The Specific Plans of God

Hallelujah. This morning, we come to Acts 16:6-15.

Acts 16:6–10 ESV

6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Paul’s now in his second missionary journey. He went to Galatia in his first journey, and now he’s gone back to Galatia to touch base with the churches there. And he met Timothy and took him along. So now it’s Paul, Silas, and Timothy.

And beside Galatia to the west is the province of Asia, so Paul and his team go there to continue their mission work. This isn’t our Asia. The province of Asia is the modern day country of Turkey.

But something unexpected happens. He arrives in Asia, but the Holy Spirit tells Paul not to preach. So what to do? He moves toward a highly populated and prosperous city called Bithynia, which is near today’s city of Istanbul. But then the Holy Spirit forbids them from going. So in the end, they go all the way to the western coast, to a port city named Troas.

Now, while at Troas, Paul receives a vision of a man saying, “Come to Macedonia and help us.”

And we should take note of how Paul doesn’t grumble when God tells him not to do what he planned to do? Paul doesn’t ask God to explain Himself. Paul just doesn’t do it. And when Paul gets a vision to go to Macedonia, which was a ship’s journey away into the next region, Paul and the rest of them immediately go.

Some people always wait for God to give them a reason before they obey. Or they obey, and then demand a reason from God. But that’s not the right attitude. God doesn’t have to explain Himself to us. He has His reasons, and we are called to trust that God knows what He’s doing. That’s called faith.

So Paul and his team go to Macedonia, probably by boat. In today’s map, they travel from Turkey to Bulgaria in Europe. And at Macedonia, they come to a city called Philippi.

Acts 16:11–15 ESV

11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. 13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

There’s no synagogue at Philippi, so on the Sabbath they take a walk outside the city, looking for a place to pray, and they find these women gathered together, and among them is a woman named Lydia, who sells purple goods, probably clothes.

Back then, the color purple was very valuable and expensive. You had to boil a certain kind of snail, and do things with the liquid to make purple dye.

So this tells us that Lydia was wealthy. In fact, she had a big house. And it says that the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to Paul’s words. And she and her household were baptized, and she insists on Paul and his missions team to stay at her house.

Later on, we see that Lydia’s house becomes the very first church in Europe.

Acts 16:40 ESV

40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.

Now, what does this have to do with us?

As Christians, we all make plans and decisions based on our understanding of what’s good and pleasing in the eyes of God. We apply for study programs in good schools. We go for job interviews for good jobs. We date with good Christian people and work our way toward marriage.

And according to God’s Word, they are good things. It was a good thing to preach the Gospel in the province of Asia, and Paul wanted to do it. But God prevented him. Why? Was it because it was sinful? No. It was a good thing. But God wanted him in Philippi.

We may call this a closed-door experience, where God closes the doors in our lives in order to lead us to where He wants us to be.

And from our perspective, we experience this in the form of rejection. Getting rejected by the schools we want, the jobs we want, the romantic partners we want. It hurts. And many times, we cry out to God in frustration, “God, why didn’t You give me this opportunity?” “God, why did our relationship fall apart?”

But as time goes by and we move on from these painful closed-doors, we often look back and see the wisdom of God’s plan. We look back to five years ago, and see what good things have happened because God closed the other doors in the past, in order to lead us to the right door that He has prepared. The couples that are happily married give thanks that their previous relationships didn’t work out.

There was a little girl who once came home with her pockets full of brightly shining berries. And she was so pleased with her findings, she wanted to share them with her father. But when her father saw the berries, he asked for all of them. No sharing. And he dug a hole in the garden, put all the berries in, and stomped on them with his feet. The girl started crying, saying “How unkind my father is, to take away these things that pleased me so much!” But her father later explained that those berries were so poisonous, eating even one would have caused her death.

In the same way, the things that seem good to you may not actually be meant for you. And it is out of kindness that God takes them away from us, puts them in a hole in the ground, and stomps on them. Our closed doors are a blessing from the Lord.

We still are called to make plans and godly decisions according to God’s Word. But let us not hold on to them too tightly, and instead have some flexibility to follow wherever God leads, according to the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. May we live a life of amen, that only seeks to do God’s will, and follow God’s lead. And in that way, I believe that the Lord will bring you to the place He has prepared for you specifically. Amen?