Acts 16

Acts 16:1-8

44. A SPIRIT FILLED Acts 16:1-8 The supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit by which the apostles were confirmed as the messengers of Christ (Hebrews 2:4) ceased when the canon of Holy Scripture was complete and the apostles had all died (1 Corinthians 13:10). The Bible is the perfect, complete Revelation of God. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it (Revelation 22:19). Since there are no inspired apostles today writing out a new word of revelation from God, there is no need for those gifts of a supernatural, miraculous nature by which the apostles were identified as apostles. However, the ministries of God’s servants today are just as truly Spirit filled ministries as were the ministries of his servants in the apostolic era. Every true gospel preacher, being called and directed in his labors by God the Holy Spirit, exercises a Spirit filled ministry as he preaches the gospel of Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 16:1-8 gives us an example of such a ministry. This chapter begins with Paul and Silas coming to Derbe and Lystra. It is the beginning of Paul’s second missionary journey. We are told nothing more about Barnabas, but Paul and Silas continued to faithfully preach the gospel of Christ, being led by God the Holy Spirit in all things.

That is what a Spirit filled ministry is. It is a ministry dictated by the Holy Spirit, a ministry controlled by and in submission to the Spirit of God (Ephesians 5:18). In these eight verses Luke shows us four things that characterize a Spirit filled ministry. A MAN BY GOD (Acts 16:1-3) - Wherever you find a Spirit filled ministry you will find a man prepared by God for the work of the ministry. No man is called of God to preach the gospel who has not been prepared and qualified by God for the work (1 Timothy 3:1-7). When Paul came to Derbe and Lystra, he found a young man named Timothy, whom he ordained to the work of the gospel ministry (1 Timothy 4:14; 2 Timothy 1:6). Neither Paul nor Timothy knew how the Lord might be pleased to use him, but Timothy was a young man whom God had called and gifted for the work of preaching the gospel. The Lord began his preparation of Timothy in his earliest years by his special providence. Timothy’s mother, Eunice, was a Jewish woman who was a believer. His grandmother, Lois, had also been converted by the grace of God. From his earliest days of childhood Timothy had been taught the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make sinners wise unto salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 1:15; 2 Timothy 3:15). Eunice gave her son the name “Timothy”, which means “honored of God”. Like Hannah of old, Eunice got her son from the Lord and gave him to the Lord. From his boyhood he was taught the Word of God. It should be the greatest concern of parents to instruct their children in the gospel of Christ and train them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). If parents would train their children as they ought, they must…

