The Antioch Five Acts 13: 1-12 Lesson Thirty-four The passage before us today begins a new section of the book of Acts. No matter how a person chooses to outline Acts, it is evident that chapter 13 begins a new section; it describes another stage in the expansion of the church. You may recall that in our first lesson in Acts, we suggested two ways to outline the book. The first was: 1. The church originating in Jerusalem (chapters 1-7); 2. The church dispersing to Judea and Samaria (chapters 8-12); 3. The church impacting to the ends of the earth (chapters 13-28). Another outline could be based upon the key figures of Acts: 1. The ministry of the apostle Peter (chapters 1-12); 2. The ministry of the apostle Paul (chapters 13-28). Either way you approach it, beginning with chapter 13, we have a shift in the advance of the church and in the primary person God uses in that advance. So, the 13th chapter of Acts is a critical chapter in the flow of God's expanding of His Kingdom. It has been about 25 years since Pentecost and the church is flourishing. The final dimension of the plan in Acts chapter 1 is to go to the uttermost part of the earth; and by this time, a very effective base of operations has been planted in the pagan world, and that is the church at Antioch. This key church is the basic place we find ourselves in chapter 13. Antioch is the first real beachhead in a pagan world. The church had a great start chronicled for us in chapter 11. It was a marvelous church, Christ-honoring church, God-exalting church, Spirit-filled church, growing church, strong church; and it is just the kind of church that is ready to explode on the world. And, the focus is shifting. To this point in the history of the church, the focus has been on the city of Jerusalem and the person, Peter. The spotlight will now turn on Antioch and another person, Paul.
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 2 I. The Men (v. 1) There are five different men listed among the leadership of this new church. Since the Holy Spirit through Luke takes note of them, let s do the same. The five names of teachers tell an enormous amount about this church. Barnabas (Joseph) We know who he was. He was a Levite; that is, a Jewish priest. He did not come from Jerusalem, however. He came from Cyprus, so he was a Jew of the diaspora, those Jews who were scattered beyond Judah in Gentile lands. This means that he was a Jew who was in touch with Greek culture, perhaps even sympathetic to it. Simeon The list indicates that Simeon was from Cyrene - a city along the North African coast. He was called by this name "Niger," which is the Latin word meaning simply, "black-skinned". Simeon was a black North African believer. Lucius of Cyrene It was men from Cyprus and Cyrene who first went to Antioch and began to teach the Greeks (Acts 11:20). Since Lucius was from Cyrene and appears here only a few years later, we can assume that he was one of the men who went to Antioch to found the church. In other words, he was a missionary. Lucius is a Latin name, so he was probably brought up in a Roman culture. Manean Of him we read the interesting phrase, " who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch". This Herod was Herod Antipas - the one guilty of beheading John the Baptist and the same Herod before whom Jesus Christ stood while on trial. Manaen was brought up with this Herod. His relationship to Herod was described as "suntrophos". That word referred to someone being nursed by the same woman as a baby. It could be translated " Foster Brother_ By the grace of God, Herod's foster brother became a minister of the gospel; Herod became a murderer of a gospel messenger.
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 3 Saul Here in this passage, for the first time. He is called Paul. Saul was his Jewish name; Paul was his Roman name. Take note of the leadership of this church! A Jewish priest from Cyprus Barnabas ; a black man from Africa - Simeon_; a Roman - Lucius ; an aristocrat - Manean, and a converted Rabbi - Saul/Paul! The church's integration demonstrated in the diversity of its membership the full unity of all people within the body of Christ. Because this church was established, well-taught, and integrated, it was well-equipped to go into the pagan world with Christ's gospel. The church at Antioch became an example of unity in the face of diversity. The church in Antioch proves that prejudice is not fundamentally a problem of color, it is fundamentally a problem of character. If you convert the character, you eliminate the hatred. This church would become a microcosm of what God was going to do with the gospel - it would go to every tongue, tribe, and nation. II. The Mission (vv. 2-3) Imagine, relinquishing their best leadership -Barnabas and Saul! We see, for the first time in this verse, a local church led to see the need for a witness beyond themselves to the larger world. And then, they have a willingness to send some from within their body to carry out the task. Notice that it was the Holy Spirit that did the selecting; He sent them out. But, beyond sending them out, more importantly, He went with them By the way, we often have a wrong view of the Holy Spirit. We should think of Him not so much a power_ that _we use_; but as a person_ whose job it is to use us!
