Acts 16:13-15 - Lydia's Baptism

Introduction

They say that opportunity only knocks once, so I knew that I had to take the opportunity to preach on Lydia’s baptism from Acts 16 on the same morning that we celebrated our own Lydia’s baptism here at Emmanuel.

Of course, there are differences between the Lydia of Acts 16 and our Lydia.

The Lydia in Acts 16 is from Thyatira and our Lydia is from Mobile.

The Lydia in Acts 16 was a grown woman and our Lydia is a little girl.

The Lydia in Acts 16 was a seller of purple goods and our Lydia is unemployed—like all her siblings.

But what the Lydia of Acts 16 and our Lydia have in common is most important—the grace of God opened both their hearts to believe on Jesus and be baptized in His Name.

Let’s read the passage...

[READING - Acts 16:13-15]

Acts 16:13–15 NASB95

13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled. 14 A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul. 15 And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

[PRAYER]

[CONTEXT] Paul was the chosen instrument of Jesus to bear His Name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel (Acts 9:15). At this point in his service to Christ, He has already been on one missionary journey and is just starting his second. On this second journey, Paul and his fellows missionaries will visit Athens and Corinth, Ephesus and Thessalonica, but first they stop in Philippi—a leading city of the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony.

Why the district of Macedonia? Why Philippi? Why not some other place? How was Paul choosing where he would go?

He wasn’t. He wasn’t choosing. He was being directed.

Acts 16:9–10 NASB95

9 A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Paul and his team made haste and ended up in Philippi where they met Lydia who became the first Christian in Europe.

[TS] Immediately Lydia received four TREASURES that every Christian receives when they trust Christ...

Major Ideas

Treasures #1 & #2: God’s Word and God’s Grace (Acts 16:14)

Acts 16:14 NASB95

14 A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.

After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to the Apostles and to more than five hundred of His followers at one time. During one of those appearances, we are told in Luke 24:45…

Luke 24:45 NASB95

45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,

And although by this point in Acts 16, Jesus has ascended to Heaven, He is still opening hearts and minds to understand the Scriptures.

This is what He did in Lydia’s case, and it is what He does in every case when someone genuinely calls on the Name of Jesus for salvation.

Paul usually went to the synagogue on the Sabbath so that He could proclaim Jesus as the Christ, but Philippi apparently didn’t have a synagogue, so Paul and his companions went down to the riverside where they expected to find a place of prayer.

A place of prayer was where Jewish people and potential converts to Judaism met if a synagogue wasn’t available.

They did find some women who were praying; one of whom was a potential convert to Judaism—a seller of purple goods named, Lydia.

As a ‘worshiper of God’ Lydia wasn’t an official member of the Jewish religious community just yet, but she had already turned away from dead idols to serve Yahweh, the Living God.

But what Paul was about to proclaim was that Yahweh—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—He had come in the flesh and dwelt among them; He had lived a perfect life, died as the sacrifice for their sins, and was raised triumphant over sin and death.

In other words, Paul was explained to this potential convert to Judaism that the Jewish Messiah had come and they called Him Jesus.

Now there are at least two things we should note here:

First, Paul only ever had one message and that was Christ and Him crucified.

Two, that message is only received when the Lord opens the heart.

[Christ and Him Crucified]

[ILLUS] One Christmas when I was a teenager, someone decided that our boys Sunday School class needed to go caroling. A group of us guys were drug to the homes of a few random church members where we sang what carols we could remember.

Not one of us was a great singer, but we did have a couple of especially bad ones. Trying to awkwardly sing one carol in some strange living room, I heard my friend next to me singing one note—one note!—throughout the entire song. He sang every word of the song—but he sang them all in that one note!

“Hark! the herald angels sing! Glory to the new born King!” All in that one note!

But while one note singing might not be the best, one note preaching is certainly best—and the Apostle Paul only ever had one note in preaching—and that note was Christ and Him crucified!

Listen to what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2…

1 Corinthians 2:1–2 NASB95

1 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.

This was Paul’s message everywhere he went—Christ and Him crucified.

Christ and Him crucified in Corinth.

Christ and Him crucified in Ephesus.

Christ and Him crucified in Athens.

Christ and Him crucified in Rome.

And Christ and Him crucified on the banks of this river just outside of Philippi.

The Word of God only has one message and that is Christ and Him crucified.

The point of Genesis is Christ and Him crucified!

The point of Revelation is Christ and Him crucified!

