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3. Preaching in Antioch of Anatolia (Acts 13:13-52)
ACTS 13:13-25
13 Now Paul and his company set sail from Paphos, and came to Perga in Pamphylia. John departed from them and returned to Jerusalem. 14 But they, passing on from Perga, came to Antioch of Pisidia. They went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and sat down. 15 After the reading of the law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, speak.” 16 Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, “Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen. 17 The God of this people chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they stayed as aliens in the land of Egypt, and with an uplifted arm, he led them out of 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 gave them their land for an inheritance, for about four hundred fifty years. 20 After these things he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21 Afterward they asked for a king, and God gave to them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 When he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, to whom he also testified, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ 23 From this man’s seed, God has brought salvation to Israel according to his promise, 24 before his coming, when John had first preached the baptism of repentance to Israel. 25 As John was fulfilling his course, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. But behold, one comes after me the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’
Following Christ’s triumph over the power of darkness in Cyprus, yet also in view of the difficulty of founding churches on that island, it became clear to Paul that the Holy Spirit did not want them to preach in Barnabas’ homeland. So he rose and sailed with his party toward the shores and high mountains of Anatolia. It is probable that Barnabas and John, his nephew, had preferred to stay on the warm island of Cyprus, and work with diligence and patience toward founding churches there. But Paul knew that his way was toward Anatolia. The compassionate Barnabas was not willing to depart from Paul, his fellow-worker, so he chose to leave his homeland rather than break the command of the Holy Spirit, which had joined them together in one service.
Paul sailed with his company in the power of the Lord to the near shore. He did not stay long in Perga, on the river Cestris, near the city of Antioch, but pressed forward about 160 kilometers. They passed over peaks of high mountains in a journey lasting 8 days, amid dangers, fatigue, oppressive heat, hunger, and thirst. John, the young man of Jerusalem, was not pleased with this journey or with the development of things thus far. He decided to leave the two apostles and go back home. Yet Barnabas preferred, once again, to stay with Saul, rather than to hold onto his personal relationship with his relative. He reluctantly bid farewell to his nephew, who neither continued on in the service of the Lord, nor had been chosen for this mission.
Paul and Barnabas, together with other companions, set out for Antioch in Asia Minor, the important commercial city located on the plains of Anatolia, 1000 meters above the sea. When they arrived in Antioch they did not immediately preach to the city in its public square, but first entered into the synagogue of the Jews. In times past the children of Abraham had received the light of the true God. Paul wanted to preach to them Jesus, who is the fullness of divine light for the entire world, and to draw them to His glory. This discourse, which Luke the Physician recorded Paul delivered there, can be considered a model for all other discourses Paul delivered in the synagogues of the Jews. Its intent was to convince the people of the Old Testament of the truth of Jesus Christ. If we penetrate deeply into this discourse, we will see how Paul and Barnabas relied on their faith and on the preaching of the Law and the Prophets, who considered the Old Testament to be the foundation and introduction to the New Testament.
We read that there were also some Gentiles meeting in the synagogue at Antioch with the Jews, men who worshiped God, admired the thought of monotheism, and valued the high standard of moral life of the people of the Old Testament. Paul spoke to these orthodox believers with great respect, just as he did to the Jews. Wherever Paul went he founded vigorous churches with such people, from those who feared and honored God.
Notice from our reading in v. 17- 25 the fourteen verbs which describe the work of God. You may realize that the history of the Old Testament is neither built on human superstition nor on theological research, but on an actual series of God´s acts. You cannot understand either the Old or the New Testament unless you fundamentally realize that God is the All-ruling, Omniscient, and Possessor of all. Peoples’ destinies are not moved by policies, disasters, or chance, but by God alone. He chooses individuals not because of their merit, but for the sake of His grace. He rejects the one who does not submit to His word. Study the different meanings of all the verbs explaining the work of God, so that you may acquire exceeding wisdom.
In His choosing of the fathers, God initiated the history of the world’s salvation and also completed the planning of His design, which is the coming of Christ. In the fulfilling of this divine history, the Lord set the people of the Old Testament free from bondage. He endured their mutiny in the wilderness with great patience, offered them land settlements in Canaan, appointed righteous judges to rule them, and set a king over them at their request. He anointed Saul to be their first king, who was a wonderful example at the beginning of his reign, after whose name the apostle of the Gentiles was named. As a young man he was proud of his royal name, “Saul”, but when he met Jesus, his King, he took His humility as an example. He put away the name of “Saul”, and named himself “Paul”, which signifies “the little one.”
The history of God crystallized in David the king, who was found to be a man after the Lord’s own heart. He repented of his sins and sought the will of God. There flowed from him by the Holy Spirit Psalms and prayers, which people have been praying ever since, for 3000 years. Christ himself confirmed some of the prophecies that came from David’s mouth. The Jews, however, thought these promises of God had not yet been fulfilled. They always wondered: “Where is the Son promised to come from David’s seed, who in His truth is the Son of the eternal God?” All the Jews knew of this essential promise and expected Christ to come, the divine King, who would guide their people and all the peoples to universal peace. Paul spoke a short statement to his hearers, stating that the Son of David, who at the same time is the Son of God, had come, and that He is Jesus of Nazareth, the Savior of the world. He is greater than all the Caesars of Rome, for he is true Man and true God, everlasting, holy, and glorious.
After this confrontation Paul mentioned truths about John the Baptist, whose message of repentance and baptism had spread even to Asia Minor, which had caused some Jews to think that he was the Christ. Paul clarified that John the Baptist had considered himself to be unworthy compared to Jesus. He was merely a servant of Him, and undeserving of being employed even in the meanest office for His sake. The Baptist had awaited the coming of Christ with an intense desire, and had guided all his disciples toward the coming Lord, desiring them to prepare his way.
PRAYER: O glorious, All-ruling Lord, help us not to center around our thoughts and selves, but to become links in the chain of Your history, to communicate the gospel to others, and to testify to Your works. It is not leaders and parties that plan our future, but You alone, our Lord. Teach us to confess Your name, that Your kingdom may come to us and to the entire world.
QUESTION:
- What is the impetus and aim of the history of God with men?