Honoring the Word

Acts 13:13-48

 

“The word of God continued to increase and spread and flourish.” That’s what Acts 12:24 says. That’s what today’s message is going to focus on: how the message of the gospel continued to spread. 

 

Last week, we rejoined Paul and Barnabas. We are going to continue on with them on their journey through today’s passage.

 

We’ve heard a lot about Paul (or Saul) and his powerful teaching in Acts 9 and 11.  

 

For example, Acts 9:22 says, “Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah,” and Acts 9:28 says, “Saul stayed with [the apostles] and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.”  In Acts 11, Barnabas was sent to Antioch, where a great number of people had believed and turned to the Lord.  After encouraging these new saints, Barnabas then went to find Saul, who had been sent to Tarsus.  When they returned to Antioch together, they “met with the church for a whole year and taught great numbers of people” (Acts 11:26).  Now, in Acts 13, we will get to hear some of Paul’s preaching. 

 

With that, let’s pray and get into today’s message.

 

Father God, we desperately need You.  Thank You for Your word.  Please teach us, we pray.  May Your word continue to increase and spread and flourish throughout the whole earth.  We pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

 

Let’s go ahead to Acts 13, starting in verse 13:  

 

From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. – Acts 13:13-14

 

Let’s have a brief look at a map of what is most frequently called Paul’s first missionary journey.  In last week’s passage, Paul and Barnabas set out from Syrian Antioch and went to Cyprus.  They traveled across the island of Cyprus by land.  Today, we pick up their journey at the western end of the island at the city of Paphos. From there, they sail to Perga, which is on the southern shore of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey).  From Perga, they go inland to Pisidian Antioch.  The missionary team has grown.  It’s Paul and his companions, not just Paul and Barnabas.

 

Why two Antiochs?  Because history.  I don’t want to get too far off track, but Alexander the Great was a great conqueror, right?  He briefly ruled over an area from Macedonia and Greece to Egypt to India.  He died unexpectedly when he was 32 years old.  His kingdom was divided among four of his chief generals.  The one who ended up controlling this area was Seleucus.  You can see his name on the map twice: Seleucia Tracheotis and Seleucia Pieria (where Paul and Barnabas embarked to go to Cyprus in Acts 13:4).  Seleucus founded several cities named after himself.  In addition, since his father and his son were both named Antiochus, he built more Antiochs than Seleucias.  These cities were Greek in culture and securely built, and this influence is what enabled the New Testament to be written in the Greek language. 

 

John, also called Mark and sometimes called John Mark, left them, but we don’t know why.  Later, in chapter 15, we’ll see that Paul did not view John’s departure positively. However, in Paul’s letters, we see that Paul cherished John Mark and wanted John Mark to be with him in his (Paul’s) last days. We also see in the letters that Paul said John Mark was helpful to Paul in his ministry. 

 

It’s interesting to see an up and down like this in a relationship within the early church.  It is a good reminder to love one another and to persevere.  I often think of James 3:2, “We all stumble in many ways.”  With that, it is necessary that we “bear with each other and forgive one another if any of [us] has a grievance against someone” (Colossians 3:13).  In fact, we are exhorted to “Forgive as the Lord forgave [us]” (Colossians 3:13). 

 

So, Paul, Barnabas, and the others arrived in Pisidian Antioch, which was a hub of good roads and trade.  It had a large Jewish population and hence a functioning synagogue. 

 

On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue [in Pisidian Antioch] and sat down. 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.” Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 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; for about forty years He endured their conduct in the wilderness; and He overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to His people as their inheritance. All this took about 450 years.  After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. Then the people asked for a king, and He gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 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.’ From this man's descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as He promised. Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 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.’” – Acts 13:14-25 

 

Paul had a regular practice of beginning his preaching in a new city in the synagogue.  There you would find Jews, and here we see even Gentile worshipers, who knew the Old Testament.  It was also an organized meeting place with a planned meeting time.  The synagogue also followed a standard order of worship with opening prayers and reading from the Old Testament, both from the Law and the Prophets.  After that, there would be an invitation for a rabbi or an educated person or persons to speak in relation to the readings.  Hearing from a visiting rabbi would be a special treat. 

 

And so, Paul does give a high-level view of God’s working in the Old Testament bringing forth the Savior, Jesus.  God has a plan.  He had a plan from the very beginning.  Part of that plan was worked out through the Jewish people to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.  The goal is Jesus.  He is the center of history. 