And the point of every book, letter, poem, proverb, and prophecy in between Genesis and Revelation is Christ and Him crucified!

Now, of course, when Paul says that his message is Christ and Him crucified, he includes in that message why Christ was crucified and what came after His crucifixion, but the heart of Paul’s message—and indeed the very heart of the Gospel message is this, Christ has come and He has been crucified.

[The Lord Opened the Heart]

Now, when I say it like that you perhaps here the difficulty that a Jewish person—or even a potential Jewish convert like Lydia—would have in accepting that message. In their thinking the Messiah, the Christ, He was supposed to conquer not suffer; He was supposed to take back the Promised Land not lay down His life on a cross.

But the Word of God revealed that Christ would be a suffering servant (Isaiah 53) and a conquering king (Isaiah 9:6-7).

He came to suffer on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. The King of kings died for His people and conquered the enemies of Satan, sin, and death.

And then as we sing, “Up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph o’er His foes!”

And He ascended to the Father’s right hand, where He rules and reigns and from there He will one day return to make fully manifest His Kingdom on earth.

All of that seems so simple and obvious to us, but it is only because God has opened our hearts to receive it.

He did the same thing for Lydia.

Verse 14 says, “…the Lord opened her heart to respond...”

Paul didn’t open Lydia’s heart.

Lydia didn’t open Lydia’s heart.

The Lord opened Lydia’s heart.

If we believe that the Good News of God’s grace in Jesus Christ is true, it is because the Lord has opened our hearts to believe.

If anyone that we are praying for is going to believe that the Good News of God’s grace in Jesus is true, it will be because the Lord opens their hearts to believe.

[ILLUS] If you’ve ever locked your keys inside your car before, you know its a frustrating feeling. Everything your car has to offer is right there in front of you—it’s ability to take you places, it’s air conditioning, it’s contents like your wallet or purse, your phone, it’s all right there in your car—but you can’t access any of it because you’re locked out.

Apart from the grace of God, we are locked out of all the good things in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Apart from God’s grace, we can’t believe—and we can’t be forgiven—and we can’t be made righteous—and we can’t know the everlasting love of Christ.

But God’s grace unlocks the door and causes us to experience the Gospel in all its goodness.

Because of God’s grace, we believe and are forgiven and made righteous through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Because of God’s grace, we know the love of Christ and shall know it more fully in eternity to come.

If we long for someone else to believe, we should be praying, “Lord, please open their heart,” because their heart won’t open any other way.

If we believe, we should praying, “Thank you Lord for opening my heart.”

Lydia was thankful for the Lord’s grace that opened her heart to believe the Word of God concerning Christ and Him crucified, so she followed the Lord in baptism.

[TS] …

Treasure #3: Baptism in God’s Name (Acts 16:15)

Acts 16:15 NASB95

15 And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

Having heard the Word of God concerning Jesus as the Christ and having believed that Word by the grace of God, Lydia then followed the Lord in a first step of obedience through baptism in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit just as Jesus commanded.

Baptism wasn’t invented by Christians, it was practiced in the Jewish community as a repetitive cleansing ritual, of course, by John the Baptist and his disciples as a public sign of confession and repentance.

Jesus Himself was baptized by John but not as a sign of repentance (for He had no sins to repent of); but rather, as Jesus said, His baptism was to fulfill all righteousness.

Every believer who is convicted of sin and repents, calling on Jesus for salvation, ought to be baptized just as Lydia was.

The text says that Lydia and her household were baptized. This doesn’t mean that her household was baptized just because she was, but that the grace of God also opened their hearts when they heard about what God’s grace did in Lydia.

Baptism is for believers.

Baptism is by immersion.

In the NT, being immersed or submerged beneath the water is the only mode of baptism. The word ‘baptize’ means ‘to plunge, dip, or immerse’.

Baptism is a beginning.

It is not the finish line in the Christian life but the starter’s pistol.

Baptism is an appeal.

When one is baptized, they appeal or cry out to God to be free from the guilt of sin. Passing through water doesn’t save us, but that cry to God for salvation does.

Baptism is a symbol—a physical symbol of a spiritual reality.

That spiritual reality is stated in Romans 6:3-4…

Romans 6:3–4 NASB95

3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Baptism is a proclamation.

It proclaims to the world that we are followers of Jesus.

It proclaims to the church that we are apart of the family of God.

Baptism is a celebration.

Baptism pictures God safely carrying us in Christ Jesus through the waters of His judgment!

Baptism pictures our dying and rising with Christ!

