SERMON OUTLINE:
(1). The work of providence in her conversion (vs 6-10).
(2). The work of Paul in her conversion (vs 12-13).
(3). The work of Lydia herself in her conversion (vs 14a).
(4). The work of God in her conversion (vs 14b-15a).
SERMONBODY:
ill:
• I guess you have all seen the BBC programme ‘Dragons’ Den’;
• Would be entrepreneurs get to showcase their business ideas;
• A panel of successful business leaders judge the ideas;
• And they get to invest their own money in the hope of securing an investment.
• Many participants emerge as public laughing stocks with egg on their faces,
• As James Seddon found with his electric egg boiler, which failed to boil anything.
• For others, however,
• It can be can be a life changing experience.
Looking beyond the programme and down through history - here are a few inventions/inventors who at first were rejected:
(1). Clarence Darrow & Monopoly.
• THE boss of American toy giant Parker Bros was not impressed;
• When the inventor of Monopoly tried to sell him his new idea in the Thirties.
• He claimed the game had "52 fundamental playing errors" which made it unplayable.
• Undeterred, Clarence Darrow, an unemployed Philadelphia heating engineer;
• Who had devised the game, went into production himself.
• As a result, Parker Bros was forced to spend a fortune buying back the idea.
(2). Bill Gates's & Microsoft Windows software,
• In 1985 Bill Gates's Microsoft launched Windows software,
• while already providing computer giant IBM with a similar system called MS-DOS.
• Gates asked IBM to endorse Windows, but it refused, unwilling to share profits with Gates.
• Without IBM's massive backing,
• Microsoft was forced to sell Windows separately on the retail market;
• Other computer firms, from Compaq to Xerox, capitalised by endorsing the product.
(3). James Dyson & his bag-less vacuum cleaner.
• James Dyson struggled for years;
• Trying to convince people there was a better way of cleaning carpets,
• But he couldn't find anyone prepared to build his bag-less vacuum cleaner.
• He re-mortgaged his house and, almost bankrupting himself,
• Finally perfected his revolutionary machine after five years of trial and tribulation.
• Now the Dyson cleaner out-sells its nearest rivals by more than two to one,
• His personal wealth is estimated at more than £122million.
(4). Walt Disney & Disney World
• Walt Disney is the businessman behind the very successful theme park;
• “Walt Disney World“.
• Walt Disney was once fired by a newspaper editor;
• For not having good ideas and no imagination.
• Disney World is currently valued at $35 Billion dollars.
(5). Colonel Sanders & KFC “Kentucky Fried Chicken”.
• Colonel Harland Sanders;
• Is the entrepreneur who founded KFC “Kentucky Fried Chicken”;
• When he was 56 years old.
• His recipe was reportedly rejected over 1,000 times before a restaurant picked it up.
• Today KFC is the world's second largest restaurant chain;
• As measured by sales - after McDonald's.
• It has 18,875 outlets in 118 countries and territories (as of December 2013).
• TRANSITION: This morning we are looking at a successful Asian business woman;
• Her name was Lydia,
• Her occupation ‘a seller of purple’
• She managed to succeed in business;
• In both a foreign country, and a male-dominated culture!
This week at the children’s Holiday Club we have been looking at some characters in the New Testament book of Acts:
• Day 1: Peter.
• Never too many mistakes.
• Day 2: Stephen.
• Never too ordinary.
• Day 3: Philip & the Ethiopian Official.
• Never too near or far.
• Day 4: Saul (Paul the apostle).
• Never too bad.
• Day 5: Timothy.
• Never too young.
• This morning we are going to complete our series with Lydia.
• Never too unlikely.
• This encounter between the apostle Paul and Lydia;
• Because it took place in what is now Europe,
• Lydia may only be mentioned briefly in the book of Acts;
• But she holds a prominent place in Bible History.
• Lydia is the first recorded Christian in Europe to be converted by the gospel;
• And her home became the place where the very first church was planted in Europe;
• The place where these new believers of chapter 16 gathered to worship!
