christians too.  We who are saved by the cross of Jesus Christ should live by this principle too. We should be willing to give up our freedom to win others to Christ.

III.         So the churches were…(vs. 5)

Up until now in Acts whenever the Holy Spirit performs some great work, after that we are told about the church’s progress and growth. (2:47; 6:7; 9:37)  Here as a result of Paul’s lifestyle, “the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.” (5)  It will be the same for us.  When we live for the Gospel, we will receive the grace of the Gospel.

Paul was willing to give up everything in order for a person to be saved. This is what God wants us to do too.  We are free, but in order that many people will be saved, we need to become like others. Then we will see the great works of God.

Last week we looked at the Jerusalem counsel.  The decision of the counsel is verse 28.  In today’s passage we see what happened when the decision is shared with the Antioch church, the center of the Gentile churches. When the Antioch church heard the decision of the Jerusalem counsel they were encouraged, rejoiced greatly, and spread the Gospel even more.  We can realize how great a result encouragement produced.  Therefore let’s look at 3 aspects of this passage and encouragement.

I.                The word of encouragement (vs. 22)

After the Jerusalem counsel made their decision, they chose Judas, who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, to go with Paul and Barnabas to go to the Antioch church. Barsabbas and Silas were leaders in the church.  Also according to verse 32, they were  prophets.  They could have just sent a letter, but they chose to send 2 leaders to the Antioch church so that they could encourage the Christians in Antioch.  By sending the leaders, they could face to face share the results of the Jerusalem counsel.  Not only that, but more importantly they could encourage and strengthen the Christians in Antioch.  According to verse 32, Barsabbas and Silas were prophets so they were able to encourage and strengthen the Antioch Christians with many words. They were many things that they weren’t able to include in the letter that Barsabbas and Silas were able to share with the Antioch Christians.  By such fellowship, the people felt loved, that they are important, that they are remembered, and they are encouraged. The church by such fellowship and encouragement becomes fruitful.

I.    Thess. 5:11

The Thessalonian church lacked proper knowledge about the people who have died.  Therefore, they were very depressed.  They thought death was the end and so they had lost all hope for living.  Paul encouraged and taught them by telling them about the hope of the resurrection.  He told them that when Jesus comes again that first those who have died along with all those Christians who are living will be lifted up and meet the Lord in the air.  This was a huge comfort for them.  Therefore we don’t need to be afraid of death.  There is hope for living.  By these words they were encouraged and joyfully could live their faith.

A characteristic of encouragement is that both parties are encouraged and built up. You don’t pull each other down, but build each other up.  This is the purpose of prophets.  They use the Word of God to exhort, encourage and build others up. Barsabbas and Silas were this kind of prophets who encouraged and strengthened the  Christians through the Word of God.

There are times that events cause us to be moved, and our hearts become mixed up, but we need to encourage each other with the Word of God so that our hearts will be protected and we will be built up in our faith.

II.               A letter of encouragement  (vs. 23-31)

We can see that the Jewish Christians were very considerate of the Gentile Christians in Antioch.  One place we can see this is in verse 23 where they call themselves, “The apostles and the elder brothers”. They call the recipients of the letter, “brothers throughout Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are of the Gentiles.” The reason that they called themselves “The apostles and the elder brothers” was to show that they are on the same level as the Gentiles of Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, and that in Christ they are one. This is because they had heard that some Jewish Christians had troubled them with words, and unsettled their souls.  These are the Jewish Christians that appear in 15:1 and told the Gentiles that they needed to be circumcised if they wanted to be saved.  This “unsettled their souls”. The word used for “unsettled” is the word used when a house falls down. It is opposite of the word used in 9:31 for “built up”.  In other words they were trouble makers for the Antioch church that had been built up.  Therefore, the Jerusalem counsel met and made three decisions.

              l.            Not to lay upon the Gentiles any greater burden. (28)               2.           To ask the Gentiles “To abstain from things that have been sacrificed to idols and blood and things strangled and fornication” (29)

              3.           To send Barsabbas and Silas whom they chose to go back with Barnabas and Paul to share what they had decided on with the Gentile Christians.  Through their words they hoped to build the Gentile Christians up again.  The purpose of the letter wasn’t just to tell what the Jerusalem counsel had decided, but to build them up and encourage them.

