While on his second missionary journey, Paul revisited the churches (Acts 16:1-5). When he came to Troas, he received the Macedonian Call (Acts 16:6-10). According to Luke, a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with Paul, saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us" (Acts 16:9 NKJV). What kind of help did the people of Macedonia require? They required the gospel! Luke wrote: "Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them" (Acts 16:10). The pronoun "us" in the passage represented: Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke. Paul and his fellow evangelists heeded the call and traveled to the Roman province of Macedonia (Acts 16:11-15).
After arriving at Macedonia, they came to Philippi. Luke described Philippi as "the foremost city of that part of Macedonia, a colony" (Acts 16:12). Luke wrote: "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" (Acts 16:13). Do you suppose they talked about the gospel?
One of the women who met by the riverside to pray was named Lydia. She was "a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God" (Acts 16:14). She "heard" Paul and the others (Acts 16:14). It is clear that what she heard was "the gospel" (c.f. Acts 16:10). According to Luke, "The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul" (Acts 16:14). She paid close attention to the message. Lydia was the kind of person who "heard the word with a noble and good heart" (c.f. Luke 8:15).
How did Lydia respond to the gospel? Having heard the gospel, she obeyed the gospel. Luke recorded that "she and her household were baptized" (Acts 16:15). It is implied that they also believed (John 8:24), repented (Luke 13:3), and confessed Christ (Matt. 10:32-33). She proved to be faithful to the Lord. In time, the church at Philippi developed into a congregation complete with saints, bishops, and deacons (Phil. 1:1). Will you become a Christian today?