Plymothian

Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer but whose father was a Greek.² The believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. ³ Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. ⁴ As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. ⁵ So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

Circumcised for a Good Cause

Mixed marriages can lead to both problems and opportunities.  They can dilute the truth because only half of the house pulls that way, and they can allow for a broader perspective because both parents view life differently.  I was raised by a believing mother and an agnostic father.  They viewed life quite differently.  My father would try and cut corners by throwing me over the barrier at the London Underground so he wouldn’t have to buy a ticket.  My mother would play worship songs on the stereo when my father was not at home.

We don’t know why a Jewish woman was married to a Gentile man.  It is possible that she didn’t have much choice in the matter, but Timothy, like Paul was ideally positioned to communicate a true faith to the Gentiles.  He knew the faith of the Jews from his mother and he knew the truth of Greek learning from his father’s culture.  However, he still needed to accommodate those who thought he wasn’t devoted to God enough.  Jewish Christians at this time still preferred for people to be circumcised.  Timothy’s mother had obviously not been able to carry out that rite, so now that Timothy is entering adulthood he is circumcised and so identifies himself with Christianity’s Jewish roots.

Timothy himself becomes an illustration of the fusion of the old with the new.  The traditions are upheld, but the new teaching of Jesus Christ is built upon that foundation.

Would we be willing to go through physical pain and have a non-essential rite performed in order to avoid causing any offence to more traditional followers of Jesus?  Are we all willing to give a little for the greater cause of unity?

Prayer

Help me to see areas where I cause offence.  Help me not to be defensive, even when others’ observation of my conduct cause a little pain.  We all need to grow and sometimes we need to sacrifice a little in order to maintain unity.  Help us to make sacrifices.

Questions

1. With whom did Paul want to work?
2. What strengths did Paul’s new companion bring to the team?
3. What did the new companion lack?
4. With whom do you minister?
5. How do you need to adapt to preserve unity?

³⁶ Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” ³⁷ Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, ³⁸ but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. ³⁹ They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, ⁴⁰ but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. ⁴¹ He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

Sharp Disagreement

I actually like the fact the Luke reports Barnabas and Paul’s sharp disagreement over John Mark.  It shows authenticity in the reporting of Luke.  He doesn’t just adopt a censored perspective of showing everything as wonderful.  Some people resist showing their heroes in a negative light, but the current trend toward vulnerability is a good one.  The twentysomethings that Kelli and I meet with are often transparent but are looking for others with whom they can feel secure.  Security does not come for others when we protect ourselves from looking bad.  They just feel like they have to live up to the perfection which we project.

Families and churches that I have been close to have often had sharp disagreements.  That is a part of their story.  A story becomes rich when it shows the contrast of light and darkness.  Even Jesus’ story is made richer by revealing the failure of the disciples to understand him and follow him during his life and death.

In a fallen world sharp disagreements will happen.  Paul and Barnabas were both leaders who would be unafraid to voice their opinions.  Barnabas gives John Mark another chance and in his later writings Paul is reconciled to John Mark as well.

God used this disagreement for his good, though.  He sent out two missionary teams rather than one.  Even sharp disagreements can work for good without any one side of the argument having to ‘win’.  God uses all things for good.  He allows evil to happen so that good may result.

Prayer

May we be prepared for conflict, but may we not lose love and respect for each other.  When there is disagreement, may we see how you can possibly use even uncomfortable situations for good.

Questions

1. Who was in disagreement?
2. Why?
3. What was the outcome?
4. With whom are you in disagreement?
5. How can God use that for his own glory?

 Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers. ²³ With them they sent the following letter:

³⁰ So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. ³¹ The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. ³² Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. ³³ After spending some time there, they were sent off by the believers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them. ³⁵ But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

Unofficial Troublemakers

Some people feel the need to tell others exactly how they should behave.  I know people who are proud of their very strict standards for how they live out their faith.  Of course, I am upset when I see people who behave badly and call it Christian liberty.  Some Christians behave in critical self-righteous ways.  Jesus had harsh words for those who used religion to enslave themselves and others.

