Title: Life with God (Acts 16:1-15)
[Acts 16:1-15]
The book of Acts is the book of the Holy Spirit. It shows how the early church and the Word of God are spreading. When Theophilus, who is receiving the Acts of the Apostles, sees, he sees the presence of the Holy Spirit and God's help. The text consists of detailed parts. First, it is the process of meeting Timothy, who is said to be the successor of the Apostle Paul, while looking back at Derbe and Lystra, the first destinations. Second, I was going to continue preaching the Word in Asia, but the Holy Spirit stopped me. Third, the party eventually leads to Troas through the vision of Macedonia, 'Come over here and help us'. The group reached Philippi, preached the gospel, met Lydia, a Gentile, and created the Philippian Church in Lydia's house.
What we need to know in all these processes is a life that walks with the Holy Spirit. Our desire is to know God's will, and we can see that God is sovereignly leading the church and the gospel. What we need is 'obedience'. God is accomplishing His will through our daily activities, and we tend to rely too much on spirituality to do things. As the psalmist said, 'With what shall a young man cleanse his way? We want your word to be in my heart, that we might not sin against you.' We must overcome our selfish spirituality. We must avoid the faith that only applies to our own life, to the extent that we are only comforted by peace, believing that it is the word of God. Don't focus too much on religious ceremonies. Timothy's circumcision is very human, but sometimes it is also precious, for the sake of the Lord's gospel.