Luke/Acts for Beginners, this is lesson
number 21, Paul's Second Missionary Journey, Acts chapter 15, verse 36 to
chapter 18, verse 22. So we left off at the scene where the Apostles and elders
in Jerusalem had diffused an extremely divisive situation by sending a letter
to the church in Antioch. And if we recall correctly, the church at Antioch
was made up of both Jews and Gentiles, Jews and Gentiles who were converted
to Christianity. And so the church in Jerusalem sent them a letter
instructing them that contrary to certain teachings they had received, they
did not need to be circumcised before they could become Christians. This
particular idea had been promoted by Jewish Pharisees who had converted to
Christianity, but wanted to impose their former Jewish legalism on these converts,
or on Gentile converts to Christianity. Their idea was that in order to become a
Christian, which was an offshoot of Judaism in their mind, you needed to keep
the Jewish law. And the most obvious sign of this was the Jewish rite of
circumcision. This false idea was repudiated by the leaders in Jerusalem
and they informed the brethren of their decision and advice by letter, delivered
by Paul and Barnabas and Silas and Barsabbas. Their decision also confirmed
and approved the work that Paul and Barnabas had done among the Gentiles, and
gave it legitimacy among the brotherhood; otherwise, there would not have been a
second or third missionary effort. Could you imagine if this had, if this
teaching had been confirmed by the leaders. The leaders in Jerusalem
would have ruined the work among the Gentiles. After delivering the letter
to the church, Luke writes that Paul, Barnabas, and now Silas remained in
Antioch teaching the church there, probably reinforcing the
ideas that were sent in the letter and undoing some of the doctrinal
confusion caused by the teachers of the circumcision. This problem would continue
to plague the early church, because Paul speaks of it again in Galatians five, verse
12, and in the letter to the Colossians, chapter two, verses 11 to 17. So now we
begin Paul's second missionary journey in Acts chapter 15,
somewhere around 49 to 52 AD and begins with dispute, actually, a dispute. After a
time in Antioch, Paul proposes that he and Barnabas return to the field in
order to strengthen the churches that they had planted on their previous
journey. Barnabas and Paul have a disagreement at this point over bringing
Barnabas' cousin John Mark with them. The issue is settled as Paul chooses
Silas to work with him, and Barnabas takes John Mark under his wing and
returns to the work in Cyprus, his original home. Remember the first
missionary journey, that's the first place they went, he and Paul
and Barnabas and John Mark, they went to Cyprus first. It was a kind of friendly
territory, if you wish. So Barnabas takes John Mark and goes back to Cyprus
to continue the work. Now this is only speculation, but it seems that Paul had
outgrown the mentor relationship that he had with Barnabas, and Silas was a more
suitable partner for him at this point in his ministry. John Mark on the other
hand, still affected by his failure to keep up on the first missionary journey,
but willing to try again, was in need of a good teacher and a mentor, and he had one in Barnabas. Through God's providential care this incident that
threatened to break up one team of missionaries, actually produced two teams.
And we know that John Mark went on to serve both Paul and then Peter in later
years, and ended up writing one of the Gospels, the Gospel of Mark. That was John
Mark who did that. So we move ahead to chapter 15, "And he
was traveling through Syria "and Cilicia, strengthening the
churches. Paul came also to Derbe and to "Lystra. And a disciple was there, named
Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who "was a believer, but his father was a
Greek, and he was well spoken of by the "brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium.