 

It’s interesting to me that Paul includes John the Baptist in his message.  How well known would John have been outside of Judea?  In Acts 18, we will meet Apollos, who was teaching the things of God accurately but only knew the baptism of John.  So, there is some awareness of John beyond Judea for sure. 

 

The focus of Paul is what John said about Jesus.  John was an important prophet, but he said, “I’m not even worthy to untie Jesus’ shoes.”  I wish I could have tracked down a citation, but it seems highly likely that there were rules for rabbis or the disciples of rabbis about what tasks they were allowed to perform and which were too demeaning.  One of the boundaries was the taking off of shoes.  A disciple wasn’t to be required to remove a rabbi’s shoes, but then we have John, an internationally known prophet, saying, “Look, the One who comes after me is so far greater than I am that I’m not even worthy to do the most demeaning thing.” 

 

Taking that one step further, think about Jesus washing the disciples’ feet in John 13:1-17. He who was most worthy humbled Himself to wash the disciples’ feet.  And then, to go to the cross for us all.  Amazing. 

 

"Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 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. Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have Him executed. When they had carried out all that was written about Him, they took Him down from the cross and laid Him in a tomb. But God raised Him from the dead, 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. We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors He has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. – Acts 13:26-33 

 

There it is.  We have the good news preached to us by Paul this morning. 

 

Despite all the things that were carried out against Jesus by those who did not recognize Him, God was working.  That little two-word phrase is so critical: “But God.”  But for the grace of God, where would we be?  Thankfully, God is there working all things out to our good.  Oh, how we need Him! 

 

Paul also shares the testimony of eyewitnesses.  Jesus’ resurrection is not some esoteric thought experiment.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ was tangible.  People saw, felt, and experienced the risen Christ. 

 

As it is written in the second Psalm: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.” 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.” So it is also stated elsewhere:  “You will not let Your Holy One see decay.” 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. But the One whom God raised from the dead did not see decay. Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the Law of Moses. – Acts 13:33-39 

 

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the single most important event in history.  Jesus’ body did not decay in the grave.  He rose to life.  The tomb is empty.  It’s no wonder that Paul talks about it here and that Peter talked about it in Acts chapter 2.  These quotes are verses from Psalm 2 (verse 7) and Psalm 16 (verse 10).  Jesus is the only Son of the Father, perfectly holy and righteous so that His body did not decay in the grave. 

 

The last sentence is so critical.  Everyone who believes in Jesus is not just forgiven; they are justified.  When we believe in Jesus, we are put right with God for all time.  Using a financial illustration, forgiveness means the debt is paid.  Justification means that there is a credit on our account before God. 

 

Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you: “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.” – Acts 13:40-41 

 

This stark warning has its parallels in Peter’s sermon in Acts 2 and Stephen’s in Acts 7.  Peter warned and even pleaded with the people to save themselves from this corrupt generation.  Stephen addressed the group of leading Jews called the Sanhedrin.  Stephen spoke of how resistant to the truth those men had made themselves—how they were actively resisting the Holy Spirit. 

 

Paul is talking here to the unbelievers, exhorting them to put their faith in Jesus.  May we not harden our hearts to what God wants to do in and through us.  May we keep seeking Jesus each and every day. 

 

As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 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. – Acts 13:42-43 

 

A powerful response.  There were those who wanted to hear more.  There were others who had started their journey in grace.  They had believed in Christ.  As they talked with Paul and Barnabas, the direction of the conversation was to urge them to continue in the grace of God. 

 

May we also continue in the grace of God.  How?  Continuing to seek Him, prayer, reading and meditating on the word, singing songs, encouraging others...  I’m sure there are many more ways to continue in the grace of God.  That might be a good conversation starter.  Ask someone how they continue in the grace of God. 

 

On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. 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. For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'" When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. – Acts 13:44-48 

 

Paul was compelled to speak the gospel to the Jews. He had great compassion on them, thinking even about himself and how he had opposed the good news at first.  Romans 9 expresses his deep love for his people.  And yet when the Jews in Pisidian Antioch rejected the message of salvation, Paul and Barnabas did turn and focus on reaching the Gentiles. 

