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Paul meets Lydia in Philippi

Paul meets Lydia, a dealer of purple cloth, in Philippi.
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Paul and Silas had been travelling through Asia Minor encouraging Christians and preaching the gospel. Along the way, in Lystra, a young Christian man called Timothy had joined them. (Luke, the writer of Acts, may have been with them too). – Slide 1
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At Troas, Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia pleading, ‘Come over here and help us.’ So they sailed for the coast of Macedonia. – Slide 2
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From the coast they moved inland to the Roman colony of Philippi. It was the first place in Europe that Paul had visited. – Slide 3
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They explored the city for a few days. It had a thriving market place, library, amphi-theatre and temples to heathen gods. Philippi only had a few Jewish inhabitants, the rest were gentiles. – Slide 4
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They learnt that on the Sabbath day a group of women met for prayer outside the city wall by the river. – Slide 5
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One of the women at the meeting was Lydia, a woman from Thyatira who bought and sold purple cloth. Purple, blue and scarlet dyes were very expensive and only the very rich and royalty could afford clothes in these colours. – Slide 6
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Paul and his companions asked to join the women meeting by the river for prayer. – Slide 7
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Paul was given the opportunity to teach them the scriptures and tell them about Jesus, the Messiah. – Slide 8
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Lydia was already a worshipper of God and listened intently to every thing Paul was saying. – Slide 9
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The Lord opened her heart to understand and believe in Jesus. – Slide 10
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Lydia then asked to be baptised as a follower of Jesus. – Slide 11
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So she and those living in her house were baptised. – Slide 12
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She urged Paul and his companions to stay at her house while they were in Philippi. – Slide 13
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After some persuasion Paul, Silas and Timothy agreed and made Lydia’s home their base. – Slide 14
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Lydia’s home became a meeting place for the first Christians in Philippi. Lydia later supported Paul and his companions financially as they made other missionary trips. She was a successful business woman who put God first in her life. – Slide 15
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