The Holy Spirit's Work

Good evening, good evening, good evening. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This is where every day, you and I, we get together, we get into the Lord's Word, and we grow in our love for the Lord together. And this year, 2022, we'll make it all the way from the Book of Acts to the Book of Philemon. I'm having tea tonight. Maybe you're having coffee. feeling a little bit nostalgic, you know. I was reading on my cup here, and this is from Bob McElhaney, one of the deacons at the church who recently went to be with the Lord, and before he passed, before he died, he gave me this mug as a present about a week or two before, and he said, Pastor, warning, anything you say or do could be used in a sermon. I try not to do that too much without people's prior acknowledgement, but I'm going to have some tea and we'll pray and we'll get in the Lord's word.
Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for the blessing of being your children, for getting to read your word and to see how your Holy Spirit spread your gospel. We pray that we would have minds to understand and hearts to believe tonight in Jesus' name. Amen. All right, here we go. We're going to look over Acts chapter 16, verses 6 through 15. Acts chapter 15, verses 6 through 15.
Now when they had gone through Phrygia, in the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them. So passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.
And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, come over to Macedonia and help us. Now, after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had joined us to preach the gospel to them."
Well, that's the first paragraph that we need to look at. We need to ask ourselves in these two paragraphs, A, what is this about? B, what's the best verse to summarize this? And C, what are we called to do in response to these words? So, first, what's this about?
Well, Paul has gone on this strengthening journey. Remember, he started at his hometown in Tarsus, and then he's gone up through the Cilician gates, and he's going to Derbe, and to Lystra, and Iconium, and to Antioch, Pisidia, and he's found Timothy. He's bringing him along with him, and so they start heading up north.
But there's different places they think they might want to go. They think they might want to go to Asia, which is on the eastern coast of what is now Turkey, or so the western coast of what's now Turkey, right on the Aegean Sea. That's where Ephesus is, but they're not permitted by the Holy Spirit to go there. So they go throughout this area and they think, well, maybe we'll go to Missia, right on the straits that enter into the sea.
I'm trying to remember what that sea is called. I've got to spend time looking at the maps this morning. I lost track of my time as I was researching and reading these things. And so that's why I didn't have time to jump on earlier. But So, the Mysia is a province on the Dardanelles Strait, and Bithynia is a province on the Sea of Marmar. I think that's how you say it, but I'm not quite certain. Anyways, the point is, they want to go in these areas, and the Holy Spirit says, no. No, you're not going to go here. No, you're not going to go there. So they eventually make their way down to Troas.
This is an important colony, a port city, right on the Aegean Sea. And there, Paul has a vision. A vision of a Macedonian man who says, come and help. And so they understand that this is something from the Lord. And so they go. But something interesting also happens. Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia. All of a sudden it changes from he, he, he, they, they, they to we and us. Luke has joined the journey at this point. Maybe Luke is from Troas. Maybe Luke is in Troas for some business but is from Philippi.
Well, it's interesting. We're going to find out more as we keep going, as we get hints about Luke, but the point is that it is the Holy Spirit. What is this ultimately about? The Holy Spirit is the one who is sending the apostles, who is leading the apostles, who is protecting the apostles, who is filling the apostles' mouths with good things to say, with the good news of the gospel, and it's the Holy Spirit by whom they are able to do these signs and wonders that confirm the testimony that they are giving. Well, so they go ahead and they take this trip, verse 11 through 15.
Therefore, sailing from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and the next day came to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is the foremost city in that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city for some days. And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made, and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there.
Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And when she and her whole household were baptized, she urged us saying, if you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay. So she persuaded us. Well, we need to ask ourselves, what's this about?
Well, from Troas, right there on the Aegean Sea, they go to Salmothrace, and that's an island right in the Aegean Sea. It's kind of halfway between the two. And they seem to make good headwind because the next day they make it all the way to Neopolis. On his way back, later on, this journey is going to take five days. Here it only takes two days. And they go to Neapolis, and they pick up the Via Ignatia, and they go from Neapolis, the port city, up to Philippi, which is a colony, an important city.
