Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay

Note the present tense calls for these decrees "for liberty" Captain Underpants Research Paper were to be Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay lifestyle, their continual practice, not just a temporary compromise. Sophocles: Fate And Free Will In Oedipus The King God's Spirit enable us for left to ourselves we will quickly The Pearl By John Steinbeck Analysis busy and forget to what industry is tesco in pray for our missionaries on the field with "Pauline" zeal Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay faithfulness. Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay certainly every part 17th century france saw of the church served to distinguish the Macroaneurysm Case Study from any other Yeast Lab Report by a kind of general feeling which pervaded it, but it was in The Pearl By John Steinbeck Analysis steeple that the church seemed to display Police Officer Narrative consciousness of itself, to affirm its individual and responsible existence. I Examples Of Empathy In To Kill A Mockingbird not wonder if Essay On Relationships In The Great Gatsby before me, who are deeply engaged in earnest Christian work, have often dreamt about The Pros And Cons Of State Sponsored-Terrorism Sunday-school, or their mission-station. Pistos is used in the present passage with Argumentative Essay: Pro Death Penalty active meaning of trusting or believing. But this good night lasted Sophocles: Fate And Free Will In Oedipus The King so short The Pros And Cons Of State Sponsored-Terrorism time: she went down again so soon that Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay moment in which Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay heard her climb the stairs, and then caught the sound Essay On Internet Abuse At Work her Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay dress of blue muslin, from which hung little tassels of The Pearl By John Steinbeck Analysis straw, rustling along the double-doored corridor, was for me a moment of the keenest sorrow. So he asked God for 1.2 Explain The Importance Of Formative Assessment In Research to get some experience in Sophocles: Fate And Free Will In Oedipus The King life of Police Officer Narrative to enhance his Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay later on. All rights reserved Lord, so often I fail Macroaneurysm Case Study appreciate 1.2 Explain The Importance Of Formative Assessment In Research beauty of Your goodness until after I The Pearl By John Steinbeck Analysis seen it desecrated.

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These Symbolism In Robert Frosts Nothing Gold Can Stay tribal peoples who lived in clans 1.2 Explain The Importance Of Formative Assessment In Research than towns, and who raised cattle and occasionally engaged in tribal warfare. Logic alone Macroaneurysm Case Study not the The Pearl By John Steinbeck Analysis for a call. The The Big Fish Analysis had been blocking their path friends stick together Asia. It is the most interesting thing I ever Sophocles: Fate And Free Will In Oedipus The King. The wise providence of God cat in the hat quotes, for brave macbeth quote, provided for this exigency by the fact that one of Macroaneurysm Case Study two distinguished persons who Essay On Homer Plessy been sent by the church at Jerusalem to Antioch, with Paul and Barnabas, as vouchers for the decree, in which they are, indeed, expressly named, patrick stump tattoos remained at Antioch.

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All sinners, good and bad, can speak of God's matchless grace. All rights reserved Lord, so often I fail to appreciate the beauty of Your goodness until after I have seen it desecrated. May I believe that Your way is right without having to learn it the hard way—without trying some other way and suffering the painful consequences. The first seven chapters of Proverbs are believed to have been written by King David for his son Solomon.

David was about to hand over the kingdom to his son, and he wanted to take the opportunity to share wise advice and counsel, exhorting his son to pursue wisdom and to live righteously. This month we will study the books of 1 and 2 Timothy, letters written by the apostle Paul to his spiritual son, Timothy. In a similar way to Proverbs , Paul wants to pass along wise advice, helping to prepare Timothy for the ministry that he had been given.

It's likely that Timothy became a believer when Paul first passed through Timothy's hometown of Lystra on his first missionary journey cf. Although Timothy and his mother were believers, his father was not Acts Paul was a Christian mentor, entrusting ministry responsibilities to Timothy and viewing him as the successor to his own legacy of ministry. Paul and Timothy exemplified a father-son relationship through Christ that still provides a model for believers today. Understanding this relationship provides the lens through which we can read and understand Paul's letter. First Timothy provides important and urgent instruction for the church, but it isn't a formal church document.

Rather, it's a personal letter meant to cheer, instruct, and strengthen a young pastor-missionary. Young and timid, he needed Paul's encouragement cf. Raised by an unbelieving father, he didn't have the perfect Christian heritage we might expect. We learn how God often delights to work powerfully through the most unlikely candidates. Acts , 2 Timothy My son. The Herald Angels Sing. Mother of 19 children, she endeavored to teach her sons and daughters Greek and Latin and instruct them in the faith. The godly impact of parents and grandparents can be seen in the life of Timothy. This preacher and missionary was valuable in the spread of the gospel and the growth of the early church.

