6. Lydia's faith showed itself in good works.
TEN GREAT NEW TESTAMENT CONVERSIONS
She was not saved by good works, because no one is
saved in that way, as is made perfectly clear by
Romans 3:20; Ephesians 2:8-10 and Titus 3:5. It is
true, however, that faith without works is dead, look
up James 2:20; and where there is true faith there will
be works to demonstrate the reality of that faith.
Lydia's open home was the evidence of her opened
heart. Zacchaeus' restitution was the evidence of his
conversion, look up Luke 19:8; the jailer also gave
evidence of his conversion, look up Acts 16:33-34,
and compare 1 John 3:14.
7. Lydia's one desire was to be faithful to her Lord.
This is clearly stated in verse 15. She longed to be true
to the One Who had done so much for her. Is this our
consuming desire just to be faithful to Him, at all
costs? Look up Revelation 2:10.
F. W. Dixon
Study 9
LYDIA OF THYATIRA
Scripture Reading: Acts 16:1-15
The story of Lydia's conversion is contained in two verses
only, Acts 16:14-15. It is told with simplicity, and there is
a sublime beauty about it. Paul evidently felt just as happy
in ministering to a few God fearing women as to a great
crowd in the synagogue. In all probability there would
have been no synagogue in Philippi, a gentile city, so here
by the riverside at Philippi these women met for prayer at
regular times. Paul recognized a God given opportunity for
preaching the gospel to them. One of these women who
met for prayer was Lydia; of her we read, "whose heart the
Lord opened". When the jailer was converted there was an
earthquake; when Lydia came to know the Lord it was a
silent, unemotional movement of the Holy Spirit in her
heart. God works very differently with different kinds of
people. He understands our background and our tempera-
ment, and He knows just how to meet our deep need and
the way to approach us in our need. Some people are
suddenly converted, others come gradually; some come
publicly and some privately; some come with great
emotion and others without much motion. The important
thing is to know that we have been converted, even if we
do not remember the time or the place when the great
transaction took place. Are you trusting the Lord Jesus
now, and able to say now, 2 Timothy 1:12? Has the Lord
opened your heart and entered in? Look up
2 Corinthians 13:5.
1. Though Lydia was a very obscure and humble
woman, it was through her opened heart that God
passed into Europe.
She was a native of Thyatira and a seller of purple.
She was a business woman, but her name would not
have hit the headlines in Holy Scripture had it not been
for God's gracious dealings with her, look up
 1 Corinthians 1:26-29. God delights to choose
ordinary people and use them for His glory. The
significant thing for us to notice here is that when God
wanted to enter into a new continent so that multitudes
of people in that continent might be saved, He chose
Lydia as the channel through whom He would work
just as He chose Carey when He wanted the message
of the gospel in India, or Livingstone when He wanted
to demonstrate His power in Africa. Lydia's opened
heart was the vantage ground for a forward movement
for the gospel in Europe. Think what God can do
through one life when He gains complete control of it!
Think what God can do through your life if it is fully
yielded to Him
2. Lydia was a worshipper of God before the Lord
Jesus entered her heart.
We are told that she was at the prayer meeting. She
was obviously quite sincere in her religious
observances, but she was not born again, look up John
3:3; she had not been saved through faith in Jesus
Christ, look up John 5:24; her heart had not yet been
opened to welcome the Saviour, look up John 1:11-12.
How many people there are just like this! They are
described in 2 Timothy 3:5. They are sincere and they
regularly attend church, but they are not Christians; for
the one thing which makes a man a Christian is the
presence of the Lord Jesus in his heart and in his life,
look up Revelation 3:20. It is not enough to believe in
God; we must believe in, trust in, the Lord Jesus as
well, look up John 14:1. Is it possible that your faith is
"vain" faith? Look up 1 Corinthians 15:1-2.
3. Lydia listened to the Gospel, and the Lord saved
her.
Here we have an illustration of Romans 10:17 in
action. Lydia heard the message of the Gospel, and as
she listened faith become operative in her heart. This
is the way God works. He is sovereign in the salvation
of a soul, and when we are told that Lydia "attended"
the words that Paul spoke, it means that she gave her
full attention to his presentation of the Gospel. She
heard him declare the truth of John 3:16; Acts 4:12
and Romans 1:16; she heard about the Person and the
Work of Christ, and as she listened her heart was
opened and the Lord Jesus entered in. It was not only
her mind which was opened, but her heart, look up and
compare Romans 10:9-10. She not only believed about
the Lord Jesus and His power to save her, but she
received Him and trusted Him to be her Saviour.
4. Lydia lost no time in confessing her Lord.
We are told that she was baptized, and all the members
of her household were baptized as well. So here again
we have the scriptural order, believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ and be baptized; receive Him as Saviour and
confess Him openly as Lord, look up and compare
Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 2:41. Here is God's
ordained method for confessing openly that we have
trusted Christ as our Saviour. What a wonderful
service it must have been when Lydia was baptized!
Her public baptism, which may have taken place in the
river, just near to the spot where she was converted,
must have been a testimony to many people.
5. Lydia's testimony was blessed to those in her own
home.
She was not the only one to be baptized. The members
of her household were baptized also which means, of
course, that they also believed on the Lord Jesus and
their hearts were opened to receive Him as their
Saviour, and thus they confessed Him openly by
baptism. In Psalm 68:6 we read that "God setteth the
solitary in families". What does this mean? Lydia is an
example of this statement. God saved Lydia, and
through her the members of her household came to
know the Lord. This is His plan and intention in
saving you, that through you, those who are loved by
you and known by you should hear and receive the
Gospel.