Here is the way in which a person is converted and the fruits that come with it.
All conversions contain common themes. The Lord works in the heart resulting in a conscious response to the Word of God. The Lord awakens the soul and then preaching can be used to bring repentance, faith and submission. As the Lord opens the heart, we grow a love for the things of God and gain a fresh awareness of our own sinfulness. Above all, there is a burning desire to know that Christ is our own.
The awakened soul is called to attend to what they hear. We know what Paul would have preached to Lydia by surveying his key themes elsewhere within scripture: the human condition, our accountability to God, God's standard of righteousness and justice, the need for a Saviour, the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, His sufficiency and substitutionary work on Calvary.
This same gospel is spoken to us today. Christ can become our Saviour through faith and repentance. He alone can save the sinner. Faith is to call upon Christ and apply to Him for salvation - all who come will be saved.
Lydia is also baptised, as a public profession of her union to the Lord. She follows the commandment of her Saviour. It marks the beginning of a public life of faith and we see the fruits of Lydia's conversion: an openness in her life, a readiness to publicly identify with the cause of the gospel, and eagerness to learn more of Christ, and a willingness to put herself out for the cause of Christ.
SERMON ACTIVITY
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