The Macedonian Call

Introduction

There are many decisions that have to be made in life and they aren’t always easy. Some decisions are easy like what do I want to eat for breakfast. Others are harder like where should I get a job or what should I do with my life. When it comes to determining God’s will for our lives, we can be left questioning sometimes and feeling like we are in the dark. While this message is not going to be a overview of finding God’s will for you life, we often say that there are Six pointers that the Holy Spirit uses to direct us to find God’s will:

The word of God

Prayer

Counsel

Circumstances

Wisdom

The Peace of God

However, some decisions are not as clear cut as opening your bible and finding a verse to tell you what to do. God’s word can show us how to live, right and wrong and it can give us wisdom to make right decisions; but it isn’t going to tell you if you should move to New Mexico or North Dakota. Prayer is more about seeking God to direct us than actually being directed itself. Counsel helps us gain some wisdom about the choice that we need to make. The peace of God can confirm but emotions are not a reliable guide for direction. In the end, we take all of these pointers together not in isolation in determining God’s will for our lives. Today we are going to look at two elements of determining God’s will for our lives that are intertwined, but often ignored: The leading of the Spirit and circumstances.

In Acts 16: 6, Paul has completed visiting the churches from his first missionary journey and he wants to know where to go next. What we want to look at today is how God directed Paul on his missionary journeys.

Paul was not clear on all the details of his ministry before starting out to do something for God. vs 6-8

At this point in Paul’s life, we see him making multiple attempts to do something for God. He wants to spread the gospel to new regions. As he would write later in Romans 15:20 “Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man’s foundation:” Paul is trying to break out into new regions. So he tries something. Sometimes we are so concerned about waiting for God to write His will in the sky for us that we sit around and do nothing. I know many bible college graduates who are still sitting around in Shelby, NC or Greenville, SC waiting for God to show them what He wants them to do. This is not how God works. He directs those who are already busy serving, obeying Him. It is important to find God’s will for you life and He does have a will for your life, but doing nothing will never get you there. I think of the words of Abraham’s servant when he was looking for a wife for Isaac. Gen 24:27 “And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master’s brethren.”

You can sit in the driver’s seat of a parked car and move the steering wheel around, but is it going to direct the car or get you anywhere. No, the car has to be in motion in order for it to be directed.

God has already given us so many commands and directions in his word and if we aren’t obeying those why would we expect Him to show us more. God had already told the Apostles in Acts 1:8 “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” to get the gospel to all the earth. Paul is just setting about doing that in any and every way he can.

According to the text, he tried to go

Southwest into Asia- the western half of Modern day Turkey

North to Bithynia

But one of the ways that God directed Paul was by closing down doors of opportunity. We do not know how the Spirit forbade them or suffered them no. That word suffered means allowed. Some believe Paul had his severe health issues and couldn’t go. Maybe opportunities fell through; maybe it was just a nudging of the Spirit not to go. We know that Paul was all about open doors and closed doors.

1 Cor 16:9 “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.”

2 Cor 2:12 “Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and a door was opened unto me of the Lord,”

Jesus spoke about open doors in

Rev 3:7-8 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.”

When God opens a door for us, we should walk through it because no man can shut it and if God closes a door we should not stand there banging at the door because no man can open it.

I have been growing in my understanding of what it means to be walking in the Spirit. Somehow we have made it into this mystical process that we feel like we never attain; I am learning that even when I wasn’t aware of it, I have been walking in the Spirit. My understanding of the doctrine right now is that as the Holy Spirit guides me, I obey. Walking is living. Walking in the Spirit is in His strength and following His guidance.

Let’s show that from the text. Paul tried to do something he thought could be God’s will, but the Spirit guided him elsewhere. He tries to go North and the Spirit says no. What did he do? He obeyed the guidance of the Spirit. To me walking in the Spirit is as simple as listening for Him to direct you whether through the word, prayer, counsel, peace, circumstances, or internal nudges and then obeying what he told you to do. There is another element of the empowerment of the Spirit but that is not our discussion today.

