Reasoning with the Resistant — Acts 13-14

0:01 Not going to do a ton of review this morning. If you would, if you missed it, you could go back to Andy's message last week. I think you did a very good job of a lot of the review of ACTS so far. So if you missed that, check that out or if you wanna give it another listen, I'm sure that you'll find it helpful and a blessing to even learn something new the second time around. Before we get into it, let's just go to the Lord in prayer.

0:31 Dear Lord, we're just grateful this morning to be here on a Sunday. Sort of like that one so many years ago, Lord, but we can stand here and and being amongst the body and be encouraged because Christ is risen. He's risen indeed. And we're just grateful to be here as a body. We thank you that we were able to celebrate that in the Lord's Supper to break the bread and take the cup and to remember his death and what he's done for us on the cross.

1:03 We pray, Lord, as we come to your word that, you would just open our hearts that we'd be able to learn from it and that you would apply it to our lives. We pray this in Jesus name, amen. You might remember Paul's commission to the Gentiles. If you look briefly at Acts chapter nine, a little bit connection into the life of Paul. Acts chapter nine verses fifteen and sixteen say, but the Lord said to him, speaking to Ananias talking about Paul, says, go for he is a chosen vessel of mine to bear my name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.

1:51 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake. And so when you get into this passage, that's what we're going to be talking about this morning about Paul's commission to go to the Gentiles, about his yearning and his heart for his own people continued to go into the synagogue and reason with his own people, the Jews, And yet they still rejected the message of Christ, the message of forgiveness. And when I was thinking about coming to this passage on Resurrection Sunday, I came up with this question. Why did the early Christians, why did Paul and Barnabas, why did some of the other early Christians or what was one of the reasons that they suffered persecution? And I believe that you could take a look at this and even as we heard last week Andy talk about the different messages that we hear in the book of Acts.

2:57 And one way to answer that was because they preached justification by faith in the resurrected Christ and not by works of the law. That's why specifically the Jews went and they pursued the Christians. Take a look at Acts chapter 13 as we lead up to Acts chapter 14 verses 37 through 39. This is in Paul's message. It says, but he whom God raised up saw no corruption.

3:34 Speaking of the resurrection of Christ, therefore let it be known to you brethren that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins. And by him, everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. And so right there, Paul is telling those Jewish people and the surrounding crowds that to be justified, you must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved. That you can't be justified by keeping the law of Moses. He would go on, later to write the, book of Romans talking all about justification.

4:41 Are you ready to reason with others? Are you ready to preach the gospel? I found it very helpful going with Ray Gonzales on many missionary trips to Mexico. And it helped me to prepare and to be ready to preach the gospel. Time and time and again he would tell us in our groups and in our teams, you got to be ready.

5:06 You got to have messages ready to preach to those. You got to be ready to give it in seven minutes. Give those points. Be ready to preach the gospel. Not only that, are you ready to be persecuted for that message?

5:24 That's why Paul and the early Christians and Christians today suffer for the sake of the gospel. Because time and time again, you might experience and I certainly have experienced talking to other people that you can't be saved by your own works. You can't keep the law. You have to place your faith and trust in Jesus Christ. And the fact and message of the resurrection itself is totally set apart and the message of the resurrection preaches that.

5:59 The fact that He rose again and He didn't have to die for His own sins, but He died for the sins of you and I. Are you ready for the possibility that maybe others you know, other Christians would be persecuted because you preach the gospel, because you believe the same thing? Just some questions to think about this morning. Let's get to our passage here in Acts chapter 14. We're going to break it up into three different sections.

6:34 Verses one through seven. I like to call it reasoning with the resistant those resistant to the gospel. Verse one says, Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews and so spoke that a great multitude, both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed. So this is pivoting right off of chapter 13. Paul was kicked out of the synagogue and he went over to Iconium and it was still his attitude in his heart for his own people.

7:16 Even as you see throughout the different epistles that he writes in Galatians and even in second Timothy, he has a heart for his own people to be saved. And so he... We still find him going back to the synagogue even in amongst Luke's rendition of Acts and and the story that he's preaching and how he is pivoting towards the Gentiles. You still see Paul's heart for the Jewish people, his own people. Second Timothy two verses nine and ten say, for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer even to the point of chains, but the word of God is not chained.

