Saved by Grace

I'm going to ask you to take your Bibles and turn with me to the book of Acts. Acts chapter 16. Acts 16. Before I begin, I'm going to be looking at, actually, verses 14-15 is where I will focus, but I'm going to look at a few verses prior to that, lead up to it. As I was reading this passage of scripture, and it deals with how the Apostle Paul was led to come to the place where he was, to preach the gospel to a people of God's And as I was reading this passage of scripture again this morning, I began to think how marvelous it is to behold how the grace of God leads his people to come to a certain place and to be in that place by God's good pleasure, how the Lord led them. You'll see what I'm talking about in just a second. But I think often of this fact for myself.

Here I am, a nobody, born in a place of obscurity. I guarantee you that hardly anybody here would know where Plocheville, Louisiana is. That's in the middle of nowhere in South Louisiana. And that's where my mother was born, Plocheville, Louisiana. Now where in the world is that?

Got married to my dad, had a son, grew up South Louisiana, and stayed in Louisiana for 20 years, and then moved to Tennessee, and then stayed in Tennessee for years, pastoring a church, and then by the grace of God was moved to come to Katy, West Virginia. And I think, how in the world could I ever end up in Katy, West Virginia? I'm telling you, it's, Katy, now, Plosheville is about as big, not quite as big, but almost as big as Katy. Katy's not a big place. Plosheville is smaller than that.

But I think, how could I end up here? And how many places I would go, and Lord would leave me, put me here, put me there, go to college in a little old town North Louisiana, and how, by the grace of God, I got to this place. And then I stopped and realized that this was the Lord's will for me to come here, and then go here, and then go here, and meet this one, and meet this one, meet this one, to bring me to this place right here, standing before a group of people that I'm sure most of you, most of you are probably from here. but how the Lord put us all together. That's just amazing to me. Well, with that thought in mind, I want us to look how the Apostle Paul was led like that and where he'd go here and he'd go there and go there. Let's look at this passage of scripture here. Acts 16. Let's just begin and look at verse 9 to 12. Now listen to the verse 9, Acts 16. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night.

There stood a man of Macedonia and prayed him saying, come over into Macedonia and help us. And after he had Seeing the vision, immediately we endeavored to go to Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them. Therefore, loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracea, the next day to Neopolis, and from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, a colony, and we were there in that city abiding certain days. Now here was the Apostle Paul, Pharisee. Almighty God was pleased to call him out of darkness, teach him the gospel, and the Lord was pleased to move this man. These different places he went. Came here, came there, went to Macedonia, Came to, you know, all these different places.

Assuredly, Paul said, Lord, it calls us to go there. Now, what the Lord was pleased to accomplish in each of those little places that he went, we don't have any idea. We don't know. The Spirit of God was not pleased to tell us what happened, but all we know is that Paul had a vision.

That's what scripture says, had a vision. And in this vision, he saw a man of Macedonia and he was assured of the Lord, assured that God had called him to go to those places and preach the gospel. I read that again this morning, that the word, the gospel. What is the gospel?

I've told you before, if you'd ask somebody on the street, do you believe the gospel? Yes, sir. Sure do. I believe it. I said, tell me what the gospel is. And all of a sudden they look at you, like I've said before, like a calf looking at a new gate. Let's see, I ought to know this. I ought to know what the gospel is.

The gospel of God's grace. is the preaching of how God has established peace, harmony before himself through the preaching of the gospel of God's grace. That's what the gospel is, how peace is established by the Lord. Paul was assured the Lord called him to go and preach the gospel. And so Paul had gone to this place, convinced that the Lord had called him to do that.

He said, we went to Troas, it became a straight course, Semothracia, next day Neopolis, from thence to Philippi, chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony was there, a colony of soldiers is what it was. It was some veterans. It was a place where soldiers were stationed. One writer said it was soldiers. One said veterans. I said, okay, you know. What is it, Fred? Once a Marine, you're always a Marine. You know, the soldiers.

