Sermon Idea: God providentially ordains the means and the ends of salvation, so we should share the gospel, trusting God to powerfully work according to his will.
Introduction: In a really helpful book, Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, J. Mack Stiles says that in a culture of evangelism,
“…people who love Jesus work together as instruments in the grand symphony of God’s work. We don’t always know what the next piece will be—the Holy Spirit orchestrates that. But if we are focused on him and his direction, we get to be part of his work in people’s lives.”
In our text this morning, the Holy Spirit will orchestrate what comes next in Paul’s missionary journey. Paul is focused on Him and his direction, and in doing so, God graciously allows Paul to be part of what God is doing in the lives of Lydia and her family.
If Acts has taught us anything, it is that Jesus Christ, who died and rose again, lives and reigns in heaven. The gospel advances, and the church is built not by the giftedness of the apostles or the plans they put in place, but by great acts of Jesus Christ through his Holy Spirit.
This is true down to the intricate details. The mundane and ordinary parts of Paul’s life are orchestrated by the Spirit. The result of the Spirit’s orchestration is the conversion of Lydia. It wasn’t just the end that God sovereignly ruled over—Lydia’s salvation—but the means, Paul’s schedule, travel, and gospel preaching in Philippi.
God providentially ordains the means and the ends of salvation, so we should share the gospel, trusting God to powerfully work according to his will.
The Lord Jesus, who orchestrated the ministry of Paul by his Spirit, is at work in our lives and in the life of our church. He is always doing more than we can realize in any given moment, and we can trust that even the ordinary and mundane details are being orchestrated for the glory of God and the good of his people.
We’ll walk through this passage together by following three movements in the text: God’s providential leading, God’s gospel appointment, and God’s gracious salvation.
I.) God’s providential leading (Acts 16:6-10)
The providential hand of God is at work long before Paul meets Lydia. In two curious expressions, we learn that God brings Paul’s will into submission to his own will. We read words like “forbid” in verse 6 and phrases like “did not allow” in verse 7. As the narrative unfolds, Luke communicates God’s leading as the unified will of God, the Holy Trinity. All three persons of the Trinity are mentioned.
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia (Ac 16:6)
…but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. (Ac 16:7)
God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Ac 16:10)
Why did God forbid Paul and his team from preaching the gospel in these places? God’s priority at this time was elsewhere. In time, God will see the gospel advance into Asia and Bythinia (Acts 18:23; 19:1-10; 1 Peter 1:1), but now is not that time. God calls Paul to Macedonia.
9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Ac 16:9–10)
We know nothing about who man is, but it doesn’t matter, or God would have given us details. The vision is not the point; it is just the means to a greater truth—the call of God. Paul and his friends are convinced this vision is the call of God to take the gospel to Macedonia.
In our Christian lives and in our lives as a church, we need to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading. It is possible to plan with the assumption that what first seems right to us is right before God. We can be logical and sensible. We can intend to do something very right and good, but it may simply be at the wrong time.
That’s the case here. It wasn’t wrong to take the gospel into these regions. It was a logical and sensible plan, except for one fact. God’s timing and will was different.
This can feel heavy in the realness of life. Our plans are made, our desires are strong, but we are disrupted and prevented from seeing those plans come to fruition.
There will be numerous temptations when that happens. Some will be tempted to catastrophize, assuming the worst about their life. Others will be tempted to become disappointed and disillusioned with God. These are all symptoms of deeper problem: making our wills ultimate in our lives.
If, though, we learn to follow our Lord Jesus, who before us perfectly submitted his will to the Father’s will, then God’s closed doors will not be seen as harm but as a grace for our good and his glory.
Paul could not have known all that God was doing when he was called to Macedonia, but he was faithful to obey God’s call on his life. This leads to a gospel appointment that will have no little consequence for Paul’s church-planting efforts.
II.) God’s gospel appointment (Acts 16:11-14)
Paul and his companions arrive in Philippi after sailing for a few days. As before arriving, God’s at work in the details. What takes place here in Philippi is much more than coincidence and happenstance. It is a gospel appointment orchestrated by a sovereign God. What details support this?
The first detail worth noting is that Paul comes upon a group of women on the Sabbath. This is interesting because Paul’s missionary strategy has been very consistent. On the Sabbath, he would go to the Jewish synagogue before ministering to the Gentiles. On this Sabbath day, though, he doesn’t go to a synagogue presumably becasue there is no synagogue there. Instead, he goes somewhere to pray and finds a group of women gathered.