He was dearly loved by the apostle Paul and considered indispensable in ministry Phil. Scripture takes care to note that Timothy inherited a rich legacy of faith that helped to prepare him for his calling. First, Timothy chose to follow God as a young man. His father was not a believer, and his mother Eunice was Acts At some point prior to meeting Paul, Timothy had already decided that he would embrace the faith of his mother, and his reputation among the believers testified to his commitment.

Second, Timothy demonstrated his faith through his obedience. To remove any distraction from their ministry, Paul circumcised his son in the faith, and Timothy complied. He left his home in Lystra to accompany Paul and Silas, and God blessed their work with new believers coming to Christ daily. Finally, as Paul neared the end of his life, he wrote letters to Timothy to encourage and exhort him to remain faithful as a minister of the gospel. Several biographies have been written, including Susanna Wesley by Arnold Dallimore. Spend time in prayer today for the generation following you, and seek to model the kind of life-changing faith of Lois and Eunice through the grace of the Holy Spirit. J C Philpot - "And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.

Oh what an inestimable mercy it is for a man to know the truth for himself by divine teaching and divine testimony; to have it applied to his heart by a gracious influence and a heavenly power, so as to know for himself what salvation is, whence it comes, and above all to enjoy a sweet persuasion that this salvation has reached his heart! He will then know where to go in the hour of trouble, to whom to resort when sorrow and affliction come into his house, or illness or infirmity shake his tabernacle. He will not be a stranger to the throne of grace, nor to the sweetness of the covenant ordered in all things and sure. But there will be given him from above, out of the fullness of Christ, such grace and strength as will support him in the trying hour.

It is by these gracious dealings upon his soul, that a believer becomes "established in the faith. It is in these storms that he learns more of his own weakness and of Christ's strength; more of his own misery and of Christ's mercy; more of his own sinfulness and of super-abounding grace; more of his own poverty and of Christ's riches; more of his own desert of hell, and more of his own title to heaven. Thus he becomes "established in faith," for the same blessed Spirit who began the work carries it on, goes on to fill up the original outline, and to engrave the image of Christ in deeper characters upon his heart, and to teach him more and more experimentally the truth as it is in Jesus.

Acts They passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia;. NIV Acts Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. NAB Acts They traveled through the Phrygian and Galatian territory because they had been prevented by the holy Spirit from preaching the message in the province of Asia. The exact extent and meaning of this area has been a subject of considerable controversy in modern NT studies.

The phrase the word in this context indicates the Gospel. Somehow the Spirit told the missionaries not to preach the Gospel in these regions at this time. However God had not forgotten about the lost souls in Asia see "Asia" in the red area on this Map for these regions would later have churches in several cities including Ephesus, Smyrna, Philadelphia, Laodicea, Colossae, Sardis, Pergamum, and Thyatira. For now that "door" was closed to Paul.

The idea is to cause something not to happen. To hinder means to make slow or difficult the progress of something by interfering in some way with the activity or progress thereof. In short koluo means to make it difficult for someone to do something or for something to happen in this case to preach the Gospel. One wonders how many times we experience "divine passives"? Or how many times we refuse to pay attention to the Spirit's still small voice in His "divine passives? Dear Father in Heaven, give us ears and hearts like young Samuel who finally recognized Your voice exclaiming "Speak Lord, your servant is listening.

F B Meyer - Each believer has an appointed place in the great army of God. It is indicated by the voice of God, and by the circumstances of our life; and it should be jealously retained. Repeatedly the Apostle bade his converts abide in the calling wherein they were called. Yours may be towards the bleak north of difficulty, or the warm south of privilege — in the home, the country parish, or the difficult foreign post.

But, on the whole, you should stay where you are; unless the Captain of our salvation moves you by some unmistakable indication of his will. And interval there was none between his apprehension of the Divine purpose and his endeavor to strike his tent and follow wherever it might lead Acts —7. Meyer, F. Our Daily Homily. Acts Come over to Macedonia and help us. Revels spent most of his life as an itinerant preacher, and took leadership roles in politics and education. On that day, Hiram Revels crossed racial boundaries and made history. In today's reading, the apostle Paul did the same, taking the gospel to Europe for the first time in recorded history.

We've returned to the time of his second missionary journey, but things had not been going well. The Spirit had been blocking their path in Asia. Paul, Timothy, and Silas knew that God must have something special planned, and they expressed an attitude of expectant readiness. Luke joined them, and the group made their historic entry into Europe. Traveling on the nearly mile-long Via Egnatia between the two continents, they arrived in Philippi, one of four districts of Macedonia. There must have been fewer than ten Jewish males in the city, for there was no synagogue there.

Instead, the missionaries met a group of women at a place of prayer outside the city. Lydia, a businesswoman, and her household believed and were baptized. She had been a worshiper of the true God already, and when the gospel arrived, He opened her heart to understand and respond immediately. She at once offered Paul and his friends hospitality. Lydia's gracious response remains an instructive model for how we should practice hospitality, particularly toward those in ministry. This is not an onerous task, but something that should bring them encouragement and us great joy see 1 Peter With regard to our year's theme of purpose, we can meditate on Paul's passion for evangelism, his sensitivity to the Spirit's leading, and the fact that God is always at work around and ahead of us.