Paul wanted this man to go with him; and "he took him and circumcised him because
of the Jews who were in those parts, for "they all knew that his father was a
Greek. Now while they were passing "through the cities, they were delivering
the decrees which had been decided upon "by the Apostles and elders who were in
Jerusalem, for them to observe. So the "churches were being strengthened in the
faith, and were increasing in number "daily." So we see that the objectives at
the beginning of this second journey are twofold: one, to read and explain the
letter sent by the Apostles concerning the circumcision business; and
secondly, to strengthen the faith of these young Christians in the churches
that Paul and Barnabas had originally planted. They also add Timothy to their
number, who was probably given the tasks originally done by John Mark. Note that
despite championing the right of Gentiles becoming Christians without
the obligation to be circumcised, Paul goes ahead and circumcises
Timothy, whose father was a Greek and a non-believer. This was necessary, not for
Timothy to become a Christian, he was already a Christian, but it was required
to enter synagogues where Paul preached, since uncircumcised men were not allowed
entry into a synagogue, and it was known that Timothy's father was a
Gentile. So to avoid any problems he circumcised
Timothy. Another episode now in chapter 16, beginning in verse six, let's read that,
it says, "They passed through the Phrygian "and Galatian region, having been
forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak "the Word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, "and the Spirit of Jesus did not
permit them; and passing by Mysia, they "came down to Troas.
CA vision appeared to Paul in the night, "a man of Macedonia was standing and
appealing to him and saying, 'Come over to "Macedonia and help us.' When he had seen
the vision immediately he sought to go "into Macedonia, concluding that God had
called us to preach the gospel to them." So from their starting point in Antioch
in Syria to Troas is approximately 785 miles. There's like a
line there, in the book of Acts. They were here and they went
there. We don't realize the distance covered. Luke describes the trip in a few
verses, but their overland route could have taken them several months. The Roman
Road system at the time permitted fairly safe travel. And people like Paul walked
some 15 to 20 miles a day. They would stay in inns, or homes of friends, or
synagogues. Aside from their work in the churches they established the first trip,
much of their journey was a failed attempt to go eastward. They
were trying to go east to Asia. The Spirit preventing them, that
Luke mentions, could mean a variety of setbacks or obstacles that prevented
them from successfully preaching the gospel in that region. It could
be a washed out bridge or no available synagogues, illness, lack of finances,
perhaps a message in a dream or a vision. In some way the Holy Spirit was
preventing them from doing their work towards the East. Once they
had headed wast and arrived at the coastal city of Troas, Paul has a vision
that finally provides the direction that they are seeking. The dream is general
in nature, come to Macedonia. No more details of who or where or how, but
Paul's faith is strong enough to act based on this limited instruction. And so,
he arrives at Philippi. So in his vision Paul saw a man of Macedonia
calling out to him for help. So Paul and his companions, they set out
from Troas and they head for this city of Philippi, which was a leading city in
the Macedonian region. Once there, they seek out a place where Jews might
gather, so that Paul might find an opportunity to preach. So let's
take a look at Acts chapter 16, it says, "And on the Sabbath day we went outside
the gate to a riverside, where we were "supposing that there would be a place
of prayer; and we sat down and began "speaking to the women who had assembled.
A woman named Lydia, from the city of "Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a
worshipper of God, was listening; and the "Lord opened her heart to respond to the
things spoken by God. And when she and "her household had been baptized, she
urged us, saying, 'If you have judged me to "be faithful to the Lord, come into my
house and stay.' And she prevailed upon us." So with these baptisms the church is
established in Philippi. In Acts 16:16 to 24, we're not going to read that, but in
the following verses Luke describes an incident that resembled what took place
in Cyprus during the first missionary journey. There, Paul struck blind a
sorcerer who was trying to hinder his work. In Philippi he casts out an evil
spirit from a girl who had been following them about and drawing
attention to their ministry. Paul, not wanting a witness from a girl possessed
of an evil spirit, quiets her by casting out the spirit. Of course, this led to a
riot stirred up by the girl's handlers, who made a living using her adult skills,
not adult, but occult skills. Paul and Silas are then dragged before the judge,
they're beaten and then put into prison with their feet locked in stalks.
The only difference here was that their imprisonment was not caused by the Jews
this time. And so, we get to Acts chapter 16, we'll read this section beginning in
verse 25, it says, "About midnight Paul and "Silas were praying and
singing hymns of praise to God "and the prisoners were listening to
them, and suddenly there came a great "earthquake, so that the foundations of
the prison house were shaken; and "immediately all the doors were opened
and everyone's chains were unfastened. "When the jailer awoke and saw the prison
doors open, he drew his sword and was "about to kill himself,
supposing that the prisoner "had escaped. But Paul cried out with a
loud voice saying, 'Do not harm yourself, "for we are all here.' And he called for
the lights and rushed in, and trembling "with fear he fell down before Paul and
Silas, and after he brought them out, he "said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'
They said, 'Believe in the Lord Jesus and "you will be saved, you and your household.'
