The Book of Acts

Paul's First Missionary Journey (13:1-14:28)

Part Two

Sermon Twenty-three in the Series

Jim Bordwine, ThD

Introduction

REVIEW

In the last sermon, based upon where we are in our ongoing study of Acts, I noted that the rest of this book is, for the most part, concerned with the ministry of the apostle Paul. Beginning with chapter 13, Luke records Paul's journeys as he made three expeditions which established the gospel among the Gentiles in various countries and regions (four, if you count Paul's trip to Rome at the end of his ministry). In chapters 13-21, we read of the experiences of Paul as he responded to the Holy Spirit's direction and pursued the work to which he was called.

I stated that as we look at each of the three missionary tours, I will highlight the significant elements. I will not be covering everything mentioned, but will concentrate on the incidents which seem to be the most important in terms of Paul establishing and then expanding his labors among the Gentiles.

Prior to beginning our study of the missionary journeys, however, I took the time to say a few words about how Paul and Barnabas were set aside for this work by the Holy Spirit. After Paul and Barnabas returned from Jerusalem to Antioch, we read that they were designated by the Holy Spirit for a unique ministry. Antioch was to become the base from which the pair would launch missionary expeditions into Asia Minor and Europe.

The church's reaction to what the Holy Spirit communicated indicates that this was a solemn occasion as the believers recognized that Paul and Barnabas were being called to carry the gospel to faraway places. The call to Paul and Barnabas was recognized with the laying on of hands and the two men departed.

01. Paul's Confrontation with a False Prophet (13:4-12)

Under the first point, we looked at an incident which occurred shortly after Paul and Barnabas left Antioch. They made their way to the island of Cyprus, landing on the east side where they began to proclaim the gospel. They traveled westward across the entire island and reached the city of Paphos. This was the place were the Roman governor lived. It was here that Paul and Barnabas encountered a Jewish false prophet named “Bar-Jesus.” This man was an advisor to the Roman proconsul, Sergius Paulus.

In time, the governor summoned the missionaries “and sought to hear the word of God.” Bar-Jesus, of course, was not supportive of any new ideas being introduced to Sergius Paulus. Luke's description of this man made it clear that his motivation was self-promotion and personal gain, not pursuit of truth. Therefore, Bar-Jesus opposed Paul and Barnabas. His goal was to prevent Sergius Paulus from embracing the gospel. You'll recall that the word translated “opposing” (anthistemi) means “to set one's self against, to resist.” This term describes a direct, face-to-face antagonism in which the hostility of your opponent is completely obvious. Bar-Jesus countered what Paul and Barnabas were saying. He didn't attempt only to point out what he saw as weaknesses in the missionaries' message, he flatly denied what they preached.

I noted that such direct resistance called for an equally direct response. Therefore, we read that Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, “fixed his gaze on [Bar-Jesus], and said, 'You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord? Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time.'” In that tense moment, Paul gave an assessment of this man's character and pronounced a judgment on him. For Bar-Jesus, deceit and fraud were a way of life. Paul indicates that this man was exactly the opposite of what he portrayed. Paul exposed him as a deceiver, a hater of truth and a destroyer of men. For the sake of the gospel, therefore, God struck Bar-Jesus with blindness and thereby indicated his true character.

Sergius Paulus, Luke wrote, “believed when he saw what had happened, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord.” This is the kind of language Luke always uses to describe acceptance of the gospel. This Roman proconsul had been deceived by Bar-Jesus, but that false teacher was removed. The manner in which the Lord revealed his true nature was one of the elements which drove Sergius Paulus to believe Paul's message. Once again, the forces of darkness were made to give way to the gospel. This is the pattern we've seen since the first chapter.

END OF REVIEW

02. Paul's Sermon to Jews and God-fearing Gentiles (vv. 13:13-43)

This section begins with the statement that Paul and Barnabas left Paphos and traveled to Perga:

13 Now Paul and his companions put out to sea from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia; and John left them and returned to Jerusalem. 14 But going on from Perga, they arrived at Pisidian Antioch, and on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. 15 And after the reading of the Law and the Prophets the synagogue officials sent to them, saying, “Brethren, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say it.” 16 And Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand, he said, “Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen…” [here, Paul begins a sermon]

Leaving the island of Cyprus, therefore, the missionaries traveled in a northwesterly direction into Asia Minor. Perga was a center for pharmaceutical products, and was situated just inland from the coast. Acts 2:10 says that some Jews from this region were in Jerusalem at the time Peter preached his Pentecost Day sermon. It appears, therefore, that a community of believing Jews existed in Perga and this is where Paul and Barnabas determined to go after leaving Cyprus.