7:58 Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect. The elect speaking about the Jewish people that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. And so there he is. He's speaking in the synagogue and a great multitude of both the Jews and the Greeks believed. Verse two, But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren.

8:32 It's not unlike what we saw in chapter 13. In chapter 13 verse 45 when Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch in Asia Minor, it says, But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul. And so here you see these people that are opposed to the gospel, and they're poisoning the minds against those that were hearing the message of Paul. And they were speaking falsehood against that message that they were preaching. Verse three, therefore they stayed there a long time speaking boldly in the Lord who is bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.

9:37 Why do you think Paul and Barnabas stayed there? I was thinking about this myself. Since they stayed there and they continued speaking boldly in the Lord. I believe that Paul and Barnabas had a conviction and they had a heart for the truth to be heard. They had those people that were poisoning the minds of those around them.

10:01 It hadn't gotten violent yet, but they were speaking falsely. And Paul had a concern for the truth. I believe he had a concern for those that he was still speaking there in Iconium too. And he still wanted to reason with them. He wanted to speak with them about the Lord Jesus and to bear witness to the word of His grace.

10:25 And we see the accompanying signs and wonders that Paul and Barnabas did there. But I believe also in verse three that in their preaching, in their boldness in the Lord speaking for the Lord and trying to reason with those that were poisoning the minds and certainly others that were hearing that. I think he had concern for those people that were kind of still on the fence, didn't know what they were believing about that. But in that, what was the key that Paul and Barnabas did as they reasoned with those people? It says that they were bearing witness to the word of His grace.

11:10 All throughout the New Testament we hear about Paul speaking about the grace of God. That was the thing that he boasted in. Not in his own works, fact that he couldn't keep the law, but he was preaching the grace of God. And it also says that they were speaking boldly in the Lord. I think that might have reference to the Holy Spirit.

11:33 In these times when they were reasoning with those, they relied on the Holy Spirit to help them and to give answer to those that were having questions and also those that were speaking falsehood and in opposition to the things spoken by Paul and by Barnabas. Verse four, but the multitude of the city was divided, part sided with the Jews and part with the apostles. So even though they stayed there and they had spoke boldly in the Lord in and amongst this opposition, there's still this division. You see different people, they sided with the Jews and they were maybe passionate like Paul was before his conversion and part sided with the apostles. And so in verse five it says, And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews with their rulers to abuse them and stone them, They became aware of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lyconia and to the surrounding region, and they were preaching the gospel there.

12:50 When it comes to the gospel, violence isn't the answer and so, Paul and Barnabas got wind of what was going to happen to them. They heard maybe about maybe from some of the brethren there that had believed. They had told them, Look, a violent attempt is going to be made and they're going to try and stone you. And so they, I believe by the power of the Holy Spirit, they had this discernment to say, Well, I think it's time to go. Let's go and we're gonna go over to Lystra and to Derbe and we're gonna preach the gospel there.

13:26 When is it time to move on? You might ask yourself. Might be sharing with someone in your life, maybe a family member, maybe someone at work. Whoever you come in contact in your life with, sharing the gospel with them and testifying of what the Lord has done in your life. You might ask that question, when is it time to move on?

13:50 And I think that that is a time that we can certainly rely on the Word of God and and rely on the experience that we have that with that person but also to rely on the spirit of God to give that discernment and and know maybe it's not a time to continue sharing as frequently but maybe we can share with someone else and move on quote unquote and share with someone else. Not to say that you move on fully, right? The Lord, until, someone passes away, they have a chance to put their faith and trust in the Lord. And so we would always be ready to talk with that person and to reason with that person and to preach that message. But I think that it comes to that, I think that the spirit of the Lord gives wisdom on answering that question and in the different circumstances of life of when to move on and when to go and preach to others.

14:54 And I think that we see that here with Paul and Barnabas. They went over to Lystra and Derbe and they were going to preach the gospel there. Going on to verse eight. Verses eight through 18, one of the larger sections here. Paul and Barnabas are preaching the gospel in Lystra and Derbe.

15:53 And here's a great example of the different belief systems that Paul and Barnabas encountered on their missionary journey. Verse eight it says, and in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting a cripple from his mother's womb who had never walked. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed said with a loud voice, Stand up straight on your feet. And he leaped and walked.

