Who was right? Who was wrong? Does it matter? Barnabas wanted to take Mark with them as he and Paul were headed out to visit with the brethren in the cities they visited on the first missionary journey, Antioch Pisidia, Lystra, Iconium, Derbe, Selucia and Paphos among others. Yet Paul didn't want to take Mark. Either one of them was wrong, or both were wrong. Both were filled with the Holy Spirit and attempting to walk in the Spirit. Yet, pride or the flesh in some way entered into this decision. It's fascinating that Barnabas was the one who stood with Paul when he was rejected by believers in Jerusalem. Barnabas stood by Paul when no one else would. We see Barnabas do the same here with John Mark. Of course, we know Mark goes on to be a committed follower of Jesus. He writes the gospel of Mark and is associated with Peter's ministry.
This parting of Barnabas and Paul may have been done very gentlemanly; simply agreeing to disagree. Barnabas said he'd take Mark and go to Cyprus; Paul could take Silas and go to Asia. Luke follows Paul's ministry in our text. This is not to say that God didn't also work amazing thing through Barnabas and Mark. In fact, these were Godly men whom God used in amazing ways. While we don't know too much about where Barnabas went for a while, he does show up again and he is reconciled with Paul.
Barnabas with Mark heads toward the land where he grew up, Cyprus. Paul does the same in heading to the region of Celicia where one would find the city of Taurus. It had been 4 or 5 years since these men had left these new Christians in these pagan cities.
Acts 16:1-5
Derbe was a successful stop for Paul on the First Missionary Journey. It was the place he went to after being stoned by the people of Lystra. At first they were going to sacrifice to him after the lame man was healed, but some Jews turned them into a violent mob. Paul was probably a little apprehensive about going back to Lystra. But he was blessed in so doing because he ran into Timothy. This was no coincidence but God’s perfect and sovereign timing. God was beginging to grow up the next generation.
Timothy had a Jewish Mom and a Greek Father; he was a young man in his early 20s and a disciple, known among the brethren there in Lystra and Iconium. These two cities were less than 20 miles apart. Over the 5 years since Paul had brought the gospel there, God had been growing this young man up and using him. He already had a good reputation among the believers.
Part of what Paul was doing was delivering this letter and news from the council in Jerusalem. That letter said that it wasn't necessary for gentiles to be circumcised or keep the law. And if you remember from chapter 15, they were asked to abstain from certain things so as not to stumble their Jewish brothers and sisters. When Paul took Timothy and circumcised him this had nothing to do with salvation or the gentiles in any way. This wasn't for the sake of Timothy. It wasn't for his salvation nor did it improve his standing with God. By Jewish law, because Timothy's mother was Jewish, he was considered a Jew. But because he wasn't circumcised the Jews would have considered him apostate, outside the faith. (How would anyone know?) Paul circumcised Timothy simply so he would be accepted as a Jew among Jews. Now when Timothy spoke to unbelieving Jews in the synagogue, they would listen. While keeping the law was not required for salvation, there was nothing wrong with the Jews continuing in their traditions after they were saved by grace.
Timothy became Paul’s right hand man. We should note that this may well have been God’s intention with Barnabas and Mark, in their absence, God brought Silas and Timothy. Even in the event that we fail to follow God’s leading or we are unfaithful in some way, God’s will bring someone else to get the job done. He is never surprised by us. God doesn’t accomplish things by our abilities and faithfulness, but by his abilities and faithfulness. He wants to use us and be faithful to his call and leading but he is never at our mercy.
Church wasn't a weekly thing, it was a daily thing. This church was alive and about the business of God daily, not just one day a week. God added to them daily.
Paul, Silas and Timothy traveled to the churches and built them up. They took the letter and the encouragement from the Jewish council to the churches as they went. Receiving this letter had to relieve the burden the false teachers had put on them. But also, they had to feel a part of something bigger than their little church when they got a letter and attention from the ‘home church’ and apostles in Jerusalem.
Acts 16:6-10
Galatia was the name of this area of Roman Province that we know as Turkey. Phrygia was a region within Galatia from the Greek Provinces and regions. There were still people who called themselves Phrygian that lived in the region of Galatia. If Paul had kept his current path he would have went right into Asia toward Ephesus, Sardis, Colosse, Laodicea, Pergamum and Smyrna. This path into Asia that the Holy Spirit forbid at this time is the same one he'll take on the 3rd missionary journey.
How is it that the Holy Spirit forbids this journey? We don't really know. There was nothing wrong with Paul's desire to preach the word. While we would see this as God's work that we must pursue, it wasn't God's timing. Paul was determined to follow the leading of the Spirit. If you are determined to follow the Holy Spirit, how will you know when He forbids you from going somewhere?