• Note: What the Bible tells us of her conversion;
• Could also apply to any man who becomes a Christian.
(1). First, the work of providence in her conversion (vs 6-10).
“Paul and his companions travelled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.”
• Our English word ‘Providence’
• Comes from two Latin words; pro- "ahead" and videre "to see".
• (We get our word ‘video’ from ‘videre’).
• Used in the theological context;
• ‘Providence’ just means God arranges circumstances to fulfil his plans.
Ill:
• Dr. Helen Roseveare is an English Christian missionary.
• She worked in the Zaire/Congo from 1953 to 1973 with WEC International;
• And practised medicine and also trained others in medical work.
• She tells the following true story.
• "A mother at our mission station died after giving birth to a premature baby.
• We tried to improvise an incubator to keep the infant alive,
• But the only hot water bottle we had was beyond repair.
• So we asked the children to pray for the baby and for her sister.
• One of the girls responded.
• 'Dear God, please send a hot water bottle today.
• Tomorrow will be too late because by then the baby will be dead.
• And dear Lord, send a doll for the sister so she won't feel so lonely.'
• That afternoon a large package arrived from England.
• The children watched eagerly as we opened it.
• Much to their surprise, under some clothing was a hot water bottle!
• Immediately the girl who had prayed so earnestly started to dig deeper, exclaiming,
• 'If God sent that, I'm sure He also sent a doll!'
• And she was right!
• Helen Roseveare concludes that our heavenly Father;
• Knew in advance of that child's sincere requests,
• And 5 months earlier back in the UK;
• He had led a ladies' group to include both of those specific articles in a parcel!.
• TRANSITION: How does this relate to Lydia?
• Answer: Acts chapter 16 verses 10-14 God gave the apostle Paul a vision.
• The apostle was planning to go in one direction but God took him in another;
• In the vision Paul sees a Macedonian man, who begs him to come to Macedonia,
• Macedonia is modern-day Greece.
• At the time Paul was in Troas, an Asian port city located about ten miles south of Troy;
• In modern times it is near the northern tip of Turkey's western coast,
• So Paul sets sail for Philippi, his first foray into Europe.
• In fact he brought the apostle Paul 500miles to Philippi.
• Where years earlier (we are not told when);
• God also brought this lady 500miles from her home in Thyatira.
• Thyateira (also Thyatira) was the name of the modern Turkish city of Akhisar
• (pronounced: ah-kee-sahr)
• To start a business in Philippi.
Both the Bible and the Christian life are full of God instances!
• That is things that happen, not by chance, not by luck but by God.
• God is in the business of arranging circumstances so that people can encounter him.
• For Lydia God took her to a foreign land,
• It was there that she heard the Gospel and was converted.
• God had it all arranged and it happened by His providence.
Ill:
• Billy Graham is the American evangelical Christian evangelist,
• Today he is aged 97 and no longer holding his city wide crusades.
• According to his staff, more than 3.2 million people;
• Have responded to the invitation at Billy Graham Crusades;
• To "accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour".
• As of 2008, Graham's estimated lifetime audience,
• Including radio and television broadcasts, topped 2.2 billion.
• I was privileged to hear him several times preach live;
• And I still enjoy listening to his recorded messages.
• Now one thing Billy Graham would often say is this;
• “You are not here tonight by accident!”
• He believed that God not circumstances had brought people along to hear him preach.
• Application: God is still doing that today – even this morning!
(2). The work of Paul in her conversion (vs 12-13).
“From there we travelled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days.
13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there”
• When Paul and his companion arrived in Philippi,
• They looked for God’s people.
Ill:
• Always a good principle to follow.
• Wherever I have gone in the world I always look out for God’s people.
• Some of our best holiday memories are not the great tourist spots we have visited;
• But the people we have met.
• i.e. When we went to Israel and hired a car and pottered around;
• The highlight was not all the tourist spots but the time spent with one family.
• Shawel & Nuha, and their children Phoebe, Lydia, Marina
• We popped in for a cup of tea and ended up spending 2 days with them!
