Further Spread of the Church – JSS3 Christian Religious Studies Lesson Note (Second Term)

The church spread further in Europe when Paul preached at Philippi and Athens on his second missionary journey, and people there became believers.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. Describe how Lydia became a believer at Philippi.
2. Explain why Paul and Silas were imprisoned.
3. State what happened in the prison at midnight.
4. Explain how the jailer and his household came to believe.
5. Describe Paul’s preaching at Athens and how people responded.

What happened when Paul went to Philippi? (Acts 16:11-34)

Philippi was a Roman colony where Paul preached on his second missionary journey, and the first converts there were Lydia and her household.

How did Lydia become a believer?

Lydia was a woman from Thyatira who worshipped God and became the first recorded convert at Philippi.

• Place: Paul went out to look for a place of prayer and found women gathered there.
• Message: Paul began to preach to the women.
• Lydia’s background: she was from Thyatira and was a worshipper of God.
• Her response: the Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
• Baptism: she and her household were baptised.
• Hospitality: she invited Paul and his companions to stay in her home.

Why were Paul and Silas imprisoned?

Paul and Silas were imprisoned because they freed a slave girl from a spirit, and her masters lost their income.

1. On the way to the place of prayer, they met a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.
2. She earned a lot of money for her masters by fortune-telling.
3. She followed Paul and Silas, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.”
4. She did this for many days, until Paul became greatly annoyed.
5. Paul said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!”
6. The spirit left her at once.
7. Her masters saw that their hope of making money was gone.
8. They seized Paul and Silas and dragged them to the marketplace to face the authorities.
9. They told the magistrates, “These men are Jews and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practise.”
10. The crowd joined the attack, and the magistrates ordered Paul and Silas to be stripped and beaten.
11. After a severe flogging, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was told to guard them carefully.

What happened in the prison at midnight?

At midnight, a violent earthquake opened the prison doors and broke the prisoners’ chains.

1. Paul and Silas were praying and singing to God.
2. A violent earthquake shook the prison.
3. All the doors were thrown open, and the chains of the prisoners came loose.
4. The jailer woke and thought the prisoners had escaped.
5. He wanted to kill himself to avoid the punishment he expected.
6. Paul stopped him.

How did the jailer and his household come to believe?

The jailer believed after Paul stopped him from killing himself and told him how to be saved.

1. The jailer, still amazed, asked how he could be saved.
2. Paul answered, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved, you and your household.”
3. Paul and Silas preached the word of the Lord to him and his household.
4. The jailer washed their wounds.
5. He and his entire household were baptised.
6. The jailer was filled with joy because he and his household now believed in God.

How were Lydia and the jailer alike and different?

Lydia was a woman from Thyatira who already worshipped God. The jailer was a prison guard who met Paul after the earthquake. Both were baptised with their households.

What happened when Paul went to Athens? (Acts 17:16-34)

At Athens, Paul preached about the true God to Jews, Greeks and philosophers, and a few people believed.

Why was Paul unhappy in Athens?

• Idols: Paul was greatly troubled because the city was full of idols.
• Discussion: he talked about God day by day with Jews and Greeks.

Who were the Epicureans and Stoics?

Epicureans and Stoics were two groups of Greek philosophers who debated with Paul.

• Epicureans: philosophers who taught that the aim of life is pleasure and freedom from worry.
• Stoics: philosophers who taught reason and self-control.

What did Paul preach at the Areopagus?

The philosophers took Paul to the Areopagus, a meeting place of the Athenian council, and asked to hear his teaching.

• The altar: Paul pointed to an altar in the city marked “To an unknown god”.
• The true God: he said that God made the world and everything in it.
• Not in temples: he taught that God does not live in temples built by human hands.
• Repentance: he said that people everywhere must repent.
• Resurrection: he spoke of Jesus, whom God raised from the dead.

How did the people respond?

• Some sneered: they laughed when they heard about the resurrection of the dead.
• Some wanted more: they said they would hear Paul again on the subject.
• A few believed: they joined Paul, including Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris.

What lessons can Christians learn from these events?

• Faith in Jesus: salvation comes by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.
• Courage: Paul and Silas kept praying and singing even after a severe beating.
• Hospitality: Lydia welcomed the preachers into her home.
• Speaking to all: Paul preached to women, a jailer and philosophers.
• Concern for others: Paul stopped the jailer from harming himself.

Evaluation

1. Who was Lydia?
2. How did Lydia respond to Paul’s message?
3. Why were Paul and Silas imprisoned?
4. What happened in the prison at midnight?
5. Why was Paul unhappy in Athens?

Assignment

Write a short account of how the jailer at Philippi and his household became believers, using Acts 16:25-34.