A Global Gospel (Acts 16:9-15)
In 1995, I traveled to Eastern Europe to visit some missionary friends; it was the first time I had ever stepped foot on foreign soil. I was able to walk on roads built by the Romans before Jesus walked this earth; I toured an amphitheater where Christians were martyred; and I walked through catacombs where our brethren worshiped.
The highlight of my trip, however, was preaching for the church in Albania’s capital city, Tirana. It was the first time I ever got to preach outside the United States, and it was the first time I used a translator. The translator was about my age, and he couldn’t understand a Southern boy for love or money. I started my sermon by saying that my brothers and I used to fight like cats and dogs; the translator just stared at me. But, he and I muddled through, and I proclaimed the gospel of Jesus in a foreign land.
Many of you have been involved in foreign missions. How many of you have worked in Mexico? Others of you have had students throughout the globe thanks to World Bible School. Perhaps you’ve excitedly listened to a missionary speak about his work before the church, or you may have financially supported a foreign missionary.
This morning’s passage shows the gospel’s leaving Asia for the first time. When Paul preached to some women in Philippi, it was the first time an apostle had preached in Europe. This morning’s text demonstrates an important truth: “The gospel is for all.”
Scripture (Acts 16:9-15)
verse 9:
Paul had a vision in the night. In many Greek religions, pagan gods would send people on missions by using a vision; therefore, even a pagan would have understood that God was sending Paul to Macedonia.
In Paul’s vision, a man urged Paul by saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” The word “help” (in English as well as Greek) indicates that something is lacking or that someone is in need. The form of the verb in Greek denotes urgency—in other words, the man in Paul’s vision was saying, “Come and help us right now.”
verse 10:
Paul and his traveling companions immediately made plans to go to Macedonia, because they concluded that God had called them to preach the gospel in Europe.
verse 11-12:
Luke detailed the route Paul and those with him took from Troas to Philippi. Philippi was one of two leading cities in Macedonia, the other being Thessalonica. Philippi was, therefore, a strategic location from which to spread the gospel throughout Europe.
verse 13:
On the Sabbath, Paul and those with him went to a place of prayer by the river and spoke to the gathered women.
A city needed ten Jewish males to establish a synagogue; this text indicates there were likely not ten Jewish males in Philippi. When the city didn’t have a synagogue, Jews typically met in a ritually pure place near water to allow for easier ritual washing.
“We sat down and spoke to the women who had come together.” The “we” includes Paul and Silas and Timothy and Luke. Paul, an apostle, didn’t do all the teaching. Even in the first century, you didn’t have to be an apostle to teach others the gospel; an “ordinary” Christian could share the truth about Jesus.
verse 14-15:
Lydia heard the word and was baptized. Afterwards, she demonstrated hospitality to Paul’s group.
Application
“The gospel is for all.” In Acts 16, the gospel took a giant step when it left Asia, where it had always been preached and traveled to Europe for the first time. The gospel isn’t just for Asians, but the gospel is for Europeans, too. In fact, the gospel is for every single man and woman; Jesus said that “repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations” (Lk 24:47).
Because “The gospel is for all,” you must understand:
One: The Serious Situation
In Paul’s vision, the man from Macedonia said, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” That man understood he was in a Serious Situation.
Your family whom you love so much, your coworkers whom you enjoy, and your neighbors who would do anything for you are in a Serious Situation outside of Christ. Nothing is more serious than losing a soul in an eternal hell.
“What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mk 8:36). Those outside of Jesus will be cast “into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 25:30). No wonder there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth, for “the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night” (Rev 14:11).
Please understand that your spouse or your children or your grandchildren or your best friend or your neighbor is headed to that place of weeping and gnashing of teeth without Jesus. There is not a more Serious Situation than that!
Two: The Straightaway Situation
“When Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia.” Paul and his companions understood a Straightaway Situation and went immediately.
How long have you procrastinated sharing the gospel with your family or your neighbor or your friends or your coworkers? You cannot waste time, for time on this earth is short: “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (Js 4:14). The lives of your loved ones can easily be snuffed out. The time is now! The gospel calls for a Straightaway Situation!
Three: The Spotting Situation
“And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer.” Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke went to a place where they knew they’d have a Spotting Situation, where they could spot—find—people with whom to share the gospel.
In your own life, can you have a Spotting Situation? Can you spot people who need the gospel? Jesus said The Spotting Situation was easy: “Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest” (Jn 4:35).
Can you not easily spot people who need the gospel? Does anyone in your family need to hear the truth about Jesus? Are all of your neighbors in Christ? Do all of your coworkers abide in the truth? What about your friends? What about people from the gym? What about the waitress at the restaurant? What about the nurse who draws your blood? Whom will you spot for the gospel?
Four: The Speaking Situation
At the place of prayer, Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke “sat down and spoke to the women who had come together.” The apostle and his traveling companions opened their mouths and made a Speaking Situation. It wasn’t enough to travel from Asia to Europe; it wasn’t enough to find people who needed the gospel; the four men had to speak.
You, too, must engage in The Speaking Situation. Only the truth of the gospel leads to conversion. On Pentecost, Peter preached Jesus to the multitude, and “those who received his word were baptized” (Acts 2:41). In Samaria: “When they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women” (Acts 8:12). An angel told Cornelius “to send for [Peter] to come to his house and to hear what” Peter had to say (Acts 10:22). Lydia paid “attention to what was said by Paul” (Acts 16:14).
Unless you turn your encounter into a Speaking Situation souls will remain lost. The good news of Jesus must absolutely be preached for people to believe and obey: “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rom 10:17).
You’ve heard. Have you properly responded? Do you need to respond right now as we stand and sing?
This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at Church of Christ Deer Park in Deer Park, Texas.