LYDIA, A WOMAN WITH A HEART OPEN TO GOD

Acts 16:13-15

  1. who was Lydia
    1. she was part of a group of women that had gathered to pray - 13
      1. we do not know what her religious background was
      2. she was a person who recognized the insufficiency of human ability to face life’s task
      3. the act of praying is an act of dependence on our Creator
      4. prayer opens us to God’s will and purposes
    2. she was a seller of purple - 14
      1. she had a small business in her home
      2. it is important that we do not let business crowd out our task of parenting
      3. it is also important that we do not let business keep us from God
      4. Lydia did not allow her business to keep her from the more important things in life
    3. she was a worshipper of God - 14
      1. a Gentile that feared the God of the Jews
      2. the Bible records many Gentiles that forsook their heathen religions for the way of the Jews
  2. a closer look a Lydia
    1. she was active in seeking God - 14
      1. God had already been working to bring her to the place of conversion
        1. she had already forsaken the heathen religion of her society, and became a worshipper of the God of Israel
        2. she still didn’t know Jesus
        3. she took time to listen to Paul, rather than being satisfied with the faith she already had
        4. her limited knowledge of the truth about God and herself caused her to pursue deeper truth
        5. listening is one way of gaining greater understanding
        6. her seeking heart and her listening ear enabled her to become a recipient of God’s saving grace
      2. God had opened her heart
        1. does not mean that God forced her to be saved
        2. it affirms that salvation is God’s action from start to finish
          1. salvation cannot be gotten by good behavior, religious ceremony, or pious achievements
          2. God cultivates the soil of our heart and drop in the seed
          3. it is God reaching for us and calling us into a relationship with Himself
          4. it is God’s relentless quest to bring a lost humanity home to Himself
          5. Lydia had been called to make a decision
    2. she was active in obedience - 15
      1. Lydia’s openness to the gospel had positive and numerous consequences
        1. salvation has an impact on the total human life
        2. Lydia’s new faith was contagious
          1. it led to the conversion of her entire household
          2. the gift of new life cannot be bottled up
          3. the most natural place for us to share our faith is with our family and with those whom we have regular contact
        3. the most difficult place to share our faith can be in our family because they can quickly discern if it is real
      2. Lydia was apparently the head of her household (widow, divorced)
        1. we cannot undo the things of the past, but we can make the best of the present situation
        2. she, and her household were baptized (obedience)
        3. upon conversion, baptism followed almost immediately
    3. she was active in hospitality – 15
      1. we are know by our fruits
        1. every good work is evidence of the fruit of the Spirit
        2. it is one thing to confess that Jesus is Lord, and quit another to have that Lordship effect out life
      2. Lydia’s hospitality flowed naturally and joyfully from her new life
        1. her conversion was real
        2. her faith bore fruit
  3. Conclusion
    1. Lydia became an instrument for the conversion of her household, and the establishment of the first Christian church in Europe
    2. Lydia was just an ordinary woman
      1. God used her in an exceptional way
      2. ordinary people can be used by God in extraordinary ways
      3. God will supply the power to succeed in the task He places before us