16:32 So here you have this occasion where Paul sees somebody and he sees him and he sees that he wants to be healed and so he heals them in the name of the Lord Jesus. He says, Stand up on your feet. Why miracles? Why are there miracles still in the New Testament? Well I think that as you read the New Testament, you see that we didn't have scripture yet back then.

16:59 We meaning Christians didn't have the scripture, didn't have the New Testament. And so these signs were just to accompany the apostles and the early Christians as a sort of a confirmation of the authority of God. And I think also, an association. So it's an association back to what Christ did. When Christ came, he had healed people as well and he did certain signs and wonders and I so I think that the lord provided that for the early Christians and the apostles to do as a way of confirming their message and a way of reminding them of who they're preaching about.

17:41 They're preaching about the Lord Jesus Christ and what He has done and the ultimate miracle of salvation. I think that is the ultimate miracle. But you see the response of this miracle here. Just a side note, this is the first time I think that we see that Paul didn't go to the synagogue. So now he's just speaking to the Gentile people.

18:12 But we see even as he performs this miracle, we see the human response to it. In verse 11 it says, now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices saying in the Lycaonian language, the gods have come down to us in the likeness of men. And Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was in the front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates intending to sacrifice with the multitudes. If you compare this to, the response, in an earlier account when we have that encounter with Cornelius.

19:01 I think it's a little bit different. I think that when Paul or excuse me, when Cornelius fell down in front of Peter, I think he was just a little bit misguided. But here you see this response by those people. You see them go and they get the priest of Zeus and they they think this is a total encounter with the pagan gods of Greek culture. Might remember those Greek myths.

19:28 And so they have this response of they think that one of the gods of the Greek culture has come down to them. In just a total response of idolatry, they elevated Paul above the message that he was preaching. I think that it's still common today even in our church. Us as human beings and included, myself included, we can sometimes look at someone and elevate that person above the message of Christ. But it...

20:08 And even as we see in pop culture, famous people in our culture, we can elevate people above the message of Christ even in Christendom. William McDonald in his commentary had this note that I found helpful. This entire movement was a more subtle form of danger to the Christian faith than all the other forms of opposition recorded. For a successful Christian worker, a greater peril than persecution is the tendency for people to center their spiritual attention not on Christ but on his servant. Certainly a warning for us that we wouldn't center on a particular Christian figure but that we would be able to keep our focus centered on the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

21:08 And so here we see Paul and Barnabas reasoning again. They're reasoning with these religious people. Best way to put it or in a blunt way is pagan people. Verse 14, but when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this, they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude, crying out and saying, Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all the things that are in them.

21:59 Who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless, he did not leave himself without witness and that he did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. But verse 18 says, and with these sayings, they could scarcely restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them. What are the some of the things that we learn about how Paul reasoned with these people? I think he had absolute boldness in the Lord to call out this falsehood.

22:38 He says to he says to them, men, why are you doing these things? We all... We're also men. We're of the same nature as you and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things. That's what he calls the gods of the Greek culture.

22:57 Useless things to the living God. He harkens them to the Almighty, the living God, Jesus Christ. And I think one of, the other things that Paul does, in here that we can learn from is how aware he was of his audience. He understood, these different religious people. I think he maybe had a little bit of a working knowledge of the Greek culture.

23:26 He says here, Who made the living God, who made heaven, who made the earth, and who made the sea. In the Greek culture, in the gods represented of of the Greek culture, you have one that's the Lord of the heaven, one that's the Lord of the earth, and one that's the Lord of the sea. And what Paul is saying here, he's saying these aren't the right gods, You need to worship the living God, the Almighty. He's the one who made all of it. He made the earth, he made the heaven, and he made the sea.

24:00 And he again points them back to the Almighty God, away from himself and back to the living God. And he preaches to them the witness of creation, the witness of God in his control of history. He did not leave himself without witness. He preached to them that God gives the rain from heaven and the fruitful seasons and fills our hearts with food and with gladness. But he was preaching and it says that he scarcely could restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them.

24:42 Doesn't seem as though they had any sort of persuasion to them. They weren't persuaded to the faith and to Christianity to put their faith in the Lord Jesus. They scarcely, he scarcely restrained them from sacrificing to them. Going on to verse 19. So Paul and Barnabas are preaching.

25:40 They had a a big uproar in Iconium. They heard about it. They heard that these people were gonna go and get them. They didn't like the message they were preaching. I'm sure that you had some of those Jews that were so zealous to keep the law of the Old Testament following Paul and not liking his message, not liking the message of grace, not liking the message of the resurrection.