And they spoke the Word of the Lord to "him, together with all who were in his
house. And he took them that very hour of "the night and washed their wounds, and
immediately he was baptized, he and all "his household. And he brought them into
his house and set food before them, and "rejoiced greatly, having believed in God
with his whole household." I want you to notice that the jailer had some
knowledge of the faith, because the earthquake and the fact that none of the
prisoners escaped moves him to ask the same question that the crowd on
Pentecost Sunday asked Peter. In other words, brethren what shall we do?
Well, how are we going to be saved? Luke records only a summary of what Paul
taught him, which in a few words was that faith in Christ would save him, but
notice that the very first thing the jailer does after confessing his
faith is to submit to baptism, just like the crowd at Pentecost. Now Luke doesn't
mention Paul teaching the jailer and his household about baptism, but the fact
that this is the first thing he does after acknowledging his belief tells us
that he was taught about this as part of the Gospel message. Now an interesting
postscript here, that we read about all the way to verse 40, an
interesting postscript is that when the magistrates sought to release them
quietly, Paul reminds them of his Roman citizenship and the illegal manner in
which they were treated and he refuses to go unless publicly released by the
judges themselves. And of course he didn't want someone to accuse him of
escaping from jail in some future attack on him, accusing him of being an
escaped convict. He wanted to make sure that it was very public that he was
being released properly by the magistrates. And so the
judges release him publicly and legally. He leaves the jail,
he pays a farewell visit to Lydia, and moves on to another location
to preach the gospel. This other location would be Thessalonica, and we'll
read about that beginning in chapter 17. There's the location of
Thessalonica in relationship to Philippi. So we read in chapter 17, "Now when they
had traveled through Amphipolis and "Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica,
where there was a synagogue of the Jews. "And according to Paul's custom, he went
to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned "with them from the scriptures. Explaining
and giving evidence that the Christ had "to suffer and rise again from the
dead, and saying, 'This Jesus, whom I am "proclaiming to you, is the Christ.' And
some of them were persuaded and joined "Paul and Silas along with a large number
of the God-fearing Greeks and a number "of the leading women. But the Jews,
becoming jealous and taking along some "wicked men from the marketplace, formed a
mob and set the city in an uproar and "attacking the house of Jason, they were
seeking to bring them out to the people. "When they did not find them, they began
dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authority, shouting, 'These men,
who have upset the world, have come here "also, and Jason has welcomed them; and
they all act contrary to the decrees of "Caesar, saying that there's another King,
Jesus.' They stirred up the crowd and the "city authorities who heard these things.
And when they had received the pledge "from Jason and the others, they released
them." So do you notice a pattern here? First Paul arrives at a city and he
finds a place where he can preach; and as takes place in every place that he
preaches, some people believe and others don't. The believers follow Paul and
desire more teaching. And then some of the disbelievers cause trouble for Paul.
Paul then leaves or escapes and the cycle repeats itself in another location.
So despite the trouble, however, a church is planted in the city of Thessalonica. He moves on to the city of Berea, in Acts chapter 17, verse
10 to 14. Berea is the exception to this cycle that proves the rule. Here the Jews
are eager to hear Paul and to consider everything according to the scriptures.
Many of them are converted, along with Greek proselytes to Judaism.
Unfortunately this fruitful work is upset as a familiar cycle is repeated.
This time, however, it is not the Bereans who cause the trouble, but Jews from
Thessalonica who come over to disrupt Paul's ministry among the Bereans. They
spirit him safely out of town, leaving Timothy and Silas to continue the work
among the Bereans for a time. After his time in Berea Paul makes his way to the
great city of Athens. Let's read a little bit about what takes place there in Acts
chapter 17, beginning in verse 15. "Now "those who escorted Paul brought him as
far as Athens and receiving a command "for Silas and Timothy to come to him as
soon as possible, they left. Now while "Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his
spirit was being provoked within him as "he was observing the city full of idols.