One other fact noted by Luke is that Mark, who had accompanied the missionaries on this first journey, turned back at this point, and went home to Jerusalem. There has been a lot of speculation concerning the reason behind Mark's departure. The most convincing explanation is that Mark objected to the emphasis in Paul's ministry. Many scholars believe that Mark left because Paul, for the most part, concentrated on taking the gospel to the Gentiles. In fact, this issue is determined with certainty in the next section of chapter 13 where we read that Paul turned from the Jews and, thereafter, focused his efforts among the Gentiles. Whether this is the reason Mark deserted Paul, we cannot say sure, but it does seem likely.

Luke doesn't say much about what happened in Perga. He writes that the missionaries left Perga and traveled northward (v. 14). The trip from Perga would have been a difficult one. The pair would have had to walk from an elevation close to sea level to thirty-six hundred feet. They also would have been in danger from the many outlaws who lived in the mountains and often attacked travelers. This was the region known among the Romans as Galatia. Here, in the southern section, a settlement had arisen known as Pisidian Antioch.

Since about the third century BC, a small Jewish community had existed in Antioch. It is known that some Gentiles attended the synagogue and professed belief in God according to the teaching of the Old Testament. Those Gentiles who professed the true religion but who refused to be circumcised were known as “God-fearers,” which distinguished them from Israelites. While in Antioch, Paul and Barnabas followed their custom of attending the synagogue service at which Paul was invited to address the worshipers (v. 15). You'll notice that as he began, Paul spoke to “men of Israel” and “you who fear God,” which is based on the distinction between circumcised Jews and uncircumcised Gentiles that I just explained (v. 16).

Paul's sermon is recorded in vv. 16-41. Instead of reading the entire sermon, I will highlight certain portions so that we understand what Paul had to say to these Jews and God-fearing Gentiles on this occasion. He begins with the experience of the Jews in Egypt where the people grew in number while in captivity (v. 17). The LORD delivered His people from Egypt, but then they spent forty years wandering in the wilderness where the LORD “put up with them,” as Paul says (v. 18). Next, the apostle mentions the settlement of Israel in the Promised Land, the period of the judges and the rise of Saul and David (vv. 19-22). Then Paul states that “from the descendants of [David], according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus… (v. 23). Clearly, Paul's intention is to rehearse Israel's history to show that the coming of the Messiah was the fulfillment of a promise; it was something that was anticipated and, when He arrived, He should have been received. The Messiah's arrival was even announced by John the Baptist, as Paul indicates in this sermon (cf. vv. 24, 25).

At this point, Paul gets to the heart of the matter; he focuses on his reason for giving this brief overview of Israel's history:

26 “Brethren, sons of Abraham's family, and those among you who fear God, to us the word of this salvation is sent out. 27 For those who live in Jerusalem, and their rulers, recognizing neither Him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled these by condemning Him. 28 And though they found no ground for putting Him to death, they asked Pilate that He be executed. 29 And when they had carried out all that was written concerning 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 appeared to those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, the very ones who are now His witnesses to the people. 32 And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers, 33 that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, 'THOU ART MY SON; TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN THEE.'”

Once again, as he did at the beginning, Paul recognized two groups in his audience: “sons of Abraham's family and those among you who fear God.” (v. 26) He declares to them that God has fulfilled His promise to send a Savior and that this promise has been fulfilled recently (“to us the word of this salvation is sent out”). Paul then says something that sounds odd, at least initially. He states that the Jews in Jerusalem and their rulers did not “recognize” the Savior when He came and did not “recognize” the words of the prophets and thus fulfilled them by condemning Jesus (v. 27). The term translated “recognizing” (agnoeo) means “to be ignorant, to lack understanding, to err or sin through mistake, to be wrong.” Paul means that the Jews, in their rejection of Jesus as the Messiah, fulfilled the very predictions of the prophets who said that this would happen when He came. The rejection of the Messiah was part of the plan by which He would die for His people and gain their redemption.

