In Acts 13 we can discover 4 different missional practices the apostle Paul used when he was sent out on his first missionary journey. Let’s see if we can apply them to our own lives as well.
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Missional Practices For The Church Today
Acts 13:14-52
The Swiss theologian, Emil Brunner, once wrote, “The Church exists by mission just as a fired exists by burning.” If a fire ceases to burn, it goes out. It ceases to exist. If the church ceases to preach the gospel it will cease to exist. The church has been a missionary organization from its inception.
This morning I would like to follow Paul and Barnabas to Psidian Antioch to learn of their missional practices in order to seek to apply them to the church today.
Last Sunday, we studied the missionary exploits of Paul and Barnabas on the island of Cyprus. When the expedition started out, Barnabas was the leader. By the time the group leaves the island, Paul is the leader. No doubt they decided to evangelize the people on Cyprus, because that was Barnabas’ home town, and he had a burden for them.
On Cyprus, they started at Salamis on the east side of the island, and traveled all the way to Paphos on the west side, speaking to the Jews in the synagogues. Their great victory was winning Sergius Paulus to Christ – the proconsul of the island. Here we have three nobodies, with zerio political clout, actually being used of God to bring about the conversion of the most powerful political person on the island. And that, in spite of a false prophet and magician who was seeking to turn him away from the faith. We saw last week that God enabled Paul to bring down a judgment upon Elymas, a temporary blindness in order to save the Proconsul.
Verse 13 gives us an important shift. No longer do we read in the book of Acts of Barnabas and Saul. From here on, it is always Paul and Barnabas. Evidently the leadership has shifted to Paul. It is also intriguing that at this very point in the story, John Mark, Barnabas’ nephew, deserts the team and heads back to Jerusalem. I wonder if that was because he did not like the leadership change, and was in favor of his uncle being the leader.
Well, the team leaves the island of Cyprus and sails for the mainland, landing at Perga in Pamphylia, and that’s where we pick up our story today.
We are going to read from Acts 13:14-52 today.
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 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 Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said,
“Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen: 17 The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with an uplifted arm He led them out from it. 18 For a period of about forty years He put up with them in the wilderness. 19 When He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He distributed their land as an inheritance—all of which took about four hundred and fifty years. 20 After these things He gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21 Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 After He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’ 23 From the descendants of this man, according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, 24 after John had proclaimed before [c]His coming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 And while John was completing his course, he kept saying, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not He. But behold, one is coming after me the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’
26 “Brethren, sons of Abraham’s family, and those among you who fear God, to us the message of this salvation has been sent. 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 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, ‘You are My Son; today i have begotten You.’ 34 As for the fact that He raised Him up from the dead, no longer to return to decay, He has spoken in this way: ‘I will give you the Holy and sure blessings of David.’ 35 Therefore He also says in another Psalm, ‘You will not allow Your Holy One to]undergo decay.’ 36 For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep, and was laid among his fathers and underwent decay; 37 but He whom God raised did not undergo decay. 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.’”
42 As Paul and Barnabas were going out, the people kept begging that these things might be spoken to them the next Sabbath. 43 Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, were urging them to continue in the grace of God.
Paul Turns to the Gentiles
44 The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming. 46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has commanded us,
‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles,
That You may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. 51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”
In this chapter we have the longest recorded sermon of the apostle Paul in the New Testament. I believe the Lord intends for us to learn some important lessons from Paul’s ministry at Psidian Antioch.
1. Paul began his ministry in every city by preaching in the synagogues.
Acts 13:14, “But going on from Perga, they arrived at Pisidian Antioch, and on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down.” When they arrived at Pisidian Antioch the very first place they went was the synagogue. This was no isolated case either. That’s exactly what they did on the island of Cyprus. Acts 13:5; 14:1; 17:1-2; 17:10; 17:17; 18:4; 18:19; 19:8. This was Paul’s universal practice.
Now, we need to avoid the mistake of thinking that what was going on in the synagogues was a church meeting. It was not. The people attending the synagogues were not Christians. They were Jews or interested Gentiles, called God-fearers. The church meetings were held in homes by believers in Christ. Paul attended the synagogues, not for fellowship with believers, but to evangelize the lost.
Of course, the big question is “Why?!” Why did Paul choose this particular missionary strategy? We are never actually told why in the Scriptures, but I think we can deduce some of the reasons if we take some time to mull this over.
1) In the synagogues Paul would be speaking to people who believed many of the same things he did. They believed in one God, Jehovah, maker of heaven and earth. They believed in the inspiration and authority and infallibility of the Old Testament Scriptures. They believed that Israel was God’s chosen people. They believed in the 10 Commandments as the synopsis of the Law given to Israel. They believed that God would send a Messiah or Savior in due time. In short, they were ripe for the picking!
2) In the synagogues Paul would meet God-fearing Gentiles. Paul was called to reach the Gentiles, and what better place to meet Gentiles who might be receptive to the gospel than at the Jewish synagogue?
3) In the synagogues Paul would have the opportunity to reason with his listeners. It was a common practice to allow any male Jew 30 years or older to bring an exhortation in the meetings. Paul would seize those opportunities as often as he could.
Application
So, can you think of any modern day parallel to the synagogues? Where can we find people that we already hold many beliefs in common with, and where we might be given an opportunity to speak to them?
