Acts 16:16-40

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“Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her. When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are 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 with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they 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 household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household. When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.” The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭16:16-40

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We’ve been reading about Paul and Silas’s journey in different places teaching about Jesus. We have been seeing how God is working through them to change people’s lives as many started to believe. Today we read about Paul and Silas in prison and how this obstacle led more to believe in Jesus. 

In our journey, sometimes it’s so hard to see why God allows bad things to happen. When Paul got annoyed at the fortune teller woman and got rid of the spirit in Jesus’s name, Paul and Silas were accused by people who felt threatened by their presence because they couldn’t make money anymore. Back then where they were, Roman citizens had certain rights such as the right to legal trial and they shouldn’t be tortured as a citizen. However, despite their citizenship, they were still stripped and beaten and thrown into prison. But then, even though this very unfortunate and unjust event happened to them, they still praised God and sang hymns. 

Often times, when we experience hardships, we start to question God. We forget that God is always with us and has plans for us. But we see how faithful Paul and Silas were that even though they were treated very unjustly they still held on tight to God. Because of their faithfulness, God used this obstacle to lead others to believe. Other prisoners heard them sing hymns which was probably very unusual to them, not only that, but the jailer was also affected by this. When the earthquake happened and the doors were opened, the jailer was about to kill himself because he would’ve received consequences. But Paul and Silas didn’t let that happen and stopped him. He was probably in such a shock that he was trembling and asked how he can be saved. He started to believe which led his household to also believe and get baptized. 

How amazing is it that when we look at the big picture and we see how God working through everything. If Paul didn’t get annoyed at the fortune teller woman, they wouldn’t have met the jailer. God allowed these events to happen and used them to reach his people. 

Despite hardships that we experience, we can still praise God and always turn to Him. He knows everything that we are going through and He is always with us. He can use these hardships and turn it into good and help us and others to get to know Him more and grow closer to Him.

Acts 16:11-15

11 From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. 12 From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days.

13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14 One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. 15 When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

-Acts 16:11-15

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As we read through Acts we get to follow Jesus' first disciples go and spread his message to nearby areas. We get to see them perform miracles in God's name and preach the gospel to Jews and Gentiles alike. Just in chapter 16 we see Paul and Silas traveling all over the place preaching the word wherever they felt God was calling them to. And as we read I think we can forget who is really important as more and more people become Christian during this time. It's not Peter or Paul. It's God.

In these couple of verses Luke (He wrote the book of Acts) makes it clear why Lydia decided to become a follower of Christ. It wasn't from a convicting sermon from Paul or a one on one conversation she has with Silas. It says, "The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message." It was ultimately God who changed her heart to be able to accept Christ into her life. Here, Paul's message was important but without God working in Lydia's heart it would have been useless.

As Christians we go through our lives preaching the Gospel in many different ways; maybe it's by writing books, having a hard conversation or just showing His love through our actions. As we go about these things we can have peace in the fact that what we are doing is important, but ultimately God is doing the real work here. We can use this fact to humble ourselves if we ever start to think we're the reason why people start believing in Jesus. We can also use this fact if we start getting discouraged by people not starting to believe in Jesus. God is always at work, He will change people's hearts. Let's never forget it's never about us, it's always about God.

Acts 16:6-10

6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 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.
-Acts 16:6-10

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As Christians, we can be used by God in many ways, and in many different places. The body of believers is composed of many different parts, and different people are called to serve in different areas, some of which are areas that may not be expected.

We read here that Paul is constantly being rerouted as he ventures to different places to preach the gospel. First, God closes off Asia, in which Paul decides to go to Bithynia. However, Jesus promptly closes that route as well, in which Paul goes to Troas instead. God ultimately makes it clear where He wants Paul to go, and through a vision Paul receives his instructions to go to Macedonia to preach the gospel there.

As we grow in our faith and seek ways to lead or serve, it may be easy or comfortable to choose an area we are familiar with, or perhaps always wanted to be in. However, we need to remember that it is ultimately God who sets our paths and knows what’s best for us and the world, so we have to be ready even for the unexpected.

When we’re driving and we approach a closed off road, we have to take detours to get where we need to go. We can’t decide to ignore the road closure and proceed as usual, as that may be dangerous or simply illegal. The alternate route is what’s best and we have to trust it will get us to our destination. Similarly, there will be many paths and plans that God will close off, which may not always be easy to take and may lead to disappointment. However, we can have faith that it is what’s best for us and will ultimately help us achieve the end goal of growing closer to God and helping others know him too.

Acts 16:1-5

Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.

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Previously we read when Barnabas went out together with Paul as missionaries to spread the gospel. Barnabas was a peer to Paul and reminds us that we should also look for peers in our walk of faith. This time we meet someone that would become very dear to Paul. Timothy is a someone that Paul chose to mentor and two books of the Bible, 1 & 2 Timothy, were written specifically to help guide him. In verse 3 we get a glimpse at how intimate their relationship was as Paul was the one to circumcise Timothy. Throughout the new testament we see how Timothy almost becomes like a son to Paul. 

The relationship between Paul and Timothy is one we should all strive for as Christians. We need mentors like Paul in our life to help guide and direct our spiritual growth and eventually we should all look for Timothy's in our live's as well, younger Christians who we can help direct and mold through the wisdom we accrue through our life in faith. In Young Life we believe in the power of relationships and choose to be a Paul to whoever's willing, but we also often talk about the idea of paying it forward. Jesus gave us a beautiful picture of discipleship and here we get another glimpse in Paul and Timothy. If you don't have a Paul in your life, find one, but if you do, make sure to find yourself a Timothy as well.