              The results of the letter are given in verse 31. “And when they read it, they rejoiced at the encouragement.”  One letter gave great encouragement and brought joy.  This is like when we read the Word of God today and are encouraged and receive joy. The Bible is the Word of God, a letter of love.  In the Bible are many letters and by those letters we are fed, led, and built up.  Therefore, we need to read God’s letter more and more and received God’s encouragement, be fed and built up.

III.         Encourage each other (vs.33-35)

            The encouragement that Barsabbas and Silas gave the Gentile Christians and encouragement from the letter from the Jerusalem church gave the Antioch Christians assurance in the Gospel that they believed in.  Not only that but it gave them assurance in the proclamation and the spread of the Gospel.  From verse 36 on Paul and Barnabas’ second missionary trip is reported.  This type of encouragement was also the source of power in their missionary work.  That is because in verse 35 they taught and preached in Antioch. 

              In the Bible when the word “encourage” is used it means to “call someone to your side”.  It doesn’t mean sitting face to face and saying words of encouragement.  It means to call the other person to your side and walk together to God who is the source of all encouragement. Barsabbas and Silas, also Paul and Barnabas did this type of encouragement.  They stood along side the Antioch Christians and taught them and together they walked before the Lord as brothers.

II.Cor. 1:4-6

Our God is the God of encouragement.  Today there maybe some people that are suffering or having a bad time.  God wants to encourage you.  By receiving God’s encouragement, we are able to encourage others.  By encouraging each other, we are able to stand up through anything that comes our way.

              Today let’s look at the first church meeting called the Jerusalem council.  When Paul and Barnabas preached the Gospel to the Gentiles, there arose among the Jewish Christians centered in Jerusalem different opinions, arguments and oppositions. These problems were related to what the Gospel is, the basic characteristic of the Christian faith so it was a very important problem. This was the problem that the Jerusalem council discussed. Through this council the church came to an understanding of what the Gospel is and was able to move forward in evangelism.  Today let’s look at three things we can learn from the Jerusalem council.

1. I.             Don’t get stuck on your own ideas (vs.1-5)

The Jews who came to Antioch claimed that Christians in Antioch must be circumcised. Circumcision was a sign of being a chosen people. In other words, they didn’t think that just believing in Christ was enough for salvation.  They thought that Gentile Christians should be circumcised like they had been.

However, Paul and Barnabas preached the Gospel that no matter who you were, if you repented and believed in Christ, you were saved.  You didn’t have to follow the Jewish rules in order to be saved.  If anything is added to the Gospel, then it is not the Gospel anymore.  This was a very important problem because the Gospel was the central theme of Christianity.  Also it was a problem that could tear away the unity of the Gentile and Jewish Christians. Therefore, Paul and Barnabas went up to Jerusalem to talk to the Apostles and elders.  This is recorded in verses 3-5.

When Paul and Barnabas arrived in Jerusalem, they reported to the apostles and the elders all that God who had been with them had done.  This is the same as the report that they had made after their first evangelistic trip to the Antioch church.  (14:27) However, “some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees” could not accept what Paul and Barnabas were saying.  They thought that everyone must be circumcised and follow the law.  This was because they were stuck on their own way of thinking and missed what God was doing. In order to be aware of God’s work, it is important that we not be stuck in our own ways of thinking.

1. II.           Only by faith (vs.6-19)

When there became disagreement between Paul and Barnabas and the Jewish Christians, the apostles and elders met together to discuss the problem.  This was the first time for the church to have such a meeting.  It was called the Jerusalem council. Throughout church history such meetings have been held to determine important things.  The purpose of them is not to just sit around and discuss things, but to seek the will of Jesus Christ who is the head of the church, accept it, and follow it. When disagreements arise, it is an important time to determine what we actually believe in.  Therefore, we need to make the Word of God the center of our discussion and prayfully  under the leading of the Holy Spirit discuss things.  Having problems in the church is not the problem. It is how we handle the problem that is the problem. This is how the early church discussed the problem.  The discussion is recorded in verses 7-19.