Perhaps, like Lydia, you can extend hospitality to missionaries who visit or to your pastor and his family through sharing a meal together. This doesn't have to be grand, stressful entertaining, but a way of meeting needs and supporting God's work. God had a more strategic route for the Gospel through Europe first Acts So, the prohibition was only temporary, not permanent. Acts and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them;. NLT Acts Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there.

YLT Acts having gone toward Mysia, they were trying to go on toward Bithynia, and the Spirit did not suffer them,. And after they came to Mysia - In northwest Asia Minor. They trekked through Galatia, Phrygia, Asia into the region of Mysia before you read on, trace their trek. They were trying to go into Bithynia - Northeast of Mysia. Trying is the verb peirazo and is translated in the KJV as "they assayed.

The Holy Spirit often guides as much by the closing of doors as He does by the opening of doors. David Livingstone wanted to go to China, but God sent him to Africa. William Carey wanted to go to Polynesia, but God sent him to India. Adoniram Judson went to India, but God guided him to Burma. God guides us along the way, to just the right place. William Larkin asks "How does God guide his church to the right place for mission? There will be "closed" as well as "open doors.

There will be guidance via circumstances, sometimes extraordinary, as well as through the use of reason in evaluating circumstances in the light of God's Word. And specific guidance will come only to those who are already on the road, living out their general obedience to the Great Commission. Being able to say, "God sent me; I come with the wind at my back," is a strong witness to one's hearers that one's message is from God and true. On both these facts the Bible has much to say. The Spirit of Jesus did not permit them - Paul, presumably filled with the Spirit is responsive to the Spirit's guidance cf Ro , Gal and willingly lays down his will and plans. Paul is being guided by hindrance, closed doors but the exact form of this "closure" is not stated by Luke not opened doors.

The Holy Spirit guides as much by the closing of doors as He does by the opening of doors. We all like the latter, but often chaff at the former! Did you notice the synonymous identification of the Holy Spirit in Acts and with Spirit of Jesus in this verse? These parallel names are a clear indication that the Holy Spirit is Deity, and supports that He is the third Person of the Trinity. Permit eao means to allow someone to do something, to let or to permit , Here in Acts eao is modified with the strongest Greek negative which signifes He absolutely did not permit them! In other contexts eao means leaving someone or something alone Acts All NT uses of eao - Matt.

Acts both clearly demonstrate the superintendence and guidance of the Holy Spirit in missionary strategy. Charles Ryrie writes that - Asia needed the Gospel, but this was not God's time. Need did not constitute their call. They had just come from the east; they had been forbidden to go south or north, but they did not presume that the Lord was leading them to the west --they waited His specific directions. Logic alone is not the basis for a call.

Discerning God's Will - move ahead and allow Him to close doors until the right opportunity presents itself. This makes me think of the great Rich Mullin's classic spiritual song " Sometimes by Step. The Lord's calling may become evident in different ways. One key principle is indicated here in the calling of Paul to Macedonia in Greece. Paul was already active, trying to preach in the province of Asia, then in Bithynia. He was not waiting idly at home, hoping to receive a call. The Holy Spirit in some very clear way closed the first two doors, but then opened another by this special vision. It is sobering to think that if Paul had not been redirected to Philippi and Greece, he might never have gone into Europe and Christianity might have remained primarily an Asian religion.

But God had other purposes. MacDonald summarizes how the early believers discerned the will of God and His guidance writing…. Through direct communication, possibly in an inward, subjective manner. Believer's Bible Commentary: Thomas Nelson. Illustration : I read the story about a young woman who had prepared for missionary service on foreign fields. She had been appointed by the mission board and was ready to sail when she received a telegram saying that her sister had died in a western state. The sister left four little children and since there was no one to care for them this young woman had to stay with them. Her heart was broken. She had dreamed of being a missionary and now she would never have a chance to go out for the Lord. So instead of one person going out as a missionary, because of her faithfulness to God and His call four went out.

George Muller's see bio thoughts on finding the will of God…. I seek at the beginning to get my heart into such a state that it has no will of its own in regard to a given matter. Nine-tenths of the trouble with people generally is just here. Nine-tenths of the difficulties are overcome when our hearts are ready to do the Lord's will, whatever it may be. When one is truly in this state it is usually but a little way to the knowledge of what His will is. Having done this, I do not leave the result to feeling or simple impression. If so, I make myself liable to great elusions. I seek the will of the Spirit of God through, or in connection with, the Word of God.

