THE GREAT ANSWER      

Acts 16:31

Part VII

The Salvation of the House

Acts 16 

Why were Both Households Saved?

     (Lydia’s and the Philippian Jailer’s)

1.  Someone was Praying with Others            v. 13    

2.  Someone was Worshiping God Alone        v. 14

3.  The Households Witnessed Baptism          vv. 15, 33

4.  The Head of Household Practiced Persuasive Hospitality   v. 15

THE GREAT ANSWER      

Acts 16:31

Part VI

The Salvation of the House

Acts 16

Why were Both Households Saved?

     (Lydia’s and the Philippian Jailer’s)

1.  Someone was Praying with Others            v. 13    

2.  Someone was Worshiping God Alone        v. 14

3.  The Households Witnessed Baptism          vv. 15, 33

4.  The Head of Household Practiced Persuasive Hospitality   v. 15

THE GREAT ANSWER      

Part 5

Acts 16:31

What is it to be Saved?

I.  We are Saved from Death

     Genesis 2:16-17

     ~ unto Life

   “…you were dead in the trespasses

and sins in which you once walked….

But God…made us alive…”      Eph 2:1-2, 4-5

II.  We are Saved from Wrath

   “…to grant relief to you…

THE GREAT ANSWER      

Part 4

Acts 16:31

Believing in the Lord Jesus

I.  The Greatness of the Subject

John 1:3-4; John 21:25

“Sweetest note in seraph song;

Sweetest name on mortal tongue;

Sweetest carol ever sung;

Jesus, blessed Jesus!”

A.  The Trilemma Under Attack

B.  The Great Mysteries

1.  The Mystery of the Trinity

2.  The Mystery of the Two Natures

THE GREAT ANSWER      

Part 4

Acts 16:31 

Believing on Christ as Lord

I.  Believing on Christ as Lord

A.  The Lordship Controversy

1.  The Danger of Opposing Personalities

I Corinthians 1:12-13

2.  The Necessity of Preserving Unity

Philippians 2:2

B.  Must a Person make a “Lordship Decision” in Order to be Saved?

1.  At the moment of salvation few of us know very much at all about Christ.

THE GREAT ANSWER       Part 2

Acts 16:31

I.  The Command to Believe

“Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved…”

A.  Is Faith in Christ all that is Necessary for Salvation

YES!!!

“This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” John 6:29

B.  What about Repentance?   Acts 17:30

C.  What about Lordship?  

THE GREAT ANSWER

-The Prominence of Faith

"And they said, 'Believe in The Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved..."

Acts 16:31

I.  The Prominence of Faith

A.  In the Old Testament

1. In the Experience of Abraham   Genesis 15:6

2. In the Teaching of the Prophets   Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:37

B.  In the New Testament     John 6:47; Eph. 2:8-9; Acts 16:31; Romans 4:5

C.  In the Heart of God           Hebrews 11:6

II. The Meaning of Faith

risen…as He said…

Matthew 28:1-6

I.  Looking for Jesus

A.  Omnipresence as an Attribute of God

John 1:48; Matthew 28:20

“God’s center is everywhere;

His circumference is nowhere.”

“…for Christ plays in 10,000 places,

lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not His

to the Father through the features of men’s faces…”

 - As Kingfishers Catch Fire

Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889)

B.  Sovereignty – The Key to Salvation

THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM

Luke 19:28-40

I.  The Approach to Jerusalem   vv. 28-37

A.  The Ascent via Bethany      vv. 28-29

B.  The Descent from Olivet    v. 37

C.  The Triumphal Entry           vv. 37-38

II. The Restoration of Nature     vv. 30-40

A.  Owners turned to Stewards    vv. 33-34

B.  The Submission of the Colt      v. 35

1.  The Link to Zechariah

Zechariah 9:9

2.  The Exhibition of Divine Attributes

The Great Question Answered

                    Acts 16:25-34

The Great Question:" Sirs, What Must I Do to be Saved?"