So he was reasoning in the synagogue "with the Jews and the God-fearing
Gentiles and in the marketplace every "day with those who happen to be present,
and also some of the Epicurean and Stoic "philosophers were conversing with him.
Some were saying, 'What would this idle "babbler wish to say?' Others, 'He seems to
be a proclaimer of strange deities,' - "because he was preaching Jesus and the
resurrection. And they took him and "brought him to the Areopagus, saying, 'May
we know what this new teaching is, which "you are proclaiming, for you are bringing
some strange things to our ears, so we "want to know what these things mean.' (Now
all the Athenians and the strangers "visiting there used to spend their time
in nothing other than telling or hearing "something new.)" Now what is interesting
about Paul's time in Athens is that no church was planted upon his arrival and
his early preaching in the synagogue. Luke only records that Paul reasoned
with the Jews and the Gentile converts, but there's no mention of anyone believing or being
baptized. And there is no mention of any responses as a result of this preaching
in the public square early in his ministry there. Instead, Luke records the
invitation and the speech that Paul delivers at Mars Hill. This was a significant event, because it was his first and most direct
contact with the elite philosophers and thinkers of that day. The speech would be
the most important showcase of Christian ideas and gospel message to the pagan
mindset gathered in one place. So first, let's get a little background about Mars Hill. Mars Hill is a Roman name for a hill located in Athens. In Greek it
was called Hill of Ares, the God of War, known to the Romans as Mars, and thus the
name Mars Hill. This is the modern view of it, as you can see. Now the
Areopagus was the Supreme Council or the upper council, a body of elected
officials. They were elected for life, very much like a judge on the Supreme
Court here in the United States. And these judges met in this location. These
men were the great and famous of Athens who gathered to hear cases dealing
exclusively with homicide, but also to hear the newest ideas in philosophy,
religion, and other areas of human thinking and knowledge. And so on that
day they were gathered to hear this new religion, this new teaching, as befitting
the rich and powerful, who are, in every generation, usually the first ones to
come into contact with new and visionary ideas. So this is Paul's first speech to
a large influential and completely pagan audience. He will not argue his case from
the prophets or the scriptures, as he has done with the Jewish audiences. Very
interesting how he approaches. So let's go back to the text, verse 22, it says, "So
Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus "and said, 'Men of Athens, I observed
you are very religious in all respects, "for while I was passing through and
examining the objects of your worship, I "also found an altar with this
inscription: To an unknown God. "Therefore, what you worship in ignorance,
this I proclaim to you, the God who made "the world and all things in it, since He
is Lord of heavens and earth, does not "dwell in temples made with hands, nor is
He served by human hands, as though He "needed anything, since He Himself gives
to all people life and breath in all "things and He made from one man every
nation of mankind to live on all the "face of the earth, having determined
their appointed times and the boundaries "of their habitation, that they would seek
God, if perhaps they might grope for Him "and find Him, though He is not far from
each one of us; for in Him we live and "move and exist, as even some of your own
poets have said, for we are also His "children. Being then the children of God
we ought not to think that the Divine "Nature is like gold or silver or stone,
an image formed by the art or the "thought of man. Therefore, having
overlooked the times of ignorance God is "now declaring to men that all people
everywhere should repent, because He has "fixed the day in which He will judge the
world in righteousness through a Man "whom He has appointed, having furnished
proof to all men by raising Him from the "dead." I want you to note that Paul
bases his speech on their notion of God, not a Jewish notion of God, their notion
of God, which was pantheistic. In other words, they had many gods. Paul's first
objective is to move them from the concept of many gods to the concept of
only one God. Next he explains that this one God is the source of everything that
exists, and is not dependent on man nor is His nature human or material. His
following point is that God requires certain things from His creation,
including man, and at some point will judge the world, something that his
audience of judges could relate to. And then finally he introduces Christ and
His resurrection, but he is not able to finish, because they cut him off at this point. So let's just keep reading, "Now when they
heard of the resurrection of the dead, "some began to sneer, but others said, 'We shall hear you again concerning this.' So "Paul went out of their midst, but some
men joined him and believed, among whom "also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a
woman named Damaris and others with them." So up to this point of his speech, up to the point of resurrection, Paul's speech was well
received, since the points he was making demonstrated a logical and superior way
to think about divine beings. For example, one God versus many gods; an all-powerful
God versus their idea of demigods of Greek mythology; a God who creates man
versus their idea of man creating God; and a God who dispenses justice rather
than human beings dispensing justice. So Paul's image and
teaching about the true God is immediately superior to what they had
understood to this point, however, they balked at the idea of the resurrection
of Jesus, because although they believed in an afterlife for the soul, they
considered the flesh evil and a hindrance to the journey of the soul,
which was released from the material body at death. The idea of a human body
resurrecting from the dead, something accepted by faith, seemed
ridiculous and useless to them, since their afterlife belief centered on the soul
getting out of the body in which it was trapped. They believed the soul was
trapped in the body and the flesh was evil, and finally the soul was released.
