Paul in Philippi

During Paul’s second preaching trip, Timothy joins Paul’s team. Shortly after, the Spirit forbids Paul to cross Asia Minor ( Acts 16:6 📖 ). Asia Minor is modern-day Turkey. That night, Paul has a dream. In the dream, Paul sees a man from “Macedonia. The man stood there and he said to Paul, ‘Please, please come across the sea to Macedonia and help us’ ” ( Acts 16:9 📖 , EASY). Right away, Paul and his team sailed from Troas. Paul’s team included Silas, Timothy, and Luke. Luke joined them at Troas ( Acts 16:11 📖 ). Paul and his team sailed over the sea to a city in Greece. But they didn't preach there. The team then went to Philippi.

Philippi was “the most important city in the region [in that part] of Macedonia” ( Acts 16:12 📖 , EASY). Also, Phillippi was one of the most honored cities in the Kingdom of Rome. The people who lived in Philippi could vote and own land, the same as Roman people who lived in Italy. Also, the Philippians didn’t pay certain taxes. Anyone born in the city of Philippi was a Roman citizen. Philippi was an important stop on the Via Egnatia. The Via Egnatia was an important road that connected Rome with the East. So, Paul wanted to start a church in Philippi. A church in this city would help Paul and his team share the Good News with many other cities ­nearby. Some of these cities included Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessalonica, and Berea (read Acts 17:1, 10 📖 ).

In Paul’s day, the Philippians spoke the Latin language. But the people spoke the Greek language in the marketplace and in the towns around Philippi. Luke tells us how Paul and his team joined people for prayer at the riverside. There, Lydia and the people who lived and worked in her house became Christians ( Acts 16:13–15 📖 ). Lydia was a businesswoman who sold purple cloth. Lydia used her money to support Paul’s work for God. During Paul and Silas’s stay in Philippi, they spent time in jail. Their time in jail caused the manager of the jail to become a Christian. All the members of his house became Christians, too!

Philippi was an important city for a church. The church in Philippi helped God’s people share the Good News in Europe. For sure, Paul and his team suffered for their faith in Philippi. But God can use our suffering to touch people’s hearts with the Good News.

Read Acts 9:16 📖 . How does this verse help us understand Paul’s sufferings? How does this verse help us, too?

“The man [in the dream] stood there and he said to Paul, ‘Please, please come across the sea to Macedonia and help us.’ ”