Here Peter is pointing out 2 things.  First he talks about Cornelius’ conversion that took place in Acts 10. He was not saved by being circumcised or by following the law.  He was saved by hearing Peter preach the Gospel and believing in it. Just like them, when Cornelius accepted the Gospel, he received the Holy Spirit.  In other words, God showed no partiality, and cleansed his heart just like the Jewish Christians by just his faith.

The second thing that Peter points out is that they are trying to put “on the necks of the disciples a yoke that” they have not even been able to bear. (10)  This “yoke” is the law.  This is a yoke that the Jews and their ancestors had never been able to bear.  They tried to follow the law, but they didn’t have the power to do so it became heavy baggage.  There is no one who can follow the law completely.  Therefore, we can’t be saved by the law.  We are saved only by grace. The Gentiles were saved only by the grace of our Lord Jesus.  Therefore, they are not to put a yoke on their necks.

Next Paul and Barnabas share “about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.” (12)  Paul and Barnabas also shared how the Gentiles were saved by faith alone too.

Then James, Jesus’ brother who wrote the book of James and who was probably a pastor in the church gives his teaching on the subject in verses 13-19.  His teaching was very important for the counsel.  He calls Peter by his Hebrew name, Simeon, and then not only agrees with what he said, but teaches from the Old Testament that salvation is promised to the Gentiles.  He quotes from Amos 9:11-12. He is prophesying about the destruction of Israel and how David’s kingdom will come in the last days and the vision of the kingdom of God.  “that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name.” (17)  In other words, the salvation of the Gentiles along with the rebuilding of Israel will bring in the blessings of the Royal kingdom.

Of course, Amos was not the first person to prophesy of the salvation of the Gentiles. In Genesis too God spoke to Abraham about this. (Genesis 17:4,5) The salvation of the Gentiles is recorded throughout the Old Testament and is the will of God. Therefore, James makes his summary in verse 19.

“make it difficult” (19) refers to what Peter said in verse 10.  We shouldn’t put a yoke that we ourselves couldn’t bear on the Gentiles.  In other words, they shouldn’t expect the Gentiles to be circumcised or to follow the Jewish law.  Anyone who believes in Christ and returns to him will be saved.  There are no conditions.  This is the Gospel.  This is what was decided at the Jerusalem counsel.  Therefore, we need to live by grace. We shouldn’t put a yoke on anyone.

What is wonderful about this Jerusalem counsel is that they looked to the Word of God to find the Lord’s will.  It wasn’t just an exchange of opinions.  James explained that Old Testament teaches about the salvation of the Gentiles and it is God’s will so no one should burden the Gentiles with circumcision or the law.  Therefore, they were able to write in the letter to the Gentile believers, “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything.” (28)  This is because we are saved by grace.

1. III.         Don’t cause others to stumble (vs. 20,21)

James doesn’t end his summary here.  He adds verses 20 and 21 which begins with “instead”. They are not to put the burden of the law on the Gentiles, but instead they are to ask the Gentiles to abstain from 4 things. This sounds like they are still burdening the Gentiles by requesting them to follow these 4 things, but the reason for making this request is given in verse 21.  “For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.” In other words, the Gentile Christians are living among the Jewish Christians who have heard the law read over and over every week and these 4 things would cause the Jewish Christians to stumble.  These 4 things would especially stand out.  They did not have to do these things to be saved. They were saved by believing in Jesus’ cross and resurrection alone. Following the law had nothing to do with salvation.  However, when you think of the effect of doing things like that, it would cause many Jewish Christians to stumble in their walk with Christ. Therefore, they asked the Gentiles to refrain from doing such things.

