In the closing verses of Acts 15, we see how Satan sought to hinder the work of the church in provoking a sharp contention between the apostle Paul and the prophet Barnabas (v. 39). They had up until this time worked harmoniously together. Both of these great workers thought that their judgment was the right one, concerning who should go with them as they revisited the churches they had established on their first missionary journey. Unable to agree they separated with Paul taking Silas with him and Barnabas taking Mark.
This shows us that even apostles and prophets were sometimes mistaken in matters of judgment. The Holy Spirit included things such as this so that we might be on guard against making the same mistakes. The apostles and prophets were never mistaken concerning matters of faith, things that had been revealed by the Holy Spirit, inspiration insured that.
Matters of judgment are matters of opinion, matters concerning things where God has not spoken. Matters of faith are those things where God has spoken; those things written in the Holy Scriptures, that we may know God’s will for us. The Bible is the revealed will of the mind of God (1 Corinthians 2:11-13). Matters of faith are matters of doctrine, i.e., that which was taught by Christ and the writers of the N. T. If it is not taught in the N. T., it is not a matter of faith. Faith comes by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). Ron Wilson wrote in “Highlights from the Book of Acts,” “An opinion is a matter of human judgment, belief, or estimation. When God says something it is not opinion, it is doctrine.”
Who was right? That too is a matter of opinion. It was not a doctrinal matter. Jackson points that to their credit they did not allow the disagreement to distract them from their work of spreading the gospel (183). It is further to the credit of both that it did not hinder their relationship in later years.
Soon another worker was to be added to Paul’s team. Timothy joined Paul and Silas when they came to Lystra and he went with them to churches in the area that were strengthened in the faith and increased in number daily (16:5). We see from v.’s 6 and 7 that their paths were directed by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit does not direct our paths today by speaking directly to us as He did in the age of miracles, but our paths are directed providentially as He works in our lives.
Arriving in Troas, Paul received a vision of a man of Macedonia pleading, “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (v. 9). This convinced them that God had called them to preach the gospel in Macedonia and they immediately made plans to do so. They sailed to Philippi and were there for some days. Learning of a place by the river where people gathered to pray they joined them on the Sabbath day (Saturday). A lady named Lydia, a merchant of expensive wares, was present and heard the gospel message. She received the word as had many on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41). God used that gospel message to open her heart to the things spoken by Paul (Romans 1:16; 10:17).
That is how God opens our hearts to His message. No one can open their heart to the truth, until they have heard it (Romans 10:14). This is how the Holy Spirit influences us, not by any direct operation upon the heart as some teach, but through His revealed, inspired message of salvation. Lydia and those of her household though faith were led to repent and be baptized (immersed), just as those on the day of Pentecost were (Acts 2:38, 41).
God is still today seeking to open the hearts of those who will hear the gospel, as taught in the New Testament, without addition, subtraction or alteration. The Monticello Church of Christ seeks to preach and teach it in no other way. We make public what we preach/teach and invite you to compare what we say with the scriptures, examining what we say by the scriptures. That which is not taught in the N. T. Scriptures leads to sinful division