God Uses Ordinary People: Lydia
Acts 16:14-15
Rev. Brian Bill
8/17/08
I thought I better get out ahead of something that happened to me in Mexico before my team members spill the beans. During our first Sunday in San Juan del Rio, we attended the worship service at the Community Center. The service there lasts much longer than ours and I knew I wasn’t going to make it without getting up to use the restroom. I was a bit nervous to do this however because the bathroom was located up near the front of the room where the service was held and it was going to be difficult to slip away unnoticed. I was even more unsettled when I got there because I realized that instead of a door into the bathroom there was just a shower curtain.
I hurried into the little room hoping that no one would walk in on me. Unfortunately I wasn’t fast enough because a young mother and her child opened the curtain and started to walk in. They quickly left and I’m certain I heard some muffled laughter as they did an about face. I was thankful they didn’t come all the way in but then I realized I had another problem. A lot of people probably saw what happened and now I needed to walk back to my seat while they stared at me. I decided my best bet was to just keep my eyes down and walk quickly. I could feel my face turn bright red and when I was almost to my row I looked up, only to see Gideon Yeager and David Grimes laughing hysterically. I tell you there’s no respect for the clergy nowadays.
I’ve come to appreciate the importance of doors and the locks that go with them. This morning we’re continuing in our series called, “God Uses Ordinary People” as we take a look at how God used both closed doors and open doors to impact Europe with the gospel through a businesswoman named Lydia. Please turn in your Bibles to Acts 16. The apostle Paul is traveling with a team of servants to deliver the decisions made at a special council held in Jerusalem. They’re moving from one city to the next to visit churches they’ve started and to begin new ones. But then, all of a sudden doors start closing.
I see four lessons from Lydia’s life that we can apply to our lives.
1. Look for open doors. God uses closed doors to put us in situations for His message to get out to the people He has already prepared to hear it. In verse 6, we see that the Holy Spirit shut a door into Asia. Notice that they were “kept by the Holy Spirit” from preaching there. In verse 7, the Spirit of Jesus “would not allow them to” enter another area. Doors were closed twice and Paul didn’t understand why because it made good sense to go into these communities. My guess is that Paul was disappointed and maybe even discouraged when these doors closed.
Have you ever been in a similar situation? The first line in the movie Bella goes like this: “If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.” Sometimes things seem so clear to us but when we try to move forward the door is often slammed in our faces – the house sale doesn’t go through, the promotion dissolves, and the health report is not what we were expecting. Instead of getting frustrated or angry, try to see that this is God’s loving way of redirecting us. Here’s a principle I first heard Henry Blackaby state: Find out where God is working and join Him there. That’s much better than just doing what we want and asking Him to bless us.
Now, instead of striving, Paul tries sleeping and in verse 9, he has a vision of a man from Macedonia who begged, “Come over to Macedonia to help us.” After seeing this vision, they got ready “at once” to leave. Here’s the principle: God often makes a way when we get out of the way. When we wait, God goes to work. Psalm 38:15: “I wait for you, O Lord; you will answer, O Lord my God.”
Look at Acts 16:12: “From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia…” Philippi was a colony of Rome even though it was separated geographically from Italy. Paul and his team arrived in this town expecting to find the man who had appeared in the vision. I imagine that they’re probably getting a bit anxious because they can’t find a believer anywhere and yet verse 12 concludes this way: “And we stayed for several days.” This is a good principle when you’re waiting for a door to open. Don’t be in such a hurry. Wait for God’s timing.
Verse 13 tells us that on the Sabbath, they went outside the city by a river in order to find a place of prayer because they thought people would be congregated there. Even in Babylon, God’s people would gather by a river when they could find no other place to meet. Check out Psalm 137:1: “By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.”
A bit of background is helpful here. According to Jewish law, a synagogue could only be established if there were ten men who could commit to the congregation. But since Philippi did not have a quorum of committed men, a group of women met near a river for prayer. To further complicate the situation, on the arches outside Philippi there was an inscription that prohibited the bringing of an unrecognized religion into the city. That might explain why this prayer meeting was being held outside the city.
This sounds a lot like the restrictions placed upon believers in China today. With all the focus on China during the Olympics, the amazing opening ceremony, and the great athletes like Michael Phelps who has won eight gold medals, I was glad to hear President Bush challenge the government to recognize the underground churches in China and to give them freedom to worship. In an interview with Bob Costas, our president made this bold statement: “Once religion takes hold in a society it can’t be stopped.” In my opinion, that deserves a gold medal.
2. Make God’s place a priority. Look now at the first half of verse 13: “On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer…” It was important to be near water because Jewish people would ritually wash their hands before prayer. These women gathered to recite Scripture, to read from the Law and the Prophets, to discuss what they read, and to pray. Friends, don’t minimize what happens when we pray. When we’re in an attitude of expectancy, God will open doors for us. These small groups were always open to listening to a traveling teacher offer an exposition or exhortation from the Scriptures. That’s exactly what Paul and his partners do in the last half of verse 13: “We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.” That’s what happens in a small group Bible study – people sit down together and speak the Scriptures to each other. I encourage you to join one of these groups this fall.