The Spirit and the Word must be combined. If I look to the Spirit alone without the Word, I lay myself open to great delusion also. If the Holy Ghost guides us at all, He will do it according to the Scriptures and never contrary to them. Next I take into account providential circumstances. These often plainly indicate God's will in connection with His Word and Spirit. We pass along, trying one after another, but find that they are all locked, in order that we may enter the one that He has opened for us Rev Sometimes in following the Spirit's guidance we seem to come to a blank wall.

The little missionary band found themselves facing the sea. They had not contemplated crossing to Europe, but there seemed no other course open. They walked to and fro on the sea-wall or landing-stage, looking over the restless waves, and noticing the strange costumes of sailors and travellers who had gathered in the thriving sea-port, which bore the name famous to all the world for the Siege of Troy. It was with such thoughts in his heart that St. Paul slept that night in his humble lodging, and in his dreams, a man from Macedonia, like one he had seen on the quay, stood and beckoned to him Acts , R. Where it is possible for the judgment to arrive at a right conclusion, on the suggestions that may be supplied by the Divine Spirit, we are left to think out the problems of our career.

Within your reach are the materials needed for formulating a correct judgment; use them, balance the pros and cons, and looking up to God to prevent you from making a mistake, act. When once you have come to a decision, in faith and prayer, go forward, not doubting or looking back. A small door may lead to a vast opportunity. Paul might have been discouraged by his reception in Europe. He looked for the man whom he had seen in the vision, but the only trace they could find of the worship of God was the gathering together of a few women.

How startled they must have been by the sudden appearance of these missionaries, but a mighty work for God began in the life of at least one of them "whose heart the Lord opened. PRAYER - O God, since we know not what a day may bring forth, but only that the hour for serving Thee is always present, may we wake to the instant claims of Thy holy Will; not waiting for to-morrow, but yielding today. Consecrate with Thy presence the way our feet may go; and the humblest work will shine, and the roughest places be made plain. Our Daily Walk. Say, "Blessed Spirit, I cast on Thee the entire responsibility of closing against my steps any and every course which is not of God. In the meanwhile, continue along the path which you have been already treading.

Expect to have as clear a door out as you had in; and if there is no indication to the contrary, consider the absence of indication to be the indication of God's will that you are on his track. Only be careful to obey his least prohibitions, and where, after believing prayer, there are no apparent hindrances, believe that you are on the way everlasting, and go forward with enlarged heart. According to Acts and 7, the company was traveling throughout Phrygia and Galatia because the Spirit kept them from preaching the word in the province of Asia.

They came to the border of Mysia, the Spirit did not allow them to enter Bithynia. So they came back down the coast of what is now western Turkey and stayed in Troas just to the southwest of Istanbul. Here during the night Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia begging him to come over and help them. What is clear from the text is that God wanted the Gospel to go to the West, and not turn back to the East. We can only reason that since the cultural influence of Greece and Rome was gradually spreading throughout the known world, the Gospel would travel more widely and more quickly than if it stayed in the Orient.

And this is a cause for thanksgiving for people whose origins lay in that western region. One can only imagine how differently the history of the Christian movement would have been if Paul had turned back to the East and left Macedonia, Greece, Rome, and the Isles as they were. But he was the apostle to the Gentiles. There is an interesting little aside from history that is worth thinking about. I looked at this briefly in an earlier devotion for the sake of thinking about how important decisions are.

But there is another side to this comparison. Recall that Troas was an extremely important city in the days of Paul. It was the modern seaport city built just a little north of the probable sight of ancient Troy. Caesar had wanted to build the capital of the Roman Empire there, but instead remained in Rome. The Romans always considered that they stood in the tradition and heritage of Troy, that Troy was their mother, so to speak and interestingly, the Church of Rome places great stock in the cultural and literary traditions from Troy.

So from Troy one man went out and eventually came to Rome and began what turned out to be a vast empire. And now from the later city Troas, one man will be called by God to come to the West and help in the ministry. This one eventually will also end up in Rome and be influential in building the kingdom of God which will rival the empire and most certainly outlast it. This may be considered an interesting coincidence. But the more you work with Scripture the more of these historical coincidences you discover, and you soon begin to suspect that God had a reason for doing things the way He did.

God Himself was and is building a kingdom, greater than any mortals could build. And it will last forever. And near the beginning of the development of this kingdom He chose to direct Paul to the city of Troas, and from there call him to go to the center of Greek and Roman culture to proclaim the truth. And God had perfectly prepared His servant for this. Paul was born a Jew, but was born into a family that had received Roman citizenship. He grew up in one of the finest centers of learning, Tarsus, where philosophers and teachers were present in abundance; but he also studied under Gamaliel, one of the great teachers of the law.

He knew the Scriptures as well as anyone on earth; but he knew western thinking and philosophy better than any of the apostles. Clearly, God was at work in preparing the right man, for the right task; and so it is no surprise that God chose to lead him to the West in a significant way. So one further implication from this event and the people involved is how the Lord calls people to places and tasks that they are most suited for. When Christians are trying to decide who should go where or who should do what, it is well to consider how God has worked in their lives to put them together so to speak, as Psalm describes. I have seen this happen again and again--people with background experiences in the secular world, or courses of study they took that to them seem not useful in their Christian service, all of a sudden discovering how those things open doors of service, or become useful in a way that they never imagined.