Remember Paul didn't even set out to go any further west, he left Antioch just to visit the places he had already been. God moved Paul to keep going and then slammed a door to change his direction. Paul went north and around the northern part of Asia, through the region of Bythinia and then the Roman highway would have taken them to the region of Mysia.
The Holy Spirit led Paul to the Roman Highways; restricting and directing each step with desire, prophecy, open doors and closed doors. The point is to be open to His direction and leading. Closed doors were direction and not to be considered a discouragement.
Troas was a large seaport on the Aegean Sea on the Northwestern part of Asia Minor. This is about 10 miles south of Troy, the scene of the Trojan War written about by Homer. Paul's going to come back here several times. He'll preach a message late into the night on one visit and a young man will fall out a window and die.
This missionary team arrived in Troas, the exact place God called them to be and at the exact time. After the closed doors and long travel, Paul, Silas and Timothy had to be excited to see what God was going to do. I bet they thought, this is going to be good. Paul seemed to be in Troas for 2 reasons. First, God gave him a vision. This trip was bigger than he had anticipated. God brought him to this seaport for him to set sail for Macedonia. The second reason may be less obvious. In verse 7 Luke is writing about 'them'. 'They' came to Troas. Then in verse 10 Luke changes to saying 'we'. 'We' sought to go to Macedonia. God brought Luke to meet up with Paul in Troas and join this missionary team.
Paul had a vision of a man who stood and pleaded with him to come over and help. Who was the man in the vision? Some believe this man in the vision was Luke because this seems to be where he joins Paul. We don't really know who the vision was but it moved Paul and he took this as direction from God and immediately moved on to Macedonia. This is an invitation to Europe.
At this point in the journey, they've gone about 600 miles. It was about 300 from Antioch of Syria to Antioch of Pisidia. Then another 300 to Troas. And God still hasn't got them where he's taking them. This is just a way stop.
Acts 16:11-15
Samothrace was an island about halfway to Neapolis. We don't know if they actually stopped off there. This was a 20-mile island with a tall peak that was a landmark for sailors. The ships were known to anchor on the north side to protect them from the south winds. They stayed there overnight so as not to be at sea in the dark. The next day, they came to Neapolis. Luke said, "we ran a straight course for Samothrace". In fact, it wasn't a straight course looking at the map. This is actually a nautical expression meaning the wind was at their back. This becomes obvious when we see they made this 156-mile journey in 2 days. In a few chapters they come back this way and it takes 5 days. Neapolis is a seaport for Philippi in Macedonia.
Philippi is a leading city in the district of Macedonia. The city was named after Phillip of Macedon, Alexander the Great's father who conquered the site. As Rome rose to power, Philippi became famous as a military stronghold and was also famous for its nearby gold mines. Philippi was the site of a great battle in 42 B.C. after the assassination of Julius Caesar. It was at Philippi the armies of Antony and Octavian defeated the Republican generals Brutus and Cassius, the assassins of Julius Caesar. This defeat led to a stronger and expanding Roman Empire. Many Roman soldiers retired in the area, and Philippi was proud of its Roman connection.
It was the Sabbath day so Paul, Silas, Luke and Timothy made their way outside the gate to the river. This was apparently a well-known prayer garden. They spoke to the women there and Lydia heard them (Where were the me?). She was a business woman dealing in purple die used to die clothes. She was also a worshiper of God but didn't have a relationship with Him. The Holy Spirit had prepared her that day to hear what Paul said. Her heart was opened, not just to hear the word, but heed it. This means she responded to it. Her response led to her sharing that same word with her family and they were all saved and baptized into the Lord. Lydia's desire was to host this missionary team, to serve them and care for them in their travel. It’s funny that we don’t know Lydia’s husband’s name. But she and her husband opened their home to the missionary team.
Acts 16:16-19
While they were going to the place of prayer they ran into this slave girl who had a spirit of divination. This is a “python spirit”. The expression comes from Greek mythology; the python guarded the oracle at Delphi. Her spirit could supposedly predict the future. This girl followed after them declaring that they were servants to the El-Elyon, The Most High God. To those that recognized her as one having this python spirit, the most high god would have been Zeus. She gave testimony that they preached the way to salvation; however, this caused confusion as she associated herself to them after many days.
After many days of this girl following them around, Paul became annoyed. This little girl may not have had evil intentions. But she was associated with the occult and with Greek mythology. Even though she was speaking the truth, because of her association with evil things, their testimony was damaged. People may or may not hear what she is saying, but they would remember Paul, Silas, Luke and Timothy being with this girl.