 

The verse that Paul quotes is Isaiah 49:6, and that is a prophecy about the Messiah, Jesus.  We carry Jesus’ message and also have become lights that can bring the good news wherever we go. 

 

The Gentiles listening to Paul were filled with joy.  They were not despised or cut off.  They have a hope and a future.  They honored the word of the Lord.  In this context, they are honoring the message of the gospel: Jesus is Savior.  That message will keep going forward in next week’s passage as it still goes forward in the world today. 

 

May you continue in the grace of God and honor the word of the Lord today and every day. 

 

Let’s pray. 

 

Jesus, I pray for these Your saints, Your beloved family.  I pray that You would fill us with Your Holy Spirit.  Give us hope in all things.  Help us to continue in Your grace.  May You be lifted high.  We pray in Your Name, Jesus, Amen.

Hands and Eyes

Acts 12:25-13:12

When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark. – Acts 12:25

 

What was the mission that they had finished?  In Acts 11, there were prophets that came from Jerusalem to Antioch.  The Lord said that there was going to be a famine around much of the world.  So, the brothers in Antioch sent money to the elders in Judea to help bring relief.  Paul and Barnabas were given the money to take to Judea.

 

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. 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.” So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. – Acts 13:1-3

 

In Luke 24:47-49, Jesus said,

 

and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem.  You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what My Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high. – Luke 24:47-49 

 

Shortly after saying these things, He ascended to heaven.  As Luke begins the letter of Acts, he records Jesus saying,

 

“Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift My Father promised, which you have heard Me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” – Acts 1:4-5 

 

Shortly after saying these things, He ascended into heaven.  It appears as if the event in Luke and the event in Acts are one and the same.  Jesus probably didn’t say these things two different times unless He ascended into heaven two times, and we know that’s not true.

 

In Acts 1:8, we have laid out for us the overall flow of this letter as Jesus told His disciples,

 

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” – Acts 1:8

 

Acts 1-7 details what happened in Jerusalem.  Stephen’s murder kicked off a great persecution.  In Acts 8:1, we read about repentance and forgiveness of sins being preached in Jesus’ name to those in Judea and Samaria:

 

And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.  On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. – Acts 8:1

 

According to what’s written here in God’s word, who went about sharing the gospel so that disciples could be made?  It wasn’t the apostles, because they stayed in Jerusalem.  Acts 8-12 show us the work happening in the Judean and Samarian regions.  In our story today, we will look at the spread of the kingdom to the ends of the earth.  This is mostly what happens from chapter 13 through the end of Acts.

 

There are some things I want to point out about the sending of Paul and Barnabas.  The first thing is that the sending occurred in the atmosphere of fasting and worship.  Some translations say that they were “ministering to the Lord.”  The Greek word that’s used could be translated as “worship,” “minister” or “serve.”  It’s convicting to read this.  How often do we expect God to speak while we don’t actually expect Him to speak?  The things they were doing, worshiping and fasting, don’t make a lot of sense if we look at it through the eyes of our flesh.  Going without food and singing and praying to someone you can’t see seems like a waste of time.  If they were about to embark on a new mission, you would think they would have a big time of planning.  I know that the Spirit was doing some special things during these days, but He’s still the same Spirit. 

 

Secondly, the Spirit gave clarity of the will of God in the context of the local church.  Paul and Barnabas were in a specific local church in Antioch.  The next stage of their life in following God became clear as they submitted themselves to the Lord and to the local church. 

 

The third thing is that the Spirit of God was more concerned with sending than He was with seeing them build a bigger ministry.  This doesn’t mean that the Spirit doesn’t want any church to get bigger.  But at this point in the life of the Antioch church, He wanted to send out.  I explain to the Christians that we meet that we’re not concerned with getting bigger.  We’re more concerned with sending.  The worldly mindset is to consider a ministry successful if their large group meeting has gotten bigger.  We think God must be moving if more people are added to the seats.  In Antioch, God must have been moving not because people were being added to the seats but because people were leaving them. 

 

That leads me to the fourth thing I noticed: the church in Antioch was going through growth pains.  People leave the church for various reasons.  Just because they leave, it doesn’t mean we’re going through growth pains.  It may be painful to see people leave because you’ve lost a relationship.  In this situation, the home church wasn’t sending out the people they would miss the least.  God had called out the spirit-filled, committed believers.  God’s desire was to multiply disciples all over the world. 

