God did some remarkable things through the apostle Paul in the city of Philippi.  For example, God prevented Paul from ministering in other places and specifically guided him to Philippi.  There God opened the heart of a wealthy businesswomen named Lydia; she paid attention to Paul’s message, and she and her entire household put their faith in Jesus for salvation.

Five days ago there was an earthquake in Turkey that registered 5.2 on the Richter scale, injuring more than a dozen people and causing considerable damage to buildings.  That initial earthquake was followed by eight aftershocks, with magnitudes ranging from 1.4 to 2.7, causing schools in the area to close.

God sent an earthquake in Acts chapter 16.  And there were some aftershocks following that earthquake.  Not physical aftershocks, but aftershocks of a different kind.

You can lock up Christians in prison, but you can’t stop their praise to God from breaking out!  That’s the title of today’s message.

Paul had a vision of a man in Macedonia who pleaded with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (Acts 16:9). And Paul and the others realized why God had closed certain doors earlier on their trip. God was opening the door for the gospel to be proclaimed in an entirely different part of the world — Europe.

The world thinks we are fools for putting put so much emphasis on a man’s execution.  We don’t celebrate when a criminal is put to death in the electric chair or by lethal injection or shot by a firing squad.  Even in New Testament times, death by crucifixion was the most shameful punishment that could be inflicted.  So why do we put so much emphasis on a cross?  To the world that seems foolish.

Today we want to look at a portion of Scripture where God essentially said, “Red light!”  twice to a team of missionaries who wanted to proclaim the gospel in certain places.  And then God emphatically said “Green light!” in regard to another area.

In the first century A.D., the church in the city of Antioch, located about 50 miles north of Jerusalem, consisted of both Jewish and Gentile disciples of Jesus.  When some Jews came to Antioch and taught that Gentiles had to keep the Old Testament law in order to be saved, it threatened to split that church in two: Jewish believers and Gentile believers.  That issue was resolved peacefully, however, and a potential church split was avoided.

CAUTION: 1 MINUTE OF SILENCE AT THE BEGINNING

The Seeming Silence of God

Matt Neal

A group of church leaders met in Jerusalem to discuss whether or not Gentiles had to keep the Old Testament law in order to be saved.  Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and James took turns emphasizing that salvation is received through faith, without mixing in any human works.  That truth was put in a letter to the Gentiles. With them went two leaders from the church in Jerusalem named Judas Barsabas and Silas.  And when that letter was received in Antioch, a potential church split was avoided.