Clear Direction - Part One

Introduction

     There was a time when I failed to recognize why Paul would call us to be imitators of him (1 Corinthians 4:6 and 1 Corinthians 11:1), but it was only for lack of knowledge about him that caused me to miss the relevance of his request.  Now that I’ve taken time to study his life and his commitments to the gospel, I have a much deeper understanding and more defined impression of why he made this request.  I find him to be an excellent mentor for my walk of faith.  Today we will look at an example found in Acts chapter 16.  Although this story is concise, I will break my writing into multiple parts because of the wealth of information I gathered from this story.  I hope you will find mutual benefit from reading my review.  We will take periodic breaks in the retelling of this story to ask questions and pause for personal reflection.

Heading Out in Faith

     In this chapter (Acts 16), Paul is beginning his second missionary journey.  The travel plans for this trip are like his last journey; however, his travel companion is now Silas who he was introduced to by the church in Jerusalem to support Paul’s message, rather than Barnabas who sought Paul out in Tarsus to support his ministry in Antioch.  His starting point is not Antioch, Syria, but rather Cilicia which is the region in which Paul was born.  It is a Roman colony, and because that is the region of his birth, it is more than likely the reason behind his Roman citizenship.  This citizenship will come in handy, not only on this expedition but on many other occasions in Paul’s life.  Paul is holding the letter from the church in Jerusalem in his travel pack.  He hopes to use this letter as encouragement to the Gentiles from which he previously proclaimed God’s message.  This letter intended to remove any confusion the Gentiles were experiencing as a result of false teaching that they must follow Jewish customs to receive the Holy Spirit. 

     Paul and Silas planned to retrace the steps of Paul’s last journey starting in the city of Derbe in the Lycaonian region.  We will learn that Paul holds his travel plans loosely looking for direction from the Holy Spirit to direct their steps.  It is about a 100-mile trek from Cilicia to Derbe.  We can only assume that they took the most direct path with eager hearts to reunite with the brethren they had shared the gospel with a short time ago.  We do not know how quickly their feet could cross this terrain, but even an untrained hiker can walk about three miles an hour, so it seems reasonable to assume that this trip took them 3 or 4 days depending on how many hours a day their energy would prevail.  Scriptures tell us that Paul and Silas’ intention was to strengthen the church, and we see that they increased in numbers daily which can only speak of their success.

Question: 

1.  Where have you felt called to embark on a new venture that required stepping out in faith to accomplish something meaningful for God’s kingdom?

2.  Paul walked 100 miles from his home in Cilicia to Derbe.  Where has your faith required you to travel?  Outside of your home town? Out of your comfort zone?

Retracing Ones’ Steps

     From Derbe, Paul and Silas traveled another 30 miles on to Lystra.  As eager as this mission team might have felt, memories of Paul’s earlier experience would have reminded him of the persecution he faced in Lystra.  As a reminder back in Acts chapter 14 if you recall, Paul, through the power of the Holy Spirit had healed a man disabled from birth allowing him to walk for the first time in his life.  The people in this region, reverting to their pagan practices, decided to honor Barnabas and Paul as gods.  Paul rebuked these men for their idolatrous practices, and a short time later fled town after hearing rumors of personal danger.  Paul could have allowed the previous experience to influence his desire to return to this area; however, we learn that Paul is a man of courage and pushed through any doubts he may have had for the sake of creating saints and building up the church.  His act of faith resulted in an unexpected blessing as he was introduced to Timothy, a young man to whom he would become like a father and include him on future evangelism opportunities.

     Another 30 miles down the road, Paul would have introduced Silas and Timothy to the community that had stoned him and left him for dead.  We see Paul had shared these experiences with these men from reading an account in 2 Timothy 3:11 where it says the Lord had rescued him from much persecution and suffering, especially in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra.  The memory of this uprising was possibly the reasoning that Paul used to convince Timothy to be circumcised according to Jewish custom.  His mother was Jewish, and his father was Greek, so we can conclude that his family had not participated in the Jewish practice under the Abrahamic covenant to circumcise Timothy when he was eight days old.  Paul, foreseeing previous religious disputes wanted to resolve any potential conflict for young Timothy who is assumed to be about sixteen years old.

     Paul, Silas, and Timothy traveled another 85 miles arriving at the church in Antioch which is often associated with the region of Pisidia;   Phrygia and Galati have also been associated with this Antioch church.  We see reference to these two regions in Acts 16.  It is hard to decipher whether Paul was speaking to new territories there, or whether he was ministering to areas surrounding Antioch.  Historically speaking, this Antioch had welcomed Paul with open arms, but then we learn that the religious leaders quickly tried to sour his reputation with the Gentiles and leading men and devout women of this community.  The reason cited was jealousy over the crowds that Paul was attracting.  These Jewish men were not happy to merely drive him out of town; they also traveled from place to place on the heel of Paul causing further uprisings and dissensions. 

Question:

1.  Do you have past relationships or experiences that haunt you on your journey of faith that disrupts your peace of mind?  What memories do you wrestle with that create hesitation or worry as you attempt to live a life pleasing to God?   

2.  Like Paul who acquired a travel companion that become like a son to him, what unforeseen relationship have you gained that has brought blessing to you as you serve the Lord?    Have you considered all relational-benefits you’ve received from a God-loving companion?

Seeking New Opportunities / Expanding Your Territory

     While Paul was in the region of Phrygia and Galatia, we see that he is trying to map out the next leg of his journey; he wants to expand his territory.  While planning the next phase of his journey, we learn that God through the Holy Spirit has given Paul a definite ‘no’ that he is not allowed to pursue Asia.  As we grow restless for new opportunities, we too may experience one or more ‘no’s’ that prevent us from pursuing what we think is a perfectly good idea.  Scripture does not tell us how Paul received his ‘no-go’ message, but he was confident that he had heard correctly, and he did not disobey.

Question:

1.  Have you ever gotten excited about pursuing a spiritual mission, only to discover that God did not support your plan?  In what way did the Holy Spirit convince you to abandon your idea? 

2.  Are you pursuing an idea stricken with obstacles and conflicts that you seem to have to power-through to proceed?  If we are using human power to engage in anything, it might be a good time to seek God’s wisdom by asking if this is an idea that you must abandon for a season, or possibly forever.

What’s Next, Waiting on God’s Response

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