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Living for What Really Matters
PHILIPPIANS
As we continue reading, we learn that Paul and his travel buddies sailed for Samothrace, then
on to Neapolis, and from there, hoofed it to Philippi. The Message says Philippi was “the main city
in that part of Macedonia and, even more importantly, a Roman colony. We lingered there several
days” (reference?).
On the day of Sabbath, Paul and his companions sought a place to worship. They heard about
a prayer meeting held along the riverside, and so they found it and began to speak to the women
who had gathered there.
Why do you think Paul and his companions didn’t go to a synagogue to pray and worship?
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To find our answer to this question, we’ll need to back up and learn a little about the city itself.
HISTORY LESSON
When they were attacked by Thracians, the inhabitants of this city previously known as Krenides
sought protection from Philip II of Macedon (the father of Alexander the Great!) Knowing the land
was rich in gold, Philip responded by capturing the city himself circa 357 BCE (so much for
looking to Philip for help!) and renamed it Philippi.
Years later, after Mark Antony and Octavian took revenge on Julius Caesar’s assassins, Brutus
and Cassius, Philippi become a military outpost and Roman colony. Because the city teemed with
Roman troops, it was often referred to as “little Rome.”xii
Self-governing and independent, Philippi was a bit of a melting pot, but because no synagogue
existed, we know that not even ten Jewish males resided within the city limits. However, as Paul
and his friends knew, when a city did not have a synagogue, those who loved God would meet by
the river to pray and worship.
Lydia was likely a Gentile who had heard of the incredible name of Jesus (John 12:20 shows
that news of Jesus’ miraculous healings had begun spreading to the people of Greece). She’s the
only woman named in this passage, so it’s likely that though she didn’t know much, she was
leading the meeting.
Isn’t it interesting that we don’t hear of any men at this prayer meeting, and yet Luke (the author
of Acts) says, “We sat down and spoke to the women who had come together” (Acts 16:13, ESV)?
In these days, Jewish men and women didn’t worship together. They even had different sections
in the synagogue. Once again, however, we see that tide changing within the community of Jesusfollowers as men and women come together in their love of Jesus.
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