So to have the body resurrected, for them was just one step too
far. They dismissed Paul, but not before two prominent people and other
individuals believed and followed Paul for more teaching, showing that God's
Word and His message is never returned empty. And so we move on, or Paul moves on,
to the next city, which is Corinth. And we'll read in chapter 18,
begin there, it says, "After these things "he left Athens and went to Corinth, and
he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of "Pontus, having recently come from Italy
with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius "had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome.
And he came to them and because he was "of the same trade he stayed with them.
And they were working, for by trade they "were tent makers. And he was reasoning in
the synagogue every sabbath and trying "to persuade Jews and Greeks." So Luke
includes a fascinating glimpse into the everyday life of Paul, how he got around,
how he financed some of his travel, and the conditions in which he lived. Aquila
and Priscilla, his wife, are - Priscilla, the wife of Aquila, are introduced here and
we will see them again a little bit later on in the narrative.
Note also Luke's attention to historical detail. He mentions not only the
city that the three of them are in, the city of Corinth, but also a time marker
as well. We know that Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome. We know this
historically. And we know that Claudius reigned from 41 to 54 AD. So we
keep reading in Acts chapter 18, "But when Silas and Timothy came down
from Macedonia, Paul began devoting "himself completely to the Word, solemnly
testifying to the Jews that Jesus was "the Christ. But when they resisted and
blasphemed, he shook out his garments and "said to them, 'Your blood be on your own
heads. I am clean. From now on I will go "to the Gentiles.' Then he left there and
went to the house of a man named "Titius Justus, a worshiper of God,
whose house was next to the synagogue. "Crispus, the leader of the synagogue,
believed in the Lord with all his household. And many of the
Corinthians, when they heard, were "believing and being baptized. And the
Lord said to Paul in the night by a "vision, 'Do not be afraid any longer, but
go on speaking and do not be silent, for "I am with you, and no man will attack you,
in order to harm you, for I have many "people in this city.' And he
settled there a year and "six months, teaching the
Word of God among them." So Paul stays in Corinth for an 18-month
period after the Lord encouraged him to remain there and continue teaching and
preaching. Several prominent Jews are converted, as well as Gentiles, but when
the Jews resisted and blasphemed, Paul shifted his efforts to the Gentiles. And
he's encouraged to continue doing so after the encouragement of the Lord.
He's also preaching full-time, now that Silas and Timothy have come to help him.