I Cor. 9:19-22

Here Paul is saying that he is completely free. However I order that he can reach as many people as possible to the faith, he becomes a save to al.  He becomes like a Jew to reach the Jews.  He’s not under the law, but he becomes like someone under the law in order to win the Jews to Christ.  To those outside of the law, he became like someone outside of the law.  To those who were weak, he became weak so he could win those who were weak.  That’s because he wanted all men to be saved.  For example, idols are not really gods so there’s really no reason why you can’t eat meat that has been offered to gods.  However, there are some Christians that didn’t eat meat because they felt the meat was unclean and they felt that Satan may enter them.  Therefore, Paul did not eat the meat out of consideration of them.  Paul’s actions were always determined by                                   the fact that he was living for the gospel. 

Jesus modeled this too.  He humbled himself and became like man.  He also became like sinful man and died on the cross.  This was all for us so that he could save us.

If we really want to do the Lord’s will, we would not put a yoke upon anyone. We would also not do anything that will cause others to stumble. We would become like the  people around us are like so that we can win them to Christ.  If we judge others, become mad, cause others to stumble, it means that we don’t understand the Gospel correctly. 

Let’s understand the Gospel correctly, and realize that we are living by the grace of God. May the life of the Gospel be flowing throughout the church.  This is the secret of the Gospel that through the Jerusalem council became clear.

Today’s passage is about when Paul and Barnabas go to Iconium and Lystra There they met “a man crippled in his feet” from birth. (8)  Paul said, “Stand up on your feet.” (10) and “the man jumped up and began to walk.” (10) The people that saw that were surprised. They thought that Paul was the Greek god, Hermes and Barnabas was another Greek god, Zeus. Therefore, Paul said to the crowds, “Men why are you doing this?  We too are only men, human like you.  We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them.” (15) 

              This is a message that is spoken to the Gentiles who did not know the Old Testament.  Therefore, this message is a necessary one for Japanese who sometimes make people god. (For example, the emperor) Today let’s look at 3 aspects of turning to the real faith in the living God.

I.                Those people who believe and those who don’t believe (vs. 1-7)

From Pisidian Antioch Paul and Barnabas set out for the town of Iconium, about 100 kilometers to the East. First in Iconium too they entered the synagogue and preached the Gospel.  As a result many Jews and Greeks entered the faith.  “But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers” who had just believed. (2)  Looking at this we get the image that the Jews were enemies against the Gospel and the Gentiles accepted the Gospel.  However, it wasn’t that simple.  Before when we looked at the Jews in Pisidian Antioch, there were many who rejected the Gospel and persecuted those who did.  However, there were some that joyfully listened and accepted the Gospel.  This time in Iconium is the same.  There were both Jews and Gentiles who heard Paul’s message and entered the faith.  On the other hand, there were come who didn’t accept the Gospel and stirred up problems for those who did.  Therefore, there was no difference between Jews and Gentiles.  Those who believed, believed.  Those who didn’t believe, didn’t believe. The same was true of the Gentiles too.  Some believed and some didn’t.

Therefore, it is clear what Paul was called to do.  That was to preach the Gospel boldly.  This can be seen in verse 3, “Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord.”  No matter who the people that they are speaking to are what is needed is to speak the Word of God boldly.  Then God will work in their hearts and the work of salvation will take place. Here it says, the Lord “confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders.” (3)  The miracles and wonders were a sign that what they were preaching was from the Lord.  This means that God was stamping his stamp. It is an encouragement to know that God gives his stamp.

Wherever Paul brought the Gospel not only was there joy of salvation, but there was also uproar.  In this town the people were divided in two: those who supported the Jews and those who supported the apostles.  The Gentiles and Jews, together with their leader made a plot “to mistreat” Paul and Barnabas “and stone them.” (5)  Therefore, Paul and Barnabas escaped to the Lycaonian cities and continued to preach the Gospel there.

From this episode we can see that where the Word of God is preached, it produces divisions.  In Pisidian Antioch when the people heard “the words of salvation” they were divided between those who “were glad and honored the word of the Lord (13:48) and were appointed for eternal life and those who rejected “the words of salvation”.  Here too depending on the attitude that they took towards the Word of the God, the people were divided either with the Jews or with the apostles. 

