Audio Sermons

Building Up the Church of Christ:

Trust and Obey

Life B-P Church Worship Service, 3^rd September 2023

Text: Acts 16:6-15

• As Paul set out on his second missionary journey, his team was faced with the question, “Where should they now go to with the Gospel?”
• What should we do when we worry that we may decide wrongly and accidentally ruin God’s plan for us?
• We should keep trusting and obeying God, for at least two reasons:

1. God’s Plan is always better than ours. (vv.6-10)

• He prevented Paul and his team from bringing the Gospel to the provinces of Asia and Bithynia, but it was preached there later on.
• When they arrived at Troas, God confirmed His will for the Gospel to be preached in Macedonia.

Application: God may change the plans we have made by closing some doors and opening others. (cf. Psalm 32:8; Proverbs 3:5,6)
Prompt obedience is required when we know what God wants us to do.

2. God’s Power alone can open a person’s heart. (vv.11-15)

a. The Sabbath Praying of Philippi’s Women (v.13)

• At Philippi, Paul and his team found a group of women who met at a riverside to pray on every Sabbath day.
• These women had to walk about 2.4 km out of the city for this meeting.
• Lydia did not mind the discomfort and inconvenience because her heart was set on worshipping God. (v.14 – “…which worshipped God”)
• She was willing to forego all the profits she could make on that day of the week just to worship God.

Application:  What is your attitude to the Lord’s Day? (cf. 1 Samuel 2:30)

b. The Saving Power of God’s Word (v.14)

• Of all the women who had gathered there for worship, Lydia was the only one who was saved.
• The words, “whose heart the Lord opened” bring out the sovereignty of God in salvation. (cf. Jeremiah 17:9; Ezekiel 36:26)
• Even though Lydia had been worshipping God faithfully, she still needed to put her trust in Jesus Christ as her Lord and Saviour.

Application: Do you give full attention to the Word when it is preached or taught? (cf. Romans 10:17; Hebrews 4:12)

• God used various circumstances to bring Paul and Lydia to the same place (vv.6,9,11), so that she would be able to hear the Word and possibly bring it back to Thyatira. (cf. Revelation 2:18-25)

Application: Whom does God want you to reach with the Gospel now? 

c. The Sincere Products of Lydia’s Worship (v.15)

• The baptism of Lydia and her household
• Her hospitality to Paul and his team

Application: Has there been a similar change in your life since the time you came to know Christ?

Conclusion

• All that happened to Paul and Lydia shows that God was in full control.
• Instead of worrying that we may accidentally ruin God’s plan, let us trust and obey Him.

Questions for Reflection:

1. How have you responded thus far to unexpected changes in your life?
2. How would you counsel someone who feels hopeless from thinking that he has accidentally ruined God’s plan by choosing a wrong career?
3. What steps can you take to become more trusting and obedient to God?