Dec 07, 2014
Acts 13:44-14:7


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http://zachadams.org/acts/acts13_44-14_7.mp3

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Outline:


Acts 13:44-45, “On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy; and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul.” 



These two verses can be summed up with three phrases:




  1. “Almost the whole city came to hear the word of God…”



  2. “But the Jews were filled with envy…”



  3. So they “contradicted… blasphemed… and opposed the things spoken by Paul.”


“Blasphemed” - “Blasphêmeô” - “To be evil spoken of, to speak reproachfully.”


“Contradicted” - “Antilegô Legô” - “Spoke against those things which were spoken.”



Acts 13:46-47, “Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us (Isaiah 49:6): ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’” 



Paul’s Inditement… “You reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life.” 


“You” - Paul is clearly addressing this group of unbelieving Jews.


“Reject” - “Apôtheô” meaning “to thrust away.” What was “it” these Jews were rejecting? They were rejecting Jesus and the salvation His death was designed to afford. 


Thereby they “judged themselves” - “Krinô” meaning “to pronounce judgment.” As a result of their rejection of Jesus they deemed themselves “unworthy of everlasting life.” 


Don’t miss the profound point Paul is making… God doesn’t send a man to hell… He simply honors the decision that man has already made. These Jewish unbelievers were headed to hell because they made the decision to reject Jesus.


Paul Little, “God sends no one to hell. Each person sends himself. God has done all that is necessary for us to be forgiven, redeemed, cleansed, and made fit for heaven. All that remains is for us to receive this gift.”


C.S. Lewis, “The door of hell is locked from the inside… There are only two kinds of people in this end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’ All that are in hell, choose it… Without that self-choice there could be no hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. To those who seek find. To those who knock it is opened.”


Ravi Zacharias, “God is just and he must punish sin. But he is also love and his love cannot force others to love him. Love cannot work coercively but only persuasively. Forced love is a contradiction in terms. Hence, God’s love demands that there be a hell where persons who do not wish to love him can experience the great divorce when God says to them, ‘Thy will be done!’”



Acts 13:48, “Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.” 



Paul showed incredible wisdom by not focusing on hardened hearts! Since the Jews living in Antioch were resisting the Gospel and fruit was being yielded in these Hellenistic communities, the Gentiles become the focus of Paul’s evangelism. Application: Look for someone to share Jesus with… If you’re rejected find someone else!


“And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed…” In order to understand this particular verse you need to first consider the following question: Were these Gentiles “appointed to eternal life” because they “believed” the “word of the Lord,” or did these Gentiles “believe” the “word of the Lord” because they “had been appointed to eternal life?”


The “Doctrine of Predestination” is Biblical. Romans 8:29-30, “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.”


And yet, while predestination is an inescapable reality of Scripture, so is the fundamental existence of man’s responsibility. Paul has just finished saying, “You judge yourself unworthy of everlasting life.” Beyond this… The entire purpose of his sermon (which we looked at it last week) was aimed at persuading his audience to choose Christ. Paul even acknowledges the reality that many would actually choose to reject Jesus!



So let’s get back to the fundamental question: Were these Gentiles “appointed to eternal life” because they “believed” the “word of the Lord,” or did these Gentiles “believe” the “word of the Lord” because they “had been appointed to eternal life.” The answer… Yes!


Let me try to simplify this… How can you know you’ve “been appointed to eternal life?” A: Make the decision today to believe the word of God and follow Jesus. How will you know if you weren’t “appointed to eternal life?” A: Continue to reject Jesus and His Word!



Acts 13:49-52, “And the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region. But the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. But they shook off the dust from their feet against them, and came to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”



“The Word of the Lord was being spread throughout all of the region…” Q: How did this happen? A: Contagion… Paul and Barnabas were making disciples who made disciples.


“But the Jews raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas…” This should not come as a surprise for whenever a work of God is making an impact those engaged in the work will find themselves opposed by the enemy! It’s been correctly stated that “Satan only attacks those in whom he’s threatened by!” Application: Are you being opposed?


Notice Paul and Barnabas’ reaction in the face of this persecution… “They shook off the dust from their feet against them and came to Iconium.” In a very real and profound sense these two men responded to opposition by keeping on keeping on! They simply kept obeying the calling God had given them! They refused to allow the enemy to be a deterrent!


It’s also interesting this act of “shaking off the dust upon leaving a town” was a common Rabbinical practice. In this culture when a Rabbi would return to Israel from unbelieving Gentile territories he would shake the dust off of his feet upon returning. 


It should be noted that in Mark 6:11 Jesus instructed His disciple… “And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”


Motion of the Text: Paul and Barnabas leave Antioch and travel SE 50 miles to Iconium.



Acts 14:1, “Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed.” 



You need to understand something about Paul… While there seems to be no evidence he was ever successful in evangelizing the Hebrew, he never stopped trying. Though the Jews in Antioch had rejected Paul and Barnabas and even “expelled them from their region,” upon entering Iconium they still “went together to the synagogue of the Jews.” 



Luke says Paul entered the synagogue “and so spoke…” This phrase indicates the way Paul spoke (literally the flavor) was just a persuasive as the content of what he was speaking. 



Result: “A great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed…”



In response to the initial fruits of their ministry we’re told… Acts 14:2, “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren.” 



“Unbelieving Jews…” The Greek word for “unbelieving” is “apeitheô.” The word means these Jews intentionally chose “not to be persuaded.” In actuality they “refused to believe.” Luke tells us they then “stirred up the Gentiles” by “poisoning their minds against the brethren.” It’s simply a reality that those who reject the message will reject the messenger.