And so Paul was there in that place, in that city, he said, In verse 12, he said, and from thence went to Philippi, chief city, that part of Macedonia, and a colony. And we were in that city. Now look at that word, abiding. Abiding, certain days. Abiding. Looking that word up, it means we were there just wearing away. Abiding. Spending. passing time.

He said we were in this place where the Lord had sent us and the Lord had not revealed to him why he was there. He said, I was assured that God sent us to that place but the Lord didn't tell us why. You know, have you ever noticed that sometimes things happen and You don't know why they happened. You don't know what brought it about or anything. And you think, I wonder why. But when the Lord said the steps of a good man are ordered, why did you do what you did this morning? Why did you go where you, why did you walk? Why did you do, why?

Because the Lord ordered it. And these things that seem so insignificant to us, Never forget Romans 8, 28, all things. Does that include everything that I did? All things, every act, every thought, every movement, every motion, everything is ordered by the Lord.

I, uh, Yes, the day before yesterday, we had a storm came through. It was real bad. Got some rain too, I'm sure. And I was out yesterday afternoon with Mark, my son, and out there, I had safety glasses on. I was moving some brush and stuff like that, and all of a sudden, a little old stick had safety glasses on now, thankfully, and a little stick just went right across, hit the glasses, and I got a little old red spot right there.

You can look at it later if you want to. And immediately, I thought to myself, by the grace of God, the Lord kept me from that stick hitting me in the eye. It's right here, and I think, But for God's grace, how thankful. The Lord said, I'll never leave you. I'll never forsake you. Don't ever take anything that happens for granted.

So here they are. Here they are. He said that we're in this place, verse 12. He said, there we were abiding in that city certain days. They came to that place, I'm sure at their own expense, waiting on the Lord. What else could they do? If you're convinced this is what the Lord wants me to do and He hadn't made it obvious to you, then what do you do? Wait on the Lord. The Lord doesn't send His people anywhere and just call them there just to, you know, to do nothing.

You're here on purpose. There's a reason for everybody sitting in this congregation this morning. What's that purpose? I don't know. But the Lord knows. And the Lord is going to use this for his glory and for the good of his people. You're here by God's choice, not yours, God's choice. He worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. And so something happened, though, whenever the Apostle Paul was in that place.

It says in verse 13 on the Sabbath, he said, We went out of the city by a riverside, where prayer was wont to be made, and we sat down and spake unto the women which resorted thither. Now, here outside of the city on the Sabbath day, just on the day when it was customary for them to meet together.

There was a group of ladies, a group of women that were there. And providentially, Paul and Silas is there in that place. There's a group of ladies that's meeting out there by the riverside and stuff like that. And providentially, since, you know, they're there, Paul and Silas, They went there where the ladies were. That was where they went.

They were having a church, a little church service by the riverside. And the Lord had ordered all those ladies that were there and his preachers, Paul and Silas, to be there too. God ordered all that. It wasn't luck. It wasn't happenstance. He worketh. He worketh. He worketh. Now that ought to settle our hearts. You know, it ought to just say, you know, whenever we question what the Lord does, it's just our foolishness, it's just our old natural mind.

And the Spirit of God, in this case right here, was not pleased to reveal the exact words that the Apostle Paul, all he said right there on the Sabbath, 13, we went out by the riverside where where prayer was wont to be made and sat down, and we spake.

He spake unto the women which resorted thither. What did he say? I don't know what he said. If the Lord would have been pleased to tell us what he said, the Lord would have written it in the scriptures, and we'd have known. But all he was doing, he was talking to them. I don't know. I'm sure it was concerning the things on his heart, concerning the gospel of God's grace, but we're not told. So we don't speculate. We just say, Paul was there just talking. He was just talking to these ladies.

And the scripture reveals something, verse 14. And a certain woman, I've told you before, I love it when it, that word certain, it just, that, that ought to just arrest our heart and just say, you know what? God's going to say something here. We ought to perk up our ears and listen to what he's got to say. A certain woman named Lydia, seller of purple of the city of Thyatira, which worshiped God, heard us, whose heart the Lord opened that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. Now, here's an amazing Amazing truth that's been told. The Spirit of God was pleased when these women all got together and Paul and Silas was there and they were talking. The Lord was pleased to tell us about a certain lady.