                                                        v.30

"The Prospect of Being Hanged Focuses the Mind Wonderfully"

                                               Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)

1. How did the Word 'Salvation' Enter the Jailer's Vocabulary?

2. What Would the Jailer Have Learned About the God Paul and Silas Preached?

The Mystery of the Open Door

Acts 16:23-31

Acts 16 up to now
1. Negotiating Closed Doors  vv. 6-8
2. Ascertaining God's Will vv.9-10
3. Launching a New Direction vv.11-12
4. Establishing Ministry through the Priority of Prayer v.13
5. The Irony of Europe's First Fruit  vv. 14-15
6. The Inevitable Collision: The Occupier Assaults the Invader vv. 16-17
7. The Power of Redemption v. 18
8. The Cost of Redemption vv.19-24

I. The Spectacle of Christianity Bound v.23

As We Were Going to Prayer
                  Acts 16:16-26

I. Because the First Christians Went to Prayer they Were Discredited by the Devil's Servants vv.16-17

" as we were going to...prayer...a ...girl having a spirit of divination met us..."
When we go to prayer...

1. We catch the attention of the devil
2. We become a target for the Evil One
3. We step onto a field of combat
4. We walk between the cross hairs
5. Satan pulls out the big guns

The Spreading Flame
Acts 16:13-15

I. The Persistent Faithfulness of the Apostolic Band                  vv.12-13
      A Time v. 12
      ...we were staying for some days... v. 12
      B Trouble  
      ... we went outside the gate to a riverside v.13
      C Engagement
      ... we sat down and began listening v. 13
      D Reward

    ... a certain woman was listening, and the Lord opened her heart to respond v. 13

II. The Strategic Sovereignty of God

      A.  A Definition of Sovereignty 

The Birth of the West Part 2
                    Acts 16

The West is not a geographical designation primarily. It is in no sense a racial designation. It is rather a term used to describe people who cherished a certain set of values which led to a particular class of institutions which foster human rights, freedom, and a charitable prosperity.
By charitable prosperity we mean prosperity which is not merely self-regarding but exhibits concern for those who are not prosperous.
In Acts 16 we see the seeds of Western Greatness planted and beginning to take root.

The Birth of the West
Acts 16:6-13

Background

The New Year in the Old World

Genesis 4:1-17

I God has Revealed Acceptable Worship  4:1-5
  A Some Worshipers Substitute their own Arrangement  v.3,5
  B Some Worshipers Offer what God Requires v. 4

II God's Rebuke is the Sign of God's Favor vv. 6-7
  A It is God's Prerogative to ask the Question "Why?" v. 6
  B God's Question Includes a Promise v.7

HARD NEWS AT CHRISTMAS

Matthew 2:16-18

I.  Miracles are Selective/Suffering is Universal         v. 16

A.  Irony: Adult Gentiles are Protected

                 Hebrew Children are Exposed

B.  Irony: The Danger of Getting too Close to Jesus

II.  What the Bible Says about Tragedy   vv. 17-18

A.  The Place of Exile 

B.  The Reality of Suffering

C.  The Significance of Rachel

D.  The Desolation of Planet Earth

God Sent Forth His Son

Galatians 4:1-7

I.  Immaturity as a State of Nature         vv. 1, 3

II.  Slavery as a Fact of History                 vv. 3, 7

A.  The Pride that Denies Slavery             John 8:33

B.  The Condition that Proves Slavery     John 8:34

III.  The Great Contrast               Galatians 4:3-4

IV.  The Redemptive Mission   

A.  The Purpose of the Father     v. 4

Closed Doors and the Will of God 

Part II  

Acts 16:6-10

I.  The Discovery of God’s Will is Not a Solitary Affair    v. 10

II.  The Discovery of God’s Will may come in a Variety of Ways

A.  By Supernatural Experience        v. 9

B.  By Compulsion      I Corinthians 9:16

C.  By Progressive Light    Proverbs 4:18

D.  By God Speaking Through His Word    Psalm 119:105; Psalm 84:1-3

Closed Doors and the Will of God  

Acts 16:6-10

What Happened

1.  They Encountered Closed Doors     v. 6

2.  They Knocked at Other Doors—Also Closed     v. 7

3.  They Left Vast Regions Unevangelized     v. 8

4.  Paul was Redirected by a Vision     v. 9

5.  Paul Validated the Vision through Consultation with Others     v. 10

What It Means

1.  Their Plan was Not Working

2.  They Themselves Kept Working

3.  Their Failed Attempts were Designed by God