A Broad overview of Acts 16: 11-40: How the Church in Philippi was started
Philippi was a Roman colony, the leading city of Macedonia. The first convert was a wealthy and generous lady named Lydia, along with her household. After conversion she invited Paul and his companions to stay at her house, which provided a base of operation for Paul and a place of assembly for the young church, Act.16:15.
Paul went about preaching in the city and many more people were converted. A crisis arose when he cast out a spirit of divination from a slave girl who had been following them, 16:16-18. As a result, he and Silas were severely flogged and then thrown in prison and shackled with chains, 16: 23. And yet these amazing men found it in their nerve to sing hymns to God in the prison at midnight, pain and discomfort not withstanding. It is a rare virtue to maintain a positive attitude in the face of hardship. Our more predictable response is discouragement, worry and questioning the goodness of God. But with the help of the Holy Spirit we can overcome disillusionment, praise God and continue to be his witnesses amidst pain.
As they sang, an earthquake shook the prison and chains of all prisoners were loosed, 16:25, 26. None of the prisoners escaped! They were glued to Paul and Silas, listening to them sing to God. The jailor was so astounded that asked them, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” He accepted the gospel and together with his household was immediately baptize, 16:30-33.
But after this crisis, it was necessary for Paul and Silas to depart, 16:39. Paul continued his relationship with this church. We shall be examining this relationship in coming devotionals. The immediate occasion for the writing was the return of Epaphroditus to Philippi. Ephaphroditus has come to Rome to bring a gift to Paul but then he had fallen seriously ill. Paul sent him back so that the Phillipan church would be encouraged. With Ephaph as the messenger, he sent a letter to give the Philippian Chuch first hand information about his circumstances. He also took that opportunity to thank them for their gifts and to address a few issues. In coming days, we shall look at these issues as we study passage by passage.
In this introductory chapter, here is a powerful lesson from the prison episode: God is at work no matter what circumstances we are in. So let us praise him even in hardship. Our positive attitude will not only witness to others, it will also create room for God to intervene in our situations. Let us also be encouraged to share the gospel in all circumstances.