How many women were there? I don't know. What were their names? I don't know. But I know there was one in particular. that the Spirit of God was pleased to tell us who she was. To tell us, according to God's will and purpose, who this woman was. And her name was Lydia. Lydia.

You know, whenever we've heard this story so many times, I got to thinking when I was looking at this passage of scripture. I've preached out of this passage of scripture so many times, and I thought about different passages, and I'd go here, and I'd go there, and I'm telling you, there was no way in the world I was gonna go somewhere else, Dave. I just, I thought, you know, this is where I'm gonna have to go. I just, this is what was on my heart, and I said, I'm gonna preach it.

Well, they've heard this before. That's okay. You need to hear it again, because I do, too. I need to hear about, there was a certain woman, just put your name there, you that know the Lord, There was, you'd met together, they just met together because this was the time of the week where they met together. Well, now you're here. Why? Because this is when we normally meet. Yeah, you know, no, this is the time the Lord permitted us to meet here. And the Lord had a certain woman, a certain woman. Her name was Lydia, Lydia. I thought about this. I want you to hold your place there. Turn to Luke 10. Luke chapter 10, verse 17 to 20. Luke 10. Luke chapter 10. Verse 17. Scripture says, and the 70 returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents, scorpions, over the power of the enemy. Nothing shall by any means hurt you, notwithstanding. By this, rejoice not that the spirits are subject unto you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven. You that believe, let me tell you what you have reason to rejoice in. that God Almighty would write your name in the book of life before the foundation of the world. And God Almighty would be pleased to send the gospel to you and to tell you the truth of who God is, who you are. Nobody's. Nobody's. I've told you before, by nature, ain't none of us here worth killing. We're not worth shooting. All have sinned to come short of the glory of God.

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, while we were yet trespassers and sinners, was pleased to send the gospel to us and send a preacher out of the middle of nowhere to a place where we are right here. And we'll give you a heart to show up.

And here was Lydia. And here was Lydia, God was gonna show mercy to her. And the Lord sent a preacher to her. So here's an amazing thing. A certain woman, verse 14, a certain woman named Lydia. But here's the second thing I noticed about this passage. The Spirit of God was pleased to tell us about her profession, what she did for a living. What did she do? Well, the scripture says in verse 14, she was a seller of purple. I tried to find out what the significance of that was.

It was color that was derived from a shellfish. And they would use that color out of that shellfish. It was purple. It was a very, very expensive process. to take this material and dye that material. It was worn by those who were upper class, usually royalty, stuff like it, purple.

And this woman was, it says she was a seller of purple. She had an honest calling. She was working for a living. She sold purple, that's what it says. She was a seller of purple. one that was owner of anything, a business or anything. She just sold it. She's just a hardworking woman. She didn't wear it. She sold it.

I mean, she just, she had to work for a living. She had to work and she was a hardworking woman and she's in this place right here and this is where the Lord was pleased cause her to cross paths with these preachers. The Lord's working all of this out. But here's this hardworking woman, a seller. That thought right there, she was a seller of it. Hold your place again. Turn with me. 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians 1. 1 Corinthians 1. 1 Corinthians 1, Verse 26. Verse 26.

For you see, your calling, brethren, have that not many wise after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called, but God has chosen foolish things of the world to confound the wise. God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty, the based things of the world, things that are despised have God chosen, yea, the things which are not to bring to naught things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence.

What do you do for a living? Well, I'm just a carpenter. Well, I'm just, you know, I work over here at the power company. I'm just this Almighty God is pleased to put his people where they are, and he puts them in a profession of his choosing because he's going to do what he's pleased to do. What did this woman do? Well, she was just a certain woman named Lydia, and she was a seller of purple. She worked for a living. Here's the third thing I noticed. where she was from. It says, the latter part is still in verse 14, it says that Celera Purple of the city of Thyatira.

Thyatira. Now let me just show you something. Turn with me to Revelation 2, Revelation chapter 2. Hold your place right there. Revelation chapter 2. Let me give you a little, from the word of God, a little information on where this woman is from, and the mercy of God that was shown to her. Revelation chapter 2, verse 18. Now here is the Lord.

