Arthur Home Group February 2015

Finding the Way Ahead 

ACTS 16.1-12

This section of Acts deals with some decisions Paul and his team had to make as they moved from town to town attempting to start up local churches. 

Derbe and Lystra (16.1) These were two towns where Paul had previously been and started local churches. He returned there to encourage and strengthen the Christians there.  

Timothy (16.10) At Lystra there was a young Christian in whom Paul saw considerable potential. He wanted to take him with them on their church-encouraging and new church-planting work.

Circumcision (16.3)  Timothy was of Jewish/Greek heritage. He wasn't circumcised. Circumcision is not a Christian rite - but as in some cultures today it was a strongly held tradition among the Jews. For Timothy to work for the conversion of Jews to faith in Jesus, it would have been hard for him to gain acceptance as an uncircumcised male - so he was circumcised to avoid this being a distraction to the success of his gospel work.

Paul, Silas, Timothy and their small travelling party went beyond the places where churches had already been planted in some new territory.  They were trying to discover where Jesus wanted them to go next to tell people the good news.

Blocked! (16,6,7)  They were blocked in two directions - so apart from going back they were left with one direction to travel.  This led them to the coast at Troas. They seemed to be blocked by the sea.

Here's a map that might help you figure out what was happening. (Asia, Mysia, Bithynia, Phyrgia and Galatia are all regions of modern-day Turkey,  Philippi and Neapolis are in modern-day Greece.)

Something to think about:

1) How might the group have been 'forbidden by the Holy Spirit' to enter the province of Asia and how did 'the Spirit of Jesus not allow them' to go into the province of Bithynia?

• a voice?
• agreement of the whole group (consensus)?
• forbidden by the authorities?
• lack of transport?
• opposition from enemies?
• sickness in the group?
• a prophetic word from one of them?

However the Spirit guided them - how would they have all come to the agreement?

2) What does Paul's vision of a Macedonia man help us to understand about a Christian calling? 

3) Why did they all go along with Paul's vision?

Key Idea: A Christian calling is about identifying who your sheep are finding them and caring for them. John 10.