Monday: Philippi
Once in Macedonia, Paul and his companions traveled to Philippi, where they established the first Christian congregation in Europe.
Read Acts 16:11-24. Where did the missionaries go on Sabbath and why? What ultimately happened to them there?
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Whenever Paul arrived in a city, his practice was to visit the local synagogue on Sabbath in order to witness to the Jews (Acts 13:14, Acts 13:42, Acts 13:44; Acts 17:1-2; Acts 18:4). That in Philippi he and his group went to a riverside to pray—together with some women, both Jewish and Gentile worshipers of God—probably means there was no synagogue in the city. The significance of this is that Paul did not go to Jewish synagogues on Sabbaths only for evangelistic purposes, but also because this was his day of worship.
Read Acts 16:25-34. Review the story of the jailer’s conversion. What did he need to do to be saved?
Paul and Silas’s answer to the jailer’s question is in full harmony with the gospel, since salvation is entirely through faith in Jesus (Rom. 3:28, Gal. 2:16). What we cannot conclude from the episode, however, is that belief in Jesus is all that is necessary for baptism, at the expense of the proper doctrinal and practical instruction.
What do we know about the jailer? Was he a Jew or a Jewish proselyte? In either case, what he needed was to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior. What if he were a Gentile who already knew and worshiped God, such as Cornelius, Lydia (Acts 16:14), and several others in Acts? What if he had previously attended Paul’s evangelistic meetings in the city? Whatever the facts about him, the brevity of the account should not be used as an excuse for quick baptisms.
| Read Acts 16:31-34. What does this teach us about just how complete and full Christ’s sacrifice was for us? How can you learn, day by day, to rest in the assurance of Christ’s righteousness covering you as your only hope of salvation? |
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For a whole lot of reasons, Acts 16 was one of the passages in the Bible that I learned about in early childhood. Lydia was a seller of purple, and my father, a shell collector, knew that the purple was derived from the Murex shell. It took a whole lot of live Murex shells to get a very small amount of purple dye. Hence the dye was sold only to rulers. It is quite possible that Lydia was quite well off. So that little connection to shell collecting gave me an early interest in this chapter.
Today's lesson had to select from the wealth of material in this chapter, so I would like to pick up a thread that wasn't covered today. Paul was in prison for setting a captive free. He had been followed by a possessed woman proclaiming, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation." Paul freed her from the spirit that possessed her and in doing so freed her from her captives who were using her to make money. This event raised the ire of her commercial owners and ultimately led to Paul and Silas being arrested.
It is a timely reminder that part of the gospel commission is to set the captive free, without fearing the consequences to ourselves.
Maurice Ashton i so love your contribution. What i think the church as a body and we as individuals need do now is not just preaching the word alone but most importantly setting the captives free such as being our brothers keepers. Uplifting one another's burden(Spiritually, Financially, Materially, Emotionally, Physically, etc). Let our deeds speak for us before our words. So were the apostles method and so should be ours.
And while in prison,Paul sets the jailer free. What a wonderful God we save
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
Eternal destination hangs at balance.
How did Paul answer this question?
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
Compare this with conversion of Paul
When was Paul became a Christian on the road to Damascus or when he was baptized by Ananias by immersion?
I believe the moment he was obedient to the call of God at the road of Damascus he was saved and was found in Christ.
How many years it took Paul to relearn the Old Testament?
Three years
After the baptism the jailer was given a bible study about the new found truth and the new way of life.
This is only the beginning of the journey.
Will I ever be good enough or doctrinally perfect in my understanding to be baptized?
Never
Did my journey of understanding the truth had come to an end because I have found the truth?
Absolutely not. I am growing everyday. I am constantly awed by the revelation of God.
Right On! All throughout Acts people were baptised in the name of Jesus without taking a baptismal class. Being baptised is our confermation of being born again. A baby doesn't know anything. We learn as we grow. Do we beleive the word of God or the doctrine of man?
We may have some difficulty to accept the fact that we are saved only by grace. Even though we try to be good, there is nothing in us that can justify us before God but the blood of His Son for us. Yes, I can do nothing and still be saved... But if I have the assurance of such a gift, why would I simply put it off? If this is a reality in my life, why would I simply do not care about who is Jesus and why He did such a wonderful thing for me? Somehow, this love must impact my heart. I show that I accept a gift when my heart is thankful. I am moved to freely give back good things when my heart is thankful.
on Point. Salvation is not based on our personal performance! Jesus Paid it all and now we let the work of Holy spirit grow within us. I Like Paul’s answer to the jailer. Salvation comes from Jesus! Our Investigative Judgment doctrine is unbliibical because in actual sense it says salvation is based on Jesus plus our works!!! We need to free our selves from this type of flesh circumssion as a requirement of salvation.
I don't get that message from the Investigative Judgement doctrine at all.
the doctrine of the Investigative Judgment is not complicated. Basically, it means that Jesus decides who will be saved or lost before He comes. The average person in the street essentially believes that they have until the moment that Jesus comes to get ready.
The Jailer may have been a Gentile just like the Repentant thief on the cross next to Jesus also may have just been a Gentile who accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior.
I don’t understand why the point about quick baptism is drawn at all from this account in Acts 16. Wasn’t the unich also baptized quickly? Please help me to understand more about why this conclusion has been drawn especially as the statement has no supporting Bible texts to the contrary written in support here.
In order for one to believe in something or someone, he has to be introduced to that thing or person. The jailer must have had some knowledge Jesus for Paul to give him the recipe for salvation. After preaching to the multitude, Peter was asked the same question and gave basically the same answer, it then behooves us as modern day evangelists to ensure we introduce Jesus to people and then teach the doctrinal beliefs of the church. When people fall in love with Jesus it makes it easier for them to accept
It seems to me that this lesson is saying that believing on Jesus Christ is not enough to be saved. While it may not be enough to join your church I believe it is enough to be saved. John 6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him who He has sent. Way to many people believe in doctrines and not in Jesus. This was the problem Jesus faced when He was here and I believe not much has changed. If more believed in Jesus Christ there would be more love and less judgement. Thanks for reading and for all the people at SS.net