WWUTT 2657 Paul's Second Missionary Journey (Acts 16:1-10)

The Apostle Paul sets out with Silas and a new young man named Timothy to go and bring the gospel to the world. But it's not about where he wants to go with the gospel, it's about where God means to send him, when we understand the text.

This is When We Understand The Text, a daily study in the word of Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness. Find all our videos and other ministry resources at www .utt .com.

Here once again is Pastor Gabe.

Acts 16 and the Direction of Paul's Mission

Thank you, Becky. In our study of the book of Acts, we are on to chapter 16. This is a big chapter. Well, they're all big chapters. But this chapter includes the account of Paul and Silas in Philippi.

Before we get there, though, they meet a young man named Timothy, and there is a call for them to come to Macedonia and preach the gospel. Let me begin by reading verses 1 through 10. Hear the word of the Lord.

Now Paul also arrived at Derbe and at Lystra. And behold, a disciple was there named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the brothers who were in Lystra and Iconium.

Paul wanted this man to go with him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. Now while they were passing through the cities, they were delivering the decrees which had been decided upon by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem for them to keep.

So the churches were being strengthened in the faith and were abounding in number daily. And they passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.

And after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them. And passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. And 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. And when he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the gospel to them.

And this is how chapter 16 begins, with us seeing that God is the one who directs the missionary work that he wants done in the world. It's not about where Paul wants to go. It's where God wants Paul to go, even closing certain doors and opening others.

We begin the chapter with Paul and Silas encountering a young man named Timothy, who becomes part of this group. And then after that, Paul and Silas going on into the area of the world that God means for him to go.

And that's in verses six through 10. This is what we're going to be looking at today in Acts chapter 16. This is the start of Paul's second missionary journey. And as we read about yesterday, at the conclusion of chapter 15, Paul and Barnabas wanted to go back through those cities that they had already been in, encouraging the brothers in those churches that they had planted.

They were going to take along with them this letter that had been decided upon by the apostles at Jerusalem. And we see that's exactly what they're doing here in chapter 16. It was in verse four, where it says they were delivering the decrees which had been decided upon by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem for these Gentile Christians to keep.

There was a division, though, between Paul and Barnabas. So they end up going different directions. Paul still accomplishes what he meant to accomplish. And we're reading about some of those cities that he goes to, which is retreading ground that he had already covered.

This is the third time, actually, he's been on that route. The first time going to Derbe and Lystra and Iconium, then going back through Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. And now he's going through them again.

So this is his third visit to those places, but this time to bring the letter that the apostles wanted to write to the Gentiles, encouraging these new brothers in the faith. Now, when they come back to a place that they had already been, they come to Derbe and at Lystra.

Timothy's Conversion and Spiritual Heritage

This time, though, they meet a young man named Timothy. So let's begin chapter 16, reading about that. Now Paul also arrived at Derbe and at Lystra. Now after he leaves Syria and goes up into Antioch and departs from there into Cilicia, he goes through Tarsus, which remember was where Paul, well, that's where he was from.

That's where Paul was when Barnabas found him and brought him back to Antioch. So Paul goes back through Tarsus again from there over to Derbe. And this time, which is in the region of Galatia, as he's at Derbe and Lystra, there is a disciple at Lystra whose name is Timothy, and he's the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek.

There are a couple of possibilities here regarding Timothy. It could be that Timothy has become a believer after there were Jews that left Jerusalem in the persecution and went back to their respected cities.

And one of those Jews may have been Timothy's mother. So it could be that Timothy's mother had heard the gospel and had become a believer. And so they returned back to their city, their home city of Lystra, and they already believe the gospel.

So it could be that's the case because Timothy's mother had heard the gospel at Jerusalem when it was first preached by the apostles, then returning to Lystra. She's already a believer there when the gospel comes through the first time.

So that's one possibility. We had seen when the persecution had come upon Jerusalem at the martyrdom of Stephen that the Jews were scattered and many of them going back to the places from which they came.

So that may have been the time that Timothy's mother had heard the gospel, perhaps. The other possibility, I think that this is the greater possibility, is that Timothy's mother became a Christian when Paul and Barnabas had come through that area the first time.

So they come through preaching the gospel, and now Timothy's mother has become a Christian because it says that she's a believer. And so Timothy has become a Christian now. And all of this through Timothy's mother hearing the gospel from Paul and Barnabas, she teaches it to her son, and he is now a Christian in the faith as a result.

It doesn't appear that his father is a believer. So Timothy's mother is a believer, his father is not. And one of the reasons why I draw that conclusion too, not just from this text, but also because of the way that Paul speaks about Timothy's mother and his grandmother at the beginning of 2 Timothy 1.

