Have you heard about the power of persuasion? We might tell our kids, “If you’re good for 30 minutes, I’ll take you to get ice cream.” Your boss may tell you, “If you meet certain marks, you’ll get an end-of-the-year bonus.” You might tell yourself, “If I lose twenty pounds, I can treat myself.”
Or, perhaps, you have simply met someone who is very persuasive. Maybe you had a motivational coach, teacher, or parent. Perhaps you heard a preacher or speaker who was very motivating or persuasive.
The power of persuasion can lead us to do things. Indeed, the title of today’s sermon is “The Power of Persuasion.” We’re going to see how persuasion was at work in Acts 16:11-15.
Before we do, let’s go to God in prayer.
(prayer)
Ok, let’s look at the passage together, then we’ll continue to discover what God is teaching us.
Look at Acts 16:11-15:
11 From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, the next day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, a Roman colony and a leading city of the district of Macedonia. We stayed in that city for several days. 13 On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate by the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and spoke to the women gathered there. 14 A God-fearing woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying. 15 After she and her household were baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
Ok, there are at least three acts of persuasion in this passage. Let’s discover them together:
First, . . .
I. God persuaded the missionaries to travel to Macedonia.
Now, this act of persuasion really took place in last week’s passage.
You may recall that Paul had a vision of a Macedonian man asking to come over to Macedonia and help the people there.
Paul was convinced that this vision was a message from God. As a result, Paul and the other missionaries were persuaded to travel to Macedonia.
It was at this point that the missionaries crossed from Asia into Europe.
In fact, here’s how it looked on a map. Remember, last week they were in Troas. Now, they traveled to Samothrace, Neapolis, and Philippi.
So, they made it to Philippi, a city in Macedonia.
Now, just a little bit about Macedonia, it was a region near Greece that had a tremendous influence in the Roman empire.
In fact, someone great was from the Macedonian Empire. You may know him as Alexander the Great.
It was Alexander’s father, Philip of Macedon, who brought greatness to the city of Philippi, which is a city in this passage today. Indeed, the city was named after Philip, hence the name Philippi.
So, this is the region and city where Paul and his companions are located in Acts 16:11-15.
Why were the missionaries there?
They were not there because the city was great.
They were there because they were persuaded by God.
When God spoke, they listened.
When God led, they followed.
When God persuaded, they obey.
What about you?
When God speaks, do you listen?
When God leads, do you follow?
When God persuades, do you obey?
We see that these missionaries were persuaded by God. May we also be open to being persuaded by God to be used for His mission and for His glory.
First, we see God persuaded the missionaries to travel to Macedonia.
Second, we see . . .
II. God persuaded Lydia to salvation.
Notice in verse 13 that the missionaries are looking for a place to pray on the Sabbath.
Evidently, there were not enough Jewish people in the city to compose a synagogue, so they planned to go down to the river to pray.
What did they find when they got down to the river? They found women who were gathered.
This was no doubt a God appointed moment, right? This was a divine appointment. God knew they would need a place to pray and God knew those ladies would be gathered there.
Church, we must realize that God is not surprised by our circumstances.
God is weaving our circumstances together to bring about His plan, including the salvation of souls.
God was working through Paul and the other missionaries, and He was working in the hearts of the women who were gathered there.
When they found these women gathered, they began to speak to them, presumably about the gospel of Jesus Christ, because one of those women would become a believer in Jesus Christ.
Look at verse 14 again:
A God-fearing woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying.
You know, church, I almost made a huge mistake when creating these sermon points. Point 2 was originally, “Paul persuaded Lydia to salvation.”
However, what does the Bible say? It says in verse 14, “The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying.”
Paul was persuasive, for sure, but Paul didn’t have nearly the power that the Holy Spirit of God has.
You and I must be obedient to passionately proclaim the gospel. We must plead with and persuade people to receive Jesus, but we must do so while relying on the persuasive power of the Spirit of God.
Aren’t you glad that the Spirit of God persuaded you that you needed Jesus? Lydia was powerless to come to Jesus without God drawing her. You and I are utterly powerless to come to Jesus apart from the Spirit of God drawing us to Him.
As Paul would later say in Romans 3:10–11, “ . . . as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one. There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.”
As Paul would later say in Ephesians 2:8–9, “For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.”
Lydia may have been a God-fearing woman; she may have believed in God and tried to worship Him correctly, but she was not a follower of Jesus until the Holy Spirit opened her eyes, she understood Paul’s message, and she became a believer in Jesus the Messiah.
As was the practice in the New Testament, and still is in the church today, once Lydia became a believer in Jesus Christ she was baptized.
Apparently, others in her household also believed in Jesus because they, too, were baptized.
By the way, from the records that we have, Lydia is thought to be the very first Christian convert on the continent of Europe. Isn’t that cool?
Today, there’s a river near the ruins of Philippi that is believed to be the place where Lydia was baptized. I’ve actually been there, along with some others in this room. Man, I wish I had a picture or video from that moment. Oh, I do! Let’s watch this video together.
So, we see the Lord opened Lydia’s heart to the gospel! God persuaded Lydia to salvation.
Not only did the Lord open Lydia’s heart, but Lydia opened her home.
That takes us to point #3:
III. Lydia persuaded the missionaries to stay at her house.
Look at verse 15:
After she and her household were baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
It’s believed that Lydia was a woman of some wealth, because she was a businesswoman, and because she had a home that was large enough to accommodate the entire missionary crew.
Also, it appears that her house was used as a base of sorts in Philippi, as we see at the end of the chapter that the missionaries returned to Lydia’s house.
Lydia was persuasive with her words.
She basically was saying, “If you don’t stay at my house, then you don’t think I’m a Christian.”
Well, what do you say to that? She was pretty persuasive. After all, she was a salesperson.
So, we see generosity on display in Lydia’s life. We see a changed life, first displayed by baptism, then demonstrated in her generosity to others.
That’s the way it’s supposed to happen, church: God changes our lives, we display God’s work through baptism, and demonstrate God’s work through a changed life.
That takes us to our bottom line:
Bottom Line: God can work in powerful ways in and through His people.
Church, God can work wonders through you. God can change you, then you display that change, then you demonstrate that change.
Have you been changed by God? Have you displayed your change through biblical water baptism? Have you demonstrated your change through a changed life?
God is still working through missionaries. God is still working through ordinary people like Lydia. God is still saving souls.
God is still working in powerful ways in and through His people.
Challenge yourself this week in the following ways:
Weekly Challenge #1 – Seek to persuade someone to come to Jesus.
God opened Lydia’s heart. He is the ultimate persuader. Yet, Paul was working to persuade people to come to Jesus everywhere He went.
What about you? Are you seeking to persuade others to Jesus, while realizing that God is the one who ultimately persuades them to faith? Challenge yourself this week to persuade someone to come to Jesus.
Weekly Challenge #2 – Ask yourself if you are persuaded by the gospel.
Have you been persuaded by the Holy Spirit of God that Jesus can save you from your sins and change your life?
Are you persuaded that the words of Romans 1:16 are true: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek.”
Ask yourself if you are persuaded by the gospel.
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER: The text contained in this sermon is solely owned by its author. The reproduction or distribution of this message, or any portion of it, should include the author’s name. The author intends to provide free resources in order to inspire believers and to assist preachers and teachers in Kingdom work.