Baptism pictures our sins being washed away!

We all should celebrate!

[ILLUS] I was telling some of our folks this past Wednesday night about a video I once saw of a little guy who was being baptized the pastor of his church who also happened to be his father.

The little guy was probably about 7 or 8 years old and he decided that when his dad called for him to come down into the water that he would in fact canon-ball into the water. From the side of the baptistry he appeared in midair and splashed down as his dad could only helplessly watch. Everyone in the congregation was laughing; and the boys father was smiling that thous-shall-not-murder-in-the-baptistry smile.

The son came up and his dad wrapped an arm around him (maybe a little too tight), and then the dad said with a serious smile and a chuckle, “Let me tell you all what is never going to happen again.”

But can you blame the little guy? He was excited about his baptism!

A little too excited? Yes.

But at least he was excited!

Too many of us have forgotten just how exciting baptism is!

Too many of us have forgotten the joy of our salvation!

Too many of us have forgotten the thrill of baptism, the thrill of plunging deeply into God’s mercy and grace and rising to eternal life!

May Lydia’s baptism remind of our joy in Christ!

Baptism really is a treasure!

[TS] …

Treasure #4: Service to God

Acts 16:15 NASB95

15 And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

As I said before, baptism is a beginning. As soon as Lydia was baptized, she knew that her service to God had started. She wanted to show appreciation to those who introduced her to Jesus, so she invited them to stay with her. Being a seller of expensive purple fabrics, Lydia was likely wealthy and had the room.

At first, Paul and his team seem reluctant, but Lydia said, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.”

In other words, Lydia said, “If you believe that I have really been saved through faith in Jesus, come into my house and stay.”

She won the argument. Paul and his fellow workers stayed with Lydia.

One of the first verses I memorized as a new Christian was Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

It’d be a lot better if I didn’t just have it memorized but followed the Lord in living it out.

If we have truly been baptized in the Name of Jesus, we understand that, as we follow Him, our lives will be about service rather than being served.

Lydia wasn’t saved to be served but to serve.

We aren’t saved to be served but to serve.

Ephesians 2:10 says that we were actually created for service.

Ephesians 2:10 NASB95

10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

[Illus] Usually when we serve God in some way we imagine that we are like some major league baseball player hitting a 100-mile-an-hour fastball off the world’s greatest pitcher. We think we’ve done something extremely difficult, something incredibly noteworthy.

In actuality serving God is more like playing T-ball. God sets up the good work on a T right before us and then says, “Swing away!”

We were created to serve, and God gets the glory in all our service because we simply do the good works that He has set up for us.

Lydia saw the good work of supporting Paul and his team that God had prepared beforehand for her, so she walked in it.

In fact, Lydia’s house would become the meeting place for the Christians in and around Philippi (Acts 16:40).

Do you see the good works God has prepared for you?

Are you willing to walk in them?

[ILLUS] Christian Counselor, Jay Adams, writes, “True conversion leads to works. (But) Some keep on waiting till they are ‘ready.’ Let me just say—if you are a Christian, you are ready!

If you’ve experienced God’s grace, you’re ready to serve Him!

If you’ve believed the Word of God about Jesus, you’re ready to serve Him!

If you’ve been crucified, buried, and resurrected with Jesus, you’re ready to serve Him!

You may not be ready to preach a sermon, but you can write an encouragement note.

You may not be ready to leave for the mission field, but you can tell someone at home about what Jesus has done for you.

You may not be ready to plant a church, but you can open your home.

This is how Lydia in Acts 16 served the Lord—she opened her home; she showed hospitality.

We are told in 1 Peter 4:9...

1 Peter 4:9 NASB95

9 Be hospitable to one another without complaint.

And we are told in Hebrews 13:2...

Hebrews 13:2 NASB95

2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.

I want to challenge you to show hospitality to your brothers and sisters in Christ and to your neighbors—many of whom are strangers to us.

Invite people over for coffee or supper. Get to know them. Tell them what Jesus has done for you and what He is doing in you. Listen as they share. Pray with them and for them. Make plans to do it again.

We live in a world where people are increasingly connected and yet increasingly isolated.

Our interaction with others is very shallow. Our connection very limited.

What a treasure it would be if we started serving the Lord through the practice of hospitality.

[TS] …

Conclusion

God’s Word and God’s grace.

Baptism in the Name of God.

And service to God.

All those treasures our ours when we say ‘yes’ to Jesus...

…just as Lydia did.