Acts 13 - When It's Time to Move On!
13 1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.
Notice two of the very important spiritual gifts in the church are prophesy and teaching. Prophets speak "forth" the Word of God. Teachers "explain" the Word of God. Both are needed in the church. In this case they were worshipping and fasting, and the Holy Spirit told them to set apart Saul and Barnabas to preach the gospel to the nations. Twice it says they were "fasting".
Fasting is often done for health benefits today and there is nothing wrong with that, but the primary biblical purpose of fasting is to set apart space and time to pray. More times than not fasting is abstaining from something in your life and replacing it with seeking God in an intentional way. For instance, the most common kind of fasting is from food, which is probably what is being referred to here. Instead of eating, they were praying. It is also known that fasting can help your mind to focus more clearly. We all know when we "overeat" we feel sleepy and tired.
On Cyprus
4 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper. 6 They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7 who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. 9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10 “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11 Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12 When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.
Saul and Barnabas went down from Antioch to the island of Cypress over to Salamis, which was a city on the coast. You will see over and over the missionary strategy for the apostles was to first go to the synagogues where local Jews gathered. At least these people had a belief in God. The question always came down to was Jesus the Messiah or not?
While they were on the island, they met a sorcerer and false prophet. He had risen to a leadership position with the proconsul, which was a Roman official. This excerpt from Enduring Word gives you an idea of what the island was like.
This city on the west coast of Cyprus was known for its immorality. Here Barnabas and Saul faced a combination of immorality and spiritual darkness that was common across the pagan world of the Roman Empire. - Guzik
“Paphos was infamous for its worship of Venus, the goddess of [sexual] love” (Barclay). “Athanasius styled its religion ‘the deification of lust.’ Neither men nor women could resort to the shrine of Venus without being defiled in mind and depraved in character.” (Spurgeon)
The pro consul was curious to hear what Saul and Barnabas had to say, but the sorcerer Elymas tried to thwart Saul from sharing the gospel with him. Saul was having none of it and rebuked Elymas for perverting the Word (aka being a false prophet) and being a child of the devil (his sorcery activity). Importantly, Saul was filled with the Holy Spirit when he rebuked Elymas and pronounced God's judgment on him. The strictest judgment from the Lord always seem to be on those who pervert the Word of God and lead others away by it. His sentence was blindness, which left him groping around by himself. Meanwhile the proconsul came to faith after seeing the power of God demonstrated through Peter. So we see the irony of the Roman official being healed, whereas the Jewish false prophet, Elymas, was severely judged.
In Pisidian Antioch
13 From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. 14 From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. 15 After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”
Interestingly Saul is now called Paul, which is his Roman name. As he became more of a missionary to the Romans, he adopted a name they would be more familiar with.
They came to Perga: They left the island of Cyprus, coming to Perga on the mainland of what is today Turkey. - Guzik
They left Perga to go to Pisidian Antioch, which is a different place than Syrian Antioch where the believers were first called "Christians".
Antioch in Pisidia: Perga was a costal, harbor city, where the ship from Paphos came to the mainland. Antioch in Pisidia was about 135 miles (220 kilometers) inland, to the north. This general region was known as Galatia, and later Paul wrote a letter to these churches that is included in our New Testament library. - Guzik
Once again they went into the synagogue, where they were invited by the leaders to speak after they had read the law and the prophets. The law was the first five books of the bible called the Pentateuch. The prophets were the various men God called to call Israel back to him. The leaders of the synagogue must have known them and trusted them enough to preach that day.
16 Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17 The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country; 18 for about forty years he endured their conduct[a] in the wilderness; 19 and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years. “After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21 Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’ 23 “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. 24 Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 25 As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’
Paul proceeded to give a history lesson for them. He addressed them as both fellow Israelites and Gentiles, who worshipped God. These were people who were not Jewish by birth but were seeking God. Some of them converted to Judaism after a water baptism. Some were called "near Jews" because they had not made a full commitment to God yet.
Paul reminded them that God had chosen them and had always provided for them. God was with them in the up and downs of prosperity, slavery, and 40 years of wandering in the wilderness with no place to call home or worship God. It wasn't until 450 years that the Israelites conquered the nations in Canaan and received the land promised to Abraham and his descendants. Paul recounted the judges, the prophet Samuel, and how Israel then began asking for a king like the Gentile nations around them.
Saul was the first king, who ruled for 40 years and then God called the greatest king of Israel, King David. David was a "man after God's own heart" though he also made many mistakes. Importantly God established another covenant with Dad that the Messiah, Jesus, would come from David's family lineage.
Before Jesus came, John the Baptist preached a message of repentance from sin, with water being the symbol of cleansing and baptism. But John made it clear that the one coming after him, Jesus, was much more powerful and he would baptize them with the Holy Spirit and fire.
26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.