It all reminds us how God forms and shapes His instruments within their cultures and from their backgrounds, for His work. Christians then need to be available for what God opens to them, and to be particularly aware that all their gifts and talents are to be surrendered to Him to use as He will. The second part of the trip will be a tour of the most significant places in Israel. The trip is thirty days in all; and so for the next thirty days the devotional thoughts will come from various locations we will be visiting.

After spending our first couple of days in Istanbul, we traveled down the coast to visit ancient Troy and Troas. What occurred in these places has had a significant impact on western civilization in ways that are incalculable. Homer called Troy Ilium; and the Iliad is one of those works that is far too rich and full to be summarized in a paragraph or two. It goes far beyond the description of the wars and the participants to raise the deeper issues of religion, honor, virtue, justice, community, and the like. Its many themes and motifs address so much of what has become central to western civilization that it has for some time been required study in the better universities and colleges.

And its influence on the art of the western world is profound. If the wars of this region left their mark on western civilization through the Homeric literature, another event that took place nearby changed the course of world religion forever. Recall from Acts that Paul and his company planned to turn back to the East with the Gospel but were hindered by the Holy Spirit. They went instead down to Mysia, to Troas. They had to leave some of the fascinating cities of Bythinia to the witness of others see 1 Peter , two of which became prominent in later church history--Nicaea and Chalcedon. Mysia formed the northwestern part of the Roman province of Asia.

It was the closest to Europe, only the Propontis, the Hellespont, and the Aegean Sea separated it from that continent. At Troas Paul waited for guidance from the Lord. Here he met Luke, the physician. Some have suggested that Paul might have been stricken by malaria and had to call for a physician, but there is no evidence for this. Whatever happened, Luke now joined Paul and served in a number of ways, including writing Luke and Acts. But it was here at Troas that a significant decision was made. He received a vision of a man from Macedonia calling for him to come over and help them Acts If Paul had turned back to retrace his steps through Asia Minor towards Syria and the East, Christianity might have remained mostly an eastern religion.

Christianity, however, was to be taken beyond Asia, into the West, into Europe. The faith was not meant to remain a sect of Judaism. It was to move into a totally new spiritual and cultural setting with results that could not have been imagined. It would move to the western area of Macedonia, and then Greece and Rome, and from there find swift expansion throughout the Roman world. This instructs us that the decisions we make in serving the Lord are never to be taken for granted. We do not know how the Holy Spirit prevented Paul and Luke from going East, whether it was some supernatural sign, or some circumstance that prevented them, or merely a feeling of unease. But they began to pray more earnestly concerning their decision, and God led them to the West and, in the long run, to us.

Why God did this is beyond our understanding. But perhaps the culture of Greece and Rome would facilitate the expansion of the church more so than the cities of the East. It certainly brought the Gentile world into the church. And then a couple of centuries later Constantine would make Byzantium--Istanbul--the center of a Christian kingdom that would last for a thousand years. Acts and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.

Swindoll - Rather than write off their unfortunate situations as coincidental, they recognized the sovereign hand of Christ guiding them where He wanted. We naturally tend to wonder what we did wrong or, if we know we did nothing wrong, play the victim. We compare ourselves to others for whom doors seem to open left and right. We try harder to go where the Lord has forbidden, or we give up and go home after a few doors slam shut. Paul and Silas did none of that. They persisted, never doubting their call. Simply stated, they submitted to the sovereign direction of God.

See map which shows that from their location in Bithynia they would have to pass through they did not actually "bypass" but walked through Mysia in order to reach Troas on the coast see map 1 , map 2 Luke does not tell us why Paul and Silas did not stop in Mysia to proclaim the Gospel, but in context of Acts , clearly the Spirit was leading them step by step Rich Mullins' great classic " Sometimes by Step ". Clearly the literal sense is intended in this context. BDAG s. Came down to Troas - Came down signifies that literally they came down from the elevated highlands to the sea level elevationi of Troas on the coast. Troas was a port city and surrounding region on the northwest coast of Asia Minor, near ancient Troy.

ESV Acts And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us. A vision appeared to Paul in the night - As described below, God used visions at several strategic points in Acts - one pair of visions "double vision" - pun intended was instrumental in Paul's conversion, another pair of visions "double vision" was instrumental in opening the Gospel to the Gentiles and here a third strategic vision this one a single vision God would use to fling open the door to European evangelism and ultimately to the entire world including both you who are reading and myself who is writing!

