“Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.”
“And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.”
Discernment is a very important grace every believer must have. As we do the work of God it is very important that we pray for the grace of discernment over our lives. Our inability to discern can hinder our ability to perceive the leading of the Holy Spirit which can really cause serious problems as we do the work of God. Apostle Paul was already on a missionary journey with his team when the Holy Spirit stopped him from preaching the word of God in the province of Asia. We have been called to preach the Gospel and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:16-20). What went wrong? Why did the Holy Spirit stop Apostle Paul? When this Apostle became a believer in Christ, he was so zealous in his mission to convict many to Christ with the gospel of Jesus Christ, to the point where it meant everything including death as stated in Philippians 1:20-21 “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” However, in the passage in Acts 16: 6-12, something happened. Paul was stopped by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not a police officer standing by his police car with all his flashing lights redirecting the traffic, and as a driver is approaching from afar he can easily tell what the situation is. Preaching the Gospel is a good thing. Imagine if Apostle Paul did not have the grace to discern, he would have thought the devil was trying to block the work of God. God, who knows it all, had a different plan at that time and thus communicated that plan to Paul via the Holy Spirit. God needed Apostle Paul in Macedonian. The mission to Macedonia was confirmed with a vision in the night (Acts 16:9). The harvest there was ripe and ready to be harvested at that time. This was a fertile ground for the word of God and there was no time to waste. Genesis 8:22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”
Another point of importance here is the obedience of Paul in following the leading of the Holy Spirit. 1 Samuel 15:22 makes us understand that obedience is more important than sacrifice. It takes a mind of humility to walk in obedience. We see this in the great Apostle, and this is the expectation of every believer. “Observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go.” 1 Kings 2:3
What was the Macedonia Call? This was a call to minister the word of God and to evangelize the Gospel, encouraging and strengthening the church. Apostle Paul and his team did a lot of work in the cities of Macedonia. The whole of Acts 16 covers the array of miracles that happened in Macedonia due to Apostle Paul’s obedience: How can I answer such a call? Have you been avoiding the call?
Share Christ at Work or with unbelieving friends
Participate in a mission trip
Encourage and strengthen weaker Christians around you
Visit the Homeless/ unreached in your community and share the Gospel
Visit the Jails or Streets and share the Word of God
Above all pray for discernment and the leading of the Holy Spirit
Intercede for souls/establishment of the church out of your comfort zone
Ask God to burden your heart with souls
Learn about church growth in other communities and be a part of that by sowing seeds.
Prayer Points
Pray for the grace to do the work of God: 1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”
Ask God to grant you the grace to be diligent and committed in the work he has called you to do: Colossians 3:23-24 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”
Ask the Lord for help to do your very best in answering this call, the most common for us all is to win souls for Christ. You do not need a pastor’s certification: 2 Timothy 2:15 “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”
Ask the fire of blood of Jesus to flow through you and cleanse you from any fleshly mindset: Romans 8:5 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.”
Pray for a fresh visitation of the power of the Holy Spirit over yourself and the church: Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
God has already chosen you, but you need to pray for the grace to bear fruits that will last: John 15:16 “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
Pray that your light will shine as you lead others to Christ: Daniel 12:3” Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”
Ask God for the grace to follow him in every aspect of your life so that he can make you an effective fisher of men. Mark 1:17 “And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
Ask the Lord for a strategy to win souls for his kingdom: 1 Corinthians 9:20 “To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law.”
There are so many Macedonia cities today crying for the word. Pray that the God of the harvest will lead you/church to the Macedonia cities: John 4:35 “Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.”
Pray that the church will arise in this generation and build on the foundations of the apostles: Ephesians 2:20 “ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”
Join us each night on our prayer-line 9 PM EST (Monday, November 29th, 2021 through Sunday, December 19th, 2021)
Prayer line information: Dial-in using your phone:
United States: 339-209-4113
No access code needed for US callers
International Dial-In Numbers
Germany +49 221 98258738
UK +44 333 015 4197
Cameroon +237 2 42 24 10 42
Nigeria +234 1 227 9424
Kenya +254 205231012
Access code for international numbers:
5564526 #