1. Train them in the way the should go not the way they would go (Proverbs 22:6).
2. Discipline their children firmly and consistently, insisting that they behave the way they should (Proverbs 22:15; Proverbs 23:12-14; Proverbs 29:15).
3. Walk before their children in the way of faith and obedience, showing them the way by example (Genesis 18:19).
4. Pray for God’s wisdom, direction, and grace in training their children, and for his merciful blessings upon the training they give (Genesis 17:18).
5. Commit their children to the hands of God (1 Samuel 1:24-28). There is in Timothy’s parents a display of God’s marvelous providence and grace. Though his mother and grandmother were both believers, his father was an unbelieving Gentile. Eunice’s marriage to him was an act of disobedience to God (Deuteronomy 7:3; 2 Corinthians 6:14). But providence took the sinful union of an unbelieving man and a believing woman and prepared a messenger of sovereign grace! As God overruled David’s adultery with Bathsheba and gave them Solomon, so he overruled Eunice’s disobedience and gave her Timothy. Thank God, he does not remember the sins of his people against them! Indeed, as John Trapp put it, “God can (and often does) turn our sins to our good and comfort.” Like a wise physician, our Lord takes the most deadly poison and makes it a medicine for our health. In the fulness of time Timothy was also prepared by grace for the work to which God had ordained him. He who preaches grace to others must first experience grace in his heart, and Timothy did. He was a devoted disciple of Christ, a man of blameless reputation in the community where he lived, and “well reported of by the brethren” (1 Timothy 3:7). It is apparent that Timothy was willing to serve God’s cause in any capacity. That service which Mark despised as shameful, Timothy counted an honor (Acts 13:5; Acts 15:38). God uses men like that! Timothy was further prepared for the work of the gospel ministry by his willful submission to a man of proven faithfulness (Acts 16:3). Before a man can lead men, he must learn to follow. Before Elisha could be a prophet he had to set at the feet of and serve the prophet Elijah. And before Timothy could be entrusted with the care of the churches he had to prove his care for the churches by serving Paul. He even submitted to the painful ordeal of circumcision, simply because Paul, God’s faithful servant, said it would be best for the gospel’s sake (1 Corinthians 9:19-23). Timothy was a man prepared by providence, grace, and obedience for the work of preaching the gospel. A MESSAGE FROM GOD (Acts 16:4) - That man who preaches by the Spirit of God is God’s messenger, God’s ambassador to men. He has a message from God and faithfully delivers it (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). They all have the same message, the gospel of Christ. And they are all to be heard, received, and treated as God’s ambassadors. They constantly declare “the decrees” ordained of the apostles by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (Acts 15:11; Acts 15:18): The Scriptures alone! Christ alone! Grace alone! All God’s servants preach God’s gospel: Ruin by the Fall, Redemption by the Blood, and Regeneration by the Holy Spirit. A Spirit filled ministry is a ministry characterized by the message of God’s free and sovereign grace in Christ. A BY GOD (Acts 16:5). Paul and Silas went about preaching the gospel. They did not employ entertainers to make the gospel more appealing, have puppet shows to reach the children, host ball teams for the men, or organize bowling leagues for the women. They simply preached the gospel and waited for God to work, and he did (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). “Some were converted by their ministry, others confirmed. This is still the fruit of faithful preaching” (John Trapp). This much is certain: Anytime a man preaches the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit something happens for the glory of God (2 Corinthians 2:14-17). A BY GOD (Acts 16:6-8). Faithful gospel preachers are led, directed, motivated, and inspired in their work by the Holy Spirit. God’s servants will not allow either their own desires or the influences of men to determine the course, place, or message of their ministry. Paul wanted to go to Asia, but the Holy Spirit would not allow it. He tried to go to Bithynia, but was providentially hindered. It was the purpose of God that the gospel be carried to Troas and then to Macedonia.

There are some places in this world where God’s servants are “forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word.” “This was a heavier judgment upon those coast,” wrote Trapp, “than to be denied a harvest, or the light of the sun. Prize the preaching of the gospel as a singular privilege. They that are without a teaching priest are without God (2 Chronicles 15:3).” Blessed beyond measure are those people to whom God sends his servants to faithfully preach his Word (Amos 8:11-12; Isaiah 52:7).

Acts 16:6-13

45. THE CALL Acts 16:6-13 After establishing the churches in Lystra and Derbe in the faith of the gospel, Paul and Silas went throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia preaching the grace of God in Christ. Paul wanted to carry the good news of redeeming, saving grace into Asia, but the Holy Spirit gave him no liberty to do so (Acts 16:6). So he travelled on to Mysia and tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of God closed the door again (Acts 16:7). Following the direction of God’s providence and the leadership of the Holy Spirit, Paul and his companions “came down to Troas” (Acts 16:8). In the evening, as Paul was seeking God’s direction for his ministry, a vision was given to him. By the special, supernatural revelation of God the Holy Spirit he saw a man from Macedonia standing before him, who said, “Come over into Macedonia, and help us” (Acts 16:9). Paul took this to be a call from God (Acts 16:10). He had earnestly sought the will of God, and now he knew it. God had called him to preach the gospel to the perishing men and women of Macedonia. Immediately, he went to Philippi, the first city he could get to in Macedonia (Acts 16:11-12). There he went to the place in that city where he was most likely to get a hearing and preached the gospel to a gathering of a few women (Acts 16:13). Paul did not stop to do deputation work to raise money.