• TRANSITION: Paul always looked for God’s people.
• Being a Roman Colony Philippi did not have a synagogue there.
• It would appear to be that there were not enough Jews living in the city;
• According to Jewish tradition ten male heads of households were necessary
• Before a synagogue could be formed.
• If those requirements could not be met;
• Then the faithful were to meet under the open sky near a river or the sea.
Ill:
• Jewish believers without a synagogue met by rivers or the sea;
• Because they had to ceremonially wash themselves then move to a time of prayer.
• When Paul, Timothy, Silas and Luke arrived they discovered a small group, all women.
Note:
• In verse 9 the apostle Paul had seen a MAN in the vision at Troas,
• But here he was ministering to a group of women!
• Now Jewish rabbis at this time taught;
• "It is better that the words of the Law be burned than be delivered to a woman!"
• Paul who had been a Jewish Rabbi;
• But I am glad to say he no longer believed this philosophy.
• In Christ he discovered a great truth (Galatians chapter 3 verse 28):
"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Notice:
• Verse 14:
• As a preacher and an evangelist this is what you want whenever you speak:
“One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshipper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.”
Ill:
• How good are you at listening.
• An elderly man was in the kitchen making a pot of tea,
• So he shouted to his wife in the front room; “Ethel would you like a cuppa of tea?”
• There was no response!
• So he mumbled to himself, typical, she just can’t hear these days!
• So he moved closer to the door and for a second time shouted:
• “Ethel would you like a cuppa of tea?”
• Still no reply.
• So he walked from the kitchen into the front room and stood right behind her;
• Once again he asked: “Ethel would you like a cuppa of tea?”
• This time she replied:
• “For the third time Albert, I would like one!”
• TRANSITION: How good are you at hearing?
• God does not have to shout at us, but we do need to listen out for his voice.
• This morning God is speaking to us through his word;
• This is always the clearest way God communicates to us!
• And God also speaks through a preacher (vs 10);
• “God had called us to preach the gospel to them.”
• So God is speaking;
• The question is ‘Are you listening?’
• Lydia ‘listened’ to what the apostle Paul was saying:
• The Greek word translated “listened” means “to pay attention”.
(3). The work of Lydia herself in her conversion (vs 14a).
“One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshipper of God.”
In that short verse we are told four things concerning Lydia:
(A). SHE WAS A WEALTHY: “A dealer in purple cloth”.
• We know she was wealthy because of her business profession.
• She is described as a dealer in purple goods.
• This was a trade she no doubt learned in her home town.
• In Lydia’s day, cloth could be dyed purple by two methods.
• Both methods were the result of a very expensive process.
• So if you knew how to produce purple loth you were going to make a lot of money.
• Purple cloth was claimed to be worth its weight in silver.
Ill:
• Purple garments were worn by the priests in the temples;
• They were worn by royalty – by Cesar himself and his top officials.
• Philippi was a Roman Colony;
• Full of retired Romans with money to spend!
Note:
• In verse 15 Lydia is also described as having a 'household.'
• This would be unusual as the household is hers, not her father’s or her husband’s.
• She is described as having ‘urged’ Paul and his companions to stay with her;
• Until they agreed.
• Therefore she must have had a home large enough to accommodate them,
• And also she must have been wealthy enough to provide for their needs.
(B). SHE WAS GENTILE WOMAN:
“One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira”
• Most Bible scholars seem to think that Lydia was not actually called Lydia;
• The name, "Lydia", simply means "the Lydian woman",
• That is she was a from Lydia in Asia Minor
• In a similar way today we might call someone a ‘Brummie’;
• Because they are from Birmingham;
• Or we might call someone a ‘Glaswegian’ because they are from Glasgow.
• Or we might call someone a ‘Bristolian’ because they are from Bristol.
• So the name, "Lydia", simply means "the woman from Lydia",
Lydia was most likely a Greek:
• She came Thyatira, a city southeast of Pergamum and approximately 40 miles inland,
• Across the Aegean Sea from Athens.
