There was a disciple there named Timothy.

 

There was a disciple there named Timothy.

 

Acts 16:1 When Paul came to Derbe and Lystra, there was a disciple there named Timothy. His mother was a Jewish woman who believed, but his father was a Greek.

When the apostle Paul and Silas arrived in Lystra via Derbe, where the second missionary journey began in earnest, he met Timothy, who would later become his son in the faith. God had prepared Timothy in advance of Paul’s second missionary journey and was waiting for Paul.

God does not leave those who do God's work alone, but He always gives them co-workers and helpers. Timothy's father was a Greek and his mother was Jewish. In other words, Timothy was a faithful brother in faith who had both Jewish and Greek backgrounds. Timothy was a Jew by his mother's blood and a Greek by his father's blood, so he had a point of contact to spread the gospel to Jews and also to Greeks.

Acts 16:2-3 says, "Now Timothy had a good reputation with the brothers who were at Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted to take him with him and circumcise him because of the Jews who lived in those regions. For they all knew that his father was a Greek."

However, since Timothy was not circumcised and would have encountered many Jews while preaching with Paul, there could have been a lot of friction or conflict. So Paul had Timothy be circumcised.

"Getting Timothy circumcised" is more likely to be the Holy Spirit's guidance than Paul's idea. The aorist tense is used in both λαβὼν and περιέτεμεν. Requirement of circumcision as a condition of salvation for Gentiles was clearly against the gospel, but it did not prohibit believing Jews from being circumcised.

If Timothy's parents were both Gentiles, and Timothy was a complete Gentile, the Holy Spirit would not have had Timothy circumcised. Just as Paul became a Jew to the Jews and a non-Law to those who were not, in order to win more people, he wanted Timothy to be like that. So the Holy Spirit applied the non-essential and non-essential things wisely and flexibly for the sake of spreading the gospel.

Acts 16:4-5 "As they traveled through the cities, they delivered to them the ordinances to observe that had been decided upon by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in number daily."

Regarding the ordinances, it has already been mentioned in 15:28-29: "For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to impose on you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from food sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. May you prosper." This is not legalism, but rather, since these things were abstained from in that region at that time, it creates an atmosphere in which the gospel can be naturally preached. Ten Pistei is that faith. In other words, it is a faith that accepts ho logos.

Acts 16:6-7 "They passed through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. When they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia; but the Spirit did not permit them."

Ton Logon (τὸν λόγον) means Christ, the Word. Paul and Timothy tried to preach the gospel in Asia, but the Holy Spirit did not let them go to Asia. Then, from Mysia, they tried to go to Bithynia, but this time the Spirit of Jesus prevented them. The Spirit of Jesus means the Holy Spirit. When God the Father sends the Holy Spirit to Jesus, Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to the disciples.

John 14:26 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." The Counselor is the Holy Spirit sent in the name of Jesus. Therefore, although the Holy Spirit is the light of life sent by God, it refers to Jesus Christ. Since it has the name of Jesus, it ultimately becomes Jesus.

The doctrine of the Trinity implies that God is one, but in fact there are three Gods. In the Shorter Catechism, Question 10. What are the three distinct properties of the Trinity? Answer. The Father begot the Son, the Son is begotten of the Father, and the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son from all eternity. By ascribing names, attributes, works, and worship to the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Son and the Holy Spirit show that they are equal with the Father. This doctrine is wrong.

The Holy Spirit comes from the Father, but Jesus received the Holy Spirit from the Father and sent the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus. The doctrine says that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are equal Gods, but the Son and the Holy Spirit can be said to be of the same substance because they came from the Father, but they cannot be said to be equal Gods. The Son is the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God. The doctrine of the Trinity reminds us of the idea of ​​the Trinity.

The statement that the Spirit of Jesus blocked means that Jesus blocked. Jesus became ho logos and spoke in the hearts of the disciples. If believers do not understand the temple in their hearts, it is difficult. Christ is the image of God, which means the temple in their hearts. The disciples destroyed the old temple and were given a new temple, so Jesus came back and entered into that temple. That is why they converse in the temple. The disciples hear Jesus’ voice and act according to the words that Jesus speaks. The disciples’ signs and wonders are also because Jesus does this by the power of the Holy Spirit.

After passing through Mysia, they went to Troas, where Paul met Luke. The Lord had prevented Paul and his companions from going to Bithynia in order to meet Luke in Troas. He wanted Paul to leave Asia and go to Macedonia in Europe on his second missionary journey. Although on the surface it seemed like Paul had planned the second missionary journey, in reality, Jesus was the main character of the missionary journey. Jesus assigned Timothy to Paul and had him preach the gospel in Europe, not Asia.