There is a hipster class of Christians in their twenties and thirties who are very judgmental of those who they feel have been judgmental.  Some of them join groups like Facebook’s Moody Bible Institute Heretics.  Ironically the group has a strict code of conduct posted on their closed page.  The group has a wide variety of membership, some of the people listed I would even consider friends.  However, rather than seek harmony and peace with conservatives at Moody they have been stirring up trouble by actively attacking the ‘bastion’ of conservative theology that is Moody Bible Institute.

Of course, Moody has legalistic people in it.  It has people who talk regularly as though Christianity were all about behavior.  There are students who police the hallways and launch quickly into interventions to save their classmates from sins which they feel are more heinous than their own.  Some professors do say things in class that result in students feeling shamed for asking questions.  In my experience, though, it is not nearly as derogatory as the put-downs which I received at the hands of liberal theologians in Exeter University.

I would like to see people policing each other less.  I’d like to be less policed by the negativity and critical spirit of The Moody Bible Institute Heretics and I would like to see people at Moody Bible Institute police each other less and support each other more.  The primary commandments are to love God with everything we have and love our neighbour as ourselves.  This does not mean that we all leave each other alone, but it does mean that we leave all bitterness and mean-spiritedness behind.  Some people today call such things ‘hateful’, but I think ‘hate’ has been politicized and used as a tool to manipulate people to our own ends.  I think that defending against hate is less important than to sit down with each other with open hearts.

I wonder why people from Jerusalem felt the need to police the Christians elsewhere.  I wonder why we do the same.  It was shown in the end that it wasn’t the problem of those who were being policed.  It was shown eventually that those who were doing the policing had the problem.  Although the Moody Bible Institute Heretics are evidently glad to be done with those of us who are still tied with Moody Bible Institute, I do not long for their behaviors to change.  I long for some kind of reconciliation of relationship.  I long for a mutual unconditional acceptance of each person whilst talking positively about what changes might benefit each person in the long run.  There are road-blocks to that on both sides.

Prayer

Dear Father, let us find relationship and peace.  Of course, some of our behaviors are best left behind, but let us be careful how we communicate that.  Show us how to establish safe places through accepting relationships where truth can be welcomed as a path to health.

Questions

1. Why were the Christians in Jerusalem conflicted over the behavior of Christians in Antioch?
2. Why did Christians in Antioch feel relieved after being told that the rules they had to follow were minimal?
3. What is the relationship between rules and relationship?
4. How do conservative churches and colleges communicate a cold adherence to rules?
5. How can people who disagree over various rules continue living mutually respectful and mutually supportive lives?

Here is a post from a Moody Heretic with whom I would like to sit down and have a coffee:

http://www.theincorrigiblegingers.com/2011/09/moody-bible-institute-heretics.html

Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” ² This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. ³ The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. ⁴ When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

⁵ Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

⁶ The apostles and elders met to consider this question. ⁷ After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. ⁸ God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. ⁹ He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.¹⁰ Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? ¹¹ No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

¹² The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. ¹³ When they finished, James spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me. ¹⁴ Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles. ¹⁵ The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

¹⁹ “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. ²⁰ Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. ²¹ For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

How Strict?

It is often said that Christianity is not about the rules but about a relationship.  Some people even say that it is not a religion, it is a relationship.  These statements are flawed, but they try and communicate something helpful.  The Christian faith has an odd relationship with behavior.  The Jewish faith is the foundation of Christianity.  Anyone who has read the Old testament knows that there are a lot of rules.  Some of the rules are still to be obeyed for all time by everyone.  Other rules are just for the time before Christ.  Which ones are which?

This is a huge issue today because many ‘smart’ people are criticizing Christians over sexuality.  The sexual revolution in the sixties flung wide a gate that Freud had pushed open.  Christians sexually repress themselves and others, so the argument goes, and freedom from sexual repression leads to self-actualization.   Now we sex fills our billboards, our T.V. screens and the conversations at the local bar.  Freedom is equated with freedom from restraint.  However, in ignoring ancient rules we are creating new problems.  Perhaps our libertine attitudes are partly responsible for the anxiety and depression with which we still struggle.  If everything is meant to become amazing when we are free from restraint, what do we do when reality shows us the opposite?