He did not seek the approval or permission of a mission board. He knew that God had called him and trusted God both to provide for him and to make his labor effectual. It was his responsibility to preach the gospel to the perishing sinners of Macedonia. That was the one thing he knew he must do. He had to be obedient to the call of God (1 Corinthians 9:16). Here is the Macedonian call - “Come over and help us.” It is a call that has application to the church of God today. There is much for us to learn from this call and Paul’s response to it about the evangelistic, missionary responsibilities of the church. First, MEN AND WOMEN WHO DO NOT KNOW THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST ARE LOST, IN , UNDER THE WRATH OF GOD. The lost condition of perishing sinners is, to the people of God, a cry for help. This man of Macedonia represented a people who had everything imaginable in a natural sense. He represented a country and empire of incomparable greatness. Macedonia was the land of Philip, king of Macedonia and his son, Alexander the Great. This man represented the Greek world, the world of refinement, learning, wealth, and culture.

The Greeks were also a very religious people. No one could question their devotion, fervency, and sincerity as religious people. They gave a great portion of their time, labor, and money to religious work and worship. They built the famous Parthenon in Athens and the great temple at Ephesus. In Athens alone the Greeks had 30,000 gods! When Paul saw their worship and devotion, he said, “I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious (religious)” (Acts 17:22).

The Greeks had every advantage socially and economically. Yet, like the rich young ruler, they lacked one thing. They had no knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. They were ignorant of soul-saving gospel truth. The lost condition of the refined Greeks demonstrates one fact with clarity - All who are ignorant of the gospel of Christ are lost, perishing in their sins under the wrath of God! The ignorant barbarian is lost (Romans 1:18-21).

Our religious and irreligious relatives, neighbors, and friends who know not the Lord Jesus Christ are lost (Romans 10:1-17). Their lost condition is a cry for help. It is our responsibility to preach the gospel to them. Secondly, THE GOD CAN EVER BESTOW UPON ANY PEOPLE IS TO SEND THEM A GOSPEL (Isaiah 52:7). The Holy Spirit would not let Paul go to Asia or Bithynia. But he sent him to Macedonia. What a blessing! There were some chosen sinners in Macedonia whom Christ had redeemed. The time had come when they must be called to life and faith in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the gospel. “Ministers,” wrote John Trapp, “are those by whom God helpeth his perishing people, and putteth them out of the devil’s danger. Hence they are called saviors (Obadiah 1:21; 1 Timothy 4:16), redeemers (Job 33:24; Job 33:28), co-workers with Christ (2 Corinthians 6:1).” God saves his elect through the instrumentality of gospel preaching. He who ordained the salvation of chosen sinners also ordained the means whereby it must be accomplished (Romans 10:17; 1 Corinthians 1:21; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; James 1:18; 1 Peter 1:23-25). Wherever an elect sinner is found, at the time appointed, a gospel preacher will be sent. One sign of God’s anger, wrath, and displeasure upon reprobate men is that he sends them no gospel preacher, or that he withdraws from them the ministry of a faithful man (Hosea 4:17). Thirdly, IT IS THE OF , AND AS LOCAL , TO PREACH THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST TO BOUND SINNERS (Mark 16:15-16). Every gospel preacher is responsible to keep the charge of God upon him (1 Timothy 4:12-16; 2 Timothy 4:1-5). Every local church must devote itself to the furtherance of the gospel (Matthew 28:18-20). And every believer must assume his responsibility to make the gospel of Christ known in his own generation. God has given you the light that you may show others the way. He has given you the message of his free and sovereign grace in Christ. It is your responsibility to get it out, to make it known in the generation in which you live. You cannot make anyone believe the gospel. That is not your responsibility. But you can see that they hear it. And that is your responsibility (Acts 1:8). Fourthly, AS YOU TO MAKE THE GOSPEL KNOWN, SEEK AND SUBMIT TO THE OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT (Acts 16:6-10). If you truly seek the will of God and wait upon the Lord that you may know how to serve him, he will show you his will (Proverbs 3:5-6). By the direction of his Word, the impulses of his Spirit, and the indications of his providence, God will make his will known to all who seek it. When God reveals his will to you, you will know it. And when you know you are doing the will of God you can do it with boldness, without fear of failure. If God is in the initiation of a thing, he will be in the execution of it, and he will see it through to its appointed end. Whether God shuts a door or opens a door, we must readily follow his direction. Fifthly, GOD WILL BOTH DIRECT AND HONOR THE EFFORTS OF HIS PEOPLE FOR THE OF THE GOSPEL. God always honors those who honor him (1 Samuel 2:30). You do not labor in vain, if you seek to serve Christ (1 Corinthians 15:58). When Paul went to Macedonia he was thrown in jail, but God honored his labor in the saving of two precious souls, Lydia and the Philippian Jailor. His ministry there was a great success! He did exactly what God sent him there to do. Be faithful to the work God has trusted to your hands, whatever it is. You will not fail. God is with you. His Word, which he sends out through you, will not return unto him void (Isaiah 55:11).