26:09 The fact that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures and that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. He didn't have to die for his own sins. He died for our sins. And no matter... No amount of good works can we do to earn the forgiveness of sins.

26:30 This is the message that Paul was preaching to those people. And it's that message that the Jews persecuted him for. And so they followed him to Antioch and Iconium and they finally caught up with him. And that scripture that we read earlier about how God was speaking to Ananias came true. Says that he's a chosen vessel of mine to go and preach to the Gentiles, but I'm also gonna show him how many things that he's gonna suffer for my sake.

27:05 And so they took Paul and they dragged him out of the city and they stoned him. Was he dead? Was he actually dead? I don't know. It's something that maybe we can have discussion on as believers and certainly a secondary issue.

27:26 But it says in verse 20 it says, However, when the disciples gathered around Him, He rose up and went into the city. I think that you can really see Paul's heart here and his perseverance. Even after he rose up, all the disciples gathered around him and he rose up and he had this continuing perseverance to preach the gospel. And so he went back into the city and the next day he departed with Barnabas into Derbe. And what did he do after that?

28:04 We see him in verse 21. What does he do? It says, And when they preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch. Think about that testimony. I can't imagine that Paul didn't see some of the very people that went and drug him out of the city at Lystra to stone him.

28:34 What a testimony that Paul would rise up even after being stoned. All of the people around him thinking him dead. He got back up and he continued to preach the gospel and make many disciples and suffer for the name of Christ. And here we see him, he's reasoning with the repentant in verses twenty two and twenty three. It says, He strengthened the souls of the disciples and He exhorted them to continue in the faith and saying, We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.

29:38 It says that he was strengthening the souls of the disciples and he was exhorting them saying that through many tribulations, you must enter into the kingdom of God. And at this time as an apostle, he had the authority and commissioned by God to go and appoint elders there. So he was preaching and and there are different churches I'm sure being founded in those different cities. And so he appointed elders in those churches, in every church there, so that they would have leaders and that they would have shepherds to guide them. And then what did he do?

30:18 We see this repeating pattern in the New Testament of what the early Christians do. What a great example for you and I to pray and to fast. They were they were devoted to prayers and oftentimes we see that when they pray together as believers, they also fasted. And from there, Paul commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. We see that same idea of when he was previously sent out from Antioch that they would entrust him to the Lord on this mission.

30:56 And so Paul does the same thing. I was trying to get into Paul's head as he's finishing up there. He's finishing encouraging them and he has to leave these people, these new churches, these new believers. But what what does he do? He entrusts them to the Lord.

31:14 He almost says to himself that I trust the Lord that that it's the Lord who saved them and that it's it's He's that is gonna continue directing them and to lead them in whom that they had believed. So to wrap up here this morning, are we ready to reason? Are we ready to give it a defense for the gospel? Or another question is, are we ready to suffer? Are we ready to suffer for preaching the message of the gospel?

32:22 First Peter three verses 14 through 17 say, But even if you should suffer for righteousness's sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats nor be troubled. But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts or be devoted to the Lord and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness and fear. Having a good conscience that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. For it is better if it is the will of God to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

33:15 Let's just close in a word of prayer. Dear Lord, we're grateful this morning to read your word, to be encouraged by it. Lord, I do ask that you would help us to be ready to reason, Lord. Help us to be ready to give a testimony to those that when they ask about what we believe about the Lord Jesus. The fact that he died, that he was buried, and that he rose again.

33:43 That it can be proven that we can reason with others about how we can be saved, about how they can be saved and place their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus. I just pray for for wisdom also in those circumstances. Each and every one of us have different circumstances in our life, different people that we're talking to, that we're praying for. Please, just give us wisdom as we have those conversations, as we have that witness and the character and the reason with them about the Lord Jesus. Lord, I also pray that you would help us to be ready to be sufferers for the gospel, that we would preach with meekness and fear, Lord, but that you just give us boldness to continue to preach this message even if we face opposition, even if we face persecution through being made fun of or even, I'm sure, there are those even in our country and especially around the world suffering physical persecution for this message.

34:50 Lord, we pray Lord that you would comfort them as well. We just thank you again for this time. Bless us now as we go from here. In Jesus name, amen.