Elaborating further, Paul adds that the Jews in Jerusalem asked that Jesus be executed, even though they had no ground for such a request (v. 28). Here Paul is emphasizing something which is an essential component in the story of Christ's atonement, namely, that He was absolutely innocent. He was innocent and His death, therefore, was not for sins or crimes He committed. Referring again to the prophecies which foretold this course of events, Paul states that Christ was placed in a tomb following His death on the cross (v. 29). And then Paul includes the news which was first preached by Peter on the Day of Pentecost and which has been a core component in the Christian message throughout Acts-“But God raised Him from the dead.” (v. 30) The resurrection of Jesus Christ is that which adds a shocking element to the story of His time on earth. He was put to death, but lots of people had been put to death. What makes this story unique, of course, is that after He was put to death, Jesus lived again!

The resurrection of Christ was confirmed, Paul insists, by a number of witnesses who are now able to give testimony to the fact that Jesus lived after His crucifixion and burial (v. 31). Nothing like this had ever landed on the ears of those gathered in the synagogue on this day. This was an astonishing message being preached by this stranger. Normally, the practice was for the speaker to offer a homily based on some text of the Old Testament Scripture; but this time, this man was declaring things which, in terms of the implications, went beyond anything ever spoken in this place. Could it be true that the Messiah really had come? Could it be true that the promise anticipated by the Jews for centuries really had been fulfilled? Could it be true that this Jesus was the Messiah and could it be true that God intended that He come and die, and could it be true that His rejection and death were, all along, the means God ordained for the redemption of His people? This is what these Jews and God-fearing Gentiles were hearing.

If what is being said is true, if salvation really has come to Israel and to those who fear God, then this is good news and that is precisely what Paul says next: “And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus…” (vv. 32, 33) Paul also quotes from Psa. 2 regarding the prediction of the coming of the Messiah in that Old Testament prophecy.

At this point, I want to clarify the reading of the NASB. You'll notice that it says: “God has fulfilled this promise to our children…” Other versions say something like: “God has fulfilled this for us, their children,” referring to the ones who first were given the promise of a Savior. Without going into detail regarding manuscript evidence, I'll simply say that I believe the best reading-the one that makes the most sense, in fact-is the one found in the KJV, NKJ and NIV. Paul is saying that the promise which was made to the patriarchs and repeated by the prophets has been fulfilled for the descendants, namely, Paul's generation.

Paul next mentions two other Old Testament passages which speak of the Messiah (cf. vv. 34, 35). The apostle assures the worshipers in the synagogue that the writers were speaking of the very One recently rejected and crucified-Jesus Christ (vv. 36, 37). Paul brings his sermon to a close with these words:

38 “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses. 40 Therefore take heed, so that the thing spoken of in the Prophets may not come upon you: 41 'BEHOLD, YOU SCOFFERS, AND MARVEL, AND PERISH; FOR I AM ACCOMPLISHING A WORK IN YOUR DAYS, A WORK WHICH YOU WILL NEVER BELIEVE, THOUGH SOMEONE SHOULD DESCRIBE IT TO YOU.'”

This was the point of Paul's sermon-to announce to the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles that God has provided for the forgiveness of sins and reconciliation in His Son, Jesus Christ (v. 38). He has come to lift the weight of guilt from the shoulders of those who will believe the gospel-the gospel which declares that salvation is of grace, not a matter of keeping the Law (cf. 39). In Christ, the accusations of the Law-the just accusations of the Law-are answered. When Jesus took my place, it was the same as saying “yes, the holy law of God rightly condemns me; I am guilty of all transgressions.” Otherwise, Jesus never would have had to come into this world. His presence indicated my guilt because He came to give Himself for me. But when Jesus, as my Substitute died, that ended the power of the Law to condemn-He paid for my transgressions. In Him, therefore, I am reconciled to God. This is what Paul was telling those gathered in the synagogue. This is what the Jews had been promised, it is what they had anticipated for generations; it is not only the answer to their alienation from God, it also is the answer for all human beings, Jews and Gentiles alike.

Paul's final word is a quotation from the prophet Habakkuk (v. 41). That man warned the Jews of his day that God was about to do something shocking-the Babylonians would soon come and carry the people into captivity. They refused to repent of their wickedness and they refused to heed the warnings of God's prophets. Knowing what was likely to be the response from some of the Jews on this day, Paul uses this text to admonish his listeners to repent and believe his message.

The reaction to Paul's sermon was, generally speaking, positive (cf. v. 42). The worshipers desired to hear more the following Sabbath. In fact, Paul and Barnabas were joined by some of the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles outside the synagogue (v. 43). The missionaries were able to encourage these worshipers “to continue in the grace of God,” which indicates that they had believed Paul's words and were now being exhorted to remain true to their professions. Paul, of all people, understood the importance of such encouragement. Opposition would surely come and life would be difficult for those who believed the gospel. For the moment, however, Paul and Barnabas have found a humble and believing audience in Pisidian Antioch.

