Know: Read Acts 16
Note: Read slowly, carefully marking keywords.
Mark: Believers, apostles, elders, Holy Spirit, vision, preach the gospel, heart, baptized, Lord, spirit, bond-servants, God, the way, salvation/ save, Jesus Christ, guard, singing hymns and of praise, peace.
Observation:
When was Paul’s second missionary journey? (Date)
Where is Philippi?
Who are the three main characters in this chapter besides Paul?
Why do you think the citizens of Philippi were so opposed to Paul?
What was Paul’s response amid persecution?
How did Paul respond to the trials that resulted from doing what He felt God had called him to do?
What: Considering the three main characters, what stands out to you about their coming to faith?
Acts 16 tells us how Paul planted a church in Philippi with the three most unlikely candidates. He came to love this little Motley Crew like his family, his affection not masked in his writing, an affection which suggested this church was his favorite among all those he helped found. Some say it was because they were both Jewish and Romans like him. When an investment is made into the most unlikely people, a bond is developed that is not easily broken, built on proud fatherly affection when those he led into the faith go from broken and improbable to pioneering a church plant and succeeding. Nothing worth anything in the kingdom comes easy; plowing the field of an old governmental system to establish a new one comes at a risk. Paul would encounter many hardships in this new venture, but the investment became one he championed and tenderly held close to his heart. I believe Philippi was his favorite because the most unlikely group of people won his heart with their childlike gratitude and affection for one who risked his life so that they would enjoy spiritual freedom.
Paul was between forty and fifty when he first came to Philippi. He knew something extraordinary was about to happen because he saw a vision of a man appealing to him to go to Macedonia while en route. We do not know if Paul recognized the man in the vision or if he had ever met him. Still, we know that God speaks to us in ways we don’t always fully understand. Paul learned to trust God in whatever way He chose to show him, so He unflinchingly moved toward the direction the Spirit directed.
Philippi, a Roman colony, was a key city because, historically, it had been known for its rich mines of gold and silver, although the mines had been exhausted by Paul’s journey. About three hundred and fifty years before, in 368 BC, the father of Alexander the Great founded the city of Philippi, which was named after him (King Philip II of Macedonia). In AD 42, after Brutus assassinated Julius Ceasar in an attempt to overthrow the old Roman order, a significant battle took place between two opposing Roman forces: Mark Antony and Octavian ( loyal friends of Ceasar) and Brutus and Cassius, the conspirators of Ceasar’s murder. The battle was unorganized and sloppy, but Mark Antony and Octavian ultimately gained control and won. Rather than die in disgrace, Brutus and Cassius died by suicide, and the old order continued under the reign of Octavian. (Perhaps you have heard the love story of Antony and Cleopatra; if not, it is worth reading for more historical context.)
Paul arrived in Philippi only ten years after this epic battle (AD 52). The Romans established a colony there, which meant that in exchange for protection and safer roads, Roman citizens would come to live in the town to expand their territory and Helenize the culture. ( Hellenization is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language, and identity by non-Greeks.)
Lydia: The Unlikely Church Planter
When Paul was in Philippi for a few days he intended to find a Jewish worship service. Finding only women at the river, Paul began to talk with them, which shows how far a former Pharisee had come. Once, he would have prayed, “Lord, thank God I am not a woman.” as the Talmud taught, now, Paul did not consider gender nor bloodline. Perhaps a Jewish man speaking to women as if they were equal caught the women's attention; indeed, something caught the attention of the businesswoman named Lydia, so she began to listen to what he had to say. She loved God but had not heard the good news that God had come to reconcile the world to Himself. Her heart received the happy news which began the beginning of a church.
(A generation later, Jesus sent a letter to the church in Lydia’s hometown of Thyatira (Rev. 2:18–29). Thyatira was an obscure town in the middle of nowhere known for only one thing: purple dye. Paul never went to Thyatira. It is possible that Lydia, the purple cloth dealer, may have planted that church.)
Every church plant needs those who will give generously. Not everyone understands the cost of building the kingdom. Some might give very little, expecting much. Some give out of what little they have, and then some, like Lydia, give like the church is their child, deserving of the best they have to offer. Like a Mother who cared for her brood, Lydia became the patroness of the founding church. In her home, she hosted Paul and his companions and the fledgling group of people who would call one another the family of God.
Lydia has taught us what a life transformed by Christ looks like. Immediately after getting saved and baptized, her “old man” was gone, and a “new” had come: evangelist, a generous giver with a heart of hospitality, came out of her like a natural flowing spring.
In what way does your life look transformed after coming to Christ? What spiritual gifts fell like ripe fruit immediately after believing?
A Fortune-Telling Slave Girl: From Broken to New
The next person to join the church came directly from the pagan culture. Demonized by an evil spirit, she made Paul’s life miserable by following him and making a spectacle. There could have been a couple of reasons Paul did not cast the demon out immediately. First, it can take a while to determine whether someone is operating out of an evil spirit or something else is happening. Second, the Romans liked to live in peace and elegance. Disrupting the peace could earn them a prison sentence, and Kingdom work would halt.
After just a couple of days, it was clear. The girl had a demon.
The girl was stating facts: “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” However, her approach was not right; it was dishonoring and antagonizing. The fruits of the spirit are gentleness, peace, and self-control. She functioned opposite those even while speaking the truth.