He's been pleased to send some letters to different places through John. And it says in Revelation chapter 2, verse 18, Unto the angel, unto the pastor of the church in Thyatira write, these things saith the son of God who hath his eyes unto a flame of fire and his feet like fine brass. He said, I know thy works, charity, service, faith, patience, thy works, the last to be more than the first, notwithstanding. I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach, to seduce my servants, to commit fornication, spiritual, probably actual too, but nonetheless, and to eat things sacrificed to idols. And I gave her space to repent for fornication, She repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed. And them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.

Here was a woman, and she was from a place where there was virtually nothing but a false gospel being preached. Spiritual adultery, lying, A place where all was just fun and games and tricks and we're gonna have a bake sale and we're gonna, you know, we're gonna try to seduce people to come to church. We're gonna bus all their kids to church. We're gonna do just anything to get them into church. She was from a place where there was nothing but just silliness and foolishness and just spiritual adultery.

As far as I know, there wasn't a place in Thyatira where the gospel was being preached. Without the hearing of the gospel, there's no remission. God Almighty saves His people through the preaching of the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace. When the gospel is preached, you're going to hear what men are by nature. And you're going to hear what God's pleased to do according to His will and purpose. And here's this woman, she was from a place where the gospel, by and large, was not preached.

And I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just going to be honest with you. Fairmont, West Virginia is no different than Thyatira. Somebody said, well, you're just trying to be too arrogant. No, I'm going to just be honest with you. I've gotten to a point in my life where Know I'm going to just be frank with you as a general rule You pick a place Give me a list of all the churches in This area right here go out 10 miles 20 miles. It doesn't matter And give me the name of all the churches in this area Where church services are being held this morning?

And as far as I know, I'm going to tell you one thing. As far as I know, there's no place that I know of where the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace is being preached except in Katy. That's the only place I know of. And I've been here long enough, if I would have known that there was another place, don't doubt that the Lord would have caused my path to cross with Him. Somebody said, well, you're just being arrogant again. No, I'm not.

I'm telling you, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching, what men call foolishness. Paul says, I am determined to preach nothing but Christ and Him crucified. Somebody said, well, we preach Christ and Him crucified. Why was He crucified? because God Almighty had chosen a people for the foundation of the world, and he was going to save them through the preaching of the gospel, and he laid upon the heart of a preacher, called of God to preach the truth, to tell men who men are. There's not a little good in all of us. We're not born alive, spiritually alive. We're all born dead, and God's got to give man or woman a new heart. He's going to create a new heart, created in righteousness and holiness by God's grace. And you're here this morning, and I am too, by the grace of God that God would be pleased to send a preacher.

And here's this woman in Thyatira. But here's the scriptures also in that same passage of scripture, back in Acts 16, verse 14. She was in a city called Thyatira, and here's what it said, which worshipped God. Somebody said, well, now here, okay, this woman worshipped God. Well, I can tell you, we're going to read the rest of it in just a second before I close, and I'm going to tell you something right now. This woman, when she first heard Paul preaching, she was not a believer. But the scripture says that she worshipped God. She worshipped God. I hold your place right there. Turn to John, Gospel of John, Chapter 4. John 4. John 4. Verse 19, John 4, 19. The Lord has crossed paths with a woman of Samaria. She had gone there. She was a woman that had many husbands before, and she wasn't married to the man she's living with now. And the Lord crossed her path. He was talking to this woman.

And in verse 19 of John 4, it says, The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain, and you say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Verse 21, Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh when you shall neither in this mountain nor yet in Jerusalem worship the Father.

Ye, look at verse 22, ye worship, ye know not what. This woman, according to the word of the Lord, she was worshiping, but she didn't know what she was, she didn't know the Lord. She did not know the Lord. He said, you worship, you know not what. We know, we know. what we worship.

Salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, or now is, when true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit, truth, for the Father seeketh. He's searching them out. He's bringing them. He's seeking them. They're not seeking Him. He's seeking. He seeks them out. such to worship him."

