acts 16

Where Will He Lead You?

Acts 16

Pray.

After the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas about John Mark, Paul strikes out on his second missionary journey, this time accompanied by who? Right, Silas. When had he worked with Silas before? When they took the letter from the church in Jerusalem to the Gentile Believers in Antioch. Who else went on this journey with them? Timothy, to whom Paul wrote First and Second Timothy.

Paul and the gang travelled from town to town and spread the Gospel with very good results. The churches were strengthened and there were many new believers. Paul wanted to go into Asia, but the Holy Spirit would not allow it. We do not know how the Holy Spirit stopped Paul; it could have been visions, physical obstacles, or anything. But Paul knew to trust in God and not rely on his own thoughts or opinions. Instead, God used a dream to send Paul to Macedonia.

When Paul and company (by now including Luke, the author of Acts) arrived in Macedonia, they did not go to a synagogue like they normally did in new towns because the town was so small they didn’t have a synagogue. Paul and the gang went to a place where they would find people praying. They sat down and spoke to the women who were there. One of the women was named Lydia. She was a business woman, a seller of purple fabric. We are told that she believed in Jesus after speaking with Paul and then invited the whole crew to stay at her house. Instead of following his own path, Paul obeyed God and was able to spread the gospel in Macedonia.

Also while the gang was in Macedonia, Paul healed a slave girl from demonic possession. The evil spirit that had lived in her had given her the ability to tell the future and this ability left when the demon did. Her owners weren’t too happy about that. As retaliation, they falsely accused Paul and Silas and they were beaten and imprisoned.

What did Paul and Silas do in prison? They sang hymns and they prayed. All the other prisoners were watching them do this, too. While they were worshipping God, there was a big earthquake that knocked down the jail walls and even broke the prisoners’ chains. Realizing this, the prison guard started to kill himself rather than wait for punishment for letting the prisoners go. But then he realized that Paul, Silas, and all of the other prisoners were still there. They didn’t run out when they had the chance. I wonder about the other prisoners. Maybe it was Paul and Silas’ good influence that kept them there. Their presence had such an impact on the prison guard that he immediately asked how he too could become saved. What was Paul’s response? Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Paul spoke to the guard’s family and they cleaned his wounds and then they were all baptized!

This is a great example of how we are to listen for God’s voice in our daily lives. He won’t speak to us like I am speaking to you, of course, but He will still somehow let you know what His plans are. Paul allowed God to dictate his path. He wanted to go to Asia, but instead, God send him to Macedonia. In Macedonia, he witnessed to Lydia, freed the slave girl from the demon, and baptized the jailer’s whole family, all because Paul listened to God and obeyed Him.