I Cor. 1:18

The cross divides people into either “the perishing” or “the saved”.  There is no middle ground.  Those who hear the Word are divided into those who believe it and accept it and those who don’t.

Matt. 10:34-37

Some people say that this passage is why they hate Christianity.  They think Christianity causes conflict, not peace.  That is because they don’t understand what real peace is.  Peace does not mean lack of conflict.  It is much deeper than that.  It is obtained through our relationship with God. When our sin is taken away and our relationship with God is right, then we can have peace.  This may cause conflict, but this is only for a short time as part of the process of making peace take root in our hearts. In the end we will always be led to blessing.

Which side are we living on?  God’s side, in other words, the side of the apostles?  Or the side of the Jews who didn’t accept the Word of God?  There is no middle ground.  If you hear God’s word, and follow it then you are on the side of the apostles.  There maybe conflict, but in the end you will be blessed.

II.              Faith to be healed (vs.8-13)

Next let’s look at the greatness of God’s work among those who believed.  First let’s look at verse 10. After the persecution in Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went to Lystra which is about 30 Kilometers south of Iconium. In this town there was no Jewish synagogue.  Therefore they preached in the center of town where people gathered.  There they met a man who was crippled from birth. He was listening to Paul speak.  When Paul looked at him, he “saw that he had faith to be healed and called out, ‘Stand up on your feet!’ At that, the man jumped up and began to walk” (9, 10)

In chapter 3 at the beautiful gate Peter healed a crippled man.  The healing at the beautiful gate is very similar to this healing. However there are several differences.  For example the person that Peter healed was a beggar, but the person Paul healed wasn’t.  He was just one of many people listening to Paul’s message.  Also Peter said, “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk” (3:6) and then took him by the right hand and helped him up. Paul only said, “Stand up on your feet!” (10) However, the biggest difference is that the person who was healed by Peter as a result of the healing wakened to a faith of praise.  The person that was healed by Paul had “faith to be healed” (9) so he was healed.  Let’s look at what faith to be healed is.

By the way the man listened, the way he soaked up what was being said, Paul was able to tell that he was ready to believe and be saved.  In other words, he was really searching for God.       

However, just because you listen to the Word of God does not mean that you are going to be healed.  The words that are used for “faith to be healed” in the original meaning meant “faith to be saved”.  By looking at verses 11-13 and the event that happens here we can see in what ways he had a “faith to be saved”. In these verses Paul and Barnabas are worshipped as Greek gods.

The crowds were surprised at what Paul had done and shouted, “The gods come down to us in human form!” (11) and then they called Barnabas, Zeus, and Paul, Hermes.  Both of these names are names of Greek gods. Then in front of the city gates they brought bulls and wreaths because they wanted to offer sacrifices to Barnabas and Paul.

According to legend, a long time ago in the area of Lystra, the two gods, Zeus and Hermes, became men. They didn’t tell who they were so no one would let them stay in their home.  They stayed in a very broken down poor house owned by an elderly couple.  Even though the couple was very poor they showed hospitality to their guests whom they met for the first time.  Therefore, Zeus and Hermes told the couple who they were.  Then they flooded the whole town except for this couple.  The crowd was afraid of making the same mistake so they wanted to sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas.

Paul and Barnabas said that they were just men like them and that the healing was just a sign to them to turn to the living God. They said that they didn’t have any special power.  In other words, this crippled man from birth, while listening to Paul’s message, a faith in the living God began to grow in his heart.  The religious heart in Lystra was to sacrifice to idols made by man, and look for their own profit that could be seen with their eyes.  In order to obtain that they were willing to do whatever they thought was necessary. However, the crippled man didn’t put his faith in such worthless idols because he had faith in “the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them.” (15) While listening to Paul’s message, he began to have such a faith.  This faith saves. This type of faith not only saves us but also heals our body. This is “faith to be healed.”