And yet, look at the reaction of Paul and Barnabas… Acts 14:3, “Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” 



It’s interesting, but while in Antioch Paul fled town in the face of opposition, however, in this instance Paul refuses to leave and instead “spoke boldly in the Lord.” Why the difference? 


At the end of Acts 13 we read how those who opposed the Gospel in Antioch “expelled them from their region.” It would appear the persecution was only directed at Paul and Barnabas. However, in Iconium, Luke tells us the opposition was aimed at “the brethren.”  


“Therefore they stayed…” It would seem Paul recognized the importance of staying as long as possible in Iconium for the specific benefit of these young believers. You know it’s one thing to encourage a person to endure persecution, but it’s entirely different when you intentionally choose to endure that persecution alongside of that individual!


Don’t miss the significance of what Luke is communicating when we writes that Paul was “speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands!” 


Question: Who was “bearing witness” and “granting signs?” 

Answer: Jesus!


Question: What was Jesus “bearing witness to…" 

Answer: "The word of His grace.” Grace! Not the Law! 


Question: And how was Jesus “bearing witness” or literally “affirming” this message of grace? 


Answer: He “granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” A “sign” is simply something that guides a person to the proper destination. And what was the destination this “sign” was designed to lead a person to… “wonder?” Think of it like this… A sign is literally an occurrence that should cause you to wonder! 


Note: The message of “His grace” was controversial… In 1 Corinthians 1:22-24 Paul explains that while the “Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”



Acts 14:4-7, “But the multitude of the city was divided: part sided with the Jews, and part with the apostles. And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to abuse and stone them, they became aware of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region. And they were preaching the gospel there.”



Before we unpack this text we should discuss a topic of controversy which only exists because of a couple of fundamental misunderstandings. Luke tells us “the city was divided” with “part siding with the Jews, and part with the apostles.” 

Question: Who were these “apostles?”


Answer: Acts 14:14, “But when apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this…”


For starters, let’s begin by defining this word “apostle.” The Greek word “apostalos” literally refers to “one sent forth with orders” or “someone sent with a specific commission.” The word is interesting because it “denote the authorization of an individual to fulfill a particular function, with emphasis on the one who sends, not on the one who is sent.”


The word apostle implies three things: 




  1. An apostle must be sent by someone else. 



  2. An apostle must be sent on a particular mission. 


  3. An apostle must be sent with sufficient power to accomplish the mission.


Therefore, the role of an apostle is defined by the sender and the mission. Note: In Scripture we find “apostles” connected to 3 different senders with 3 different missions.


First, God the Father commissioned 1 Apostle (Jesus) with the specific task of redeeming mankind from their sins. Hebrews 3:1, “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.” 


Two, Jesus commissioned 12 apostles with the task of laying the foundation for the church. Revelation 21:14 designates these men as unique… “Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” 


Included: Peter, Andrew, James and John the sons of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot. 


Note: The rightful replacement of Judas Iscariot has been debated. Though Mathias was accepted by the church as the 12th apostle (Acts 1) his apostleship is called into question as he was appointed by the remaining 11 and not by Jesus.


Since Paul claims to have been appointed to this position by Jesus it is likely he’s the true 12th apostle. Galatians 1:1, “Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead)…” In Romans 11:13 Paul calls himself “an apostle to the Gentiles.” 1 Corinthians 15:8 he continues by saying that “last of all Jesus was seen by me also, as one born out of due time.”


Third, while there is no doubt the original 12 served a unique function in laying the foundation of the church (they were sent by Jesus), Scripture does present the reality that the Holy Spirit also seems to commission and equip men to be apostles today. 


1. Aside from the original 12 this greek word apostle is used in Scripture for Barnabas (Acts 14:14), James the brother of Jesus (Galatians 1:19), Titus (2 Corinthians 8:23), Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25), Andronicus and Junia (Romans 16:7). 


2. Beyond this… If the role of apostle ended with the original 12 and this was accepted by the first century church then why are believers cautioned concerning false apostles?



3. Finally, if there were only 12 men ever qualified to be an apostle then why is the role of apostle mentioned as a gift of the Spirit designed for the edification of the church?



I am convinced the role of apostle in the present day church is synonymous with that of a missionary. The word “apostle” or “apostolos” is a compound word “stello” meaning “send” and “apo” meaning “forth.” The literal translation of “apostolos” into English should be “emissary” which we get from the Latin “mitto” meaning “to send” and “ex” meaning “from.” An emissary is “a person sent on a special mission” or what we’d simply call a “missionary.” 


Don’t forget how this entire “missionary journey” began with Paul and Barnabas “being sent out by the Holy Spirit…” (Act 13:4). In this very instance Paul and Barnabas are apostles/missionaries “sent forth” by the Holy Spirit into these various cities for the specific purpose of preaching the Gospel and planting churches. 


This means as an apostle of the Holy Spirit it was the job of Paul and Barnabas to establish these churches on solid doctrine while raising up qualified leadership who could care for the spiritual needs of the church. Note: Some apostles stay while others continue onward. 


“The city was divided…” I hope you realize that light is not a great unifier! Instead light by its very nature divides. Light drives out the darkness and darkness thrives in the absence of light. In a very real sense light and darkness are inherently at odds with one other…



Motion of the Text: In the face of this “violent attempt” Paul and Barnabas travel from Iconium 20 miles south to Lystra and Derbe cities of Lycaonia.

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