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first European convert from heathenism, sought to avow her faith publicly by baptism, induced her whole household to follow her, and boldly received unto her house the teach ers of that new doctrine which was so shortly to rouse the whole city unto persecution. From this little beginning, Christianity took root in Europe.—M. Baxter. Romans 15:18-21. y. 18. I would not dare to speak— Christ hath not wrought by me. Paul will only speak of his own labors, and will not dare to refer to anything in which he had no personal share.—W. H. Griffith Thomas. The conversion of the Gentiles was Christ’s work, not Paul’s, and, therefore, Paul could glory in it without self exaltation. The apostle represents himself as merely an in strument in the hands of Christ for the conversion of men. — Hodge. To make the Gentiles obedient.— The obedience of which Paul speaks is the sincere obedience of the heart and life. This result, he says, Christ effected through his instrumen tality.—Hodge. By word and deed— i. e., by the word preached and the miracles.wrought by Paul; cf. 2 Cor. 12:12.— Best. It was not only by the truth as presented in the Word, but also by the effectual operation of His power that Christ converted men to the faith.—Hodge. V. 19. Through mighty signs and wonders.— This is a striking passage respecting the benefit of miracles. They are designed to prepare men to reverence and to obey God. So you read in Mark, that the Lord confirmed the truth by the signs which followed (Mark 16:20). Luke declares in the Acts, that the Lord by miracles gave testimony to the word of His grace (Acts 1 4 :3 ).— John Calvin. Signs are miraculous proofs adapted to impress the mind with conviction. Wonders are wonderful events or occur rences adapted to fill the mind with awe.—Robbins. By the power of the Spirit of God.— Paul’s glory was that God had set His seal upon his mission work to witness to it, through signs and wonders; and by the power of the Spirit of God “to make the Gentiles obedient by word and deed.” This was all he cared to remember in connection with his work. He says nothing of the numbers gathered in, or the apparent results as we would estimate them today, but his glory is that God has wrought through him and that the work has been Divine,—A. B. Simpson. I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ.— The thought is not merely that of faithful, but of complete preaching. He had announced his message as fully as it was possible to do it, and had published the joyous tidings at the chief centers on his way from Jerusalem to Illyricum.-v-W, H. Griffith Thomas. V. 20. I strived—not where Christ was named.— In all this work he had one dominant thought; indeed, the ex pression he uses indicates something like “ambition.” He endeavored to preach the Gospel only where Christ had not been named. He was particularly anxious not to build upon another man’s foundation, and he made it a matter of personal honor to work on virgin soil. To confirm this he quotes from Isa. 52:15, thus again supporting the reality of his Apostleship to the Gentiles by a reference to the Jewish Scriptures. This intense longing to let people know of Christ who had never before heard of .Him is a special call to the churches today who are crowding workers into the home field and doing comparatively little for the “re gions beyond.” _ Happy is that Christian, and happy is that community, where the Apostle’s aim is set first and fore most.—W. H. Griffith Thomas. Preaching By a Riverside. Acts 16; 9-15. Memory Verse.— “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31. Approach.— This lesson can he made very interesting to the little folks with the use of the sand table. Put a piece of blue paper under plain glass for sea, and use small boat to carry Paul, Silas and Timothy from place to place. Tooth picks make good men as they ELEMENTARY stand well in sand. You can make them different colors for the different persons. Use mirror for your river scene, with a little green along shore for trees. Even the little folks can be made to understand Mabel L. Merrill
Indus and the Godavery. It might have traveled farther east to deliver the swarming millions of China from the cold secularism of Confucius. Had it done so, mission aries from India and Japan might have been coming to England and America at the present day to tell the story of the Cross. But Providence conferred on Europe a blessed priority, and the fate of our continent was de cided when Paul crossed the Aegean.” (Stalker’s Life of St. Paul, page 78). And yet some Christians in this land say they do not be lieve in foreign missions! What would their condition be today had the early Christians taken such a stand? May God help us to promptly respond to the Macedon ian cry, so loudly sounding today— “Come over and help u s!” Acts 16:9-15. Y. 9. And a vision appeared to Paul. The Lord who had kept them hack by His Spirit from going into the prov inces,; which were not to be reached at this time, now makes His will known where they were to go. All uncer tainty and perplexity which had COMMENTS rested upon the little company is FROM THE now to be lifted. That there was COMMENTARIES deep Soul exercise and continued H. G. Dean prayer we may well surmise. They cast themselves completely on the Lord and He now directs them. Paul had a vision during that night.—A. C. Gaebelein. The vision seems to have appeared in the same way as that sent to Peter in chapter 10. The context precludes our understanding it as a dream.-^—Alford’s Greek Testa ment. This was a part of the fulfilment of the prophecy of Joel about which Peter spake on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2 :1 7 ).—-Cambridge Bible. A man of Macedonia standing, beseeching him.—A man stood before Paul whose words made him known as a Macedonian, and as a representative of his nation. Per haps also Paul ascertained his origin from his national dress. This man entreated him in the vision, to cross over th e sea to Macedonia and come to the aid of the inhabi tants. The distance from Troas to Macedonia on the op posite side of the Aegean Sea was somewhat more than one hundred miles,— Lange’s Commentary. V. 10. God had called us to preach the Gospel unto them.—All these circumstances, in such a sequence, cannot have been merely accidental; the help which Paul is asked to bring is, surely, no other than that which the Word of God and the saving grace of Christ afford— and therefore— as they now conclude— it is He Himself, who calls us by the vision to Macedonia, after having previously hindered us from preaching the Gospel on the borders of Asia Minor. — Lange’s Commentary. The “we” indicates that Luke was one of the party. The “straightway” indicates the eagerness and promptness of their obedience to “the heavenly vision”— “us” shows that Luke was a preacher as well as PauL-^Amos R. Wells. y. 12. Then to Philippi—where Luke seems to have remained for the next seven years. V. 13. And on the Sabbath day.^B efo re the Sabbath came round Paul had discovered that there were some in Philippi who prayed to the living God.—M. Baxter. The Jews had such proseuchai— places of prayer— some times in buildings, sometimes in the open air, as was the case in this instance. Because of Jewish ceremonial wash ings they were, when in the open air, as often as might be, near a river-side or on the seashore.— Cambridge Bible. We sat down and spake unto the women— “The women?” Tes; nothing is said of men in this little prayer meeting. —M. Baxter. V. 14. A certain woman named Lydia—whose heart the Lord opened.—One woman had been prepared beforehand, and God opened her heart that she attended to the things spoken. Instant decision for the Lord followed on the con viction which resulted from God’s message by Paul, and, notwithstanding all that such a step might involve, this
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