SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/13/2018
10:15 AM
My Worship Time Focus: “The Right
Place”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Acts 16:6-10
Message of the
verses: “6 They passed through the
Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak
the word in Asia; 7 and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into
Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them; 8 and passing by Mysia,
they came down to Troas. 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.”
As we begin this last section from the verses covered in
the 6th chapter of John MacArthur’s commentary I want to remind
everyone, and of course myself, that the title of this section of verses that
covered Acts 15:36 to 16:10 is called “Evangelism the Right Way.” We have been looking at how Paul, Barnabas,
and now Silas did evangelism in the correct way, the Biblical way as they were
hands on with the people that they were witnessing to and then spent time with
them discipling them so that they could begin to grow in the Lord Jesus Christ
and then be able to tell of others about Him.
Paul, Silas, and Timothy were moving towards Asia which
had cities like Ephesus, Smyrna, and Philadelphia, cities that are named in the
second and third chapters of Revelation.
However the Lord would not let them go into those cities at this time
for His reasons. These cities were West
of where they were and so as the Lord blocked the way West the missionaries
turned to the North into Mysia which is the region north of Asia, however we’re
told that when they tried to go further north they were also blocked by the
Lord, as “the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them.”
The team, being blocked two times “came down to Troas.” This was a port city on the Aegean Sea. I am sure that the team knew that the Lord
will get them where He wanted them to go and so they continued to trust Him for
direction on where He was leading them.
While at Troas Paul received a vision in the night, and as I searched to
find out how many times the word vision is found in the book of Acts I found
that it was eleven times and this is the eighth time in verse nine of chapter
sixteen. The vision that Paul saw was a
man from Macedonia who was pleading with Paul to come over and help them. Philippi and Thessalonica were two very
important cities in this region.
Thessalonica is still there today.
Verse ten tells us what happened next: “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.” John MacArthur writes “The missionary team’s
experience illustrates a basic principle of knowing God’s will: to move ahead and allow Him to close doors
until the right opportunity is reached.”
I want you to notice the highlighted word “we” in verse
ten, as it is the first time Luke uses this word to describe that he too was
along with the team at this point in time.
Luke, like Timothy was a very faithful friend of Paul, as they were
loyal companions to Paul in his work for the Lord Jesus Christ.
John MacArthur concludes this section and this
chapter:
“This passage illustrates
the foundational principles of evangelism; God uses people with the right
passion and the right priority, with the right personal taking the right precautions,
to make the right presentation in the right place. Any evangelistic methodology must be
evaluated in the light of such realities.”
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: I believe that
this is the right process for missionaries that go into the field, as they have
to be in tune with the Spirit of God in order to find out where they are to go
as a field, and then be willing to continue to listen to the Spirit of God if
He desires them to move to another field.
I realize that all believers are to be missionaries, and sometimes the
Lord moves people from place to place because of jobs or school, or things like
that. We all have to have the attitude of
wanting to do what the Lord leads us, and who He leads us to in order to make
room times when God will bring people into our lives to tell them about Christ.
My Steps of Faith for Today: “always being ready to make a defense to
everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with
gentleness and reverence;”
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “A rooster crowing” (Luke
23:34).
Today’s Bible
question: Who said ‘God forbid that I
should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you?’”
Answer in our next SD.
4/13/2018 10:47 AM
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