 

The fifth thing that’s interesting about this story is that God didn’t send someone out alone.  Paul and Barnabas were together.  This is not the first missionary journey of Paul.  It’s the first missionary journey of Paul, Barnabas and one other person, as we’ll see in just a minute.  Paul was never alone.  He went with Silas, Barnabas, Timothy, John Mark and Luke.  The only times I’m aware that he was alone were when he went to various trials and to prison. 

 

The sixth thing is that God was calling them to a “work.”  The Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (Acts 13:2).  Paul told the Thessalonians,

 

“We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love…” – I Thessalonians 1:3 

 

It is a labor, but it’s a labor of love.  There are days when I come home and I don’t feel like talking, not even to the cat.  I’ve been talking almost all day, sharing the gospel and training one person after another. But I still like what I do.  I like working.  Calling ministry “work” isn’t synonymous with calling it “drudgery.”  Some of the hardest things in life are the best things.  For example, raising kids is a hard thing, but it’s a good thing. 

 

The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper. – Acts 13:4-5

 

The first part of their trip was across part of the Mediterranean Sea to the island of Cyprus.  This was a place of Gentiles.  Their mission begins to the remotest parts of the earth.  Jesus had told Paul that he would be a witness to the Gentiles, and yet he ended up in a Jewish synagogue.  Why would he do this?  For one thing, this was a practice of Jesus.  The Father had sent Jesus “only to the lost sheep of Israel” (Matthew 15:24), although He did engage with Gentiles.  God’s plan was to reach the Jewish people first.  It was a matter of priority according to the Father’s plan.  Just as He entrusted His words of the Old Testament covenant to the people of Israel first, He also entrusted the words of the New Testament covenant to the Jewish people.  Paul reiterated this in Romans 1:16:

 

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel.  For it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes, first for the Jew and then for the Gentile. – Romans 1:16

 

This is one reason that is clear in the scriptures. 

 

I believe that there are other reasons as well.  These are reasons that have come to my mind as I’ve read the whole Bible many times over many years.  They’re a little bit speculative but worth looking into.  First, the Jews were familiar with the prophecies about the Messiah.  Second, they had experience with God.  This is the main reason that the book of Hebrews was written.  There were Jews who had genuine faith in God but they had not yet accepted Jesus as the Messiah.  Third, they believed in a monotheistic God.  I’ve found that it usually takes more time to lead someone to Christ that has no background with the Bible than with someone who has a background with it.  Fourth, the Messiah came from their lineage.  This would have been a great way to establish common ground and use it as a springboard into the gospel.  Fifth, they often had an influence with the Gentiles in their communities.  Sixth, many would have been open to the gospel.  Included in this group would have been mature Jews who had accepted righteousness by faith but hadn’t heard the gospel message yet.  These mature Jews would have been a bit more ready to labor in the gospel and lead a community of believers.  Seventh, Jesus’ pattern was to establish the kingdom in families and communities, not just individuals.  In Luke 19, He said that salvation had come to the house of Zacchaeus.  Oftentimes, He would teach in peoples’ homes, just like He did in Matthew’s home in Matthew 9.  In Luke 10, He told the disciples to find a person of peace and stay put in their home.  He didn’t want them to move from house to house.  In that same chapter, He was in Mary and Martha’s home. 

 

How are we to apply these things today?  I think we have the freedom in Christ to do a variety of things.  I don’t think we’re mandated to reach the Jews first everywhere we share the gospel.  The gospel did go to the Jews first.  I do think we would be wise to consider this example and see if there’s a way that we can learn from it.  One of the reasons why I try to reach the freshmen first is because they are usually the most open to the gospel and to new community.  The Bible doesn’t require every Christian organization or church to reach the freshmen first if they are trying to reach college students.  I also aim for seeing the gospel spread among the people they’re the closest to.  Hopefully, we can also connect with a few mature believers that catch the vision for reaching their dorm for Christ even during their freshmen year.  But God has a tendency to surprise me while doing something different.  We’ve been sending people out into their already-existing mission field.  Web is a student that came to Christ last spring semester.  I met him in the fall semester.  He started reading the Bible on his own and with me, then he came to Christ.  Because of the way that I’ve been reading the Bible with him, he immediately began reading the Bible with his roommates.  I’ve tried to get him to our Friday discipleship time and to Sunday morning, but I never could make it happen.  But I was able to disciple him, and he started a group on his own.  He wasn’t going to another country as a missionary.  He wasn’t even going across town.  God had sent him to his roommates.  Paul and Barnabas were sent in a way that seemed official.  But there were other ways that the believers were sent in Acts.  I’ll get to that in a moment. 

