Daily Thoughts from Acts: The Missionary Endeavor (Acts 13:1-12)

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

So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.  But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.  (Acts 13:1-12 ESV)

When we give attention to worshiping the Lord and seeking His face we are in position to hear from Him. As these competent and tested teachers and prophets at Antioch seek the Lord the Spirit chooses Barnabas and Saul (also, from now on, called Paul) and the church lays hands on them as a sign of their agreement and blessing and they embark on what we now called Paul’s first missionary journey.  Though it may seem like no plan exists, the first place they visit is Barnabas’ home island, Cyprus, and they don’t begin preaching until they reach it.

Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) and the church has been going ever since.  And here God puts it on the heart of one local church, the church at Antioch, to send a team to places they know have not heard the gospel.  At this point in history every people is an unreached people group, but the team makes strategic choices about where they will begin.  One of those choices at this time was to begin in the synagogues of the Jews, the ones to whom belong the promises and Messiah. 

We’re not told how successful they were but the readiness of people for the gospel, intelligent people, is demonstrated by Sergius Paulus the proconsul of the island, an official of Rome.  He has heard of Paul and Barnabas and John Mark and requests an audience with them.  He is open.  But opposition is always present as well, even as Jesus predicted.  A man who stands to lose influence with Sergius Paulus, a magician and Jewish false prophet, tries to dissuade the proconsul from the gospel.

Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit on one occasion that we know of right after his conversion, and here again he is filled in order to make this proclamation of the gospel with power.  This kind of filling is seen throughout Acts and is a temporary empowerment by the Spirit in order to proclaim the gospel.  In this case Paul is given assurance from the Spirit that He wants to act in power to blind the sorcerer, and as a result the proconsul believes.

What will God do through you and me if we will serve Him faithfully and worship Him and be open to His leading?

A missionary to Africa told the story of an elderly woman who was reached with the gospel. Though she was blind and could neither read nor write, she wanted to share her new found faith with others. She went to the missionary and asked for a copy of the Bible in French. When she got it, she asked the missionary to underline John 3:16 in red and mark the page it was on so she could find it. The missionary wanted to see what she would do, so one day he followed her.

In the afternoon, just before school let out, she made her way to the front door. As the boys came out when school was dismissed, she would stop one and ask if he knew how to read French. When he said “Yes” she would ask him to read the verse that was marked in red. Then she would ask, “Do you know what this means?” and tell him about Christ.

The missionary said that twenty-four of the school boys that lady led to the Lord became pastors.