17 Portraits of Two Women

Acts of the Apostles  •  Sermon  •  Submitted
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The Liberated Women (16:11-15)

11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. 13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

The passage opens with the missionary team (Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke) in the port city of Troas. Troas was located across the Aegean Sea from Greece, on the western shore of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) near the site of ancient Troy. The missionaries had been directed there by the Holy Spirit, who had closed all other doors of ministry for them (16:6–8). While at Troas, Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia (on the mainland of Greece), pleading for him to “come over to Macedonia and help us” (16:9). In response to the vision, Luke notes, “immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them” (16:10).
Therefore, because of God’s call, putting out to sea from Troas, they ran a straight course to Samothrace. Samothrace is an island in the Aegean Sea, approximately half way between Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. There they stayed overnight (to avoid the hazards of sailing in the dark) and on the day following sailed on to Neapolis, the port city for Philippi. The winds must have been favorable, for the reverse trip from Philippi to Troas on the third missionary journey took five days (Acts 20:6). When the missionary team landed in Neapolis, Paul’s ministry finally reached Europe.
The team did not stop to preach in Neapolis, but from there went on to Philippi, about ten miles inland. Philippi, as Luke notes, was a leading city of the district of Macedonia, and a Roman colony. Named after Philip II of Macedon (the father of Alexander the Great), Philippi was the eastern terminus for the great Roman highway known as the Egnatian Way. The city was named a Roman colony by Octavian, following the battle of Actium in 31 B.C. As a colony Philippi
possessed the ius Italicum, which carried the right of freedom, that is, they were self-governing, independent of the provincial government; the right of exemption from tax; and the right of holding land in full ownership, as under Roman law, and of using Italian legal procedures and precedents. In reality what all of this meant was to bestow upon the city of Philippi the privilege of treating the city and its denizens as if they were in Italy.
Although eight other cities known to be Roman colonies appear in Acts, Philippi is the only one Luke refers to as a colony.
The missionaries remained in Philippi for some days, then on the Sabbath day went outside the gate to a riverside, where they were supposing that there would be a place of prayer. It was Paul’s custom in each city he visited to preach first in the synagogue. As a rabbi and a student of the greatest rabbi of the time, Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), Paul could be assured of getting a hearing there. To form a synagogue, however, required the presence of ten Jewish men who were heads of households. Evidently Philippi’s Jewish community was too small to form a synagogue. In such cases, a place of prayer, under the open sky and near a river or the sea, was to be arranged for. The one in Philippi was located outside the gate by a riverside, probably where the road leading out of Philippi crossed the Gangites River. The fact that the group met outside the city probably indicates the meeting place was well beyond the sacred area, within which foreign deities were not permitted.
The missionaries sat down (the normal posture for teaching; cf. Matt. 5:1; 13:2; Luke 4:20) and began speaking to the women who had assembled. That only women are mentioned is further evidence of the small size of the Jewish community at Philippi. Lacking a man to lead them, these women met to pray, read from the Old Testament law, and discuss what they had read. To be taught by a traveling rabbi such as Paul was no doubt a rare privilege.
It is significant that the first people Paul preached to in Europe were women. He is often caricatured as a male chauvinist by those who reject his teaching on the role of women. But he was not prejudiced, as his eagerness to speak with this group shows. Paul’s attitude was in sharp contrast to that of his fellow Pharisees. They would not deign to teach a woman, and regularly in their rote prayers they thanked God that they were neither Gentiles, slaves, nor women. It also ran counter to the treatment of women in Greco-Roman society. Paul valued the ministry of women such as Phoebe (Rom. 16:1), the various women among those he greeted in Romans 16:3ff., and even Euodia and Syntyche (Phil. 4:2–3).
Verse 14 introduces a certain woman named Lydia. Because her home city of Thyatira was located in the Roman province of Lydia, it is possible that “Lydia” was not so much her personal name as her name in business; she may have been known as “the Lydian lady.” Thyatira, site of one of the seven churches of Revelation (Rev. 2:18–29), was noted for its manufacture of purple dye and dyed goods. Not surprisingly, Lydia herself was a seller of purple fabrics. Purple dye, whether made from the glands of the murex shellfish or from the roots of the madder plant, was prohibitively expensive. Purple garments were worn by royalty and the wealthy, and the selling of purple fabrics was a very profitable business. That Lydia had a house large enough to accommodate the missionary team (v. 15) and the nascent church at Philippi (v. 40) indicates her wealth.
Three sequential aspects of Lydia’s conversion stand out in the narrative. First, she was a worshiper of God. Hers was a seeking heart, and she had already turned from pagan idolatry to worship the one true God. The phrase a worshiper of God shows that Lydia, like Cornelius (Acts 10:2), was a believer in the God of Israel. She had not yet, however, become a full proselyte to Judaism.
Lydia’s seeking was the first step of her spiritual liberation. Yet she, like all sinners, did not seek God on her own until He sought her. In Romans 3:11, Paul wrote, “There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God.” “No one can come to Me,” declared the Lord Jesus Christ, “unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44).
Her conversion, and those of Cornelius and the Ethiopian eunuch, illustrate an important principle. An often-asked question about evangelism concerns the fate of those who never hear the gospel. Lydia’s conversion shows that God will reveal the fullness of the gospel to those whom He causes to honestly seek Him. In John 6:37, Jesus said, “All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” God will never turn away the seeking heart.
Not only was Lydia seeking, but she also was listening to the gospel proclaimed by Paul. Many hear the sound of the life-giving message preached without really listening to it. They are like Paul’s companions on the Damascus Road, who, although they heard its sound, “did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me” (Acts 22:9).
The Lord Jesus Christ condemned those who heard without listening. In response to His disciples’ query about why He spoke in parables, He replied:

11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

“ ‘ “You will indeed hear but never understand,

and you will indeed see but never perceive.”

15  For this people’s heart has grown dull,

and with their ears they can barely hear,

and their eyes they have closed,

lest they should see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and understand with their heart

and turn, and I would heal them.’

16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

In John 8:43–45, Jesus gave the reason people fail to listen to His Word:

43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.

Lydia was not like them; she listened with faith to the saving gospel. She did so because the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul. As noted in the discussion of Acts 13:48 in chapter 3 of this volume, God is absolutely sovereign in salvation. Were that not true, no one would be saved. For those “dead in the trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1) are unable to respond to spiritual truth. God has to open the heart.
Remembering God’s sovereignty in salvation is the foundation of a proper perspective on evangelism. Salvation does not depend on clever evangelistic strategies, or the skill of the preacher, or a masterful presentation. It is not a human work at all; it is God’s work. “I planted,” Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth” (1 Cor. 3:6–7).
In 1 Corinthians 2:1–4, Paul described his evangelistic approach to the Corinthians:

And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

Although an accomplished scholar, adept at handling the Scriptures, Paul recognized that mere human persuasiveness saves no one. The other early evangelists also knew that truth; one searches the evangelistic messages in Acts in vain for any sort of clever manipulation. Instead, they are filled with interpretation and application of Scripture, and the proclamation of the gospel (cf. 2:14ff., 41; 3:12ff.; 5:42; 8:4–5; 13:15ff.; 16:30–32; 17:10–12).
Many in our day foolishly act as though God were wholly dependent on them to reach the lost. Nothing could be further from the truth. In his book the Knowledge of the Holy, A. W. Tozer points out:
Probably the hardest thought of all for our natural egotism to entertain is that God does not need our help. We commonly represent Him as a busy, eager, somewhat frustrated Father hurrying about seeking help to carry out His benevolent plan to bring peace and salvation to the world; but as said the Lady Julian, “I saw truly that God doeth all-thing, be it never so little.” The God who worketh all things surely needs no help and no helpers.
Too many missionary appeals are based upon this fancied frustration of Almighty God. An effective speaker can easily excite pity in his hearers, not only for the heathen but for the God who has tried so hard and so long to save them and has failed for want of support. I fear that thousands of young persons enter Christian service from no higher motive than to help deliver God from the embarrassing situation His love has gotten Him into and His limited abilities seem unable to get Him out of.
The most important element of any gospel presentation is clarity of content. To present the gospel clearly requires invoking the power of the Spirit and leaving the results to God.
As was customary in the early church, Lydia and her household were baptized immediately after their conversion, no doubt in the river near the place of prayer. The jailer’s household also believed the gospel (Acts 16:33), as God established the church at Philippi. Baptism is the outward sign of the redeemed individual’s identification with Jesus Christ. It is an act of obedience by the believer but plays no role in salvation.
After her baptism, Lydia urged the missionaries to accept her hospitality saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” Hospitality is required of all Christians (Rom. 12:13; Heb. 13:2; 1 Pet. 4:9), especially women (1 Tim. 5:10) and church leaders (Titus 1:8). It was critical in the ancient world, where inns were often unsuitable for Christians to stay in. They were filthy, dangerous, expensive, and often little more than brothels. To make a home where travelers could be exposed to Christian love, family life, and fellowship was a high priority for Christian women (cf. 1 Tim. 5:9–10). Lydia’s hospitality gave proof that she was a truly liberated woman (cf. John 13:35).

