A Study of Acts: Forbidden Areas, Journey to Macedonia, A Change to “First Person”
Acts 16:6-13 - The will of God comes through the renewing and transforming of our minds through Christ Jesus.
“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. 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.” When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. So putting out to sea from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and on the day following to Neapolis; and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony; and we were staying in this city for some days. And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled.”
Acts 16:6-13 NASB1995
The missionary group continues its journey, passing through the Phrygian and Galatian region. The Holy Spirit forbade them to speak the word in Asia so that dictates their route. After they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia and the “Spirit of Jesus” did not permit them. Let’s go to Bibleatlas.org and see the regions that are being discussed:
Recall that Lystra would be located southeast of Pisidia, in the Lycaonia region. The Holy Spirit has forbidden them from turning left, as they travel north, into the area that is labeled “Asia” on this map. This is the western edge of the present-day country of Türkiye and is not referring to the giant continent of Asia. Many great churches were established in this region later, including in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Philadelphia, Laodicea, Colossae, Sardis, Pergamum, and Thyatira (a list from Precept Austin). But right now the region is closed to Paul and his companions.
On the map above, you can see the region of Mysia, which is pinned on the map. The group is thinking of going into Bythnia, but the “Spirit of Jesus” (another way of describing the Holy Spirit and showing the nature of the Trinity) prohibits them from entering. They make their way to Troas, which would be on the coast to the left of Mysia. When they reach Troas, Paul has a vision during the night of a man in Macedonia asking them to come to Macedonia and help them. Note, dear readers, that Paul and his companions instantly obey God and don’t question Him.
In doing research, I found some very interesting commentaries on this passage. Here is one from the late F.B. Meyer, a pastor and evangelist from England quoted in Precept Austin:
THE SPIRIT of Jesus often shuts doors in the long corridors of life. We pass along, trying one after another, but find that they are all locked, in order that we may enter the one that He has opened for us (Rev 3:7-8). Sometimes in following the Spirit's guidance we seem to come to a blank wall. The little missionary band found themselves facing the sea. They had not contemplated crossing to Europe, but there seemed no other course open. They walked to and fro on the sea-wall or landing-stage, looking over the restless waves, and noticing the strange costumes of sailors and travellers who had gathered in the thriving sea-port, which bore the name famous to all the world for the Siege of Troy.
It was with such thoughts in his heart that St. Paul slept that night in his humble lodging, and in his dreams, a man from Macedonia, like one he had seen on the quay, stood and beckoned to him (Acts 16:10, R.V.).
Where it is possible for the judgment to arrive at a right conclusion, on the suggestions that may be supplied by the Divine Spirit, we are left to think out the problems of our career. Within your reach are the materials needed for formulating a correct judgment; use them, balance the pros and cons, and looking up to God to prevent you from making a mistake, act. When once you have come to a decision, in faith and prayer, go forward, not doubting or looking back.
Look forward, not doubting or looking back!
Troas has a fascinating history, being a port that was built near the important ancient city of Troy. I must share this commentary with an interesting historical insight from Allen Ross (Our Daily Bread ministry), quoted on Precept Austin:
Recall that Troas was an extremely important city in the days of Paul. It was the modern seaport city built just a little north of the probable sight of ancient Troy. Caesar had wanted to build the capital of the Roman Empire there, but instead remained in Rome. Why? Because according to tradition, when Troy fell to the Achaeans (see Homer’s Illiad), one man escaped, a man named Aeneas, and he was essentially responsible for the founding of Rome. The Romans always considered that they stood in the tradition and heritage of Troy, that Troy was their mother, so to speak (and interestingly, the Church of Rome places great stock in the cultural and literary traditions from Troy). So from Troy one man went out and eventually came to Rome and began what turned out to be a vast empire.
And now from the later city Troas, one man will be called by God to come to the West and help in the ministry. This one eventually will also end up in Rome and be influential in building the kingdom of God which will rival the empire and most certainly outlast it. This may be considered an interesting coincidence. But the more you work with Scripture the more of these historical coincidences you discover, and you soon begin to suspect that God had a reason for doing things the way He did. God Himself was and is building a kingdom, greater than any mortals could build. And it will last forever. And near the beginning of the development of this kingdom He chose to direct Paul to the city of Troas, and from there call him to go to the center of Greek and Roman culture to proclaim the truth.
As Steve and I have often discovered, there are no coincidences when doing the will of God (more on that later).
Now pay careful attention to the language in this passage. I’m going to repeat verse 10, with a couple of words in bold:
When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
Up until this very point in Acts, the story is written in the third person. God not only wanted the group to go to Macedonia, He also introduced a crucial new member of the missionary group to them in Troas, a physician and writer named Luke. Because God said “no”, we have been gifted with the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts, two very precious books of scripture. Luke is not always with the group in the last half of Acts and I will point out where the text changes to third person and back again.