How does one become demonized? Demons are disembodied spirits who need flesh in which to operate. When someone whose spirit is dead in sin comes into agreement with a demon, they can become demonized. The spirit latches on to the person who has allowed themselves to become a vessel a demon uses to accomplish thier work. Some are born with a sensitivity to the supernatural world and are even more susceptible to stronger forces latching on to them because of thier natural ability to see into the spirit world.
To help explain further, every person is born with unique gifts given to them by God. Some may be born with the gift of leadership, some with the gift of mercy, others with the gift of teaching, and some with prophecy, etc. Those gifts are given at birth, whether someone is born again or not. The forces of darkness exploit those gifts and use them for thier purposes unless one who is born of the Spirit sets them free or they set themselves free by becoming born again.
How do demons operate after Jesus defeated Satan at the cross?
“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Col 2:15). After the fall, Adam, who was delegated authority over the earth, abdicated his authority to Satan. From that point, Satan became the god of the world, setting up a kingdom of principalities and powers. When Jesus died, he was still at work even though his body was dead. He took back the keys of authority (which rightfully belonged to humankind) from Satan (Rev 1:18). He then took his blood and sprinkled it on the Mercy Seat in Heaven (Heb 9:23-26), forever silencing the requirement of the law for righteousness (Rom 3:20) and disarming the power the law gave to Satan to use as an accusation against us.
In other words, Satan cannot legally use the law to accuse us anymore because we are not made righteous by the law but by the blood of Jesus. For those whose spirits have not been made alive to Go'd’s life (Zoe), their spirits are dead and, therefore, the perfect incubator for demons to operate. When Jesus rose to life, he rose as the Victorious One. The keys of earthly dominion were returned to man as Jesus came as Man. Jesus is seated in Heaven on a throne as the King, with Satan as his footstool. He is the firstborn among men, meaning that Jesus’ victory is ours. Satan is stripped of authority and power. His kingdom has fallen. Whatever way Satan operates is illegal. He wasn’t cast out of the earth- that comes later, so we must be aware of how he operates so that we are not surprised and caught unaware.
As Christ’s heirs in this Kingdom of God, we have been deputized with the power of Jesus’ name and the authority to enforce His Victory on the earth. We don’t wait for Jesus to come back down and do it. He sent His Holy Spirit to fill us and empower us to enforce victory. If someone is in bondage to the enemy somehow, we have been empowered to set them free.
Can a Christian be demonized?
A born-again Christian cannot be demonized because their spirit is holy. But demons can influence them in thier souls, which is the mind, will, and emotion. That is why we must guard our hearts above all things. The heart is the gateway to our soul. If Christians do not know who they are, that they are righteous, loved by God, and set free from death and devils, they will operate out of thier flesh and open themselves up to the lies and influence of devils. This is why we must know who we are and be transformed by renewing our minds. We are what we behold. If we are filling our minds and hearts with death, sickness, and negative thoughts, that is what will be produced. Fill your heart and mind with Jesus and who He says you are, and you will begin to reflect His likeness.
The Taming of Hardened Jailer
Have you ever known someone who seemed the most unlikely convert? They are hardened, cruel, and unbendable; it feels beyond hope that a person could ever change. It would take a miracle to get this person to come to Christ.
After their beating, the jailer threw Paul and Silas into the worst cell. He meant for them to suffer. Jesus told His disciples multiple times after He performed miracles that it was a sign for the unbeliever. Miracles are amazing for believers, no doubt. Our lives are no longer our own after coming to Christ. Surrendered to Him, his love for us is also care for the lost. Often, if we find ourselves in a place of desperate need, the miracle we need is not just for us; it is for those unlikely unbelievers who will become believers after seeing the hand of God move in miraculous ways.
It was not convenient for the men to be put in prison. What seemed like a halt to thier work was a launching pad to many coming to Christ. When the Wind of God shook the cell and opened the prison doors when the jailer discovered what happened, his strength failed him because only the power of God could have done such a thing. As a result, he and his entire family came to Christ. No longer a steeled man set to cause the suffering of his prisoners, he was humbled by the power of God.
Notice how Paul and Silas were not in prison complaining and feeling like God had abandoned them. They chose a response that activated thier faith, giving the Holy Spirit room to do the miraculous.
When we face difficulties and suffering, how we respond changes us or the circumstances. Not all suffering is equal. Choosing the proper response to each difficulty is crucial to maintaining joy and enforcing the victory Jesus paid for. Our Philippians study will discuss suffering, what it produces, and how to respond.
Philippians is known as the “joy” letter. Paul wanted the Philippian church to remember that joy comes through Jesus and His finished work.
Know: Truth
Know: Truth is an in-depth Bible study approach. It fosters knowledge of the Word and a slowed-down process of carefully observing what the passage means in context before applying it to our lives.
As a helpful tool to remember what to look for as you study is to use KNOW as an acrostic.
K- Knowledge
N- Notation
O- Observe
W- What
Knowledge comes with reading the scripture.
Note—Slow down and mark keywords. Look up words in concordance, such as Strongs or Vines Bible Dictionary. One free and easy-to-navigate resource is the Blue Letter Bible. Use this tool to look up the original Hebrew or Greek to discover the deeper meaning.
Observe what the passage says in context and as a whole. What is the context?
Six helpful questions that students of the Word should ask are who, what, where, when, why, and how.
Some ways of asking these questions can be:
Who is the author, and to whom is he writing?
What was happening in that period?
Where do you see Jesus?
When was this book written?
Why is the author writing this letter?
How does this apply to me today?
Lastly, a final and important step is to apply God’s word.
What does this mean for me today?