The opposite pole of the debate is to embrace a freedom that is free from everything.  This is often based in fear.  I believe that by controlling all of the variables I can guarantee the outcome that I want.  The ‘certain people’ mentioned above had bought into this kind of religion.  There are those who want to keep God at bay and keep themselves from harm by following the rules.  In effect, there are those who want a system by which they can control the gods and save themselves.  In the Jewish faith God provided ritual laws which people could try and keep so that they would remain blameless and righteous before God.  Of course, ultimately the nation could not do that.  It kept mixing in rules from other religions, it kept being to to self rather than God, and in the end the whole nation was under judgement.

Jesus provides freedom from ritual law but not from moral law.  We do not need to go to a temple, avoid cooking a goat in its mother’s milk, or weaving together two fabrics.  Those laws have served their purpose and are completed by Jesus’ death.  The law of morality, though, is built into the fabric of creation.  The results of the choices that we make for laissez faire sexuality create instability and insecurity.  The way we lie to each other shields us from the authenticity that is the bedrock of heart-to-heart relationship.  The way we justify white-collar theft undermines the long term integrity of our businesses.

A person who loves God finds that Jesus has removed all the rules and formulas for access.  The Way is wide open.  However, those who truly find God live life differently.  It is not because they have to but because they want to serve the one who has set them free and wish to live in harmony with His Creation.

Prayer

Dear God, I am saddened by how Christians are seen to be uptight and afraid.  Help us to see the freedom that we have and to communicate that clearly.  May the world find the freedom from themselves and their desires which lead them into darkness.  May we all come to the light.

Questions

1. Who wanted Christians to live stricter lives?
2. How was the problem of obedience to ritual law addressed?
3. How do you evaluate the early church’s solution?
4. How do you see Christians as either embracing law or grace to excess?
5. How can Christians better communicate the lifestyle that God calls us to live?

They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, ²² strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. ²³ Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. ²⁴ After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, ²⁵ and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶ From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. ²⁷ On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. ²⁸ And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.

Return Journey

Old friends from Plympton, England are sharing memories on Facebook at the moment of our times at Woodford Primary School.  It seems like an age away, but I still remember my mother driving me to the school on her scooter and dropping me off.  I remember sunny days on the field and icy days sliding across the playground.  Although I have fond memories of the school, and of Woodford Methodist Church next door, I would find it hard to live in Plymouth.  I would have to deal with a lot of memories that aren’t so pleasant.  I would have to face, once more, the feelings of shame that developed as I went through secondary school and was punished for my lack of organisation and failed to live up to my potential.

Going back to Pakistan and Japan would be somewhat painful for me, too.  Again, I did not live life focused on things that really matter.  I was immature and foolish.  However, all of my fears in going back are based in a focus on myself.  Paul longed to go back to places that he had lived because he saw beyond himself to what God was doing.  He had many regrets about how he had persecuted the church and been so proud.  However, although he had regrets he did not feel shame.  He was able to proclaim that in his folish and weakness God was shown to be all the greater.

Although some cities had driven Paul out, stoned him, or persecuted him, he did not fear how he would be received.  He went back and built into the churches.  He reported to the churches all that God was doing.  He encouraged his friends.

My self-image has been so poor that I have believed people are best rid of me when circumstances draw us apart.  God has been leading me to challenge that and make connections with the past.  Admittedly it is painful to maintain ties with former students and old friends.  On the one hand I think that I have nothing to offer them.  On the other hand, God can use me in unexpected ways – especially in my weakness.  I have found that challenging my assumptions and revisiting some of the places and people that I have left behind brings some peace.  God used Paul to encourage those he had left behind – maybe God can use us to touch the lives of those who were once dear to us.

Prayer

Let us go back to the people who once knew us.  May they see a change in us that speaks of your loving care and grace.  May we tell stories to those you place around us that speak of you.  May the world know your name, even in places that we would have left behind.

Questions

1. What towns did Paul visit in the above passage?
2. Considering how Paul was treated in some of these towns, why go back?
3. How do you think those who heard Paul’s stories from the mission field felt?
4. Which missionaries do you support?  Do you hear stories from them?
5. How might you go back to a place which you once left and encourage people with yur story?

⁸ In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birthand had never walked. ⁹ He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed ¹⁰ and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹ When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” ¹² Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.¹³ The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ¹⁵ “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. ¹⁶ In the past, he let all nations go their own way. ¹⁷ Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” ¹⁸ Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

¹⁹ Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.²⁰ But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

Not Gods

Although we have union with Christ, we take on his redeemed form of humanity and not his deity.  Our flesh is redeemed and our spirit is renewed, but it is not that we become gods.  We have strength and abilities that we could only dream of.  They are powers for good and not for evil and we need discernment about when to use them.