(C). SHE WAS GOD-FEARING "a worshiper of God,"
• That short expression tells us a lot about Lydia;
• She was not Jewish or she would have been described as a Jewess.
• But the phrase ‘a worshipper of God’ or a ‘God fearer’ crops up again and again;
• In the New Testament.
She was attracted to the Jewish religion:
• She wanted to discover the one true God;
• And was turned off by the many gods of Greece and Rome;
• She saw the lifestyle of these other Jewish women;
• And again it attracted her towards the Jewish faith.
• So Lydia was not a full Jewish convert;
• But someone who openly worshiped with this small group of Jewish people.
• Actually becoming a Jew by conversion was difficult and sometimes inconvenient;
• Philippi at this time did not even have a synagogue.
Now when the apostle Paul shared a “Message” the “Word” in verse 14:
• She listened, she understood, she responded!
• God opened her heart to the truth, and she believed and was saved.
• That tells me she was seeking truth.
• God had promised: “If you seek me (all your heart) you shall find me”.
• And if you are here this morning ‘seeking’ after God;
• Do what Lydia did and listen to and respond to the Word of God!
(4). The work of God in her conversion (vs 14b-15a).
“The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. 15 When she and the members of her household were baptised,”
• Our text said of Lydia;
• “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (vs 14).
• The apostle Paul preached the Gospel of Christ to Lydia;
• But now we see that her heart was opened by God Himself.
Any preacher is limited in what they can achieve:
• Even the apostle Paul could not save anyone by his preaching;
• He (like all preachers) needs that preaching accompanied by a work of the Holy Spirit.
Ill:
• Charles Haddon (CH) Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892);
• Was a British Baptist preacher in the nineteenth century.
• Spurgeon was known as the "Prince of Preachers".
• Spurgeon was the pastor of the congregation of the New Park Street Chapel (later the Metropolitan Tabernacle) in London for 38 years
• It is estimated that in his lifetime, Spurgeon preached to around 10,000,000 people.
• The story goes that Charles Spurgeon, was walking down the street one day;
• When a man who was drunk and leaning on a lamppost yelled out to him:
• “Hey, Mr. Spurgeon, do you remember me?”
• Spurgeon replied: “No, why should I?”
• The drunk responded by saying: “Because I’m one of your converts!”
• Spurgeon’s response was insightful, he said:
• “Well, you must be one of mine; you’re certainly not one of the Lord’s.”
• TRANSITION: Spurgeon knew (like all preachers);
• That any preaching no matter how good;
• Needs that preaching accompanied by a work of the Holy Spirit.
• Lydia’s heart was opened by God, so that she understood the Gospel.
• And she experienced the grace of God in her life.
Question: Why did God save Lydia?
Answer: Is found in this story – she sought after him!
• Think of what we are told concerning Lydia:
• She listened to the Word of God and was eager to learn.
• She was a worshipper of the true God.
• She allowed God to work in her life by opening her heart.
• She was obedient to God’s command and was baptised.
• She confessed openly to others that she was a believer in Jesus Christ.
• She wanted to serve Jesus and her new family of believers.
• She opened her home and she was hospitable
• In many ways Lydia is the perfect candidate for conversion;
• And yet…
• There is nothing in this story that could not be true of anyone here;
• If they too wanted to discover the God who made them.
• Lydia is a story about one woman who was in the right place,
• At the right time, with the right heart, and with the right attitude.
• God can do amazing things through men and women who are prepared to seek him,
• To follow him, and to be obedient to him!
• In this story of Lydia nothing is complicated, she made a simple response to the gospel.
• And Lydia the Gentile woman became the first Christian believer in Europe.
• Others soon followed as she shared this good news with her family & friends.
Her profession of faith resulted in two things:
• (a). Baptism;
• As was and still is the pattern for the normal Christian experience!
• (b) Hospitality.
• Her provision of hospitality were outward evidence of her new found faith in God.