The group sails a straight course to Samothrace, then on to Neapolis and Philippi, as shown in another map from Bibleatlas.org:
This mapped is pinned at the island of Samothrace, but you can see the next destinations on the map and also look back to Troas. They sailed “straight to Samothrace”, meaning they had very favorable winds. When they arrive in Neapolis, they continue on to Philippi, which was a very important Roman town and they decide to stay there for a while. Samothrace, Neapolis and Philippi are found in present-day Greece. On the Sabbath, the group went outside the city to the riverside, which they supposed would be an area of prayer and they find and speak to a group of women who had been assembled. That story will be picked up in my next devotional.
Now, earlier I talked about the Will of God and how we discern it. I found many great commentaries, but I think these three precepts or stages from John Piper are among the best:
There are three stages of knowing and doing the revealed will of God, that is, his will of command; and all of them require the renewed mind with its Holy-Spirit-given discernment that we talked about last time.
Stage One
First, God’s will of command is revealed with final, decisive authority only in the Bible. And we need the renewed mind to understand and embrace what God commands in the Scripture. Without the renewed mind, we will distort the Scriptures to avoid their radical commands for self-denial, and love, and purity, and supreme satisfaction in Christ alone. God’s authoritative will of command is found only in the Bible. Paul says that the Scriptures are inspired and make the Christian “competent, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17). Not just some good works. “Every good work.” Oh, what energy and time and devotion Christians should spend meditating on the written word of God.
Stage Two
The second stage of God’s will of command is our application of the biblical truth to new situations that may or may not be explicitly addressed in the Bible. The Bible does not tell you which person to marry, or which car to drive, or whether to own a home, where you take your vacation, what cell phone plan to buy, or which brand of orange juice to drink. Or a thousand other choices you must make.
What is necessary is that we have a renewed mind, that is so shaped and so governed by the revealed will of God in the Bible, that we see and assess all relevant factors with the mind of Christ, and discern what God is calling us to do. This is very different from constantly trying to hear God’s voice saying do this and do that. People who try to lead their lives by hearing voices are not in sync with Romans 12:2.
There is a world of difference between praying and laboring for a renewed mind that discerns how to apply God’s word, on the one hand, and the habit of asking God to give you new revelation of what to do, on the other hand. Divination does not require transformation. God’s aim is a new mind, a new way of thinking and judging, not just new information. His aim is that we be transformed, sanctified, freed by the truth of his revealed word (John 8:32; 17:17). So the second stage of God’s will of command is the discerning application of the Scriptures to new situations in life by means of a renewed mind.
Stage Three
Finally, the third stage of God’s will of command is the vast majority of living where there is no conscious reflection before we act. I venture to say that a good 95 percent of your behavior you do not premeditate. That is, most of your thoughts, attitudes, and actions are spontaneous. They are just spillover from what’s inside. Jesus said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak” (Matthew 12:34–36).
Why do I call this part of God’s will of command? For one reason. Because God commands things like: Don’t be angry. Don’t be prideful. Don’t covet. Don’t be anxious. Don’t be jealous. Don’t envy. And none of those actions are premeditated. Anger, pride, covetousness, anxiety, jealousy, envy — they all just rise up out of the heart with no conscious reflection or intention. And we are guilty because of them. They break the commandment of God.
Is it not plain therefore that there is one great task of the Christian life: Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. We need new hearts and new minds. Make the tree good and the fruit will be good (Matthew 12:33). That’s the great challenge. That is what God calls you to. You can’t do it on your own. You need Christ, who died for your sins. And you need the Holy Spirit to lead you into Christ-exalting truth and to work in you truth-embracing humility.
Give yourself to this. Immerse yourself in the written word of God; saturate your mind with it. And pray that the Spirit of Christ would make you so new that the spillover would be good, acceptable, and perfect — the will of God.
SO good! Thank the Lord for men like John Piper who speak about His word so eloquently.
My next devotional examines Acts 16:14-21 - The first convert in Europe and a demon-possessed slave girl.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - Today I pray the prayer from F.B. Meyer that was also in the commentary that I excerpted from Precept Austin:
PRAYER - O God, since we know not what a day may bring forth, but only that the hour for serving Thee is always present, may we wake to the instant claims of Thy holy Will; not waiting for tomorrow, but yielding today. Consecrate with Thy presence the way our feet may go; and the humblest work will shine, and the roughest places be made plain. AMEN. (Our Daily Walk)
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Bibleatlas.org was accessed on 11/24/2024 to review maps for Acts 16:6-13.
Precept Austin was accessed on 11/24/2024 to review commentary for Acts 16:6-13.
John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary. For more than thirty years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis. He is author of more than fifty books, and his sermons, articles, books, and more are available free of charge at desiringGod.org.
By John Piper. © Desiring God Foundation. Source: desiringGod.org