It is said there that his grandmother and his mother, Lois and Eunice, were the ones who had taught Timothy the scriptures and therefore brought them to an understanding of Jesus Christ and the gospel.

Now Paul also calls Timothy his true son in the faith. So that leads us to believe Paul's preaching is also what brought Timothy into the faith. Paul was not the one who directly led Timothy to Jesus Christ, but because of Paul's preaching, Timothy has become a Christian.

And therefore, Paul is credited as his spiritual father in that sense. So that's likely how this, what would you call it? Like this path of faith came about with Paul and Barnabas being there preaching the gospel.

Timothy's mother becomes a believer. Timothy then becomes a believer. So Jewish converts to the Christian faith. But as of yet, it doesn't appear as if Timothy's father has become a Christian since he's just simply referred to here as a Greek.

And Paul does not give credit to his father for leading him in the faith later on, like in 2 Timothy 1. But Timothy is well spoken of by the brothers who were at Lystra and Iconium. That's in verse 2.

So it's also obvious here that Timothy was led to faith prior to Paul and Silas coming together back to Lystra once again. This is Paul's return trip. And Silas is along with him on this trip. So Timothy has been a believer for long enough that many of the brothers, many of the Christians who are there have great admiration for this young man.

He is very young. Timothy, by all accounts, will end up being the youngest of Paul's missionary entourage. And Luke is speaking here as well. He is speaking from the first person as someone who is a witness to these events.

For as we read at the end of the section we're looking at today in verse 10, God had called us, Luke being the author of Acts, to proclaim the gospel to those who were in Macedonia. And I think that I had mentioned previously that when Paul and Barnabas are preaching at Antioch, it was probably there that Luke ends up becoming part of the group as well.

So from that point on, Luke has been writing as someone who is a witness to this event, to these events that he's writing about. Not just someone who has gathered together all the accounts, but he's even writing as someone who was there and had seen all of these things take place.

Circumcision, Christian Liberty, and Missionary Strategy

So we go on from here, verse 3, Paul wanted this man, talking about Timothy, to go with him. And he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

Now we know from what Paul has said, like writing to the Galatians, for example, that circumcision is not required. Acts chapter 15, verse 1, remember the Judaizers were saying that if you want to be saved, you have to be circumcised.

But as Paul will write to the Galatians later on, he will say to them, I tell you, if you have to be circumcised in order to be saved, then Christ is of no use to you. It is not by the law that we are saved.

It is by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that we are saved. So Paul is doing this with Timothy, not for the purpose of saving him. It's not even for the purpose of sanctifying him. He's doing this so that Timothy, along with him, might become all things to all people.

Paul wants Timothy to be able to be received in the synagogues where they go. And Timothy's not going to be received as a Jew if it is known that his father is a Greek. He will have to be outside with the rest of the Greeks or with the rest of the Gentiles.

And Paul wants Timothy to be included right there in the synagogues with him so that Timothy also has that opportunity to preach to the Jews. So for this reason, Paul is circumcising Timothy so that Timothy, along with Paul, might become all things to all people.

Remember that Paul had said this to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 9. Let me start reading here in verse 19. For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all that I might win more of them.

To the Jews, I became as a Jew in order to win Jews. To those under the law, I became as one under the law, though not being myself under the law, that I might win those who are under the law. And it's for that reason exactly that Paul is circumcising Timothy so that he might continue to reach out to those who still consider themselves under the law and bringing them to a knowledge of Christ that they may be freed from the power of the law and sin and death.

Verse 21. To those outside the law, referring to Gentiles, I became as one outside the law, not being outside the law of God, but under the law of Christ, that I might win those outside the law. To the weak, I became weak, that I might win the weak.

I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. So that's why Timothy is circumcised. Not because it is saving, not because it is sanctifying, but so that Timothy might become a fellow servant in this ministry to Jews as well as to Gentiles.

He would also be received by Jews so that he may preach Christ to them. That they won't already dismiss him from the outset as preaching something Greek. Oh, you're just teaching what the Greeks believe.

But that Timothy would be received among them to introduce them to the gospel of Christ. So going on from there to verse four. Now while they were passing through the cities, they were delivering the decrees which had been decided upon by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem for them to keep.

Already talked about that. And verse five, so the churches were being strengthened in the faith and were abounding in number daily. We have that statement come up again here in the book of Acts, that the church is just continuing to grow and not just growing in their knowledge of the truth, not just growing in the gospel or in Christ, but they are growing even numerically in number.

More people being added to them through the preaching of the gospel. Let's go on now to verses six through 10. So that's the part where we read about Timothy and coming into Paul's service. And how is it now that Paul and his group go on to Macedonia?

