The Macedonian Call

A guest post by Chad Ramsey.

Image from Canva.

Serving as the mouthpiece for God, the prophet Isaiah described how vastly different God is from man. He proclaimed:

“‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts’” (Isaiah 55:8-9).

If we did not already know, this passage reminds us God’s plans and intentions may differ from our own.

Relying Upon God’s Plans.

Perhaps as much as any other individual, the apostle Paul learned to appreciate and rely upon God’s plans rather than his own.

Paul’s Conversion.

Before his conversion, Paul zealously persecuted followers of Jesus. Nevertheless, the Lord used his background, experiences, and disposition to prepare him for a greater task—taking the gospel to “Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15).

Although Paul initially intended to stop the spread of Christianity, the Lord used him to build up the cause he once tried to destroy. Whether Paul ever saw himself preaching the message of Jesus, the Lord certainly did. Thus, when He confronted Paul on the road to Damascus, He asked:

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads” (Acts 26:14).

The Lord did not remove Paul’s freedom, but He did direct His steps (cf. Jeremiah 10:23).

The Macedonian Call.

In Acts 16:1-15, we find another instance in Paul’s life where God’s plans superseded his own.

Having completed his First Missionary Journey, Paul wanted to return to the places where he and Barnabas “preached the word of the Lord” (Acts 15:36). Because “Barnabas was determined to take with them John called Mark” (verse 37), Paul parted company and selected Silas as his companion, and the two “went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches” (verses 40-41).

After stops in Derbe and Lystra, where Timothy joined their team (Acts 16:3), Paul planned to go to Asia but was “forbidden by the Holy Spirit” (verse 6). He then attempted to “go into Bithynia” but again was restrained by the Spirit (verse 7).

Instead, Paul saw a vision of a man pleading with him to come to Macedonia (verse 9). Without hesitation, his team “sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them” (verse 10).

Once again, God’s plan for Paul prevailed. The apostle heard and obeyed the Macedonian Call.

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Like Paul, we must learn to take advantage of the opportunities we encounter. He did not become discouraged when his plans to preach in either Asia or Bithynia did not materialize.

Instead, he faithfully followed the Lord’s lead and preached where he was given the opportunity.

Let us not become discouraged if life doesn’t turn out like we imagined; let us do the best we can to preach Christ Jesus wherever we are.

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Chad Ramsey preaches for the Gloster Street Church of Christ in Tupelo, Mississippi. You can access their Bible classes and Chad’s sermons on Gloster Street’s YouTube page.

Chad was - and still is - “my preacher” from when I spent my high school and early college years at Gloster Street. I’m thankful to be able to share some of his writings with you.