 

They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 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. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “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? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable 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. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord. – Acts 13:6-12

 

If you survey the book of Acts and look at the times the gospel went out, it usually was led by or followed by opposition and persecution.  As I’ve been a part of the front line of sharing the gospel and making disciples, it’s usually accompanied by works of the devil.  I’ve been threatened by campus administration.  I’ve been slandered.  I’ve been yelled at.  I’ve had so-called believers come and steal new believers away from our fellowship because they’re jealous and want to be seen as an effective ministry.  One strange situation happened shortly after I came on staff with our church in Raleigh.  I was on the Brickyard at NC State with some of our students.  We had been sharing the gospel.  We finished and I saw a guy walking across the Brickyard.  It seemed like he was aiming straight for me.  I had never seen the guy before.  A few moments later I heard him come close.  The reason I know he had come close was because I heard him cussing at me.  I had never said one word to this guy in my entire life, but he lectured me on religion, God and whatever else I don’t remember.  He was a monk in the Hare Krishna faith.  This is a so-called peaceful religion.  But it wasn’t that day.  Boy, the demonic activity rises when you encroach on Satan’s territory.  That’s what we see happening in this story.

 

Paul, Barnabas and John Mark had been sent on this mission.  I think it’s important to recognize the different kinds of sending you see in Acts.  The first type is the overall sending by Jesus that was directed toward all the believers.  That’s found in Acts 1:8:

 

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. – Acts 1:8

 

There were about 120 people in that upper room when the Spirit came upon them.  He came upon the apostles as well as the rest of the body of Christ.  We know that the Spirit helps believers in a variety of ways.  In Acts, we see Him at work by helping every believer make disciples. This is the same basic message of the Great Commission said by Jesus at the end of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  No matter what spiritual gift or calling a Christian has, this sending is for every believer.  One way to think of this is to compare it to an employee working for a company.  Every employee’s goal is to either maintain or grow the company’s profits.  But each employee might have a different role or specialty.  In just a minute, I’ll go over some of the special types of roles that we see the believers had in Acts.

 

Another example of sending is what we see in Acts 3.  Peter and John were sent to a beggar by the temple.  It says that they went during the hour of prayer.  In other words, they were in their normal routine.  I think this can speak to all of us.  It’s easy to see Paul being sent because he went on a specific mission.  You and I have gone through the normal routine of going to work, or going to the grocery store or folding the same laundry.  God is in the routine, too.  They went to the temple like they normally would “at the hour of prayer” (Acts 3:1).  The one who is cooking, folding laundry or watching the kids is no less valuable in God’s eyes than the one who seems to have a flashy calling.  While in the process of picking up those same old sticks in that same old yard, I’ve seen God show up in the normal routine.

 

Another type is being sent by trial or persecution.  The stoning of Stephen kicked off a great persecution.  As a result, Acts 8 says that they were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.  The making of disciples was being carried out by the everyday believer.  Luke says that the apostles stayed behind in Jerusalem. 

 

We also see people being sent one revelation at a time.  Philip was an example of this in Acts 8.  God told him to “go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza” (Acts 8:26).  That’s all that God told him!  He didn’t tell him what the mission was or who he was supposed to talk to or share any other details!  As Philip obeyed, then God made his mission clearer.  He then told him the next step, “Go over and join this chariot” (Acts 8:29).  He didn’t tell him what he was supposed to do or who he was supposed to talk to!  This story almost seems comical to me.  You might feel like you’re in this type of situation now.  Most of do.  God is revealing one step at a time.  Do what you know God has made clear in the scriptures.  I’ve found that as I’ve done this, He begins to reveal more of His will. 

 

Some people were sent in ways that were miraculous.  Philip was an example of this.  After Philip shared the gospel with the Ethiopian eunuch, God made him disappear and arrive instantaneously in Azotus.  If you’re wanting to save money on gas, this would be an ideal way to be sent. 

 

We also see people being sent to specific groups of people.  This is what we see in Acts 9:15 after Paul came to faith in Christ.  Jesus said that He was sending him to “Gentiles, kings and the sons of Israel” (Acts 9:15). 