Acts 16:13-15

46. “A CERTAIN WOMAN NAMED LYDIA” Acts 16:13-15 There were many women at Philippi, and several who gathered every sabbath day for prayer by the riverside, but among the many there was “a certain woman named Lydia” who had been separated and distinguished from the rest by the grace of God. This “certain woman”, who had been chosen by God and redeemed by Christ, must be regenerated by the Spirit and called to Christ. Before the world began the Lord God had appointed a time and a place for this woman’s salvation. Now the time of mercy had come. The place grace had chosen was a riverside just outside the city of Philippi. Exactly at the time appointed, “the time of love” (Ezekiel 16:8), God brought Paul, his messenger of grace, to that little clearing by the riverside to preach the gospel to Lydia, “whose heart the Lord opened.” This brief narrative of Lydia’s conversion is here recorded by divine inspiration to teach us at least five things. First, GRACE ALWAYS HAS ITS WAY! Salvation is by grace alone. That is stated so plainly and emphatically in the Scriptures that very few people openly deny it (Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:3-5). However, there are few people in this world who understand the meaning of the word “grace”, as it is used in the Bible. Grace is more than a divine attribute. It is a divine determination, a divine work, and a divine gift. It is not merely a desire in God’s heart to save. It is the operation of God’s arm, accomplishing salvation. The grace of God is sovereign (Romans 9:16). God alone determined who he would save. His choice and election of some to eternal life was an act of his free, unconditional love (Jeremiah 31:3; Ephesians 1:3-4). Grace is never caused, dependent upon, or determined by man. The grace of God is eternal (2 Timothy 1:9). The people to whom grace would come, the blessings grace would bring, and the works grace would accomplish were all determined by God before the worlds were made (Ephesians 1:11). The grace of God is irresistible and effectual (Psalms 65:4; Psalms 110:3; Isaiah 46:9-13). “The marvel of God’s grace is that it will not take `No’ for an answer from some men” (Walter Chantry). Grace is more than divine goodness. It is the omnipotent power of divine goodness. Grace is not something God simply offers to sinners. It is something God performs in them! The grace of God gives God alone all praise, honor, and glory for his saving operations (1 Corinthians 1:30-31). Grace attributes nothing to man but sin. Grace honors the triune God for salvation: The glorious Father, as the covenant keeping God of heaven and earth; the gracious Son, as the Redeemer of his people, and the Holy Spirit as the Author of regeneration. Grace is always on time (Ezekiel 16:6-8). At the time appointed when the chosen sinner must be saved, grace comes calling, creating life and faith, causing the dead sinner to come to Christ. No wonder the Psalmist sang, “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest and causest to approach unto thee” (Psalms 65:4). Every saved sinner is a trophy of grace for the praise of God (Ephesians 2:7). Second, DIVINE RULES ALL THINGS FOR THE OF GOD’S ELECT. This lesson is demonstrated repeatedly, throughout the book of Acts. In the passage we are studying we see grace making its way to “a certain woman named Lydia”. Grace marked out its object - Lydia! Grace set the time - A Certain Sabbath Day. Grace determined the place - A Riverside at Philippi. But how would Paul, the messenger of grace, and Lydia, the object of grace, be brought together at Philippi? Paul was brought to Philippi by a very remarkable work of divine providence. His intentions were in another direction altogether, but God’s intention was to bring him to Philippi. The strife with Barnabas caused him to go in one direction and Barnabas in another (Acts 15:36-41). Paul wanted to go to Asia. Lydia lived there, in Thyatira; but she was not at home at the time. So the Holy Spirit forbade Paul from going there.