Paul made it clear that it was their fellow Israelites and their leaders who failed to recognize Jesus as the Messiah, although he had fulfilled all the Old Testament prophecies made about the Messiah. Not only did they fail to recognize him but they hated him, condemned him, and killed him on a cross, though he did nothing deserving of death. Note that although Pilate carried out the death sentence it was clearly Jesus' own people who orchestrated his killing.
But even in doing this they had fulfilled other Old Testament prophets who foretold of the Messiah's death. I.e. Isaiah 53 and the suffering servant passages and many psalms like Psalm 22 spoke of Jesus' cries of anguish in the garden. I.e. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Also they would cast lots for his garments and he would be pierced for our iniquities and wounded for our transgressions.
But Jesus also fulfilled the prophecies that he would be raised from the dead on the third day. Many people including Peter had seen him and were eyewitnesses to all of these events.
32 “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: “‘You are my son; today I have become your father.’[b] 34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said, “‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’[c] 35 So it is also stated elsewhere: “‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’[d] 36 “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.
Here are three more prophecies Jesus fulfilled from Psalm 2, Isaiah 55, and Psalm 16. The chance of all of the Old Testament prophecies being fulfilled in one man are astronomical. There are 300 prophecies in the Old Testament about Jesus' first coming.
What would be the odds of just eight of these prophecies coming true?
(1) Messiah to be born in Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2)
(2) Messiah betrayed for thirty pieces of silver. (Zechariah 11:12-13)
(3) Messiah's clothes would be gambled away. (Psalms 22:18)
(4) Messiah's hands and feet would be pierced. (Psalms 22:16)
(5) Messiah's bones would not be broken. (Psalms 34:20)
(6) Messiah would be born in the tribe of Judah. (Isaiah 37:31)
(7) Messiah would be called from Egypt. (Hosea 11:1)
(8) Messiah would be buried in a rich man's grave. (Isaiah 53:9)
The odds of all eight coming true are virtually incomprehensible! Consider this illustration- Suppose we filled the entire State of Texas with 100 trillion silver dollars. That would make the entire state about two feet deep in coins. Then we mark only one coin. Next we stir-up the state full of coins so they are thoroughly mixed and random. The marked coin could be anywhere in the state in the two foot deep coins. Finally we blindfold a man and let him travel the entire state to choose one random coin.
What would be the odds of him finding the marked coin in one try? He would have the same chance the prophets had for those eight prophecies being fulfilled. Which is virtually no chance. But that was only eight of the over 300 prophecies! Figuring the odds of fulfilling all 300 Bible prophecies is ridiculously astronomical. Simply incalculable-- except that the real author of these prophecies knew the future. The God Who created the universe out of nothing was in total control and knows the past, present AND future.
"A man convinced against his will is against it still!"
Fulfilled prophesy is one of the greatest arguments which proves that Jesus was and is the Messiah. No other religion demonstrates this kind of accuracy about its Savior. Not even close.
38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. 40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:
41 “‘Look, you scoffers,
wonder and perish,
for I am going to do something in your days
that you would never believe,
even if someone told you.’[e]”
42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43 When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.
The apostles' preaching intrigued the people and they wanted to hear more. They preached the next Sabbath and many followed them as they left. Note they did not instantly become believers it was a process. This is shown by the fact that Paul urged them to continue "in the grace of God".
Paul knew that eventually the grace of God would win them over. Paul knew it was his sole job to lead someone to Christ. He merely preached how Jesus was the Messiah and God's grace took it over from there.
44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “‘I have made you[f] a light for the Gentiles, that you[g] may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’[h]” 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.
By now the Good News was spreading to people across the whole city both Jews and Gentiles. This made the Jewish leaders jealous. Instead of acquiescing to these leaders, Paul told them that since they had rejected Jesus, he was now coming to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. This fulfilled the prophecy in Isaiah 49:6. Note, the Gentiles were pleased to be included and honored the Word of the Lord.
Then it says those who were appointed for eternal life believed. This brings up the question of predestination. There is never an easy answer to that question. Although God appointed them to believe, they still needed to step in faith and believe. I think this a question we often spend too much time on. After all, if only God knows then it shouldn't change our efforts to share the Good News with the whole world. Only God knows a man's heart and knows whether they will come to faith. Faith is a gift from God but we still to come to faith in Jesus!
Paul showed wisdom in not spending all his time trying to persuade hardened hearts. We know that even after he made Gentiles the focus of his evangelistic efforts, he still prayed earnestly for the salvation of Israel (Romans 10:1), but he spent his missionary time ministering to more open hearts.
49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. 51 So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
The Jewish leaders realized many were going over to the side of believing in Jesus, so they tried to incite the other leaders in the city to come against Paul and Barnabas. Instead of waiting there and begging them to let them stay, they went on to the next town. They had too little time and too many people to reach to waste their time trying to convince those who would not believe in the gospel no matter what they said.
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