Paul and Barnabas lived a life walking in the Spirit.  When they saw a person who was struggling with spiritual or physical oppression, the Spirit would often move them to action.  Healings were not as common in ancient times as a read through the Bible might lead us to believe.  Also the healing of someone would be so monumental that it would draw attention.

It is said that in the region above a story was told where the gods visited the region in disguise but found that they were not well-received.  In response to not being well-received they brought destruction to the land.  To avoid this happening again the people were vigilant. This makes sense of their reaction in declaring the physically impressive Barnabas as Zeus and the primary speaker, Paul, as his messenger.

Prayer

May we be so aware of the power available to us that we are in danger of being declared gods.  Let us know what you want to do in our age and have the will to do it.

Questions

1. What action did Paul and Barnabas  perform that disrupted people?
2. How did the people get confused?
3. Why do you think things fell apart?
4. What acts do Christians perform powerfully today?
5. How are Christian acts interpreted?

At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue.There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. ² But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. ³ So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. ⁴ The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. ⁵ There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. ⁶ But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, ⁷ where they continued to preach the gospel.

As Usual

This short account of the visit to Iconium distills the essential nature of Paul’s strategy.  He first goes to the Jewish synagogue which generally responds badly to the idea of change.  Then Paul is well received among the gentiles who like new things and are open to the truth.  Finally conflict arises which allows the truth of God’s gospel to be displayed in power.  Either God supernaturally delivers our heroes or they perform some jaw-dropping act.

This gives us an idea of what we might do.  We can start by talking to religious types like lapsed Catholics, Jewish neighbours, or Muslim colleagues at work.  However, some of them will be quite set in their beliefs, kind of like we are.  Then we can go to those who are seeking to make sense of life and give them a saviour who cares about them in their distress.  We can go to where the people are and talk to them about life.

Ultimately we will cause controversy.  The press is often opposed to biblical ideals and academia lifts man up on a pedestal whilst trying to put the dunce cap on Christians.  However, some will be challenged.  Some will believe.  It will be worth it.

I am challenged by the two Jehovah’s Witnesses who came by this morning.  They were very pleasant and we talked for a while.  They are motivated by a system that I belief is flawed.  However, I sit on the truth more often than I should because I am afraid of causing an offence.

Prayer

may I not seek to protect myself but to speak about you.  May I call to mind Paul and his companions as they blazed a trail in a hostile environment.

Questions

1. Where did Paul go?
2. Outline the events that took place there.
3. How did Paul’s visits often end?
4. How are our conversations with others about God going?
5. Where are there people who God would want us to talk to?

¹³ From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. ¹⁵ After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”

¹⁶ Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! ¹⁷ The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country; ¹⁸ for about forty years he endured their conduct in the wilderness; ¹⁹ and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance. ²⁰ All this took about 450 years.

“After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. ²¹ Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. ²² After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’

²³ “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. ²⁴ Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. ²⁵ As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’

²⁶ “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. ²⁷ The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. ²⁸ Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. ²⁹ When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the crossand laid him in a tomb. ³⁰ But God raised him from the dead, ³¹ and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.

³² “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors ³³ he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:

³⁴ God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,

³⁵ So it is also stated elsewhere:

³⁶ “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. ³⁷ But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.

³⁸ “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. ³⁹ Through him everyone who believesis set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. ⁴⁰ Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

⁴² As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. ⁴³ When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.

⁴⁴ On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. ⁴⁵ When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him.

⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. ⁴⁷ For this is what the Lord has commanded us:

⁴⁸ When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

⁴⁹ The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. ⁵⁰ But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. ⁵¹ So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. ⁵² And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

An Exclusive Club

I was raised in the Plymouth Brethren.  My church was welcoming and loving, but some of the Plymouth Brethren in other churches are ‘exclusive’.  They are joyous to find people who are part of their club, but they are deeply skeptical of anyone who entertains ideas from the outside.  Paul brings the Jewish people in Pisidian Antioch a message which he weaves into their common history.  It is easy for them to see how Jesus is a continuation of their own story.  Jesus is presented as very Jewish and the Jewish people are intrigued to learn about one of their own.

