Paul's Second Missionary Journey with Map
Derbe and Lystra
Events in Derbe and Lystra During Paul's Second Missionary Journey
#2 As Paul went he would strengthen all the churches and when he
came to Lystra and Derbe he chose Timothy (a Gentile believer) to come with them
and he had him circumcised for the sake of Jews.
Acts 16:1-3 "Then he came to Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain
disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who
believed, but his father was Greek.He was well spoken of by the brethren who
were at Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted to have him go on with him. And he took
him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in that region, for they
all knew that his father was Greek.
Derby was one of the few places where Paul did not have some kind of an
incident. It didn’t end in a riot or with Paul getting jailed or stoned or
anything, he was able to leave town fairly peacefully, which was very unusual
for his ministry.
Lystra on the other hand was where Paul was stoned and drug out of town thinking
that he was dead (Acts 14:19). It was around 5 years or so since Paul had first
visited Lystra and Timothy had probably accepted Jesus during Paul’s first
visit.
So Timothy became a companion of Paul. In six of Paul’s epistles as he opens the
epistle he includes Timothy in the greeting. Paul wrote two of his epistles to
Timothy. Paul speaks of the help that Timothy was to him (1 Cor 16:10). He asks
that they would send Timothy to him speedily bringing some of the documents and
all that he was desiring (Acts 17:15). So there came a very close relationship
between Paul and Timothy who Paul called my own son in the faith (1 Cor 4:17).
So Timothy was one of Paul’s converts but then he was also tutored by the
Apostle Paul (1 Cor 4:17).
It is interesting that Paul had Timothy circumcised when they are then going
right out and telling the gentiles that you don’t have to be circumcised in
order to be saved. He no doubt wanted to live peaceably among the Jews and
present the gospel to them without any contention.