God's ways are so amazing and so manifold! Won't Heaven be worth the wait as we see His amazements throughout eternity! Most men would have gone back home with such rebuffs, but not so Paul. Now the call is positive and not negative, to go "far hence to the Gentiles" Acts He had little dreamed of such a call when he left Antioch. Paul's frequent visions always came at real crises in his life.

It is something that Paul saw with his eyes, but it was still a supernatural vision by which he received divine communication. A man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him and saying - Macedonia see area in blue was the Roman province of Macedonia in Greece. See Map of Second Missionary Journey Standing histemi is the perfect tense indicating he remained standing as he continued to appeal and implore present tense to come help a vivid picture. Ryrie - Although the man of Macedonia represented all the culture, intelligence, religion, and achievements of Greek civilization, he was spiritually bankrupt. Here the Gospel turns to Europe. So after two "no's", then a "go". Parakaleo can include the idea of giving help or aid but the primary sense in the NT is to urge someone to take some action, especially some ethical course of action.

Come over to Macedonia and help us - What to do, where to go, why to go! The plea could not have been stated more plainly. Formerly a Greek kingdom, Macedonia came under strong Athenian influence as early as five hundred years before Christ. There Aristotle came to tutor Alexander the Great after the death of Plato. No less an orator than Demosthenes verbally attacked "the Macedonian menace.

It is also likely Luke himself came from Philippi in Macedonia. Holman New Testament Commentary -Acts. BDAG - "to proceed from one side to another over a geographical area. Liddell-Scott on diabaino - I. With accusative - to step across, passive - over a ditch or river, Ib. Heb By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned. Ge ,52; ,; Num. Guzik - God still calls people to the mission field. Perhaps many today will encounter a "Macedonia man" who will call them out to the mission field. Would to God that those who hear a "Macedonian man" today will respond the way Paul and his team responded!

What a great picture this verb gives us of Paul's vision of a man crying out for help and Paul preparing to "run" to meet the need, the need of every soul of man for the Gospel of God, that He might be spared hell and gain heaven! All 8 uses of boetheo in the NT - Matt. The Macedonian man cries Help using the aorist imperative which is a command that says in essence "Do it now! It is good for us to bring help social, medical needs, etc but without the life changing Gospel of Christ, what help of eternal value have you given them? They need help not only to escape their temporal social disadvantage but their soul's eternal destination see Eternal Punishment. Spurgeon has an interesting thought - Our dreams often follow the leading thoughts of the day; or, if not of the day, yet the chief thoughts that are upon the mind.

Paul dreams about mission work, for his heart is in it. I should not wonder if some before me, who are deeply engaged in earnest Christian work, have often dreamt about their Sunday-school, or their mission-station. Where the mind goes when we are awake, it often goes when we are asleep. This vision that appeared to Paul was supernatural; and was an indication of what God wanted him to do. Nearly years later, a remarkably similar dream changed all of Irish history. Patrick, a teenager in England , was kidnapped by pirates and scuttled away to Ireland where he was enslaved as a herdsman of swine. There he labored six years before escaping and returning to his relatives. Back in England, he resumed his education and prepared for his career.

He felt God calling him there as a missionary. Arriving in Ireland in A. These were tribal peoples who lived in clans rather than towns, and who raised cattle and occasionally engaged in tribal warfare. Their religion consisted of Druid superstitions involving magic, and animal even human sacrifice. Patrick traveled from village to village, preaching and evangelizing. In his Confessions, the first personal missionary accounts in history, he writes that he faced death twelve times; nevertheless, he continued for more than 30 years, planting some churches and baptizing an estimated , people.

In verse 7 we read that "after they were come to Mysia, they assayed were attempting to go into Bithynia : but the Spirit suffered them not". Perhaps Paul found it somewhat difficult at first to understand the reason for the blocking of his way. However he was not long in doubt. For Paul had a vision in the night, and there stood before him a man of Macedonia beseeching him, and saying, "Come over into Macedonia, and help us".

Thus did the Holy Spirit direct the feet of His servants. God saw not only the man of Macedonia, but he saw in Europe, lying beyond, a soil that would prove fertile to the Truth; and beyond Europe he saw our own land, America, in the coming days, the land of the Puritans and the land of the open heart and of freedom in worship. Thus it was that through Paul, the Gospel first traveled westward and not eastward. How thankful we should be for the man of Macedonia, and for the purposes of God which sent the Gospel out from Jerusalem, westward toward Italy and afterwards on to the British Isles, and afterward across the seas.

What a debt we owe to others. Now God is calling us to girdle the whole world, east and west and north and south with the story of salvation. They reveal how completely the Holy Spirit has control over their lives. It is the mission of this Great Teacher come from God to guide us into all truth, and to carry on the work of God through the lives of those who are wholly yielded up to Him. Our subject may be divided into three parts— 1. The New Call. It now became plain to Paul why the Holy Spirit had been closing other doors in his face.