 

Some, like Peter in Acts 10, were sent to unexpected places.  He sent Peter to the home of a Gentile.  Peter wasn’t expecting that at all!

 

In Acts 11, we see Paul and Barnabas being sent with a physical blessing of money to the believers in order to provide relief during the famine.  In our story today, we see Paul and Barnabas being sent by the Spirit through the local church.  This is definitely an important mission.  But it’s not the only mission we see.  Paul and Barnabas were being sent to the Gentiles. The apostles weren’t the first to share the gospel with the Gentiles.  When the church was sent out by persecution to Samaria, they probably shared with Gentiles in Samaria.  We do know for certain that Philip preached the gospel to a Gentile, the Ethiopian eunuch.  This was before Peter went to Cornelius’ house.  Cornelius, a Gentile, is in Acts 10.  God had a specific use for the apostles.  God was performing miracles, signs and wonders through them (II Corinthians 12:12).  These things would have confirmed that they were telling the truth about Jesus’ resurrection and that they were telling the truth that they were prophets speaking and writing new scripture.  They also were men who saw Jesus (Acts 1:22 and I Corinthians 9:1).   They had the calling and spiritual gift of apostleship (I Corinthians 1:1 and Ephesians 4:11).  It wasn’t something they obtained by training.  Even though the general body of Christ had shared the gospel with the Gentiles, God wanted to confirm the new scripture and confirm the life and resurrection of Jesus.  They were also taught directly by Jesus about how He wanted the church to carry on what He had started.  These are reasons why it was so important for the apostles to go to new places even though someone may have shared the gospel before they got there. 

 

In Acts 15, we see another type of sending when the church leadership in Jerusalem wanted to clarify certain doctrine and practices for the Gentile churches.  In Acts 15 and 18, we see men sent in order to strengthen, encourage and care for the believers.  We also see people being by means of redirection.  In Acts 16, God had closed the door to Asia for Paul, Silas and Timothy.  Instead He sent them to what we know today as Europe for the sake of someone who was open to the gospel.  Her name was Lydia, and she was the very first convert in Europe.  I’ve dealt with the frustration of doors being closed.  This wasn’t a sign from God to give up.  It was a sign of God being at work.  I could go on about other examples, but I’ll need to stop here.

 

What was the requirement for being sent (in a general sense like I mentioned in Acts 1:8)?  The qualification was to receive the Spirit.  What were the qualifications for the missions that the apostles did?  It was a very specific sending.  I mentioned those qualifications earlier. If they were sent with money, then they would need to be trustworthy.  All of us are being sent, but each one of us have a unique mixture of spiritual gifting, experiences and desires.  This past school year, Sarah ran track.  All of her teammates were on the track team even though they were involved in different events.  She ran the 400m hurdles as her main event.  They all had the goal of winning on behalf of the high school track team.  Each event had different qualifications.  Those who rain the 1600m race weren’t required to jump over a bar or throw a disc—although it would make it a lot more interesting if they did both at the same time.  There was a group of girls that ran the 400m hurdles.  Even though they all had the same event, they each had a lane to run in.  If they couldn’t get over the hurdle, then they couldn’t run the 400 m hurdles.  Those who did the long jump didn’t have the same gifting, desires or experiences as those who ran hurdles.  

 

In the same way, we are all part of the same team being sent for the same general mission from the same coach.  Just because someone doing shot put can’t understand for the life of them why someone would jump into a box of sand, it doesn’t mean that jumping into the sand is wrong.  My prayer is that we would work together as the body of Christ.  If I’m trying to take a walk and my left leg is trying to walk but my right leg is trying to jump, then I’m going nowhere.  Or, I’ll go somewhere looking like an idiot.  We are not just thirty individuals who happen to be in the same room.  We are a body.

 

What about you?  Have you received the Spirit of God?  If so, would you like to know how God wants to send you to the people you know and care about?  Would you like to know what it would look like for you to reach your family, relatives, friends, coworkers or close neighbors?  Since we are worshipers of Jesus, we want to imitate Him.  We tend to imitate what we love the most.  Would you give me one hour of your time to learn more about the pattern Jesus gave us to make disciples?  We would need to figure out a time that we can do it, but we can figure out that later.  Text me or email me and we can work something out.