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 4 III. The Militant Magi (vv. 4-10) Now, look at verses 4 through 7a. Cyprus is a large island off the south coast of Turkey. The ancient world regarded Cyprus very much like we regard Hawaii or the Bahamas. Notice that Luke points out that from Salamis to Paphos they proclaimed the word of God; this was a preaching tour throughout the island. Luke chooses not to tell us about every event that transpired along the way, but chooses to tell us about one incident in Paphos. Verse 5 tells us they had brought along John Mark as their "helper." Some see him as the first ministerial intern. According to Colossians 4:10, he was Barnabas' young cousin. History tells us that the family of Sergius Paulas was a well-known family from which came many official statesmen throughout the empire over a long period of time. According to these verses, close at the side of Sergius Paulus is a first century magician, a diviner, a sorcerer. We have already met one such imposter in Acts chapter 8 Simon Magus. Charlatans like Simon Magus and Bar-Jesus, were smooth and knowledgeable. They practiced a combination of pseudo-spirituality and pseudo-science/mysticism. This apostate Jew had evidently rejected the Old Testament scriptures because they forbade any kind of sorcery. He was evidently powerful because he had become an advisor to Sergius. Notice verses 7b through 8. Verse 7 refers to him as Bar-Jesus, an Aramaic term meaning _Son of Jesus. Jesus was a common name in this period. That is why, in the gospels, the savior is called Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, meaning Jesus the Messiah, distinguishing him from others of the period also named Jesus. In verse 8, Luke refers to Bar-Jesus as Elymas meaning sorcerer or shaman. Continue to verses 9 and 10. How is that for being tactful?
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 5 Paul did not dialogue with Elymas, he called him a fraud. He did not try to seek some middle ground of compromise so that they could work together in cleaning up the immorality of Paphos, he called him a son of Satan. The word Paul uses for "deceit" can be translated bait_ or fishhook_ Paul is probably saying this while surrounded by dignitaries and other sorcerers. Now, if you go back to verse 6, you discover that Paul is actually making a pun of Elymas' given name. In other words, "Elymas, you claim to be Bar-Jesus, the enlightened son of the Savior. Really, you are _Bar-satan_, the devilish _son of satan." Paul is not finished. He also exposes the true ministry of Elymas, in verse 10. He accuses Elymas of taking truth and twisting it; taking clear scripture and convoluting it - manipulating it to make it say something it does not say. Continue to verse 11. The implication is that no one would lead him by the hand, so he stumbled about trying to find someone who would help him. No one wanted to -he was exposed as an evil, ambitious man who had deceived Sergius' entire household. We never read of Elymas again. But, we do read more about Sergius Paulus that I will share in a moment. Look at verse 12. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed The statement is plain enough and is in keeping with Luke's general usage elsewhere (e.g. 14:1; 17:34; 19:18). He gives no indication, as he did in relation to Simon Magus (8:13,18ff.), that the proconsul's faith was profession without reality. As a result, an entire family of royal standing became followers of Christ. IV. Concluding Admonishment What can we learn from this incident that applies to our lives, our world, our church for today?
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 6 1. We must open our eyes to the harvest fields of the world. We all know the Great Commission, but are we being obedient to it? To be a Christian is to be mission-minded We must engage people with the gospel outside the walls of the church. Isn t that the Great Commission? And, isn t that what the early church was doing? Isn t that what Philip was doing in Samaria? And now, Barnabas and Paul? Churches today are more interested in gathering_ and counting_ than in engaging_ and _sending aren t we? Someone has said that sending capacity, not _seating_ capacity, should be the measure of success for the New Testament church. The mission of the church is the sending of people by the church at the leading of the Holy Spirit into the world. Unfortunately, we have become satisfied with maintenance Christianity let s just keep things as they are. We need to have eyes for the world the world of lost sinners. 2. When God s people are _active_, so is _satan. Divisiveness, immorality, bankruptcy, loss of vision and purpose, collapse of doctrinal distinctives, empty pews, disillusioned leaders are all tools of Satan. Are we running out of harvest? If the Protestant evangelical church in America simply kept up with the population in America today, we should have approximately two hundred thousand more churches. Satan not only resists us on the outside as did Elymas, but would you notice verse 13 and a remarkable insight into how he resists us on the inside? You have the outside attack from Elymas, and you have the inside attack from John Mark_ The church in its mission is very often devastated internally by disunity, discord, dissension, division, an unwillingness to go, as much as it is devastated externally. We are engaged in a battle over the truth. Satan will attack from without and
Acts Lesson Thirty-four, page 7 from within. However, for those who, like Paul and Barnabas, are willing to speak the truth, with boldness and relentlessness, you will not see churches folding, you will see churches flourishing_. There is a cost to sincere service for Christ. Never share your faith and you will never look be embarrassed. Never stand for righteousness on a social issue and you will never be rejected. Never reach out to the needy and you will never be taken advantage of. Never give your heart and it will never be broken. Never go to Cyprus and you will never be subjected to a dizzy, heart-convulsing confrontation with Satan. Seriously follow Christ and you will experience a gamut of sorrows almost completely unknown to the unbeliever. But of course you will also know the joy of adventure with the Lord of the universe and of spiritual victory as you live a life of allegiance to him. Always remember: there will be spiritual warfare, but we are on the winning side. I could not help but be reminded of Revelation 5:9-10 where John hears the heavenly chorus singing, "Worthy are You to take the book, and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth." Lesson Thirty-five: Turning the World Right Side Up Acts 13:14-52