Barnabas
and Saul Embark On Their First Missionary Trip
[Acts
chapter 13, verses 1-15]
For a
website view, click
here :-)
Last
week as we closed out chapter 12, we chronicled the apostle Peter's
miraculous escape from prison, which continues to prove that just
because something is legal does not necessarily make it right. Had
Peter stayed and been 'obedient', it would have cost him his life,
but God was unwilling to allow any such thing to occur. He was not
martyred until many years later because the Lord had so much for him
to do, and Peter was made by God specifically for those tasks. This
week as we move on to part 1 of chapter 13, in our ongoing studies of
the writings of the apostle Luke, we find ourselves moving on from
Antioch. Antioch
was an ancient
Greek city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. Its ruins
lie near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey. In this week's study, we
first move on to Cyprus, and later to Pisidian Antioch, another city
named Antioch in an entirely different part of what is modern Turkey
today. So let's all get started at verse one.
“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.
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.”
(Acts 13, verses 1-5)
The
church at Antioch from that time period was the very same church who
hid Peter from the pursuing authorities. Unlike some churches today,
the early church at ancient Antioch was very actively practicing
their faith, particularly when they found themselves compelled to
obey unjust laws such as the criminalizing of Christianity. They
faced these challenges to their faith together as a cohesive unit by
fasting and prayer. Instead of begging others for money to meet their
needs and expenses, they prayed to God, fasting as a show of unity
and sincerity, and waited patiently for His reply. At some point
during their prayers, the Lord replied, “Set
apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called
them.”
In modern terminology, Barnabas and Saul were being sent on a
mission.
In
the following verse we have yet another example of how the early
Church leadership physically laid their hands upon each other as they
prayed for one another. “So
after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and
sent them off. The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit,
went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.”
Now Seleucia was a coastal fishing town about 3 day's walk southwest
from ancient Antioch. So evidently Barnabas and Saul had set out for
the coast to embark on a journey in a similar way that we would head
to the nearest airport today. What strikes me the most is they were
unconcerned with where they were going or how they would get there.
All Barnabas and Saul knew is they were going on a fishing
expedition, and they were going to be fishing for souls.
“When
they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the
Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.”
For those who may not know, Salamis is the capital of Cyprus. So now
we can see that Barnabas and Saul had decided, undoubtedly after some
additional prayer just between themselves and the Lord, to get the
first boat out of Seleucia, which happened to be Cyprus bound. So
onward to Cyprus they went. Notice they didn't 'wait on the Lord',
otherwise the Lord would have been waiting on them! So upon their
arrival Barnabas and Saul began proclaiming the Word of God through
Christ Jesus in all the synagogues. And John, also called Mark and
the author of the Gospel of Mark, was there working right along side
them as they ministered to all who would embrace Jesus as Lord. And
now let's move on to part 2, beginning at verse 6.
“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.” (Acts 13, verses 6-12)
Paphos
is a seaport on the west side of Cyprus, the opposite side of the
island from where Salamis is located. Upon arriving there, Barnabas
and Saul encounter Bar-Jesus, which means 'son of Jesus', whose given
name is Elymas, which meant 'sorcerer' in the local dialect. Elymas'
'day job' was that of an attendant to Sergius
Paulus, a Roman governor of that era. I guess you could say
sorcery was Elymas'/Bar-Jesus' side hustle of sorts. And what a
hustle it was! Bar-Jesus was a Jewish sorcerer – which is like
calling someone a 'Catholic sorcerer' or a 'Pentecostal sorcerer' –
and the name “bar” means “son of” in Hebrew. So Elymas was
calling himself a “son of Jesus” when in fact we are not sons and
daughters of Christ but rather brothers and sisters in God's kingdom.
Elymas' very name was raw blasphemy to the risen Lord. In the very
next verse we see the converted Saul make known the full extent of
his own conversion as he puts Elymas back down in his place.
“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?”
So here we have Saul – who for the first time is being called Paul
– so filled with the Holy Spirit that he is telling “Bar-Jesus”
everything there is to know about him in only two sentences!
Remember, this is the same person who oversaw the stoning death of
St. Steven back in Acts chapter 7, which we studied some months ago.
So Saul has gone from being an executioner of Christians to being
Paul, a warrior for Christ so filled with the Spirit that he can have
people struck blind at will! What a contrast the Holy Spirit can
create, and what a difference in the hearts of every true believer!
If Jesus can do this for a reformed murderer, imagine what He can do
for you!
“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.”
During the three and a half years of Jesus' ministry, he healed the
blind and infirm on a daily basis. However, we also see that Divine
Healing can run both ways, as the apostle Paul demonstrated in verse
11 when he struck Elymas blind through the power of the Spirit of the
Lord. This Power of the Spirit was also demonstrated back in chapter
5 of the Book of Acts in much the same way when the apostle Peter had
Ananias and Sapphira struck down and killed for trying to deceive the
Holy Spirit. As we saw in verse 14, the proconsul (governor) of
Cyprus was converted to the faith with power and yet with gentleness
that are always present with the presence of the Holy Spirit. And now
let's conclude this week's lesson starting at verse 13.
“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.'” (Acts 13, verses
13-15)
Pamphylia was a
Roman coastal province in what is now southern Turkey. It lies
directly across the Mediterranean from Cyprus near the northeast
corner of that great body of water. Perga was the capital of that
province in those days, so that's why the three of them went there.
From that point, John left on still another ship to return to
Jerusalem, presumably at the prompting of the Holy Spirit and with
the encouragement of Barnabas and Paul. From there they went north to
Pisidian
Antioch, a distance of roughly 120 miles, give or take, into what
would be central Turkey today. This was in the Roman province of
Galatia, which eventually was chronicled into the Book of Galatians
in the New Testament. Today Turkey is largely a Muslim country, so I
don't know whether any of the Galatian churches are still in
existence or not.
Notice in verse 14,
we have another repetition of the same pattern we see time after time
throughout the Bible. Upon their arrival, the first thing Barnabas
and Saul did was to proceed directly to the first synagogue they saw,
and they walked right in like they owned the place. Because actually,
they represented the One who owns it all. We would all do well to
carry ourselves the same way. After the main part of the service was
concluded, “the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them,
saying, 'Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people,
please speak.'” It is at this point that the apostle Paul,
formerly known as Saul prior to being 'born again', stands up to
deliver his first public message about the salvation of Christ. So be
sure and come back next week, when we move on to part 2 of Acts
chapter 13.
No comments:
Post a Comment