It should probably bother us that a solid biblical message could come from such an evil source. In this case solid teaching could lure people in and then lead them astray? It's fascinating that this girl was known as a fortuneteller and one who practiced divination, yet she knew of El Elyon, God Most High. She failed to know that God Most High had forbidden divination.
Paul wanted no association with this girl so he commanded the demon to come out of her in the name of Jesus Christ. It immediately obeyed. This presence of the demon in the little girl made her valuable to her masters. When the demon left her, she was obviously changed, and not for the better as far as they were concerned. They grabbed Paul and Silas into the marketplace and took them to the authorities.
Acts 16:20-24
In the Roman empire, all religions and religious teachings had to be approved by Rome. Jews were somewhat uncommon in Philippi and apparently disliked for their ethnicity. Like so many who hate Jews, they probably had no explanation for their hatred. They were obviously upset about their loss of income. They knew they were messing around with spirits and demons, yet they persisted for money. They cared nothing for this girl.
Going before the magistrate was probably intimidating to most. However, Paul was probably unimpressed. The magistrate was a Roman official over the city. Roman law also prohibited a magistrate acting on impulse and not giving these men their day in court. A Roman colony had 2 magistrates. While they had a hearing, they didn’t investigate the charges. Since there was no conviction, the punishment was illegal. The magistrates appealed to the mob for their own political preservation (sounds familiar).
They stripped their clothes off their backs to prepare to beat them with a bundle of rods. This may have been about the time Silas remembered how he got there. They beat them and then imprisoned them in the most secure part of the jail. As extra precaution, they put them in chains. This was mob justice.
Luke, a gentile, and Timothy, half gentile, were left alone and watched this happen, helpless to do anything. This is more evidence the actions were driven by ethnic bigotry.
Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Corinthians 10:3-6)
Acts 16:25-34
Paul and Silas were in prison, in stocks and singing hymns of praise around midnight. The guards were listening. What if these guys started complaining instead? What if they felt abandoned by God? What if they whined about their ministry opportunity was ruined? Someone is always listening. God can work in situations and ways we can’t imagine or keep up with.
Paul and Silas thought having a captive audition was awesome! The prisoners couldn't run away, the guards had to be here. They were probably all wondering if these guys knew you weren't supposed to enjoy prison? Then God shook things up a bit. Not only was the prison shaken but also the hearts of the guards.
Paul and Silas had to be thinking, the guys back in Antioch aren't going to believe this one. They got thrown in prison and before the night was out the guard was face down seeking God and asking for salvation. When the Lord shakes this world, you better have something stable to trust in. This poor guy just realized all the control he thought he had, all the authority of Rome and its military might; all his training, experience and accomplishments added up to exactly nothing in the presence of the Lord. This guard was responsible for the lives of all he guarded. If they escaped, he took their un-served sentence. If everyone escaped, he was as good as dead.
Instead of ending his life that night, this guard died to himself. Right there at that moment in time, he realized his need and how quickly the control of this life had vaporized. He relinquished all rights and ownership of his life to the Lord. He went from being a career soldier, making decent money, raising a family and enjoying a good life and feeling as though he was in control of his destiny to realizing all he believed in was crushed. Control was a thinly veiled illusion; vaporized by the supernatural shaking from the Lord.
This all happened about midnight, maybe a picture of the spiritual darkness of the guard and the city itself.
We must all first believe the Lord is who He said He was. This is our first priority. All other things will then fall into place. Saying I believe in the Lord but not knowing who He is or what he claimed to be is not real belief. The knowledge of Him must get from the head to the heart. This man was a walking example of the gospel. He was as good as dead. He almost ended his life, in his sin, by his own hand. Instead, he died to himself, giving his life away to the One who Purchased him from sin. The Lord redeemed him and gave him new life. His life and eternity went through a complete transition.
Acts 16:35-40
The chief magistrate sent his police to the prison and told the jailer to release the prisoners. He didn’t want anyone to find out about this. The jailer told Paul and Silas the good news and bid them “go in peace”. Paul, in essence said, “Not so fast!” They came and made a big spectacle of putting them in prison and now they wanted them to go away secretly after they’d been beat. This guy had his own system of justice where he decided what happened to whom without trial. This probably worked on many since he beat them and intimidated them. But Paul was a Roman citizen and it was a big deal to punish a Roman, especially without a trial. Paul made them come personally and release him and they begged him to leave the city. He wasn’t so easily intimidated. I imagine Silas was just ready to get out of there. They went to Lydia’s house to say their good byes and encourage the believers there.
©2008, 2014, 2021 Doug Ford, Calvary Chapel Sweetwater
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