Verse 14: “One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God.” Lydia was from a town that was famous for making purple dyes and was likely in charge of a branch office in Philippi. Purple was the color of royalty and these cloths were in high demand because they were status symbols. It would be like an Armani suit or Tommy Hilfiger clothes today, like wearing a Rolex watch or carrying a Gucci handbag. To most Jews however, her job would have been scandalous because the purple dye came from a shellfish, which was considered unclean. The purple production process involved crushing thousands of crustaceans just to make a yard or two of purple cloth.
While this traveling trader was no doubt a successful businesswoman, she was “one of those listening,” which meant that Lydia was locked in. The word “listening” indicates a continuing process which shows that she was investigating spiritual matters. It literally means “to cup the ear” so as to not miss anything. I love how attentive the people of PBC are when God’s Word is taught. When we listen carefully, we will hear what God has to say. When we daydream or get distracted we may lose what it is that God is trying to say to us. I recognize that it’s a challenge to stay awake and to stay focused during the preaching time, but let’s remember that preaching is not penance.
Note also that she was a “worshiper of God.” This meant that she was a Gentile who had decided to follow Judaism and was sincerely seeking spiritual truth. She was religious but not yet redeemed. She knew of God but didn’t really know God. She was praying but had not yet discovered God’s purposes for her life. We saw this in Mexico where masses of people are committed to ritual but seem to lack relationship. That’s why it’s so strategic that we’re supporting the work of Beth Hanna and Paul and Grace Becker and Oscar and Peggy Lopez and Art and Marita Mikesell as they target the beautiful people of Mexico.
Let me make the obvious point that Lydia, a busy businesswoman, did not give up meeting with others on the Sabbath. She could have slept in because this was her “only day to catch up” or she could have done paperwork in her office or headed to the lake. Instead, she followed the admonition of Hebrews 10:25: “Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage on another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” And it was in the meeting with others that she was about to meet with God in a very real way. Friend, if you want God to become more real to you, then prioritize the importance of prayer and of corporate worship.
3. Go through open doors. As she was listening to the words of these messengers, “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.” This word “opened” means to thoroughly open, much like what happens when a first-born enters the world. Spurgeon as always, adds depth to this when he says, “He who made the lock knows well what key will fit it.” I love the relationship here between God’s work and human responsibility. It was God who opened the door of her heart, but He did so as she listened to His Word. It’s always about God, isn’t it? I make a mistake when I say that “I decided” to follow Jesus or that I “chose” Christ. We would do nothing of the sort if it were not for God opening our hearts to respond. Isaiah 50:5: “The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears…” Check out John 6:44: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…” God opens the door and we go through it [go through door].
Paul and his partners were faithful in following the Father as they searched for those who were open and located Lydia, who was seeking spiritual truth. God made all this happen, and yet He chose to utilize messengers who would communicate His message so that a religious woman could become a member of His family.
God is sovereignly at work behind the scenes, even when we’re not aware of it. Think with me about how God put Lydia and Paul together at that exact moment. She was from Thyatira, in western Turkey and God brought her hundreds of miles to Philippi. She could have tried to sell her cloth in Corinth or opened a store in Athens but God moved her to Philippi. Paul tried to go to Turkey but was prevented from doing so and was led to Philippi. God orchestrated an encounter by a river so that Lydia could hear the message from Paul and get saved. By the way, if you look at a map it seems like it would have been easier and cheaper and quicker if Paul had just gone to Thyatira to minister to Lydia. But God had other plans. That’s often how God works, isn’t it?
God is the ultimate evangelist, isn’t He? Several years later, when Paul wrote to the church that Lydia helped launch, he stated very clearly in Philippians 2:13: “For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Our responsibility is to simply share the Word of God whenever we have the opportunity. It’s God’s job to open hearts. Do you know any “religious” people? Tell them that God is more interested in a relationship than He is in religiosity. There are people all around us who are searching for God and they’re not finding Him in religious ritual. Speak to them. Serve them. Sit down and talk with them. Intercede for them. Invite them to join your small group. There are some religious people here today who have not yet begun a relationship with Christ.
4. Demonstrate outward evidence of inner change. After Lydia’s conversion, verse 15 tells us that she and the members of her household were “baptized,” probably in the river next to where they were meeting. At its most basic level, baptism is a public declaration of an inner decision. After being saved, she wasted no time in outwardly identifying herself with her Savior. The order in the Book of Acts is clear: Believe and be baptized. Here’s just one example from Acts 2:41: “Those who accepted his message were baptized…”
Baptism helps move our faith from the private to the public. When we take the plunge, faith goes from the heart, to the mouth, and then to the body. When we go under the water, we are stating publicly in a very visible way that our desire is to be completely committed, totally devoted, and undeniably identified with Christ. I sure hope you’re planning to come to our service today at 2:00 p.m. to support the 20 people being baptized. And, if you’re a believer, and you’ve never been baptized, there’s still time to take the plunge today.
When you walk through the door of salvation there will be outward evidence of inner change. Our text shows us two things that happen right after conversion.