Then Paul tried to go to Bithynia, but, again, the Spirit of God would not allow it (Acts 16:6-7). At last, he was called over into Macedonia, and the first city in his path was Philippi (Acts 16:9-10). He must needs go through Philippi, because there were chosen sinners there for whom the time of grace had come. At exactly the same time, divine providence brought Lydia to Philippi. She had come on business, because God almighty was doing business for her! Ever trust and admire God’s wise, adorable providence.

Often we murmur because we look at our circumstances. May God teach us to look instead to his purpose and to trust it (John 17:2; Romans 8:28). Third, THOSE WHO WALK IN THE LIGHT GOD GIVES THEM SHALL BE GIVEN MORE LIGHT. Salvation is by grace alone. Those sinners, and only those sinners, shall be saved whom the Father elected, the Son redeemed, and the Spirit calls (Romans 8:29-30). Yet, every person is responsible to obey the gospel. Here are three inescapable facts revealed in Holy Scripture: (1) All men are responsible to trust Christ (Acts 17:30); (2) No one will ever trust Christ unless God gives him faith (John 5:40; John 6:44); and (3) Any sinner in all the world who will come to Christ may come to Christ, and coming to Christ shall be saved by Christ (John 6:37; Romans 10:13). Lydia did not open her heart. That was the work of God alone. But she was not indifferent to her soul either. She did what she knew she should do. When she came to Philippi she sought out a people who sought to worship God, though they were but a band of women with no house of worship (Acts 16:13). When Paul spoke the Word of God, she “attended unto the things which were spoken” (Acts 16:14). Lydia was earnest about her soul. She sought the Lord, and seeking him she found him (Jeremiah 29:12-13). You would be wise to follow her example (Proverbs 1:23-33). Fourth, GOD USES MEN FOR THE OF HIS ELECT. As we have seen many times in the study of Acts, God’s ordained means of grace to sinners is the preaching of the gospel (Romans 10:13-17; 1 Corinthians 1:21; 1 Timothy 4:16). Paul faithfully performed the work God had committed to him (1 Corinthians 4:1-7; 2 Corinthians 4:1-7). In all things he sought the will of God and labored for the glory of God. He did not seek anything for himself, but faithfully served Christ in the place where God put him, ministering to the people God entrusted to his care, and counted it his great privilege to do so (Ephesians 3:8). Fifth, THE LORD GOD ALONE CAN OPEN THE HEARTS OF SINNERS. Providence brought Paul and Lydia together. Lydia came to the place of prayer, because she sought to worship God. But their meeting on the sabbath day would have been a meaningless, insignificant exercise of religion except for one thing - The Lord was there! He was there working by his almighty, effectual, irresistible grace. Lydia was a woman “whose heart the Lord opened.” He alone could.

He who is the heart’s Maker is the heart’s Master. Christ alone holds the key to man’s heart, knows how to put the key in, and opens the heart’s door to let himself in! The Lord opened Lydia’s heart to hear, understand, and believe the message of grace in the gospel. Her faith in Christ was manifest by two things (Acts 16:15). (1) She obeyed Christ, confessing him in believer’s baptism; and (2) She fell in love with those who served her soul (Isaiah 52:7). Grace made her generous and hospitable.