My answer would be nominal Christians. These are people who have been in church, have been taught the fundamentals of Christianity, but are not born again and converted. They continue to live in sin. They live for the things of the world, and fleshly lusts, rather than the will of God. However, they believe in God, in Jesus, in the Holy Spirit. They believe in the virgin birth of Christ. They would say they believe Jesus died for sins, and even that He rose from the dead. But it has never had a life changing impact on them. They are still essentially the same person they have always been. They are still “sons of disobedience” and are by nature children of wrath. They need to be born again. Folks, we can find these people everywhere in the U.S.! We can find them in our own families, in our neighborhoods, our friends and acquaintances. All we have to do is just ask people about what they believe, and we will discover what we already have in common. One great question to ask someone is “do you have any spiritual beliefs?” Then, just let them talk, without interrupting them. Your job is to find out what their worldview is, what they believe, and where they have come from. Only then do you know how to connect with them in order to bring them to Jesus.
2. Paul sought common ground between himself and his listeners.
That’s exactly what he does here in Acts 13. Who is Paul speaking to here? He speaks on the sabbath (14) in the synagogue (14). It is the reading of the Law and the Prophets that takes place (15). Paul’s listeners are men of Israel (16). The theme of Paul’s message is that God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus (23).
Where does Paul start in his message? He basically recounts the story of Israel. It is a history lesson, very similar to Stephen’s message before the Sanhedrin in Acts 7. Paul begins with the “fathers” (patriarchs), and then recounts the Exodus, the wilderness wanderings, the dispossessing of the land of Canaan, the Judges, Saul and David.
What does Paul emphasize? He emphasizes what God has done. He speaks of God’s initiatives of grace. God chose (17), God made the people great (17), God led them out from Egypt (17), God put up with them in the wilderness (18), God destroyed seven nations (19), God distributed their land (19), God gave them judges, God gave them Saul (21), God removed Saul (22), God raised up David (22).
Now, up to that point there was nothing Paul had said that any Jew would have disagreed with. They all knew their history. They knew Paul was speaking the truth. So, what has Paul done? He has developed a common base of shared truth. He has built some trust.
Application
Can’t we do the same thing with many people? Now, it is true, that there are many people today that you do not have a common base of shared truth with. They do not believe in objective truth, they don’t believe in God, Jesus or the Bible, and with them, you will have to start at square one, and build on it more slowly. But if we are sharing with a nominal Christian you and they already have many things that you both already believe in. Start there. Find some common ground. Let them know that you believe in the same things they do. Don’t immediately start by bringing up all the things you do not agree on. Start with the things you do agree on.
3. Paul’s goal was to bring his listeners to Jesus.
From the very beginning of Paul’s message, this is where he was headed. He had a plan from the start, and that plan was to bring his hearers face to face with Jesus Christ. Notice that Paul ends with Jesus. He doesn’t take them anywhere else. He reveals Christ to them, and then calls for a response of faith in Him.
So, what does Paul tell them about Jesus?
- Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s promise: 13:23
- Jesus is a Savior: 13:23
- Jesus was announced by John the Baptist: 13:24-25
- Jesus fulfilled prophecies: 13:27
- Jesus was crucified, though innocent: 13:28
- Jesus was buried: 13:29
- Jesus was raised from the dead: 13:30-37
- Jesus appeared to His people: 13:31
- Jesus provides forgiveness of sins and justification: 13:38-39
Jesus is the climax and culmination of God’s revelation. There is nothing beyond Him. He is the end goal. Get people to Him, and you have done your job. Folks, you aren’t done if you end with inviting someone to church. You aren’t done if you tell someone you will pray for them. You need to bring them to Jesus. That’s where salvation and life are. They must bow the knee to King Jesus and trust Him.
Application
My friends, make that your goal when sharing with others. It may not happen your first conversation. It may take 15 or 20 different conversations. But that is where you are headed, and that is what you want to see – this person coming into a vital saving relationship with Jesus Christ through faith.
4. Paul could rest in the sovereign grace of God.
After Paul had faithfully proclaimed the gospel of Christ, and brought his hearers to Jesus, he could rest, because he knew that the results were up to God. He didn’t have to stress, or be anxious, because He knew that God was sovereign in the matter of salvation.
Why do I say this? Because of something Luke writes in verse 48, “When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.” Now, we would like to turn that sentence around, wouldn’t we? We want to say, “as many as believed were appointed to eternal life.” However, that’s not what Luke wrote. He wrote, “as many as had been appointed to eternal life, believed.” In other words, believing is the result of being appointed to eternal life. Believing is not the cause. Being appointed to eternal life comes first, believing follows.
All of that to say this, “God has chosen a definite number of the human family to be saved, and they will come to faith through the proclamation of the gospel.” My efforts can’t make that number larger or smaller. But my efforts can make me a partner with God in bringing about His eternal plan to glorify Himself in a people He has chosen for His own possession.
Application
So, my encouragement to you is make sure you are involved in bringing people to Christ, but if they never come to faith, you don’t need to take that burden and responsibility on yourself. You never could save a single soul, and God doesn’t expect you to. Only He is able to do that. After we have done all we can, we need to rest in Him and trust Him to bring about the response of faith.
Conclusion
Brothers and sisters, let’s learn from Paul and Barnabas.
Let’s seek out those that we have a common base of understanding with.
Let’s begin by emphasizing what we have in common.
Let’s go from there to introduce Jesus Christ and His finished work.
Then, having done all, let’s rest in the sovereign grace of God!
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