Paul was open to the leading of the Spirit that when he said No, he obeyed.

When God made things clear to Paul, Paul obeyed immediately vs 9-10

I could imagine that Paul is getting a little frustrate feeling boxed in. He has tried to go every other direction that he could, but the only direction the Lord doesn’t forbid is going to Troas. Troas was a seaport from which the rest of Europe could be reached. In fact, this area was called and is even still known as the Gateway to Europe from Asia. God is preparing to move Paul into a whole new location of ministry and open up the rest of the world to receive the gospel. Imagine if Paul had stayed in Turkey or had decided to God to Asia or even Russia at the time. The gospel would not have had the same impact on the world as it did because Paul went to Europe.

In Troas, Paul has a vision in his sleep of a Macedonian man. We don’t know who this man is, but the message is clear: Come over into Macedonia and help us. Paul takes this vision as a direct guidance from God and in vs 10 the set out immediately to go to Macedonia. When God makes something clear to us, we should have the heart that doesn’t fight against it or delay in obeying it.

So many of us have visions for our own lives that we can’t even receive the vision that God has for our lives. We want to have:

a nice house

a beautiful wife

nice car

good job

lots of money

have fun

play video games

All of these things can cause us to be unwilling to listen to God and hesitant to obey God. Let me let you in on a truth. In India, I couldn’t play video games. Gasp. The internet was no where near good enough and electricity went out quite often. But are you seriously going to tell me that something as insignificant as a video game or even a nice house is going to keep you from entering into the Amazing plan that God has for your life?

Paul was so in-tuned with the Spirit, that he was sure this was God’s leading. And the need that the Macedonians had was to hear the gospel. The writers of the song Lamb of Glory in our hymnbook also wrote a song called People need the Lord. There are people everywhere who need the Lord.

1. Our neighbors right beside us need the Lord. And while they may not say it with their lips, they are crying come over and help us.

2. The kids at school need the Lord. And while they may even fight against it, their destructive lives are really a cry saying come over and help us.

3. The drug addicts on the streets may think they need those drugs, but their addiction is really a cry saying come over and help us. People who get into drugs are looking for something more.

4. The billions overseas may not even think about Jesus, but they are inwardly crying come over and help us.

The greatest need this word has is the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The girls like to watch these little cartoons called Torchlighters in addition to their devotions in the mourning. I was recently reminded of the story of Saint Patrick by Bella. Saint Patrick was actually and early Christian before the Catholic Church had cemented its hold on Christianity.

Patrick was born in Northeast parts of England among the Britons to a Christian family. As a child, he did not accept his parents faith. He was kidnapped by Irish raiders at the age of 16 and carried away from home. For 6 years, he was a slave to the village chief who was a pagan druid. While a captive, God set his spiritual bonds free and he was saved. While in captivity, he learned their language, culture and what made them tick. When he finally escaped in his early twenties, he returned home and went to seminary and led a British church for 20 years. At age 48, an age past common life expectancy at the time, he had a vision of an Irish man saying We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us.

Patrick was willing to return to the place that caused him so much pain and bring them the gospel of Jesus Christ. He did not hesitate to obey.

James 1:22 “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”

Conclusion

Heads bowed, Eyes closed.

This story gives us a glimpse into how God directs us in our lives. There isn’t always a vision in the sky or a sign that this is God’s will. Sometimes God directs us by opening and closing opportunities for us. Sometimes he makes it clear for us by giving us a sign similiar to the Macedonian call; but either way, we should be walking with the Spirit at the level that when He directs, we obey.

Ask yourself this today: What is it that God might be trying to direct you to do for Him? Are you listening; are you obeying?

What is it that might be keeping you from obeying immediately whatever it is that God is asking you to do?

If you say, Pastor Jason, there is something in my life right now that I love more than God and it is keeping me from being willing to do God’s will will you raise your hand this morning. In a moment, you will have an opportunity to deal with God, please come forward in the invitation. Today is the time to decide, I’m done with this thing.