Acts 16
by Pastor David Groendyk

If you read slowly through this chapter and think about it, there are a lot of things that are really confusing about Paul’s ministry. For instance, Paul has Timothy circumcised immediately after the Jerusalem Council stated that circumcision was unnecessary (v. 3); the Holy Spirit forbids Paul to preach the gospel and minister to a certain region (vv. 7–8); and Paul and Silas (twice!) do not walk out of prison when it looked like God had miraculously rescued them (vv. 28, 37). One common thread throughout this chapter is: an unceasing burden to preach the gospel to those who need it most.

It seems like Paul is contradicting his own teaching about circumcision in verses 1–5; however, there are extremely important differences between Timothy’s case and the case presented in Acts 15. In Acts 15, the discussion is over whether circumcision needed to be added to faith in Jesus Christ as a requirement for Gentiles to be saved; in Acts 16, the discussion is over how Timothy, a Jew, would earn an audience before an unbelieving Jewish crowd. In the first situation, circumcision adds to the gospel, so it’s forbidden; in the second situation, circumcision removes an obstacle to hearing the gospel, so it’s done. Both Paul’s and Timothy’s burden to be heard by the Jews they were about to evangelize was so heavy, they would even be willing to be circumcised so that they wouldn’t be shut out.

Similarly, in verses 6–10, the Holy Spirit doesn’t merely forbid preaching and evangelizing. He is redirecting his people to preach and evangelize elsewhere. And how productive it was for Paul to go to Macedonia! It produces two of the most famous converts in Acts: Lydia and the Philippian jailer. Notice especially that the Philippian jailer’s salvation depended upon the crucial decision of Paul and Silas to stay in their jail cell. If not for Paul’s desire to witness to him, he would have killed himself and died in his sin. Paul’s heart for his captor kept him there, and it leads to the briefest and simplest explanation of the gospel in verses 30–31: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” It is a great lesson that how we choose to handle adversity and trial may give us an audience who are desperate to hear our message.

There is such tremendous opposition to the gospel in this chapter—Jews who won’t listen unless Timothy is circumcised, a demon disturbing and harassing the apostles, a mob attacking and beating and imprisoning Paul and Silas, etc. Yet the Lord was powerful to convert sinners through it. His power is utterly dependable and unfailing when it is carrying out his mission of making disciples of all the nations, no matter how outward circumstances appear.