This is the same now and in every age.

Hebrews 13:8

If we today listen to God’s Word, and have faith like this crippled boy, we will be saved. Then we too like this crippled boy will experience the unbelievable work of God. This will be more wonderful than the crippled boy jumping up and walking.

III.            Turn to the living God (vs. 14-18)

Paul told the crowds who were trying to sacrifice to them, “Turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them.” (15) Japanese too, worship idols made by humans, look to religion for their own profit, check on the direction they should build when they build a house, check about what name they should name their children, check the calendar for a good day before they plan an event, etc.  Our lives are controlled by these things and we are no different than the people of Lystra.  However, the Bible teaches that these kinds of things are worthless. We are to turn from these things and turn “to the living God.” (15)

In the past, God “has not left himself without testimony; He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” (17) In this age besides the general testimony, God has shown his mercy by sending his son, Jesus Christ, to this world so that all that believe in him might have forgiveness of sin and eternal life.

John 3:16

God’s grace has been given so let’s believe and accept God’s grace and turn to God and seek to be with this Living God. This is salvation. We need to believe in Christ and return to Him.

              According to verse 44, the next Sabbath almost all people in town came to hear the word of God.  That was because the week before when Paul preached many people believed in Christ and were set free from their sins.  This news spread throughout the town and everyone wanted to hear the word of God.  However, not every one believed.  There were some people that were against what Paul was preaching.  This is the same in all ages.  There are always 2 groups, those who believe and those who are against the Gospel.   In other words, there are those who receive eternal life and there are those who don’t.  According to Ephesians 1:4,5, it was decided “before the creation of the world” those who would believe and be saved. However, this doesn’t mean God sat down and hand picked who was going to be saved and who was going to be eternally punished.  Therefore, it is important that we understand this concept more fully.  Today let’s look at 3 aspects of being appointed by God for eternity.

I.                Remaining in God’s grace (verses 44-47)

According to verses 44-47 those who have eternal life are those who remain forever in God’s grace.  Paul’s message had a great impact on those who lived there.  According to verse 43 a lot of Jews who worshipped God, followed Paul and Barnabas, and the next week almost the whole town came together to hear the Word of God.  However, there were some that saw all the people following Paul and Barnabas. They became jealous and thus spoke against what Paul and Barnabas were saying. Even though they themselves had believed in Christ the week before, when they saw the Gentiles coming to know the Lord, they couldn’t accept Paul and Barnabas’ teaching.  This was because they thought that they were the center of the world. Their thinking about faith was self-centered too.  They thought that for the Gentiles to be saved that they needed to be circumcised and follow the law first.  They thought that the Gentiles first had to become Jewish before they could be saved.  However, the Gospel that Paul preached wasn’t teaching that.  Paul taught that anyone who believed in Christ could be saved.  A Gentile could be saved as a Gentile.  A sinner, no matter what he had done in the past could be saved if he believed in Christ and repented. However, they couldn’t accept this teaching.  As a result of jealousy they threw away their new faith.  Jealousy is really a dangerous thing.

According to verse 46, Paul and Barnabas clearly stated that the Gospel first needed to be preached to them.  However, they themselves decided that they were “not worthy” for eternal life.  Therefore, Paul and Barnabas will start their ministry to the Gentiles because that is what God has called them to do. 

God’s plan was that the Gospel would first be preached to the Jews.  Then through those who accepted the faith, the Gospel would be spread to the Gentiles.  However, the Jews didn’t accept the Gospel.  Therefore, Paul says that he himself is going to go to the Gentiles because that is what is commanded in the Old Testament. The words in verse 47 are from Isaiah 42:6 and 49:6. “You” refers to the Jews who had been chosen to be a light to the nations, and through them the other nations were to be saved.  In fact “chosen people” does not mean that they were chosen to have salvation.  It means that they were chosen to bring the Gospel to other peoples.