Acts 16:16-40

47. WHY WERE PAUL AND SILAS ? Acts 16:16-40 Though they had done nothing at Philippi except preach the gospel of Christ and cast an unclean spirit out of a young woman, Paul and Silas were unjustly arrested, beaten, and publicly humiliated as common criminals. Why? Were they out of God’s will? Had the Lord forsaken them? Was the angry mob out of God’s control? Had satan managed to thwart God’s purpose? Nonsense! “Our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased” (Psalms 115:3). Paul and Silas were arrested and thrown into prison at Philippi in violation of Roman law (Acts 16:35-39), because the jailor in that prison was one of God’s elect and the appointed time of mercy and love had come when he must be converted by the grace of God. The first lesson taught and illustrated in this passage is one frequently set before us throughout the book of Acts: GOD RULES ALL THINGS FOR THE GOOD OF HIS ELECT (Acts 16:16-24). There was an elect soul at the Philippi prison to whom Paul must preach the gospel. But their paths would never have crossed had God not sovereignly intervened to accomplish it. In order to accomplish his purpose of grace, God overruled the rantings of a demon possessed woman and the malice of an angry mob (Psalms 76:10; Romans 8:28). God’s servants refused the praise of a fortune teller (Acts 16:16-18). Refusing to be associated with this satanic woman and her satanic religion, Paul turned and cast the demon out of her by the power of Christ. Three things need to be understood: (1) All forms of sorcery, witchcraft, and fortune telling are forbidden in the scriptures as satanic devices (Leviticus 19:26-31; Leviticus 20:6; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; Isaiah 8:19; Malachi 3:5). (2) God’s servants will not receive the praise and commendation of those who do not worship the Lord God. And (3) exorcism, like healing and the gift of tongues were apostolic gifts, confirming the apostles as God’s messengers in the apostolic age (Hebrews 2:3-4). Those gifts are not active in the church today because they are no longer needed (1 Corinthians 13:10). Even the wrath and wicked deeds of reprobate men accomplish the purpose of God (Acts 16:19-24). Though the damsel spoke what satan inspired her to speak and the men of the city did exactly what their anger and greed led them to do, God wisely and sovereignly used them to bring Paul to preach the gospel to a chosen sinner so that he might be saved (Psalms 76:10). Election determined who would be saved (Ephesians 1:3-6). Predestination determined all things for the accomplishment of God’s gracious purpose (Ephesians 1:11). Providence is God’s wise and orderly disposition of all things in the sovereign accomplishment of his purpose (Romans 8:28-30). As it is written, “All things are of God” (2 Corinthians 5:18). The second thing we learn from this passage is the fact that FAITH IN CHRIST CAUSES TO SUBMIT TO THE WILL OF GOD (Acts 16:25-28). Paul and Silas recognized that their imprisonment was as much the work of God as their daily provisions. Therefore, they were both confident and joyful. In the time of trouble they did not seek a christian counsellor, psychiatrist, or therapist. They did not become emotional wrecks. They believed God. Therefore they prayed. Happy are those souls who learn thus to deal with their troubles (Hebrews 4:15-16; 1 Peter 5:6-7). Moreover, these men offered to God the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving in the midst of great trouble. They “sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” Why shouldn’t they? Believing God, they were full of joy. They knew their imprisonment was the will of God and that God’s will is always good. Therefore they gave thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). The believers joy is the joy of faith (Philippians 1:25). It is not circumstantial, but spiritual. It is a joy that glows in the dark. The Lord has a way of assuring his tried and afflicted people that all is well, that he is upon his throne, and that he is with them. He graciously demonstrated his presence with and approval of Paul and Silas by a remarkable, providential intervention. He sent an earthquake that did no harm, but only good (Acts 16:26). Immediately, Paul thought of his captor, whom he knew would most likely kill himself if his prisoners escaped (Acts 16:26-27). What an example he was, even in great trial. In the midst of his trouble, Paul carefully sought the comfort and welfare of a man who was his enemy. Thirdly, we are taught that GOD ETERNAL TO ALL WHO BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (Acts 16:29-34). The jailor cried, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Like all natural men, when seized with the fear of death and the wrath of God, this man thought he could and should do something to obtain God’s salvation. Paul did not rebuke him for his error, but rather simply said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Essentially, his words mean - “Man, you cannot do anything to be saved. You must trust Christ alone as your Lord and Savior. Believe on him and you shall be saved. And if the members of your family trust him, they too shall be saved!” Having made that declaration, Paul proceeded to instruct the chosen sinner and his household in the gospel of Christ (Acts 16:32).

