The Macedonian Cry
Notes
Transcript
Acts 16:6-10
Acts 16:6-10
Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas.
That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!”
Paul and Barnabas had separated. In Acts 15, Paul told Barnabas they should go back to all the cities where they had preached on their first missionary journey to check on the believers.
(Don’t leave new believers to figure it all out on their own)
Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them but Paul said no. Mark had deserted them when things got hard in Pamphylia and Paul said I need someone who will stick with me. I do not need someone who will abandon me when times get hard. Paul knew all that he was going to have to endure and he needed people he could depend on to go with him. So, Barnabas took Mark and Paul chose Silas. Along the way, the pick up a young man named Timothy who goes with them.
They travel through Galatia and Phrygia, planting churches there because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from taking the gospel to Asia.
Have you ever wanted to do something good for God and He said “No?”
Have you ever had God redirect you? You were moving along in one direction thinking this is the direction God wants me to go, then all of a sudden, He redirects your path?
Sometimes in our lives, the Holy Spirit will prevent us from doing something we know is a good thing simply because it is not in His will at that time.
Paul and Silas were going to do a good thing. They were going to spread the gospel as far as they could, wanting to go to Bithynia and Asia but God said, “Not yet boys.”
Can you imagine being Forbidden by the Holy Spirit from preaching the Gospel?
Wanted to go to Asia, wanted to go to Bithynia. Holy Spirit said “No” twice.
When we are following the call of God, we do not operate on our own schedule. God’s will and timing is always perfect.
Wanted to use the auditorium for revival. We were not allowed to use it at that time. But, when the time was right, when God had purposed for us to use the auditorium during school hours, we saw 79 kids give their life to Christ.
Sometimes when we are prevented from doing something we see as a good thing, it is not always the devil trying to fight us. Sometimes it is the Holy Spirit saying, “Not yet.” Paul would get to take the gospel into all of these regions but only when it was God’s will and timing.
God’s redirection from Asia to Galatia is the reason the church was planted there and the reason we have Paul’s letter to that church today. What might have happened if Paul disobeyed God and went to Asia instead of Galatia?
There are times in our lives when God tells us to wait and we move too soon and other times when he tells us to move and we hesitate and miss the opportunity.
“The Opportunity of a lifetime must be seized in the lifetime of the opportunity.” Leonard Ravenhill
It is all about the timing of God. You move too soon, you might mess it up, you hesitate and you might miss it.
The Key is obedience to the Holy Spirit
Standing on the shore of Troas, Paul sees a vision of a man in Macedonia. This man is crying out for help, not just for himself but for his entire region.
When is the last time you cried out to God, not just for yourself, but for all the lost in our region? When is the last time you cried out to God to save our young people? This is not a hopeless generation. This is a generation desperately seeking truth and in need of hope.
This man was crying out for help, not even knowing the answer he needed. He was in Greece, the hedonistic country. He was crying out because all of the pleasures of the world had left him and the region empty.
He recognizes just like the writer of Ecclesiastes, “Ecclesiastes 1:2
“Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!”
The Greeks indulged in everything. And this one man realized it was all meaningless and cried out for help.
What about people around us who are silently crying out, “Help us.”?
What about the people we walk by every day who are desperate for hope and truth?
We have the answer to every one of life’s issues. We are not called to keep it to ourselves. We are called to be the solution.
Matthew 5:14 ““You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.”
The world is dark. People’s lives are dark and we are called to be the light that pushes back the darkness.
Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth.”
Salt changes the flavor of everything it touches. We are called to change the flavor. We cannot just sit back content in our churches while the world around us is dying and going to hell.
People are crying out all around you:
The single mom who does not know how she is going to feed her baby.
The alcoholic who doesn’t know why he can’t put down the bottle
The drug addict with the needle in his arm
The prostitute who feels so worthless she sells herself on the street
The teenager at school who has been tossed around from foster home to foster home
The one who has to be the adult in the house because mom and dad are strung out
The lawyer or doctor who seems to have it all, but has realized the meaninglessness of it all
Are you glad someone cried out for you? Someone prayed for you? Are you glad someone was willing to take the time to tell you about Jesus?
Will we answer the call or continue to walk by and look the other way, satisfied in our own salvation?
What did Paul do?
Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.
IMMEDIATELY - NO HESITATION!!!!
This was the first time the gospel went to Europe.
Like the prophet Isaiah, Paul said, “Here I am, Lord. Send me!” And Paul led his missionary team according to the plans of God and not his own.
Like Paul, we cannot wait around and expect God to send someone else. We need to be ready to answer the call. We need to be willing to step outside of our comfort zone and follow the direction of the Holy Spirit, no matter where He leads us.
The Holy Spirit sent Paul into a region filled with wickedness, the worship of false gods, the region known for its lack of inhibition, where anything and everything goes. He sent Paul to the darkest place to shine the greatest light.
What if Paul had not listened and not taken the gospel into Europe? Who is out there waiting on you to bring Jesus to them?
CHALLENGE: Tell at least one person about Jesus each day, not just people you know and like.