I Peter 2:19

The Jews were a chosen people, priests, a holy people, God’s people.  That was so that they could become a light in the darkness, and share God’s works with others.  However, they were jealous about the Gentiles being saved. This was against the will of God. This was proof that the Jews were not remaining within the grace of God.  This is Paul and Barnabas meant in verse 46.

When we talk about what it means that God has chosen or appointed us to be saved, we tend to think of God decided “before the creation of the world” who would be saved and who would not be.  It as if God hand picks some people to be saved.  However, this is not what this passage is saying.  Here it is saying that in verse 47 that they themselves made themselves unworthy for salvation.  It was their own responsibility.  Of course God knew from “before the creation of the world” that they would reject the Gospel so in that respect it was decided on from “before the creation of the world”. Therefore, Paul urged them in verse 43 to remain in the grace of God forever.  Those who remain forever in the grace of God are those who are appointed to have eternal life.  In other words, it is those who remain in the faith to the end who are appointed to have eternal life. It is those people that we can say are chosen.

Hebrews 12:2

Let’s not be like these Jews who one time had faith, but as a result of jealously they weren’t able to continue in their faith.  Let’s no matter what, be careful to keep our eyes focused on Christ and remain in God’s grace.

II.              Rejoice in God’s Word and praise God (verses 48 and 49)

There were men who became jealous and opposed Paul and Barnabas.  At the same time there were others who heard God’s Word and rejoiced in it and who praised God. These were the Gentiles.  Then those who were to have eternal life, who prepared themselves for eternal life, entered the faith.

They prepared themselves by rejoicing in the Word of God and praising God when they heard the Gospel message.  Real faith rejoices in the Word of God and praises God.  Real faith doesn’t praise the church or the pastor, but rejoices in the Word of God and praises God.  No matter what happens in the church or if the pastor leaves, or what storms come in life, real faith stands on the Word of God.  This type of person rejoices in the Word of God, praises God and lives by the Word of God.

Psalms 1:1-3

III.            Be filled with the Holy Spirit (verses 50-52)

There were those who rejoiced in the Word of God and entered the faith.  But there were also those who opposed Paul and Barnabas.  They roused up the powerful leaders in the city. They had Paul and Barnabas thrown out from that area.  Paul and Barnabas shook the dirt off their shoes and left for Iconium.  This is a sign that they are shaking the dirty sin of people off of them. In other words, they are cleansing themselves from the sin of the people.  The fact that these Jewish people were against the Gospel that Paul and Barnabas preached means that they were not really men of faith.  They were no different from nonbelievers. To have had people enter the faith and then not continue in the faith, turn against you, persecute you, and then be thrown out must have been a bitter experience for the disciples, but verse 52 tells us that disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

When those who have believed in God wander from the faith or when we are heavily persecuted, or when we have deep troubles, if in the midst of these things, we can rejoice, then we have real faith.  We are able to do this through the Holy Spirit. The disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit so they were able to rejoice. In other words, God was living within them.  God was controlling their hearts.  This is the secret to a victorious life.  In other words, they were able to remain in God’s grace, rejoice in the Word of God, and praise God because of the work of the Holy Spirit.  We are not able to do that by our own strength.  It is only through the Holy Spirit controlling our hearts, helping us and supporting us that we are able to do so. It is only by the Holy Spirit living in us that we are able to stand.

John 14:16,17

To be filled with the Holy Spirit is the greatest proof that we are appointed to have eternal life.　We need to realize that God has all authority, and at the same time walk by the Holy Spirit. A person that is appointed for eternal life walks rejoicing in the Word of God, praising God, and remains in the grace of God.

In our lives we run into many problems, but in the midst of these problems we can walk in joy and the filling of the Holy Spirit. We don’t follow the conditions we live in, but we follow the Word of God and we are filled by the Holy Spirit so we can walk in joy. We need to be led by God’s Word which never changes and be filled by the Holy Spirit. Then by walking looking at Jesus’ back, we will be able to overcome the problems.  By having faith in our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ is the secret to a victorious life on this earth. Let’s remain in Christ’s grace to the end of our life.  That type of person is appointed to have eternal life.