13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. (Ac 16:13)
The second detail worth noting is that Lydia is financially wealthy. It was a long and difficult process to dye purple goods. The little detail and the hospitality she extends to them in verse 15 all point to her being a person of means. If she were to become a follower of Jesus, it could be the start of a fruitful gospel partnership. In fact, that is exactly what happens.
40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. (Acts 16:40)
15 And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. (Php 4:15)
The founding member of the church in Philippi is a wealthy and generous woman who provides for the apostles’ needs and most certainly played a role in the church’s support of Paul’s missionary journey.
God is always doing more than we realize. He has doors of provision and care we would never expect. God cares for his people, and when he leads us to places we would not have chosen, we can trust he is working for our good and his glory.
The good that God is working in these details is the salvation of Lydia. Let’s look at verses 14-15
III.) God’s gracious salvation (Acts 16:14-15)
Luke is really specific about how God saves Lydia: “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was being said by Paul.” Salvation in the Bible is always of the Lord. Lydia’s heart was opened; that is, the Spirit called her and gave her a new heart. She was given eyes to see and ears to hear the truth of the gospel preached by Paul. The conversion story of Lyidia is Soli Deo Gloria.
This is what God does, in accordance with his own will, when the gospel is preached. He opens hearts, eyes, and ears. If you’re here this morning as a believer in Jesus Christ, it is because the Spirit of God opened your heart to hear the gospel and believe.
5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Co 4:5–6)
We began this morning by saying that God ordains that he means to the end. Here we see that the means are simply the words Paul shares. God works through people, his messengers, and the words they speak.
We are not told what Paul said, but we don’t have to think too hard to figure it out. Paul is the man who goes on to say, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” (1 Cor. 2:2)
Charles Haddon Spurgeon once mentioned that some in his day debated whether Paul preached at Lydia or simply had a conversation with her. Spurgeon said it didn’t matter because the subject would have been the same.
“He had but one subject, and that was Christ; the Christ who had met him on the way to Damascus, and changed his heart; the Christ who was able to save’ the Christ who bled on the cross, to bring men to God, and cleanse them in his blood; the Christ in heaven, interceding for sinners; the Christ waiting to be gracious. Paul would not end his talk without saying, “Trust him: trust him. He that believeth in him hath eternal life. So, whether he preached or whether he talked was the same story of Jesus, and he was crucified.”
This was the message that Lydia heard and the Christ in whom she believed. The way in which Lydia professed faith in Jesus was by being baptized. She was immersed in the water, cleansed from her sin through the blood of Jesus, and was brought back up a new creation in Christ Jesus.
Her obedience? Immediate. She welcomes them into her home—perhaps the very home where the church in Philippi would gather.
Two reflections
1.) The message of evangelism
Paul is an example of evangelism for us in verse 10, “God has called us to preach the gospel to them.”
When Paul spoke to Lydia, he no doubt shared the gospel explicitly with her. He told her about God’s promises being fulfilled in Jesus, the life and death of Jesus, his glorious resurrection, and ascension.
Evangelism is not the sharing of any good advice or information. Our testimonies are beautiful, but sharing them is not the work of evangelism. Advice on life, finances, parenting, and marriage is good, but it is not the work of evangelism. The work of evangelism is the proclamation of the gospel with the aim of persuading hearers to repent and believe.
What is the gospel?
The one true and living God is holy and the creator of everything, including you and me. We were created in God’s image to know him, worship him, and live with him in his kingdom. But we have sinned against God and have been banished from his good presence and kingdom. That’s what’s so wrong with the world. Our sinful rebellion against God has made all that was good wrong, and there is no way for us to make it right again.
In God’s great love, he makes a way for everything to be made right. God becomes a man in Jesus Christ, who lives the life we were supposed to live, he died on the cross paying the penalty for our sins, and was raised from the dead, showing that God accepts Christ’s sacrifice for sin. Now forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with God are given to all who turn from their sin and trust in Jesus. Jesus is the king, and we should give our allegiance to him. All who do will not only have their sins forgiven and be right with God, but will be given eternal life to live with God in his good kingdom forever.
2.) The response to evangelism
As we share the gospel, we need to be clear about how to respond to it. Paul must have instructed Lydia in professing faith in Christ and becoming a disciple of Jesus, since she was baptized.
This is the clarity we must bring to our own gospel sharing. Like Peter on the day of Pentecost, we should be able to say with confidence to anyone who asks.
37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Ac 2:37–38)
God providentially ordains the means and the ends of salvation, so we should share the gospel, trusting God to powerfully work according to his will.
Nathaniel R. Martin 