The Enslaved Woman (16:16-18)

16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.

As the church took root in Philippi, Satan moved to attack it. Here, as in Samaria (8:9ff.) and Cyprus (13:6ff.), was the clash of light and darkness. He sought to infiltrate the church or to crush it with persecution. Both avenues of attack would prove unsuccessful.
His attempt at infiltration unfolded as the missionaries continued their pattern of going to the place of prayer beside the river. They encountered an emissary of the devil, a certain slave-girl having a spirit of divination. The Greek text literally reads “a python spirit.” That designation derives from Greek mythology, in which the Python was a snake that guarded the famous oracle at Delphi. Eventually, the Python was killed by Apollo, the god of prophecy. Since it was believed that Apollo spoke through the oracle at Delphi, the term “python” came to refer to anyone in contact with Apollo. In modern terms, she was a medium in contact with demons. Luke notes that the demon-possessed girl was bringing her masters much profit by fortunetelling. Such people were believed to be able predict the future, a valuable commodity in the Greco-Roman culture. As John B Polhill states in The New American Commentary:
“Greeks and Romans put great stock on augury and divination. No commander would set out on a major military campaign nor would an emperor make an important decree without first consulting an oracle to see how things might turn out. A slave girl with a clairvoyant gift was thus a veritable gold mine for her owners.”
This hapless tool of Satan kept following after Paul and the others, crying out at the top of her voice, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.” This was a subtle and dangerous attack, a bold attempt to infiltrate a deadly tare among the wheat, because what the demon-possessed girl was saying was absolutely true. The demon even used biblical terminology. The term Most High God was an Old Testament designation of the God of Israel (Ps. 78:35; Dan. 5:18) She also spoke of the way of salvation. The father of lies speaks the truth when it suits his purposes, disguising himself and his emissaries as angels of light (2 Cor. 11:13–14). Some of his most effective and diabolical work is done in the name of Jesus Christ. He often uses a little truth to ensnare people in a false system of religion. Since the demon-possessed girl was agreeing with the Christian preachers, the natural assumption would be that she was part of their group. She would then have been in a position to do unspeakable harm to the cause of Christ.
Like his Lord (Mark 1:34; Luke 4:41), Paul wanted no publicity from Satan. After the girl continued her proclamations for many days, Paul became greatly annoyed. He resented the satanic assault on his ministry and felt sorry for the wretched state of the girl. He ended both when he turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” In obedience to Paul’s apostolic authority, the demon came out at that very moment. The ability to cast out demons marked Christ’s apostles (Mark 3:15; 2 Cor. 12:12) and passed from the church with them. That and the other miraculous gifts confirmed that the apostles were God’s spokesmen. Despite the claims of many today, no believer has direct authority to command demons to obey him. (For further discussion of this point, see John MacArthur, How to Meet the Enemy [Wheaton, Ill.: Victor, 1992].) The spiritual battle is now fought with the armor and weapons discussed in Ephesians 6:10ff.
These two women typify all of humanity. Everyone is either liberated by Jesus Christ or enslaved by Satan. The only path to freedom is that followed by Lydia—of seeking God, listening to the gospel, and having a heart opened to respond by the Lord. Those who do so will not be disappointed, for the Lord Himself promises in Jeremiah 29:13, “You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”
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