Once they heard the message of grace and redemption in Christ, both the jailor and all his household were converted by the grace of God (Acts 16:33-34). They all believed on Christ. They all confessed him in believer’s baptism. They all rejoiced in God their Savior. And they all did what they could to comfort and assist the men who brought the message of grace to them. Learn this too, THE ONLY BETWEEN THOSE WHO BELIEVE AND THOSE WHO BELIEVE NOT IS THE GRACE OF GOD (Acts 16:35-39). The magistrates had seen the same things the jailor did. They felt the earthquake. They were filled with fear. But their hearts were unbroken. What made the difference between them and the jailor? Why did he believe God while they refused to believe? The answer is GRACE! (Read 1 Corinthians 4:7; 1 Corinthians 15:10). He was one of the Lord’s sheep. They were not (John 10:25-27). Grace sought him out. Grace gave him life. Grace gave him faith. Grace made him a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17). The fifth lesson taught here is that THE ‘S TRIALS EQUIP HIM TO COMFORT OTHERS IN THEIR TIME OF TRIAL (Acts 16:40). Paul and Silas gathered their brothers and sisters together to comfort them and strengthen their hearts in the faith. I am sure Paul told them what God had done, how that the Lord was with them in their trouble, and how grace had come to the jailor’s house. Just before leaving them, the apostle must have urged them ever to cling to Christ and trust him, assuring them that no matter what their outward circumstances might be, all is well, eternally well, because God is accomplishing his purpose of grace (Romans 8:28-39).

Acts 16:30-34

48. " IN GOD WITH ALL HIS HOUSE" Acts 16:30-34 The Philippian jailor said to Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” His concern was not how he could be saved from temporal death, but from spiritual and eternal death. He was moved not by the fear of Caesar, but by the fear of God. Fearing God and eternal death, he may have phrased his question as he did because he thought, (as all men do by nature), that he must do something to obtain God’s salvation. But Paul and Silas answered with emphatic clarity and simplicity, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house,” teaching him and us that salvation is not by works, but by faith alone (Romans 3:20; Romans 3:28; Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 1:9). WHAT MUST WE BELIEVE? Really the question is not “what”, but “who must we believe?” Salvation does not come as the result of believing certain doctrines, no matter how true and necessary they are. Neither does salvation come by believing certain historical facts, no matter how vital those facts may be. Salvation comes to those who believe, who trust a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 1:12; 1 John 5:1). In order to believe on Christ a person must know the truth about Christ, as it is revealed in the gospel. But saving faith is more than mere agreement with or acceptance of revealed truth.

It is believing a Person. It is trusting Christ himself (Isaiah 45:22). This is the way faith is represented to us throughout the Scriptures (Matthew 16:16; Matthew 16:18; John 20:21; Acts 8:37; 1 John 5:10-13). “True faith is not barely a believing that Christ is the Son of God, but a believing in him as such” (John Gill). Saving faith is believing in Christ, the incarnate Son of God, as your all-sufficient, effectual, sin-atoning Substitute (2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24). WHAT IS IT TO BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST? Men often make simple things difficult by trying to explain them. Certainly there is a danger of that when discussing faith. Yet, the word “believe”, as it is used in the Bible, is not the same thing as men imagine it to be today. So some explanation is needed. For example, Webster’s Dictionary defines believe like this - “To place credence, apart from personal knowledge; to expect or hope; to be more or less firmly persuaded of the truth of anything; to think or suppose.” In that sense most people believe in Christ.

Most believe that he lived in righteousness as a perfect man, that he died on the cross to save sinners, that he rose from the dead the third day, and that he ascended into heaven. But that is not the meaning of the word believe as it is used in the Word of God. Actually, there is no single English word that can accurately translate the Greek word used in Acts 16:31 for believe. That word means “adhere to, cleave to, trust, have faith in, and rely upon.” The apostle’s words to the jailor might be more accurately translated, “Have an absolute, personal reliance upon the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” The Amplified Version gives the sense of Paul’s words most clearly - “Believe in and on the Lord Jesus Christ - That is, give yourself up to Him, take yourself out of your own keeping and entrust yourself to His keeping and you will be saved.” Believing on Christ, faith in him, involves four things: knowledge, assent, trust, and perseverance.

