Psalm 137:1-4; Rev. 21:10, 21:22-22:5; Acts 16:9-15
Rev. Kenneth M. Locke, Interim Pastor
Orchard Park Presbyterian Church; Carmel, IN
May 25, 2025; Sixth Sunday of Easter
Did you notice all the rivers in our Scripture lessons today? There are the waters of Babylon in Psalm 137. That’s the river Euphrates. Revelation talks about the River of Life. And then there’s the river outside the gates of Philippi.
Rivers matter. They’re important. We use them for irrigating crops, shipping, hydroelectricity. We swim in them. Some of my best boyhood memories are of swimming in the Llano River in Texas.
I’m sure if we wanted to, we could all put our heads together and name quite a few rivers. The Mississippi, Ohio, Danube, Seine, Thames, Nile, Yalu and don’t forget the river Styx. (Not to be confused with the 70s rock band.) Not all rivers are real. Some are grand metaphors.
In the journey of life we come across lots of rivers, both real and metaphorical. When we come to one, we generally have three choices. We can sit and look at it. We can cross it. Or we can enter the river, swimming along, going wherever it leads.
Paul and his friends are in Philippi. On the sabbath they go outside the city, looking for a place of prayer. This tells us there’s probably no synagogue in Philippi itself.
Sure enough, they come to a place of prayer, a place where people are worshipping, by the river. One of the people they meet is a woman named Lydia. Lydia is an interesting Lady.
Lydia is almost certainly a gentile. Her name is Greek; she’s from a town in western Turkey; and she’s a ‘worshiper of God.’ Like the Centurian Cornelius from last week, she’s not Jewish but there is something about Judaism and the true God that moves her. Just because someone is not a member of a church, is not an avowed Christian, doesn’t mean God is not working in them. They may well find something about our faith and our God that moves them.
Paul proclaims his message but God opens her heart. She is not persuaded by Paul’s eloquence or erudition. She responds to Paul’s message because God opens her heart. Our ministry is to proclaim the Good News of God as best we can. God opens hearts and minds.
Lydia is a merchant, an independent dealer in purple cloth. We can safely assume Lydia is wealthy. At this time, making purple dye was extremely laborious. It involved collecting the mucus of a certain type of sea snail and letting that mucus ferment. It could take thousands of these snails to make just one ounce of dye. It was very, very expensive. And Lydia deals in it every day. Lydia is probably the wealthiest convert in the Book of Acts. There are other rich people in Acts, especially towards the end. But Lydia is probably the richest convert in the book of Acts.
Sometimes we forget rich people need Jesus, too. Ministry to the poor matters. Caring for the oppressed is a Christian mandate. But the rich couple who live in the gated community, who don’t own a Bible and play golf every Sunday morning – they need Jesus, too. We can’t forget them.
Lydia hears and trusts the Good News of God’s love for us in Jesus. She and her entire household – family, staff, everyone – are all baptized.
And then, she starts swimming. She offers Paul and the others hospitality. She responds to the Good News with Christian virtue.
Christianity is not just something we believe. It’s something we do. Christianity is what we do. We swim in the river, making a difference to others along the way.
Paul shows Lydia the River of Faith. God opens her heart to respond. And Lydia responds. She doesn’t sit and watch the river go by, claiming to be a Christian but never actually being a Christian. She doesn’t try crossing over to some other river that might satisfy for a day or a week but not for eternity. Instead, Lydia enters the river and begins the journey of a lifetime.
We come to lots of rivers in our lives. Some are stagnant, some are swarming with life. Some we watch, some we cross, some we swim in.
We Christians know of a very special river. The River of Faith. We swim in this river not with a backstroke or butterfly. We swim in this river by sharing our hospitality, our generosity, our compassion, care, and good news. Swimming in this river leads to the River of Life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the lamb.
Beloved, if you’re not in the river yet I invite you to jump in. The water is perfect for swimming. Thanks be to God! Amen.