Application

For our application, I'll mention three items that stand out in this text. First, I want to call attention, once again, to those “God-fearing Gentiles” who are mentioned in this section of Acts. Until preparing this sermon, I had not given a whole lot of thought to the fact that Paul recognizes them twice in this sermon. Remember that these were Gentiles who had professed acceptance of Judaism with the exception of circumcision. These Gentiles worshiped with the pious Jews and were taught by the Jews and joined the Jews in many aspects of their religious practices, but would not submit to the ritual of circumcision.

This illustrates how the apostle believed it was more important that the gospel be heard than that he stop and challenged the Gentiles regarding the important issue of circumcision. This was no small issue, to be sure-circumcision was the sign of covenant inclusion. But here, when Paul spoke at the synagogue, he gladly addressed the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles. Paul knew that their theology was woefully deficient-but so was the theology of the Jews present who had been circumcised. It's not that circumcision was unimportant, it's that the gospel, in which the sinner's reconciliation to God is announced and explained, is more important.

I'd be the first one to argue for strictness in terms of doctrine. But I also recognize priorities when I see them. Here I see Paul acting as if the gospel message is more important than the question of circumcision. Those Gentiles were guilty of a monumental infraction, but instead of addressing that, the apostle preaches to them about the Savior. This is not, I'll repeat, because circumcision was a minor issue, it was because the first and most important question in every human being's life is their relationship to God in Christ. Correction in thinking can come as one progresses in understanding, but faith in Jesus Christ as the One who gave Himself for sinners is the issue above all issues. Paul's example is one to remember when we deal with our children, our friends or even strangers. What matters most, although many things are extremely important, is the question of believing the gospel. Without that faith, conformity to all of God's requirements is useless.

Second, once again in this passage we are reminded that the coming of the Messiah was the fulfillment of God's promise. Briefly, I want to say that it is a wonderful thing to know a God who keeps His word. Whatever God says, whatever God promises, is as good as done. The promise of a Savior was made centuries before that Savior came, and when it was made and as it was repeated over the years, it seemed almost beyond possibility that God would or could actually bring about the redemption of His creatures. But those who trusted God waited in hope; and they taught their children to live in that same hope. And, as Paul states in his sermon, the day came when God fulfilled His promise.

We should be comforted knowing that God keeps His promises. There are still some to be fulfilled for us and those who come after us. Having such an assurance is a tremendous help in this world as we see so many things that trouble us. We can be certain, however, that God will keep His word. One day, the knowledge of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea-because God has so promised. One day, we will join our Savior in heaven and be forever blessed-because God has so promised. Remember these promises as you deal with life's struggles and disappointments and demands.

Third, Paul referred to the innocence of the Savior and that is something worth repeating. Our salvation will never mean more to us than at those moments when we realize that Jesus really did take our place under the wrath of God. Keeping in mind that Jesus Christ was without sin, without fault, without any guilt that would have called for even the slightest displeasure in God, we should be struck with the intensity of His suffering and the violent nature of His death. Why were those things done to Him? Why was He abused and why was He crucified-a means of death so horrible that even the Romans eventually stopped using it? The only answer is that Jesus received what was due others.

That truth stings me when I contemplate it. It stings because of the sheer horror associated with the Savior's experience; and it stings because of the careless manner in which I sometimes sin even now that I know Jesus suffered and died for me. He was innocent. I was guilty. He suffered and died. I go free and enjoy God's blessings. How can this be? The answer is God's grace. Where would we be without God's grace? We were so worthy of God's judgment, yet He sent His Son to take our place-not because we deserved it or earned it, but only because of His grace.

What a wonderful message is that gospel which Paul preached to those Jews and God-fearing Gentiles. What a privilege to make such an announcement to sinners. What a joy it is for us to believe that gospel ourselves and teach it to our children and announce it to those around us. What a strange message-that the Innocent One would die for the guilty-but what a necessary message-that the Innocent One would die for the guilty. Sinners need a Savior. Jesus is that Savior.

Conclusion

Our Savior appointed the sacrament of the Lord's Supper to remind us frequently of what He did for us and of how we are related to Him now and forever. Give thanks as you receive the bread symbolizing the body given in your place and as you receive the wine symbolizing the blood of the Innocent One shed for you.