1. • No one can trust an unknown, unrevealed Savior. Before anyone can or will trust Christ, Christ must be made known to him by the preaching of the gospel (Romans 10:14-17). It is not possible for a person to believe on Christ until he has been informed about Christ, until he knows who Christ is, what he did, and why he did it. Faith is not a leap in the dark. Faith is based upon divine revelation. But there must be more.
2. ASSENT - Our hearts must give assent to God’s revelation. There is no faith until the heart is reconciled to and in agreement with the truth of God revealed in Holy Scripture. We must be reconciled to God and his revelation concerning the vital issues of salvation: sin, righteousness, and judgment (2 Corinthians 5:20; John 16:8-11). Still, there is more.
3. TRUST - Saving faith is believing in, relying upon, trusting Christ. It is a heart confidence in the Son of God. This trust, this confidence is what Paul expressed in his last Epistle (2 Timothy 1:12; 2 Timothy 4:6-8). To trust Christ is to confidently rest your soul upon his righteousness, his atonement, his intercession, his grace, and his dominion as your Lord and Savior. But faith in Christ is not an act. It involves…
4. • Faith is not an event in life. It is the character of the believer’s life. The just live by faith. The believer never quits trusting Christ. Every child of God, like the saints of old, shall “die in faith” (Hebrews 11:13). Faith that does not persevere to the end is a false faith. It is the very simplicity and easiness of faith that makes it so difficult for proud sinners to be saved. God says, “Believe and live.” But proud man says, “No, I will do something. I will not be saved entirely by the grace of God. I will not entirely trust my soul upon the merits of Christ.” Yet, there is no other way to be saved! Sinners are saved by simply trusting Christ, the Son of God, by committing themselves to the merit and power of the Substitute who lived, died, and lives again for sinners. Salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone is so humbling to proud, self-righteous man that no man can or will trust Christ unless and until God the Holy Spirit gives him life and creates faith in him. Yes, faith in Christ is the gift of God (Ephesians 1:19; Ephesians 2:8-9; Philippians 1:29; Colossians 2:12). WHAT IS THAT WHICH COMES TO SINNERS BY FAITH IN CHRIST? It is complete deliverance from all sin and all the consequences of sin by the grace of God and through the merits of Christ’s righteousness and shed blood as our Substitute (John 3:18; John 3:36; Romans 8:1; 1 John 5:10-13). To be saved is to be delivered from death to life, from the bondage of sin to the liberty of righteousness, from the tyranny of the law to the blessedness of grace, and at last into “the glorious liberty of the sons of God.” One more question naturally arises as we read Acts 16, and needs to be answered. DOES THIS PASSAGE TEACH ? (Read Acts 16:31-34). The grace of God does not run in blood lines, and it is not possible for parents to secure faith for their sons and daughters. Many truly godly men, like David, have gone to their graves knowing that their sons and daughters lived and died as rebels against God (2 Samuel 23:5). Salvation is by the will and purpose of God (John 1:12-13; Romans 9:16). Faith is the gift of his grace.

The Philippian jailor was saved because he believed God. All who were in his house were saved because they too believed God. As soon as the jailor heard and believed the gospel of Christ, he brought Paul and Silas upstairs to his house. He gathered his wife, children, and servants around his table in the middle of the night, and arranged for them to hear the message of grace too. When they heard, they also believed, and all immediately confessed Christ in believer’s baptism. Every believing parent is responsible to do for his household what the jailor did for his. IF WE WOULD SEE OUR SAVED BY THE GRACE OF GOD, WE MUST SEE THAT OUR HEAR THE GOSPEL . That much we are responsible to do. That much we can do. That much we must do! But the salvation of our households is entirely dependent upon and determined by the will and grace of our God.