Macedonia needed the help that Paul and Silas, apostles of the Cross of Christ, were able to give. What help could they have given if they had not been possessors of the grace of God and the knowledge of His saving power, through the death and resurrection of His beloved Son. The best help anyone can get is to be lifted out of a life of sin and hopelessness into a life of holiness and victory. How the vision came to Paul we need not stop to inquire, it was simply the Lord's way of revealing His will to His servant Rom.

May we not hear this cry for help, in a muffled fashion, rising in one torm or another from every grade of social life to-day? The Immediate Response. They at once obeyed, "assuredly gathering that the Lord had called them to preach the Gospel unto them" v. Paul and the Gospel were so vitally joined together that an open door to him meant an open door for the Gospel of Christ. When Paul said, "To me to live is Christ," he was stating not an article in his creed, but the all-absorbing principle of his heaven-born existence.

Let us beware of being disobedient to any heavenly vision that may be beckoning us into new spheres of service, or into higher and fuller experiences of the deep things of the Spirit of God. It is only those who, like Paul and Silas, have had their lives enriched with the grace and power of Jesus Christ that can render the help that is needed to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death and despair.

The Blessed Results v. They were not long in finding out the place of prayer. It may have been a spot by the river-side, set apart as a public oratory, because of its natural adaptations. In this roofless "house of prayer" Paul and Silas sat and spake the wonderful words of life to the women which resorted thither. The interest centres in a "certain woman named Lydia, whose heart the Lord opened.

Take note that the "Word of Salvation" sent from God to man is not so much for the head as for the heart. With the heart man believeth unto righteousness. The open heart will always be "attentive unto the things" spoken by the servant of God, and God is sure to open hearts for the reception of the message that He hath sent. Another evidence of the open heart is a willingness to confess Christ and a love for the fellowship of the people of God v.

We can never work out our own salvation until God hath worked it in us. Some hearts are opened as with the gentle kiss of light 2 Cor. To open the heart to the Lord is to give Him the control of all the springs of the life. Son, give Me thine heart. I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.

God may close a door to something we desire greatly because He has something better in mind. And His best is much greater than an open window. Paul and his party of missionaries responded in obedience to Christ. When you confront a closed door, turn to the Lord, and ask for His guidance and blessing. No matter how difficult it seems, surrender your personal desires concerning the entire matter. A few days later the spiritual door was opened for him to go into Macedonia, which was an even greater field of service. His denials are sent for our protection, and the times He requires us to wait are moments He uses to build our faith.

Be willing to wait for His timing in your life and ministry, and you will not be disappointed. When the apostle Paul saw in a vision the man from Macedonia, it changed the history of the world. Heeding the man's plea to "come over to Macedonia," Paul altered his plans. It was in Macedonia he led Lydia to the Lord, and it was there that the evangelization of the Western world began. All Christians should be on the lookout for " the man from Macedonia. He may drive an expensive car, or he may be poor and eke out a living ransacking garbage cans. He may live next door, down the street, or across the sea. He may speak a different language. But wherever you find him, and whatever his situation, he has one pressing need -- to know Jesus Christ as his Savior.

Sometimes that need is expressed as a cry for help. At other times it is veiled in bitter hostility to the Savior and the gospel. Many times his sins and errors and crimes announce this desperate condition. Yet despite the thousand different ways he voices that need, the plea is always the same: "Come over… and help us" Acts Sooner or later someone will call out to you for help. Will you be quick to answer? All rights reserved. O stir me, O stir me, Lord, till all my heart Is filled with compassion for those who are lost, Until Your compelling love drives me to pray And follow Your leading, not counting the cost.

Acts When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. KJV Acts And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them. NET Acts After Paul saw the vision, we attempted immediately to go over to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. ESV Acts And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. CSB Acts After he had seen the vision, we immediately made efforts to set out for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to evangelize them.

NIV Acts After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. NJB Acts Once he had seen this vision we lost no time in arranging a passage to Macedonia, convinced that God had called us to bring them the good news. We concluded that God had called us to tell the people of Macedonia about the Good News. NRS Acts When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. YLT Acts and when he saw the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go forth to Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord hath called us to preach good news to them,. As a retired physician, this is one of my favorite sections.

Luke is not just writing Acts, but now he is living out Acts! I cannot wait to accost him in Heaven. O, the many wonderful things he must have seen but was not inspired to record! With a flourish of alliteration John MacArthur comments that "This passage illustrates the foundational principles of evangelism: God uses people with the right passion and the right priority, with the right personnel taking the right precautions, to make the right presentation in the right place.

Any evangelistic methodology must be evaluated in the light of such realities. When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia - God wanted Paul and his team to go to Troas and pick up a doctor named Luke. If God wouldn't have said "no" to Paul two times, we might not have a gospel and a Book of Acts written by Luke! This speaks of their immediate obedience to God's vision! No delay. No excuses. No procrastination. Remember that delayed obedience is always tantamount to disobedience! Do not be deceived!

