The Holy Spirit, a Bible, a Passport, and a First-Aid Kit, Part 2

It seems like this sermon was cut short (v. 18). The crowd was determined to offer their sacrifices. They hear Paul preach, but they are underawed by his words.

Paul, however, would have a chance to develop his message further in Lystra at a later time, for Luke mentions the “disciples” in the town (vv. 20,22). Timothy and his mother were among those. This means that eventually many in Lystra heard the gospel and believed it. This opening scene, though, shows the challenge that the missionaries faced. But this is just the beginning.

We have no right or need to edit the gospel, but we do need to understand our audiences. We must begin by establishing a point of contact with people, and then we must lead them to the gospel conflict. Often points of contact can be made by simply observing what all humans see and experience and then working from there. Below are a few of those points of contact to consider as you work toward proclaiming the gospel effectively. Most people share . . .

a hunger for love and community,

a search for freedom,

a need to be rid of guilt and shame,

a quest for meaning,

a longing for significance,

a thirst for satisfaction and joy,

an attraction to beauty in creation, and

a love for creativity and innovation.

Starting with a verbal walk down any of these roads can get us into the story line of the Bible. The key is to know the Bible and to know people. “Wherever we begin,” John Stott says, “we shall end with Jesus Christ, who is himself the good news, and who alone can fulfill all human aspirations” (Message of Acts, 232).

In verses 19-20 we see the fickleness of this Lystran crowd and the determination of the Jewish opponents from Antioch and Iconium. A group of angry Jews traveled twenty miles from Iconium, and about a hundred miles from Pisidian Antioch, in order to persecute Paul. These guys were vicious. Many of them gave up days of pay in order to throw rocks at Paul.

Unfortunately, the opponents are able to persuade the fickle locals to join them, and as a result of mob violence, they “stoned Paul” (v. 19). One wonders while reading this account whether Paul reflected back on the stoning of Stephen, and even Stephen’s prayer for the murderers, during the ordeal (Stott, Message of Acts, 233). One also wonders if young Timothy witnessed it. This was probably one event Paul had in mind when he wrote,

Five times I received the forty lashes minus one from the Jews. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked. I have spent a night and a day in the open sea. On frequent journeys, I faced dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my own people, dangers from Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea, and dangers among false brothers; toil and hardship, many sleepless nights, hunger and thirst, often without food, cold, and without clothing. Not to mention other things, there is the daily pressure on me: my concern for all the churches. (2 Cor 11:24-28)

To the Galatians he simply summarized his sufferings like this: “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus” (Gal 6:17).And he wasn’t exaggerating. Paul imitated the sufferings of Christ as he carried the good news to people who often rejected and even assaulted him (cf. Acts 9:16; Mark 8:34-35).

Every Christian who wishes to follow Jesus faithfully and desires to see people come to know the Savior will have to bear some measure of suffering. It’s what I like to call the missions law. We simply won’t reach people without sacrifice. Although for some reason Barnabas wasn’t stoned alongside Paul, he was also enduring many trials along this journey—his agony over the beating his friend endured no doubt being one of them.

Everyone thought Paul was dead, but as the disciples surrounded him—as a sign of love, protection, and surely in a spirit of prayer—Paul suddenly got up! Then he accompanied the disciples back to the city where the people had stoned him, and he stayed the night. This scene reminds me of another of Paul’s classic statements about grace-enabled endurance:

Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed. (2 Cor 4:7-9)

Paul was struck down, but he didn’t stay down! What tenacity! And what a testimony of God’s grace!

Although he was bruised and battered, Paul and the others began a sixty-mile trek to Derbe the next day. What would motivate a person to endure such physical trials? It was the gospel (v. 21)! Paul cared more about the salvation and sanctification of people than his own well-being (cf. 2 Tim 2:8-10).

Paul’s persistence can encourage us in the ministries in which God has placed us. As a discouraged young pastor, Art Azurdia once asked a pastor of thirty years, “How have you made it in ministry so long?” The older pastor replied, “You know, Art, my dad once told me, ‘Never decide to leave the ministry when you’re tired or depressed,’ so I’ve never left the ministry!” (Azurdia, “Progression by Intention, Part 5”). I love the humor and truth in the statement, but the story makes me wonder whether enduring in the ministry implies that we must live in a perpetual state of depression and disappointment. How could anyone persist in the face of that?

The thread that runs throughout chapter 14 tells us the answer: remembering the importance of the gospel keeps us fueled (vv. 7,15,21). Paul could not get over all the gospel meant—forgiveness, freedom, justification, the presence of the Holy Spirit, adoption, reconciliation, future resurrection, and participation in the kingdom that will have no end. Because of the glorious nature of the gospel, Paul couldn’t stop preaching it—even if that meant suffering. The good news compelled him.

Some Christians put off engaging in ministry, telling themselves, “I’ll serve Jesus when it’s convenient.” But when we are truly captivated by the gospel, when the truth of who Jesus is and what he did for us becomes the most important thing in our lives, we will gladly sacrifice comfort and selfish desires to make sure we help others know him. We must never get over the gospel. We must never let our affections for the Savior cool.

