The Enslaved Woman
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2017 · 12 February 2017
We are now in Acts 16 and the gospel has just reached Europe. It started in Jerusalem, then to Judea, Samaria and it moved into Asia when a church was founded in Antioch and spread to Galatia. And it is now moving to Europe, going further west. And in Acts 16:11, Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke, who is just picked up here, set sail from Troas on the Aegean Sea across to Neapolis, which was the port of the city of Philippi.
Now the Holy Spirit focuses on the inevitable dichotomy that always occurs when the gospel is presented: some people believe and others are influenced by Satan. And we are presented with two women, one named Lydia, and a slave girl who had a spirit of divination. These two women really reflect a picture of every person alive. Because everybody is either in the category of Lydia or in the category of those enslaved by Satan.
Let's look at verse 13, “And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there.” They were Jewish and Jewish proselytes. Women have always played an important part in God's work as well as in Satan's work.
Last week we began to study the liberated woman, Lydia. Jesus said in John 8:36, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” This assumes that there are people who think they have freedom, but in reality they don't. The only true freedom is available in Jesus Christ. There is no freedom in eliminating God or turning Him into someone that responds to all your wishes. Lydia was a liberated person because of what Jesus Christ did in her life.
Let us look at her in verse 14, “Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul.” She was a Gentile who had a prepared heart. So God brings along Paul and Silas and they pour in the proper information and God has what He needs to open her heart. And that's exactly what happened.
She was saved. She was born again and she was justified. And the results was verse 15, “she and her household were baptized.” She had a tremendous personal testimony that had an effect on her house such that they all were saved and baptized too. Then verse 15 continued, “she begged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” So she persuaded us.”
When Lydia was truly liberated, she became preoccupied with taking care of those strangers who had preached the gospel. She really persuaded them until they said they would stay. Comforting of people, being hospitable, being generous by feeding people and caring for people and loving them is a tremendous ministry. And God knows that this type of ministry has great potential.
The word "hospitality" literally means "the love of strangers”. And this is a great tool for evangelism and fellowship. In Leviticus 19:33-34 God says, “And if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him. 34 The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself.” And remember, love is not an emotion; love is a command.
Love is a principle of self-sacrifice and service. We are to love strangers. The Jews had a saying: There are six things, the fruit of which a man eats in this world, and by which his horn is raised in the world to come. In other words, six things will bring reward in the end. And they had a list and number one was hospitality to a stranger. They knew that God honored that particular grace.
In the ancient world hospitality was very important. The inns in those days were bad, filthy and expensive. And they were often houses of prostitution. So Christians had a great opportunity to make their homes available, not only for the comfort of the saints, but for the evangelization of the unsaved. In 1 Timothy 5:10, they had a list of widows who were worthy of serving. One of the qualifications was “if she has lodged strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet.” That meant hospitality!
In 1 Timothy 3:2 are requirements for a pastor: blameless, a one-woman man, temperate, sober-minded, good behavior, given to hospitality. So his home should be open all the time to anybody who would need it. And, women, there is no greater ministry than the love that you share to a Christian brother or sister by allowing them to be in your home and for them to see what Christian life is all about.
The Old Testament shows us some hospitality principles. Now, Abraham had some visitors like nobody ever had. Genesis 18:1, “Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.” Now, this is what we call a "theophany," or a pre-incarnate appearance of God. The Lord appeared in a human body. We know that because He ate. Now, this is like the reincarnation of Christ, only before and only for a temporary time.
Verse 2-5, “So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him (God came with two angels) and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, 3 and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. 4 Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.”
Abraham showed real hospitality. Get under the tree, I will get you some water, have some bread. And listen to what Abraham did in verse 6-7, “So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.” 7 And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it.”
Sarah was baking in the kitchen, and Abraham cooked a fatted calf. Verse 8, “So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.” Now, that's loving hospitality. The Scripture indicates then that the two angels left and went to Sodom. And when they got to Sodom, they found hospitality in the house of Lot. In the meantime, the Lord stayed there in this house. We all should be hospitable because you just don't know who will show up.
