Philippi
Notes
Transcript
Straight Path
Straight Path
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Today’s message is all about how we trust God in every area of life. There is no exception to this rule. We will see in today’s passage that things don’t always go the way we planned and sometimes, that’s because God has a different plan for our lives. If we aren’t trusting him, we may wind up shipwrecking our lives for a season as we fight against the leading of the Spirit instead of submitting to it.
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5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.
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.
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.
A path planned. A path changed.
A path planned. A path changed.
The Plan
The Spirit led path
Jerusalem Council to Split to Lystra (Timothy; forbidden to go into Asia) to Mysia (forbidden to go to Bithynia) to Troas (vision of Macedonian man) to Philippi
Plan in humility
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—
14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.
15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
Plan in faith
9 The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.
Plan in the Spirit
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Where do I witness?
Where do I witness?
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.
There was no Synagogue. Either there was not a large enough Jewish presence to have one or the Jews had been run out of Philippi.
Paul adapts to his current situation.
The result:
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.
Dealing with a Demon
Dealing with a Demon
16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling.
17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.”
18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
Notice Paul’s Patience
Notice Paul’s Focus
Notice Paul’s Response
Dealing with Persecution
Dealing with Persecution
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.
20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city.
21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.”
22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods.
23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely.
24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
We aren’t given any insight into whether or not Paul and Silas were able to defend themselves. The indication is that the Mob controlled the entire affair, and general distaste for Jews led to quick judgement and punishment.
Dealing with Divine Intervention
Dealing with Divine Intervention
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them,
26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.
27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.
28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.”
29 And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas.
30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.
33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family.
34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.
Why did God set them free if they were not to escape?
What were your response have been?
What role did the vision of Paul play in his commitment to stay?
Dealing with Injustice
Dealing with Injustice
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.”
36 And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.”
37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.”
38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens.
39 So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city.
40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.
What do we learn about dealing with governing authorities?
What authority did Paul have to call out the Magistrates?
When we submit to authority, how do we make differentiation from conflicting authorities?
We must ask, which is in ultimate authority:
God is our highest authority.
He has placed rulers over us. Here in the U.S. we submit to authority in a particular order. What is that order?
Each state is part of this republic. Each state has sworn its allegiance and submission to our founding documents. These documents establish our form of government. These laws guide us and supersede the authority that lies beneath them.
If a law, established by the constitution is violated by a state or local authority, which do we submit to?
This has been a large debate within our culture as lock-downs have shuttered the doors of many churches. Caused the demise of many business and threatened the lively of many people.
As I reflect on our nations laws, the first amendment to the constitution states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
How then should a church navigate a time with so much uncertainty?
Paul submitted
Paul did not lead a revolt
Paul looked for God’s handiwork.
Paul used proper channels for the “redress of grievances”.
Why did he do this? Likely to protect the fledgling church from further abuse.
What about today?
If I simply listen to man and the popular voice, I am abdicating my responsibility as a Christian to guard the mission of the Gospel and submit to God’s leadership.
If I simply demand my rights, I am placing my life and my desires above the authority of God and placing a manmade law on par with God’s will.
I cannot do either.
I therefore submit to the Lord in all things and make the wisest decision I can as led by the Holy Spirit
What then are the priorities of the church?
They are to keep in step with the spirit.
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Will the Holy Spirit lead every church the same way?
No! Each Pastor, each church must move as God leads them. Every ministry . . . every plan must be submitted to the Lord. God will grow and test each congregation as He sees fit and according to each ones need.
They are to proclaim the Gospel!
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
This past year has found us struggling to find ways to proclaim the Gospel. Is this a failure of the Church or a call to think outside the box. Paul’s example in this chapter is that we take the situation we are given and look for God’s hand. The Gospel commission does not stop when our circumstances change.
They are to meet together!
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,
25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
This season has seen many challenges and forced changes and opened doors for many churches.
Was it okay to close down our churches at all?
It is the habit of not gathering that we must avoid. Many have left churches because it was easier to stay home on Sunday. Perhaps their church didn’t handle things the way they wanted.
Submission to God is higher than submission to the rights granted us in the Constitution. I may hate that my rights are infringed upon but if that becomes my focus, am I risking missing what God is doing?
There is a time to submit to even unjust treatment. There is a time to stand and demand Justice. How do I make the choice?
How did Paul know not to go to Asia?
How did Paul know not to go to Bithynia?
How did Paul know to go to Macedonia?
How did Paul know to go to the place of Prayer?
How did Paul know to not flee the prison?
How did Paul know to wait to proclaim his citizenship?
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
We like black and white. We like rules and systems. What we have, Is a relationship. It supersedes all of our comforts. It calls us to trust and obey. That trust requires faith. That faith requires relationship. That relationship requires surrender. That surrender grants us humility. That humility allows us to love like Christ. Loving like Christ allows us to set aside ourselves for the sake of the Gospel.