A Strengthened Faith, Pt. 4

In Philippi, we toured the ancient city's significant archaeological ruins. Leighton preached at the prison cell of Paul & Silas, and I preached where Lydia was baptized.

A Strengthened Faith, Pt. 4

"Therefore, sailing from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and the next day came to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is the foremost city of that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city for some days."

(Acts 16:11-12)

After Berea, we drove to Thessaloniki, a beautiful city of 1.5 million people in northern Greece. The city has 150,000 university students and numerous shops. (It was my wife's favorite city of those we visited!) We spent our last day in Thessaloniki, but before we toured this famous city, we made our way to a city that I was looking forward to visiting again: Philippi.

Philippi was named in honor of Alexander the Great's father, Philip of Macedon. It was a prominent city in Paul's day in the first century. This was one of my favorite places. The events recorded in Acts 16 are so inspiring. We read of the conversion of Lydia in Acts 16:14, "Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul." Later in the chapter, we read of the dramatic conversion of the Philippian jailer in Acts 16:29-31, "Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?' So they said, 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.'"

While in Philippi, we toured the ancient city which has many significant archaeological ruins. Leighton preached at the prison cell of Paul and Silas, and I preached where Lydia was baptized. (More about this in tomorrow's devotion.) Our tour guide, Andy, did a great job and shared something very significant with our group. For those who would question the truthfulness of Scripture, it is always a powerful proof when archeology affirms what Scripture teaches. For example, Andy pointed out a baptismal pool with the word episkopos (ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΣ), the Greek word for bishop or overseer. This dates to the 4th century AD and verifies unquestionably that there was a church on this site in the city of Philippi. Here is a picture of the site with the Greek word inlaid in the stone in mosaic:

Another neat feature of Philippi is the theater that dates to the 4th century BC. Here is a picture of our granddaughter Bella at the theater:

What an incredible day we had in Philippi. Tomorrow I will share more about our time in Philippi and wrap up with our visit to Thessaloniki.

But I will close today's devotion with this thought: God saved Lydia, and it was much like the conversion of many of you. There were no dramatic occurrences like with Paul on the Damascus Road or the jailer with an earthquake and intentions of committing suicide. But all these conversions were equally powerful, because the primary point is, God saves all who believe in His Son Jesus and turn from their sins. Have you believed in Christ and turned to Him in repentance for salvation? If not, do so today!

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Podcast of the Week

Interview with Dr. Jenifer Wakefield, Pt. 2

Pastor Danny continues his conversation with Dr. Jenifer Wakefield, biblical counselor and head of the women's ministry at Great Hills Baptist Church, about the issues of same-sex attraction, gender dysphoria, and abortion and how Christians can effectively minister to people struggling with these issues, especially how parents can help their children if they are tangled up in these issues.

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