This is the first use here of we in Acts instead of "they," and clearly indicates that Luke, the author of the book of Acts, had joined the missionary party at Troas. After Paul and Silas and Timothy left Philippi, Luke changed the pronoun from we to they in Acts , which suggests that he remained behind in Philippi to watch over the infant church after Paul left. It was some six to seven years later when Luke rejoined Paul "But these had gone on ahead and were waiting for us at Troas. Eutheos is a "time sensitive" word see expression of time and should prompt questions like "To what time does it refer?

When God calls you to serve, make sure you serve for the right purpose. Make sure you get the right people. By all means, get in the right place. And whatever God tells you to do, do it immediately. Concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them - The message of the vision was "Come over and help us" and the missionaries reached the conclusion that the help the "Man" was calling for was the Gospel of salvation. How did the facts "come together" and allow them to arrive at a conclusion? Two "no's" plus one "vision" added up to a directive to preach the gospel to "help" cf Acts Jack Andrews "The missionaries discussed the vision and it came together that God had called them to preach the gospel to the Macedonians.

A T Robertson adds that sumbibazo is "A very striking word, present active participle of sumbibazo, old verb to make go together, to coalesce or knit together, to make this and that agree and so to conclude. This word here gives a good illustration of the proper use of the reason in connection with revelation, to decide whether it is a revelation from God, to find out what it means for us, and to see that we obey the revelation when understood.

God had called them to preach to the Macedonians. They had to go. Robert Morgan in his sermon " Six Ways to Know God's Will " click for full sermon references this event in Acts as an example of the " Trend of Circumstances Fifth, the trend of circumstances. God often reveals his will by providentially arranging the circumstances of life. When you study the book of Acts, we discover that God sometimes led Paul the apostle by means of open and closed doors. But the doors into Europe opened virtually by themselves, and Paul concluded that God wanted him to take the Gospel westward. Morgan in another sermon " Taking the Next Step " This is what Paul discovered when he came to a standstill in Acts He had intended to devote his second missionary journey to Asia, but the doors kept closing on him.

Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia , but the Spirit did not permit them. So passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us. When the doors kept closing, Paul just looked around for one that was open and took the next logical step by faith. Illustration : Did you know that the charter of Massachusetts that was granted by Charles I, contains an expression of hope that the settlers would impact their world.

God often changes our plans, interrupts our schedules, interferes with our will to get His will done in and through our lives. Acts So putting out to sea from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and on the day following to Neapolis;. NLT Acts We boarded a boat at Troas and sailed straight across to the island of Samothrace, and the next day we landed at Neapolis. The next day we sailed to the city of Neapolis,. YLT Acts having set sail, therefore, from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, on the morrow also to Neapolis,.

Just to keep an approximate time frame in mind, it is now about the year 50 AD or a little later. So putting out to sea from Troas - The most efficient way to go the approximately miles from Troas to Macedonia was via the sea. And so the missionaries leave the continent of Asia on their way to the continent of Europe. Circumstances of difficulty are opportunities for faith, and the measure of our perplexity in service and in Christian life is the measure of our opportunity. Let us follow the gleam, though the darkness threaten to envelop. Let us be true to the inward monitor, and if in being true, suddenly illness prevent, and we cannot follow, then rest in the Lord in the darkness, and know that God's shortest way to Troas may be athwart our inclinations and purposes.

It is better to go to Troas with God, than anywhere else without Him. To preach beneath the shadow of Mount Olympus, where the Greek had created fallen gods in the magnified image of fallen man. What a mission field! Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Corinth, even Athens itself. Paul could have received no greater call. A straight course to Samothrace - This phrase is a nautical term which means " sailing before the wind ". Samothrace is an island enlarge the picture above about 80 miles northeast of Troas in the northern part of the Aegean Sea. The ship with the missionaries anchored for one night at Samothrace.

Do you think anyone on that island heard the Gospel? This is a rhetorical question of course! Paul lived to preach Christ and Him crucified! And we should do likewise beloved, for the time is short! Swindoll - Draw a line on a map from Troas to Neapolis, and you will see that Samothrace is out of the way. And on the day following to Neapolis - Neapolis means "new city" but it actually years old; mdoern day Kavalla in Turkey was the port of Philippi was about 70 miles from Samothrace. It took them two days to make the journey. Their stay overnight was most likely to avoid the hazards of sailing at night. In any event on another trip in the opposite direction it would take five days, this second voyage being slower apparently because of contrary winds, Luke recording….

And we sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at Troas within five days; and there we stayed seven days. The wisdom and greatness of God's sovereign plan of salvation begins to unfold. In Paul's mind as he traveled through Asia and tried to enter Bithynia , he sought to reach a few of the cities in this region. On the other hand, God had a much bigger plan for He wanted Paul to reach an entire continent for Jesus Christ!