However, Paul is not just interested in presenting a Jesus who is for Jewish people only and this ticks the Jewish people off.  They are married to a kind of elitism which has no room for outsiders.  Although in recent years Christians have a reputation for excluding people and being intolerant, the history of the faith is one that has been open to all who choose Jesus.  In the present climate, though, people are not really coming to Jesus and surrendering all they have.  They are demanding that Jesus come to them and that he surrender all of who he is to fit them.  People, like the Jewish group in the story, are not looking for change but are looking for an affirmation of who they already are.  Before we condemn the Jewish people or those who are obvious about staying the same, are we changing?  Is Jesus transforming us each day?  Are we conforming to his story or are we insisting that he fit into the story we are already telling?

Prayer

May we not just seek to be affirmed in the choices that we have already taken.  May we make new choices.

Questions

1. How did Jewish people in Pisidian Antioch originally respond to the gospel?
2. Why did their attitude change?
3. How is Jesus’ life demanding that people change their story?
4. What story does your life conform to?
5. How does Jesus challenge your story?

The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. ⁵ When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

⁶ They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, ⁷ who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. ⁸ But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. ⁹ Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, ¹⁰ “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?¹¹ Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. ¹² When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

When an Enemy Goes Too Far

What happened to turning the other cheek in the passage above?  The sorcerer stands opposed to the gospel, but he is a man like any other man.  Shouldn’t he be respected because he is created in the image of God?  Shouldn’t he be asked politely to stop and if he refuses, couldn’t the apostles be a little nicer to him?

In respect to personal injury, it is in most circumstances that we can oppose opposition through turning the other cheek.  Turning the other cheek need not be a weak and cowardly act.  Sometimes it is provocative to walk up to an aggressor and offer them the opportunity to hit you a second time.  Gandhi and MLK show us the power of allowing brutality to be highlighted by non-violent protest.  However, when the gospel and God’s work are threatened we are sometimes justified in meeting fire with fire.  The cause of the gospel is at stake here on Cyprus and Bar-Jesus is standing in its way.  He must be pushed aside, not for the personal advancement of Paul and Barnabas, but for the advancement of God’s cause.

It is hard sometimes to understand the proclamation of the nature of a person’s character. Bar-Jesus has so given himself over to  manipulation of the elements through magic that it has become part of his character.  He can change his nature, but the needs in these circumstances are immediate.  He can not be given time to examine his ways and turn from his evil-doing.  He is therefore stopped by a supernatural act.  To some this may seem cruel, however his physical blindness may cause him to reflect and see the light.  This seeming act of aggression and cruelty stops him from opposing the only thing in life that really matters.  It would also give Bar-Jesus a reason to assess whether his own life is on the right track.  In that sense it is grace.

Prayer

Help us to see when we need to actively oppose evil and to do powerful things to bring change.  Help us also to know when the change needs to start with us.

Questions

1. Where did Paul and Barnabas go?
2. How were they opposed?
3. How did God deal with the opposition?
4. What prevents the gospel from advancing in your backyard?
5. How should the opposition be dealt with?

Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. ² While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ³ Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

Sending Off the Best

The church at Antioch made a bold decision concerning missions.  They took their best people and commissioned them to go.  We might not be so bold.  Would we be delighted if our pastor left to go on missions because he was so bad, or would we be delighted for others who would receive the gift that we have received.

As Christians we want to show the world what God is capable of doing.  this means that we might consider sending our most capable people.  My home church, The Chapel, has sent very capable missionaries to serve in Kenya.  One of them was formerly appointed as a campus pastor before being sent out.

Have you even considered that God want might to use you in a context where they need your skills.  Many people serve out a dull career and risk nothing because they would rather play it safe.  Paul and Barnabas were not playing it safe.  However, great stories, like the Book of Acts, are rarely written about people who played it safe.

Prayer

May we be prepared to send our best people on missions.  May we be prepared to go ourselves.  May we embrace the adventure that you have called us to no matter where it leads.

Questions

1. What kind of people were Saul and Barnabas?
2. Why would they be successful missionaries?
3. Why do you think that God sends pairs?
4. Who are the most able people in your church?
5. Where might they serve on mission?