So now they're working, they're providing resources so he can give himself over to
his preaching ministry full-time. Well, after a long period of uninterrupted
ministry the old cycle of opposition from the Jews will again begin, and Paul
is arrested. The judge will release Paul, seeing that this is a civil case, rather,
this is not a civil case, but a religious dispute. And so we'll jump forward to
Acts 18, Acts 18:18, it says, "Paul, having "remained many days longer, took leave of
the brethren and put out to sea for "Syria, and with him were Priscilla and
Aquila. In Cenchrea he had his hair "cut, for he was keeping a vow. They came
to Ephesus, and he left them there. Now he "himself entered the synagogue and
reasoned with the Jews. When they asked "him to stay for a longer time he did not
consent, but taking leave of them and "saying, 'I will return to you again if God
wills,' he set sail from Ephesus. When he "had landed at Caesarea he went up and
greeted the church and went down to "Antioch." So Luke writes that Paul
continued ministering after the trial, but after a year and a half he felt that
it was time to return home. He brings Aquila and Priscilla with him and he
leaves them in Ephesus where he spends very little time, but he promises to
return. And we'll find out later that Ephesus becomes a very important center
for evangelism to that area. Paul finishes his second missionary journey
by greeting the church at Caesarea, which was the port of entry located
there, and then made his way north to his home congregation to report on his trip.
And of course, he's been away a couple of years, to get some well needed rest. All right, well, we're going to stop here in our textual study and maybe
draw a couple of lessons that we can see through this narrative here. I
think some pretty practical things, not just kind of theological lessons, but
just practical lessons for everyday Christian living. For example, it's
possible to have a dispute in the church without having a division.
Go back at the beginning of the section we studied today. The
disagreement between Paul and Barnabas is rather typical in the church, isn't it?
Two brothers really invested in the work, disagree on how to proceed. Here's a
situation where Satan could drive a wedge between these two men, that could
start a complete division in the church. Note, however, that there was no division
and no one quit the church. I believe that they brought their problem to the
church leadership for a resolution. In Acts chapter 15, verse 40, it says,
"But Paul chose Silas and left, being "committed by the brethren to the grace
of the Lord." Luke mentions this to underscore that the church was aware
of and blessed the resolution that they had come to as far as continuing with
the work, that Barnabas will go one way, Paul would go the other. The
church blesses Paul's continued ministry with Silas. My point here is that we
should bring church matters to the elders, when there are disputes or
offenses. This is both a good way to seek resolution and it guards against
division and the breaking of fellowship over petty things.
Lesson number two, you don't know the last step before you take the first step.
Paul was looking for direction after the door of opportunity closed for
his preaching in the eastern regions. His prayer, Lord, show me the way. Give me some
direction. The Lord answers this prayer by telling him that Macedonia needs help.
Well, that's helpful, but think for a moment,
at the time Macedonia was a region of approximately ten thousand square
miles, and its main city, Philipi, had a population of maybe 10 to 20,000 people. Talk about finding a needle in a haystack. It's just come
over to Macedonia, it's like come over to Canada, from here in the
States. Come over to Canada. It's huge. However, Paul knew that the direction was
west and not East, and the territory was Macedonia. He trusted the Lord for
further directions when they would be needed. For now, he demonstrated his
faith by leaving Troas and heading for Macedonia. Now, we've just read that he
eventually found the city and the people and the work when he needed to find the
city, the people, and the work, exactly where God was leading him to. Some people, they're not going to take the first step in following the Lord,
unless He shows them all of the following steps to reach the goal, but
that's not how it works. That system there,
that's called walking by sight. I've got ten steps to take to get to the goal, and the
Lord has shown me steps 1 to 10. That's walking by sight, that's not walking by
faith. And that's not how the Lord works. Usually the first step is the step
of faith, and then God will not show us the next step or the final step until we
take the first step of faith. We like to play it safe. We like to cover
our bets. We like to reduce the risk, not launch out unless success is guaranteed
at the starting gate. But a life devoted to Christ sometimes requires us to obey
Him first by taking a first step of faith, before He reveals the
next step or the final step. If the Lord calls you to something, you
can be sure of two things: one, if He's the one calling, you will have to walk by
faith in order to answer that call; and number two, if He is the one calling, He
will provide everything that you will need in due time, if you're ready to
answer His call. Okay, so a couple of lessons that we can draw from Paul's
experiences. This is the assignment for the next lesson, number 22 in our series,
reading chapter 18:23 to chapter 21, verse 14. Thank you for your attention
and we'll see you next time.