It's a Roman city. It has its own constitution based off that of Rome. It has been settled with Roman veterans. It is a Roman Roman city. But there's one thing it seems to not have at this time, and that's a synagogue. And so they go to this impressive city, this town in Philippi, a very Roman town, and they go down to the river because they've heard that's where the ladies go to pray, that's where people meet. And there, they start teaching. They start telling them the story of Jesus Christ, and there's someone who's there, Lydia, the first convert in Asia, or the first convert in Europe.
She hears, and her heart is tender. It's the Lord who made her heart tender. I love that part in verse 14. Now, a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. This woman who was a merchant, of her own right, a seller of purple, someone who knew how to work the markets, who had a trade. She hears Paul. And the Lord softens her heart.
And she believes. And we know that she's a woman of some standing because it says that she and her household believe. She's a woman who has servants, children. There are people under her care. We don't know, maybe she's a widow, or for some other reason she doesn't have a husband. You know, in a society like this, which was very masculine dominated, where the father was the paterfamilias, you know, he was the head and ruler of the house here, you know, she's the head of this home. Her and her whole family are baptized.
And so she urges them. If you think I actually have faith, come stay at my house. She opens up her home to them. She receives the gospel and she wants to receive them into her home. If you have judged me to be faithful, if you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay. So she persuaded us. She persuaded them with her faith.
This is a beautiful thing the Lord has now by the power of the Holy Spirit sent them all the way from Antioch in Syria. into Troas, or sorry, Tarsus, all the way through Galatia, and in and around what's now Turkey, along the central part of the country, and then all the way down to Troas, and now they're in Europe. They find themselves in Philippi, and the Lord is faithful even there. He's the one leading them.
I'm just going to go ahead and say my favorite verse that I have underlined here. Well, I have two. One is that in the Holy Spirit, forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. And after they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them. And then in verse 14, the Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. I think that's kind of getting at the heart of this passage.
It's the Holy Spirit who's leading, and it's the Holy Spirit who's changing people's hearts. So what are we called to do? Lastly, seek calling. What are we called to do in response to these words?
Has the Lord opened your heart? When you hear these words, that Jesus Christ came to save sinners, do you know it's for you? When you hear that God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son, that whoever should believe in him will not perish but have everlasting life, is that you? When you hear, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and he is just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all of our unrighteousness. Do you know that's you?
Is this your hope? Do you confess that Jesus Christ is your Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead? If you do, this is a work of the Holy Spirit. This is not a normal thing. Are you in Christ? Do you know the Holy Spirit? Do you believe His Word? Has He worked on your heart? I hope He has. I think we should be praying that the Spirit would keep doing that work today.
Maybe there's someone that you know, that maybe they've been listening to you as you've spoken about spiritual things from time to time. Maybe you can speak with them more directly and see if they'll believe. Why don't we go ahead and pray now for those people and for those opportunities.
Father, we pray, knowing that your Holy Spirit is still at work today, changing people's hearts, drawing people to yourself. Lord, we pray that you would please save people, soften their hearts. We pray that you would give us the opportunity even this week to speak of Jesus Christ to people and that you would be working in their hearts even now. that they might be reborn, that their hearts would be regenerated, that you would take out their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Lord, I don't know who's listening to this recording or live stream right now, but Father, I pray for anybody who's listening, that their hearts might be softened. that they might come and know the one true living God, that they would know their Savior Jesus Christ, the only begotten from all eternity past, and that they would have their sins washed away.
Lord, we pray that you would do this work even today. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, may the Lord bless you today. May he fill your mouth with the words of life, the good news. I pray the Lord gives you divine appointments this week to speak with others of the one who has saved your soul. And I pray that you enjoy the peace that surpasses all understanding as you meditate upon Christ Jesus. And I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.
Thanks for listening to this week's message from God's Word for You, a ministry of Sharon R.P. Church in rural southeast Iowa. We pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith in your life this week. If you'd like to get more information about us, feel free to go to the website, SharonRPC.org. We'd love to invite you to worship with us. Our worship time is 10 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue, Morning Sun, Iowa, 52640. May God richly bless you this week.