* Profession of faith in baptism
* Provision of hospitality
I love Lydia’s modesty in verse 16: “If you consider me a believer in the Lord…” Because the Lord opened her heart to believe, she publicly identified herself as a believer through baptism and then she opened up the door to her home for hospitality when she said, “come and stay at my house.” Do you see that once her heart is opened, the door to her house also opens? She received the message in her heart and now receives the messengers into her home. Luke adds that she “persuaded” them to use her house as home base so she could provide rest and refreshment to the traveling team -- she wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. Hospitality was a strategic ministry back then and it remains so today. When God opens our hearts, we must open our homes. Here’s a good question to ponder: Is the door to my house open? If not, can you think of a way that you can open your home to people?
Our teams to Mexico experienced incredible hospitality this summer. Paul and Grace Becker, along with Beth Hanna and her daughter and son-in-law (Beth and Alan), filled us up with love and grace by not only opening their homes, but also by opening their hearts to us. I don’t know that I’ve ever experienced such an outpouring of selfless servanthood for such a long period of time. It shows the power of what happens when someone uses their spiritual gifts for the building up of the body. On top of all that, the Mexican food was marvelous!
One pastor points out that the word “hospitality” is similar to the word “hospital.” Just as a hospital is a place for healing and wholeness; our homes should be places for refreshment and restoration. Romans 12:13 says: “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” When referring to how best to support believers who are serving Christ, John writes these convicting words in 3 John 8: “We ought therefore to show hospitality to such men so that we may work together for the truth.”
Drop down to Acts 16:40 where we see that this wasn’t a one-time deal for Lydia: “After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and encouraged them.” Where did these “brothers” come from? They weren’t there when Paul first arrived in Philippi, were they? God had used Lydia’s life-change to reach others as she opened her home to reach hearts. She was concerned about the unconverted and used her connections to share Jesus with people and then utilized her home as tool for ministry.
One of the things that greatly moved me in Mexico was the excitement of the Christians. They sang loudly, they jumped up quickly to give testimonies during the church services and they were passionate about sharing the good news of grace with others. I loved it but I also wondered why we’re sometimes not as enthusiastic about our faith. Lydia leveraged her relationships with other business people and used her home as a launching pad for ministry. We can all do the same. Use what you have to serve Christ. Walk through the open doors that are before you and don’t worry too much about those that are closed.
Lydia’s Life Lessons
I close with three action steps.
1. When God opens the door of salvation, go through it. Friend, have you been trying to live a “religious” life but you’re not sure if you have a relationship with Jesus? Listen to the Lord, and when He opens your heart, respond to Him. You are here right now at this exact time because of some open doors. Perhaps you’ve been transferred to this community because of work or you’re here for some other reason. You’ve been invited to this church for such a time as this. It’s time to receive redemption right now by going through the door. In John 10:9 in the King James Version, Jesus says: “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
2. When God shuts a door, go through the one He opens. God will make a way when we get out of the way. By closing one door, another one opened and Paul and his team went through it. What door is closed for you right now? Instead of trying to force it open, by faith ask God to open another one. Is there an open door for you in some area of your life but you’ve been unwilling to go through it? Decide right now that you’re going to walk by faith and go through it.
3. Help others go through open doors by seeking to win souls. Notice how Paul and his team did this. They were…
* Intentional. They went to where religious people were. Look for ways to purposefully be with people who don’t know Jesus. That might involve joining an organization, hanging out with other parents, or not being so quick to leave work so you can talk to someone. Leverage your career, your relationships, and your interests for the sake of the kingdom.
* Relational. They “sat down” with the women. Sometimes Paul would “stand up” in the marketplace and preach but this time he sat down. Later this team took the time to sit down and stay in Lydia’s house where they were able to disciple the new believers. Ministry must always be relational. Some of us need to slow down and focus more on being friendly to people. Quoting C.S. Lewis, in an article entitled “Do People Bore You?” John Piper writes: “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Very few people are interested in others. If you really find their story interesting, and care about them, they may open up to you and want to hear your story—Christ’s story.”
* Conversational. They “spoke” with them. Notice that they didn’t preach at them or argue politics or try to correct her customs. A sermon would have been out of place. I like how one person put it: “Tell a story and wrap the gospel in it.”
* Christological. They could have talked about a number of things but they focused on Christ. Whenever we do have conversations we should look for ways to steer the topic to Christ.
* Familial. Don’t miss what can happen in an entire family, and even an extended family, when just one person comes to Christ. I think that’s what happened when the missionaries lounged in Lydia’s house – they got to know other family members and shared with them. I pray that as we focus on families in this community that entire homes will come to Christ and follow His ways. If the gospel does not penetrate a household it won’t make much headway in our community. I love what Spurgeon says: “Every house should be the house of God, and there should be a church in every house.”
A man from Macedonia cried for missionaries to come and God used closed doors to move his messengers to an open door. God often makes a way when we get out of the way. What crying are you hearing today? Do you hear the despair in your co-workers? Your neighbors? Do you hear the lamenting in the lost members of your own family? Emily Bill heard the cry of orphans in the Dominican Republic this summer and will now share what she learned.
Emily Bill Report on the Dominican Republic