Now this woman right here in Thyatira, the scripture says that this woman worshiped. But the Lord revealed in John 4 to those that know not the Lord, they worship. Now everybody and their brother that goes to church, they're worshiping something. But the Lord told He told this woman, he said, you worship, but you don't know what you're worshiping.

You got a doctrine, but it's not right. You don't know who I am. That's what he's telling her. You don't know. She was a lost, but religious, devout woman, which worshiped God. And somebody might say, well, you see, there she is. She's worshiping God, but it doesn't say the God that she was worshiping. Because the Lord's going to reveal himself to her. And he's going to teach her something. The same thing back in Acts 16. This woman right here, Thyatira, she worshipped God. You say, well it says she worshipped God, but now look at the next verse.

Whose heart the Lord opened. that she attended unto the things which were spoken of. She was worshiping, but she was not worshiping the God of this Bible. She wasn't worshiping him. The Lord had not, at that moment, he had not opened her heart. She was there for church service. She was there to do church. She was there worshiping, but the Lord had not yet opened her heart. Oh, but a marvelous thing happened while she was there.

In that place, hearing the Apostle Paul preach, Paul was there by the grace of God, been there a few days, I don't know how long, but he was there a few days, went from this city, this city, this city. Like the Lord was pleased to send me. South Louisiana, Tennessee, just on and on and on. But he was pleased to put me and Katie and gave me a calling. You go to Katy, West Virginia, and you preach the gospel to them. You tell them the truth. And the Lord will do what he's pleased to do. And by the grace of God, God's been pleased to call his people out, to comfort them, to sustain them, to encourage them.

Scripture says that concerning this woman, in the latter part of that 14th verse, whose heart the Lord opened that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. Before, she didn't. She was there just because everybody else and their brother, it was, you know, the Sabbath day or whatever, they were there. But now she attended the things which were spoken by Paul. She was attentive to what he was saying. is what it was, what it mean. She heard, she heard him.

Before, she heard religious talk, but she didn't hear the voice of the Lord. She heard, at that point, God, God Almighty, who rules in heaven and earth, who has mercy and compassion on whomsoever he will, the God of electing, particular redeeming and irresistible regenerating grace, the Lord opened her heart. What she said in her heart, I don't doubt for a second. I've never heard it like that before. I've heard religious talk. I've heard religion, and I've heard about Jesus, and I've heard about God, and I've heard about salvation, and I've heard about All these religious words, but she had never heard the voice of God speak to her. The Lord opened her heart and she attended. She said, I never heard it like that before, but thank God she heard today. And the scripture says in verse 15, I'll close with this.

And when she was baptized, you know, baptism is a confession faith in the Lord Jesus Christ according to these scriptures. Baptism is for believers that believe the gospel of God's grace. We don't just baptize people for the fun of it. You say, well, I've been baptized. Okay. But have you believed on the Lord Jesus Christ as he is revealed in this book? Because if you haven't, If you have not, then all you did is get wet. All you did is just get in water. That's all that means. I don't mean anything.

Baptism is the outward confession that I believe the gospel of God's free grace. I believe that apart from God showing mercy to me, I would have never known him. I believe that had God Almighty not crossed my path with the gospel, I'd have gone through the rest of my life thinking how religious I was. I've been a good girl. I've been a good boy. I go to church. I don't go as I should, realize that. But I go when I get a chance. Every chance I get, I go. Everybody does that.

But if Almighty God is pleased to give a new heart, then you're going to attend to what this book says. Then it's going to be life to you. Then it's going to be real to you. Up until then, it's not real, you know. The reason I say that is because I've been there. I know. And that old man is still with me. He just plagues you, doesn't he, Neil? Just plagues you. I feel the workings of that old man in me. I'm like you. There's times I think of every excuse in the world. But maybe I, you know, maybe I don't need to go today. I'm just, you know. You think, well Marvin never thinks it. Don't kid yourself. Marvin's worse than you are, believe me. But by God's grace, God has been pleased to save sinners. Paul said, of whom I'm chief. I pray that the Lord be pleased to bless these words to our heart for Christ's sake. Amen. Gary?

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