Paul and Barnabas could have kept traveling east to Paul’s hometown of Tarsus and then back to Antioch of Syria. That route would have been the easiest. Scheduling some rest, relief, and fellowship there would’ve been understandable. But instead of going east, the dynamic duo courageously and persistently heads in the opposite direction, backtracking through previous places of challenging ministry! In doing this, they demonstrate an amazing love for the gospel and the church.

Acts 14:21b-28

In this final section we see the necessity of following up initial ministry efforts and are reminded of the critical importance of establishing healthy congregations. From Paul’s passion to establish churches rather than just evangelizing the masses and from Paul’s own commitment to the Antiochean congregation, we should learn devotion to a local church.

God has given us a wonderful gift in the fellowship of brothers and sisters in Christ. Together we can stir one another up to love and good deeds as we do life together and as we see the day of Christ drawing near (Heb 10:24-25). Paul knew new believers needed local church fellowship. Even he needed the support and strength of fellow believers.

Establishing new churches (14:21b-23). Notice Paul’s commitment to helping form new congregations (vv. 21b-25). Paul wasn’t interesting in getting decisions for Christ. He was interested in making disciples of Christ. So, in spite of possible danger, he retraced his steps to Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch. Making return visits to strengthen new Christians was part of Paul’s future ministry as well (cf. 15:41; 16:5).

Here we see a great model for church planting. John Stott says,

In little more than ten years St Paul established the Church in four provinces of the Empire: Galatia, Macedonia, Achaia and Asia. Before AD 47 there were no Churches in these provinces; in AD 57 St Paul could speak as if his work there was done. (Message of Acts, 235)

Paul’s church-planting paradigm rested on three foundations: (1) apostolic instruction,(2) pastoral oversight, and (3) a confident trust in God.

Regarding apostolic instruction, Paul encouraged the believers to “continue in the faith” (v. 22). The phrase the faith indicates they were in possession of a body of doctrine already developed (cf. Jude 3-4). Paul ensured that these new believers understood the basic biblical doctrines. In establishing these doctrines he not only fortified the church against heresy, but he also encouraged the hearts of believers, reminding the kingdom citizens of the inevitability of facing “many hardships” for holding these beliefs. Later, in his letters, he could expand on the basics.

Regarding pastoral oversight, Paul made sure every single local church had a plurality of elders. John Stott points out that the modern pattern of one pastor over the church was simply unknown in Paul’s day (Message of Acts, 236; for more examples of plurality of elders, see Acts 11:30; 15:2,4,6,22-23; 16:4; 20:17-18; 1 Tim 5:17; Titus 1:5; Jas 5:14; 1 Pet 5:1,5). Instead, each church—depending on its size—had a pastoral team made up of full-time and part-time pastors, some of whom were paid and others who served voluntarily (ibid.). These elders were chosen from within the local congregation. Paul later expanded on pastoral qualifications in his letters (1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9).

Raising up elders from among the ranks of new converts surely required Paul to spend considerable time overseeing their training, demonstrating the need for leadership development within the church (cf. 2 Tim 2:2). All believers need biblical doctrine. They need pastoral care. They need one another. Paul doesn’t make sure that each congregation has a specialized building in which to meet. Instead, he makes sure the people are built up through truth, pastoral care, and community. He equips them.

Finally, the missionaries prayerfully entrust the congregation to the Lord. Since Jesus is committed to his bride, the church, Paul can confidently rest in his nourishment of these congregations.

Rejoicing with the sending church (14:24-28). On the final leg of the trip the missionaries travel again through the rugged mountains until they reach the lowlands of Pamphylia. Upon arriving at Perga, they spend some time evangelizing the area. On their first stop in Perga, they had spent little time there (13:13-14). From Perga they go to Attalia and then finally back home to Antioch of Syria.

Verse 26 forms an inclusio, a bracket, with 13:2 (Polhill, Acts, 320). The Spirit initially directed the church to set apart Paul and Barnabas “for the work” to which he called them (13:2). Then eventually the bruised and battered missionaries return to the church “where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed” (14:26; emphasis added). The mission wasn’t finished, but the work of this trip was completed.

The missionaries rejoice with their brothers and sisters, who had no doubt been praying for them persistently. The missionaries give testimony of all God did through them. They celebrate that God “opened the door of faith to the Gentiles” (v. 27).

Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch for some time, enjoying fellowship, sharing stories, and perhaps seeking some medical treatment (v. 28). While there, Paul may have penned his letter to the Galatians around AD 48.

This passage leaves me with two closing questions: (1) Do you need to look to Jesus for persevering grace today as you seek to make the gospel known? Remember, he empowers those who depend on him. (2) And do you truly love Jesus’s church? Timothy Dwight, the late minister and eighth president of Yale, expressed the proper attitude about the church when he wrote,

For her my tears shall fall

For her my prayers ascend,

To her my cares and toils be given

Till toils and cares shall end. (Hughes and Chapell, 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus, 89)

Such devotion to the church certainly characterized the apostle Paul’s ministry. May it also characterize ours until that day when we see the Lord of the church face-to-face.