Hebrews 13:2 says, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.” But someone greater than angels are coming for dinner. Jesus said in Matthew 25: 35, “I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in.” Verse 40, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”
Do you know who could come to your house more important than angels? A Christian. Are Christians higher than angels? 1 Corinthians 6:17 says, “He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.” If a Christian comes to your house, that is in the spirit of Christ Himself. Matthew 10:40 says, “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”
In Romans 12:13, it says you have to show hospitality. In I Peter 4:9, it says, “Be hospitable to one another without grumbling.” Lydia was a lady who showed hospitality and this was the evidence of the genuineness of her salvation. She was instantly liberated to be exactly what God wanted a woman to be, to make a home where she could lodge strangers to meet their physical and spiritual needs.
Let us look now at the enslaved woman in verses 16 to 18, “Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. 17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” 18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.”
This is a sad contrast. Now, in the world's view, she may have seemed like a liberated woman. Why? Because in the first place, she wasn't influenced by religion. In the second place, she wasn't tied to some man having to serve him at home. She was out there doing her own thing, making money and creating issues. But her biggest problem was that she was enslaved by Satan.
So the church began to grow. Lydia and her household all got saved. Now who do you think is going to retaliate? Satan. It's absolutely inevitable. He is not omnipresent, but he is fast. He gets there as they went to prayer. “A certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.” The literal Greek translation is that she had a “python spirit.”
In Greek mythology, Pytho was at the foot of Mount Parnassus and is a dragon. This dragon guarded the oracles of Delphi. The term "oracle," means either a place where mediums consult demons or it means the revelation the demons give themselves. So the oracles at Delphi was a large temple where medium priestesses were conjuring up demons and giving out information.
The people really believed that their gods were alive. They believed in Apollo, Jupiter, Venus and Mars. They believed that Apollo spoke through the oracles at Delphi. And so the term python means any kind of medium contact with the god Apollo. This slave-girl was one of the thousands of priestesses from Delphi who would say something which was in reality information from a fallen angel or evil power.
That girl was just like a facade and demons talked through her. In fact that is often the way Satan works. He uses unbelievers and false teachers and false religions where they add or subtract from the Word of God and thereby millions are deceived. Scripture is the only infallible authority for a believer. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
This girl was making a fortune because everybody wants to know the future. As it says at the end of verse 16, she brought much profit to her masters. Well, here there is a clash of light and darkness. We saw it before in Cyprus on the first missionary journey. They started to preach the gospel and here came this magician. It's the same thing here. God moves and Satan counter-moves. He's been doing it all through history.
Anybody without Jesus Christ is in exactly the same position she was in. You say, but I know some good people who wouldn't do this. Listen, if you do not know Jesus Christ, according to Jesus in John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him.”
It is the same Satan doing all this. The only question is how he manifests himself in this case. This girl was a slave and so is every woman or man who does not know Jesus Christ. Look how Satan operates, he is very subtle. Verse 17, this girl now, has this demon speaking through her and she is crying out, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.”
That is a true statement. So what is Satan doing speaking the truth? Actually he does it frequently. 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 says, “For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.” Satan has been doing much evil in the name of Jesus Christ for centuries.
That is what is so diabolical about cults. In eight out of ten things they are right and that is how people get attracted. They will speak just enough truth just to hook you, and then you are lost and damned by the error of their system. The people in town are going to think, hey, this girl must be part of Paul’s group. Can you see how subtle Satan is?
Satan gets people who say they are Christians when they are not. False teachers come in the church not by stating that they're false teachers. No, they state that they are the best and really legitimate and then they begin to propagate false doctrine. Satan is subtle and he always starts with infiltration. And if he cannot destroy the church from within then he will try with persecution.
She chose the phrase, "Most High God." The Gentiles would understand because that was their term for the God of Israel and it is also the Jews' own term, El Elyon, the God Most High. Then she said, “who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” We need to be careful not to put Satan's people in a place where they give testimony of Jesus Christ.
Christ never needs testimony from Satan. Verse 18, “And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.” Paul didn't like what she was doing and he felt sorry for her.
So Lydia sought to know God and she listened and God opened her heart. That is what we all need. How is your heart? During your lifetime God gives you the opportunity to choose. If you seek to know Him, and if you listen to His Word and respond when He opens your heart like Lydia, you shall be free forever. And there is nothing more important, Amen? Let us pray.