The Holy Spirit Closes Doors and Opens the Way to Macedonia

Let's read here in verse six. And they pass through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. So what this is saying to us is that the Holy Spirit means for them to just pass through the region and not be able to stop there or spend any longer time there than they already have.

So the cities of Derbe, Lystra and Iconium are in Galatia, but they're in the southern region of Galatia. On the very edge is Antioch and Pisidia, where they've been before. So then the portion that is called Asia is the western side of what is modern-day Turkey.

And Asia will include places like Laodicea, Miletus, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Mytilene, Troas, which is in the far northwest corner. So they're not being permitted to travel through Asia. This is not the time yet that God means for Paul to come to places like Ephesus and Miletus where he will come later.

Paul means, or God rather, means for Paul to bypass that altogether. So he's going clear around over to Troas, not through Asia, but around it, since it's not the time yet that God wants them to be there.

So they pass through the Phrygian and Galatian region. The Phrygian region would have been like west of Galatia and in between there and Asia. So they're bypassing that, just passing through. And after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them.

So once they get to the top of Asia, that would have been... So the road they were on would have been right in between Asia and Bithynia and Pontus. And so if they keep going north, they would go into Bithynia.

But the Lord does not mean for them to go there. He's going to have them go over to Troas. So they are even skipping Bithynia and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. So they're going all the way up and clear around and then down on that side so that they get to Troas.

But they've gone way north. This is quite a long route in order to get over there to Troas. This is farther out than Paul has been so far. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. It's there at Troas that he has a vision of a man of Macedonia who was standing and appealing to him and saying, come over to Macedonia and help us.

Now who is this man that Paul has a vision of? Well, we don't know. The text doesn't tell us. It's not an angel because the angel, or rather the... Yeah, that's what I mean to say. The angel would not have said, come over to Macedonia and help us.

Why would the angel be beckoning for help from Paul? But rather this is just a vision of a man, somebody who would be like a type of the men who are living there in the Macedonian region and are saying to Paul, we need to hear the gospel too, so that Paul and his group would end up going there and they would hear the gospel and then come to faith.

And so from Troas, they're going to go up into Samothrace, that's coming up next in verse 11, and then on to Neopolis and that will get them into that region that is north of Greece. So they're crossing the northern portion of the Aegean Sea and they're coming into Neopolis and Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea.

This is the area where Paul is heading to next. All of this is starting to sound familiar to you, right? This is that part of Paul's second missionary journey where he will set foot in those famous biblical cities for the first time.

Greek cities, of course, but this is where the gospel is going to be preached. We have Philippi here in chapter 16. Paul is going to make it on to Thessalonica and to Berea and even Athens itself when we get to chapter 17.

So this is all part of that missionary journey. So verse 10, as we finish this up, when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we, Luke included in this, sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the gospel to them.

God's Sovereign Election and the Mission of the Gospel

And that's where we're going to stop today. But as I said in the very beginning, what this demonstrates to us, these first 10 verses here in chapter 16, is that this is all by God's sovereign hand. Paul and his friends are not just going where they want to.

They're not even going to the people that their biases would want to have saved. Oh, well, I want to see these people come to faith first. It's not by their will, but it is by God's will that the gospel is being spoken to exactly those people that God means for the gospel to come to, that his elect would come to faith.

The apostle Paul says at the start of Titus, Titus 1 .1, that he is Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness.

So God has chosen who is going to be saved, who will hear the gospel and believe it and will even grow in godliness because whom God justifies, he also means to sanctify and glorify. As Paul will say later to the Philippians in Philippians 1 .6, I am confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it at the day of Christ.

It is all God's work from beginning to end. But we still must pray that God would provide workers to go out into the harvest so that more people would hear the gospel and come to faith and be saved. It is all by God's sovereign hand, but he works through even our prayers to bring his own to the faith.

And so let us not stop praying for those that we want to see come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved for God will work even through our prayers by his sovereign hand, by his providential work, he will work through our prayers to bring his own to salvation.

Not one soul will be lost. He will save everyone whom he means to save through the preaching and power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He who died and rose again and ascended into heaven is seated at his right hand is coming back again to judge the living and the dead.

Only by faith in him are we saved from the judgment of God and have eternal life. Heavenly Father, we thank you that the gospel has come to us and I pray that we would be used by you to share the gospel with somebody else so that they too may come to a knowledge of the Savior and live.

Guide us in your truth until that day when we come into your kingdom. Lord Jesus come quickly, Maranatha, in his name we pray, amen.

Thank you for listening to When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. If you'd like to support this ministry, visit our website www .wutt .com and click on the Give tab in the top right corner of the page.

Join us again tomorrow as we continue our Bible study, When We Understand the Text.