Even if you don't feel the most equip to take someone under your wing, the relationship doesn't have to look as formal as Timothy and Paul. Even being a few steps further along in your faith is a few steps that you can help guide someone else. If all that you've learned ends with you then everything that's been poured into you is almost a waste. Wisdom, guidance and mentorship is such a wonderful gift and blessing to receive and it's better to give then to receive so don't hoard that to yourself and instead look to pass it forward. 

Acts 15:36-41

36 Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

-Acts 15:36-41

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As you can see in this passage, Paul and Barnabas who have been tight friends and missionary partners suddenly have a mini argument about whether or not they should bring Mark on their journey. Although this passage highlights the argument (Barnabas vs. Paul), we need to look at their intentions. These two brothers-in-Christ are arguing not because they are selfish or because they hate each other. Their stubborn intentions are coming from their love for God. Their love for their fellow believers in Christ and love for the mission.

These two have been going around doing God's mission for a while now. They converted many people who have gotten to know Jesus. They plan to continue the mission, but it is at this point where they head towards different directions in their ministry. This is not a bad thing. They truly want to bring more people to love God and be saved. I think Paul and Barnabas show what a real passion for God looks like. This should be the heart of a true missionary - caring for their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ and devotion to God's mission.

Where do you fit in this picture? Are you zealous for God? Do you hope to be like Paul and Barnabas and spread God's mission in the now/future? Can you think of a fellow brother or sister in Christ where you can see yourselves as a dynamic duo? Wherever you stand, I hope you are praying to God and asking Him for a deep fervor in your relationship with God and how you can be used in His ministry.

Acts 15:22-35

22 Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers. 23 With them they sent the following letter:

The apostles and elders, your brothers,

To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:

Greetings.

24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.

Farewell.

30 So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31 The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32 Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. 33 After spending some time there, they were sent off by the believers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them. [34] [d] 35 But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

-Acts 15:22-35

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A healthy growing church sends people out into the world to share the Gospel.  The church in Jerusalem decided to send two guys to go along with Paul and Barnabas to help out the Christians in Antioch.

Sometimes it’s super easy for a faith community to just focus on themselves, so much so, that they forget that there’s a world out there that still need to hear about Jesus.  That’s true here in AYL and Harvesters as well.  It’s important that we help our community grow in faith, but we also need to remember that there are still hundreds of students in our school who have no idea who Jesus is, or have an incredibly warped perspective on who Jesus is.  We need to send people to go and tell them.

Do you have friends outside of your church or Harvesters or AYL that you want to share Jesus with?  Are you actively doing so?

Acts 15:1-21

1 While Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch of Syria, some men from Judea arrived and began to teach the believers: “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 Paul and Barnabas disagreed with them, arguing vehemently. Finally, the church decided to send Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem, accompanied by some local believers, to talk to the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent the delegates to Jerusalem, and they stopped along the way in Phoenicia and Samaria to visit the believers. They told them—much to everyone’s joy—that the Gentiles, too, were being converted.

4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, Barnabas and Paul were welcomed by the whole church, including the apostles and elders. They reported everything God had done through them. 5 But then some of the believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and insisted, “The Gentile converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.”

6 So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue. 7 At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as follows: “Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles so that they could hear the Good News and believe. 8 God knows people’s hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. 10 So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? 11 We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.”

12 Everyone listened quietly as Barnabas and Paul told about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

13 When they had finished, James stood and said, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 Peter has told you about the time God first visited the Gentiles to take from them a people for himself. 15 And this conversion of Gentiles is exactly what the prophets predicted. As it is written:

16 ‘Afterward I will return
and restore the fallen house of David.
I will rebuild its ruins
and restore it,
17 so that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord,
including the Gentiles—
all those I have called to be mine.
The Lord has spoken—
18 he who made these things known so long ago.’

19 “And so my judgment is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood. 21 For these laws of Moses have been preached in Jewish synagogues in every city on every Sabbath for many generations.”

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Christianity is for Everyone

Apparently, there had been a debate among the early Christians regarding whether or not converts to the faith should follow the Jewish "kosher" rules found in what we now call the Old Testament. In particular, there was considerable disagreement regarding whether or not male converts to Christianity from non-Jewish backgrounds should get circumcised as Jewish men are expected to do as a ritual in their faith.

After much discussion, Paul concludes that they "should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God." In other words, if Gentiles (non-Jews) had to get circumcised and follow all of the other Jewish dietary rules, it may have been more difficult for them to actually convert to Christianity. He says it is not necessary.

This is important because the early disciples were no longer promoting Judaism but actually a new faith that was meant for everyone. Paul cites a passage from the Old Testament in which he concludes that God always intended for the entire world to know Him, not just the Jews. By not requiring converts to follow the Jewish kosher laws, the faith would be freed of its cultural weights. This would make it much easier and more attractive to people around the world to one day become Christians.

As we think about the modern spread of Christianity into places like Korea and China and India, it is in part because 2,000 years earlier Paul removed the cultural elements associated with Judaism as a prerequisite for being a Christian. Now a Korean convert to Christianity can still eat non-kosher foods and follow his or her Korean culture. In fact, one of the great aspects of Christianity is its ability to adapt to the cultures of the world. We do that in AYL too by adapting the Christian faith to the world of Asian American teenagers. We maintain the doctrines of Christianity but modify the "style" and culture. Thanks to our early Church fathers for leading the way!

- Brian Hall